Ecosystem health
Aquatic Ecosystem Presentation Rubric
Students choose an aquatic ecosystem in the state of Maine. After in depth research into the health of that ecosystem, students share their findings. This rubric and instruction sheet guide students as they work independently on their research.
A Picture of Health: Human Health Continuum
Use A Picture of Health to prime students to think about what it means to be healthy. Before they tackle ecosystem health, students consider human health – a topic more familiar that they all have personal experience with. Students look at a set of photographs of people that show a range of health. They work together to arrange them along a continuum from healthy to unhealthy. They practice backing up their decisions with reasons and evidence, a skill they will use when assessing ecosystem health.
Nesting Bird Game
This is a fun game where participants explore habitat and nesting bird sites with regard to invasive species. Specifically, it addresses the competition between native birds and invasive bird species when it comes to habitat resources and predators.
A Picture of Health: Ecosystem Health Continuum
The Ecosystem Health Continuum gets students playing and experimenting with their own understanding of and assessment criteria for determining ecosystem health. Students look at a series of photographs of ecosystems that show a range of health. They arrange them along a continuum from healthy to unhealthy, and practice backing up the claims they make using evidence.
Project Participation Rubric
This rubric could be used by students to self-assess their work in a project.
Hemlock Woolly Adelgid in Maine, 2010
This is a Google Earth map layer of the towns in Maine with official reports of invasive hemlock woolly adelgid. Data are from the Maine Forest Service (http://www.maine.gov/doc/mfs/HWAOverview.htm). Please note that the map markers are placed on the town name, and not on the exact location of the HWA infestations.
Putting Photos on Google Earth
Here is a site to help put your photos onto Google Earth.
Ecosystem Health: Checking the Vital Signs of a Maine Watershed
How healthy are your local ecosystems? Students use a variety of health indicators to investigate and assess the health of a local upland, freshwater, or coastal system. They share conclusions and fresh ideas with local planners and resource managers in their communities, and report their findings more broadly to the scientific community through the Vital Signs website.
Build a Watershed
In this activity students use rocks and aluminum foil to construct a watershed.
Then they add pollutants (oil and manure) and observe how pollutants affect a watershed.
Finally, they add a wetlands (a sponge) to observe how wetlands can help to clean pollutants from a watershed.
Ratatouille and Your Friend The Rat
Disney and the invasive species connection. Four-By-Rat activity. This is an adaptation of the quick write / quick draw activity.
