NASA LIFTOFF Instructional Case How must life adapt to exist on other planets? title of IC: author: Elaine Skaggs
Dec 22, 2015
NASA LIFTOFF
Instructional Case
How must life adapt to exist on other planets?
title of IC:
author: Elaine Skaggs
NASA LIFTOFF
Instructional Case
teacher: Elaine Skaggs
school: Upland High School
course/grade: Biology grades 9 - 12
district: Upland Unified School District
email: [email protected]
NASA LIFTOFF
Instructional Case
Could life exist on other planets or moons in our solar system, knowing the extreme abiotic factors to which they would have to adapt?
generative question:
NASA LIFTOFF
Instructional Case
Biology 1. The fundamental life processes of plants and animals depend on a
variety of chemical reactions that occur in specialized areas of the organism’s cells.
6. Stability in an ecosystem is a balance between competing effects. 7 .The frequency of an allele in a gene pool of a population depends on
many factors and may be stable or unstable over time.Investigation & Experimentation
1. Scientific progress is made by asking meaningful questions and conducting careful investigations. AS a basis for understanding this concept, students should develop their own questions and perform investigations
learning objectives (key standards):
NASA LIFTOFF
Instructional Case
Formative assessmentsPod cast of Lab safety rulesT-chart - qualitative and quantitative observationsKWL chart -Characteristics of LifeVenn diagram – Prokaryotes vs EukaryotesCarousel reading of Extremophiles , write facts, share with rotating groups of students5-3-1 chart - How do abiotic factors affect life?
Summative assessmentsChapter generated test Prentice Hall Biology Authors Miller and Levine
assessment overview:
NASA LIFTOFF
Instructional Case
Students will choose a planet or moon in our solar system and create an organism that would survive the extreme abiotic factors on that celestial body. Research must include:Review of 3 peer-review scientific journalsReport must include:Pictures & written description of your planetpH, pressure, gravity, temperature, salinity, radiation, light, Could your planet or moon support a water-base or methane -base life form? What adaptations would be required for survival?What about food? Primary producers vs heterotropes?Build a model of your organism or ecosystem?
culminating project:
NASA LIFTOFF
Instructional Case
Thinking like a scientist - Scientific observations – D Gilbert’s chemical labCharacteristics of Life - Sand, Yeast, Fizzy Lab, Colormetric lab and Extremophile activity Chemistry of Life – Properties of Water – Carbon Compounds – polymer labChemical reactions and enzymes –Catalase Enzyme labHow do abiotic factors affect life – pH lab, pressure lab, temperature lab, light
and radiation 5-3-1 activityWhat is ecology? Energy flow activityRole of climate – greenhouse effect What shapes our ecosystems? – abiotic and biotic factors – mapping temperatures outside on campus , lawn, artificial turf, cleared soil, concreteStudent project
key lessons & activities:
NASA LIFTOFF
Instructional Case5E inquiry activities:
• ENGAGE• Samples of Living verses Non-Living• Plastic snail/live snail & more• Observe & record• EXPLORE• Participants make observations of 3
test tubes – hand lenses touch, smell, listen
• #1 Sand• #2 Yeast• #3 Crushed Alka-seltzer• Add sugar (food source) – record • Add warm water – record & discuss• Add more sugar – Add more water
• EXPLAIN• How can you tell if something is
living?• What are the characteristics of life?• Graphic organizer• EXTEND• What requirements are necessary for
basic survival and which add to the quality of life of the living thing?
• EVALUATE • Students write, draw, or sing(rap)
what living organisms need to survive?
NASA LIFTOFF
Instructional Case
ENGAGEPond water on LCD projector• What are the requirements that
many of these living organisms have in common?
• How are their needs different from ours?
• Think-Pair-shareEXPLORE• Are microbes alive?• Students observe mold growing on
potatoes, and then look at magnified images of several different microbes.
• What did you observe? Color shapes?
EXPLAIN• How could you get a closer look at
microbes? What tools do you need?• How can you tell if something is
living?• What are the characteristics of life?• Graphic organizerEXTEND• What requirements are necessary for
basic survival and which add to the quality of life of the living thing?
EVALUATE• Students write, draw, or sing(rap)
what living organisms need to survive?
NASA LIFTOFF
Instructional Case
integrated pedagogy:• Making labs more open-ended• Backwards mapping• Thinking maps• Academic vocabulary tier 1 – 3• Collaboration with mod-severe special
education class
NASA LIFTOFF
Instructional Case
• NASA resources:• http://www.microbe.org/microbes/mysteries.asp• http://www.microbeworld.org/htm/aboutmicro/
gallery/gallery_start.htm• http://www.cellsalive.com/cam2.htm• www.amnh.org/exhibitions/halltour/• http://teachspacescience.org/graphics/pdf/10000406.pdf• http://microscope.mbl.edu• http://resourcecommittee.house.gov/subcommittees/emr/
usgsweb/
NASA LIFTOFF
Instructional Case
21st Century Skills• Effective communicator - oral reports• Information Literacy – Research• Collaboration – students will tutor severe to
moderate special education students• Initiative and Self-driven