| Resource type | Theme | Title | Teaser | Grade Level | Name | Comments | Post date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Learning activities | Ecosystems, Scientific inquiry | Oh Deer: Invasive species style | In this active and competitive game, students experience how a community of native animals and plants changes over time in response to resource availability in their habitat. Students collect data during the game and then graph and analyze how predators, limited resources, habitat health, and INVASIVE SPECIES can disrupt the natural ebbs and flows of native communities. Students visualize and analyze their results using graphs and story telling. |
Middle school (grades 6-8) High school (grades 9-12) Professional development |
vitalteach | 0 | 2010-07-27 |
| Analysis resources, Field work resources, Habitat monitoring resources | Biodiversity, Current events, Ecosystem health, Ecosystems, Invasive species, Scientific inquiry | Putting Photos on Google Earth | Here is a site to help put your photos onto Google Earth. | Middle school (grades 6-8) | Jamien Jacobs | 0 | 2010-06-25 |
| Watershed experiences | Ecosystem health, Ecosystems | Ecosystem Health: Checking the vital signs of a Maine watershed | Is my local ecosystem healthy? Students investigate how ecosystems function and the quality of resources and services they provide. Ecosystem Health: Checking the vital signs of a Maine watershed (http://vitalventure.gmri.org/watershed-experiences/ecosystem-health/) NOTE: Watershed Experience overview and 10 individual activity overviews are available. | Middle school (grades 6-8) | vitalteach | 0 | 2010-04-16 |
| Watershed experiences | Ecosystems | All My Watershed Neighbors | What species live in my neighborhood? Students investigate the species that live within their local watershed habitats and the resources those species (and they!) need. 13 activities! All My Watershed Neighbors (http://vitalventure.gmri.org/watershed-experiences/neighbors/) GMRI's Watershed Experiences get students outside to observe, ask questions, investigate, take action, and deepen their scientific understanding and connection to their local watersheds. | Middle school (grades 6-8) | vitalteach | 0 | 2010-04-16 |
| Analysis resources, Watershed experiences | Ecosystems, Invasive species, Scientific inquiry | Maine Watersheds Map Layer | This map contains boundary files for 17 Maine watersheds. |
Middle school (grades 6-8) High school (grades 9-12) Professional development |
iSpyaSign | 0 | 2010-03-15 |
| Watershed experiences | Ecosystem health, Ecosystems | 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. | Middle school (grades 6-8) | skistenmacher | 0 | 2009-11-05 |
| Learning activities | Ecosystem health, Ecosystems, Invasive species | Aquatic Ecosystem Research Project | Students choose a body of water (preferably in Maine) to research. They focus their research on three questions: 1) What are important features of the body of water? 2) What is some data on invasive species or water quality from your ecosystem? 3) A question of student choice | Middle school (grades 6-8) | chotaling | 0 | 2009-11-05 |
| Learning activities | Biodiversity, Ecosystems, Invasive species | There's a New Bird in Town | Students experience how an invasive species may out-compete native species for vital resources. This high stakes, high energy game simulates the introduction of non-native and invasive species using MnMs and various kitchen drawer items. Students experience firsthand what happens and what if feels like when native and invasive species compete for essential resources. This is also an excellent activity for introducing concepts such as habitats, limiting resources, physical adaptations, and competition among species. | Middle school (grades 6-8) | vitalteach | 1 | 2009-11-04 |
| Learning activities | Biodiversity, Ecosystems | Google Earth Diversity Trip | Students take a Google Earth diversity trip to engage with the idea of biodiversity in their local watershed. Google Earth is a free online resource that lets you fly anywhere on Earth to view satellite imagery and maps. Using this tool, students become more familiar with the boundaries, features, and orientation of their own watershed within the larger Gulf of Maine watershed. | Middle school (grades 6-8) | vitalteach | 0 | 2009-11-04 |
| Learning activities | Biodiversity, Ecosystem health, Ecosystems, Invasive species, Scientific inquiry | Biodiversity Jenga | Pair up Bill Nye the Science Guy and Jenga to engage students with the concept of biodiversity, and to underscore the importance of maintaining healthy, diverse ecosystems. Students remove native species from an ecosystem, and add non-native or invasive species. They see and understand how these actions may ultimately compromise the health and stability of an ecosystem. | Middle school (grades 6-8) | vitalteach | 0 | 2009-11-04 |
