Ecosystems: Life in the Polar Extremes

NSDL Brown Bag Series Beyond Penguins & Polar Bears: Life in the Polar Extremes April 7, 2009 6:30pm - 7:45 pm Eastern Brought to you by the National Science Digital Library Resource Center in partnership with Ohio State University and Stafford County Public Schools For audio, dial our free conference number: 866.740.1260 Code: 4972943

Welcome! Today’s session will be recorded Mute: *6 Unmute: *7 For audio: dial conference number 866.740.1260 Code: 4972943 Let’s find out more about you: Introduce yourself and let us know why you chose to join us tonight

NSDL Brown Bag Series Beyond Penguins & Polar Bears: Life in the Polar Extremes April 7, 2009 Today’s moderator: Robert Payo NSDL Outreach & Professional Development Manager Welcome! Today’s session will be recorded Mute: *6 Unmute: *7

Today’s NSDL Expert Jessica Fries-Gaither, Beyond Penguins and Polar Bears Project Director and Elementary Resource Specialist, Ohio State University http://beyondpenguins.nsdl.org For audio: dial conference number 866.740.1260 Code: 4972943

Overview of Presentation For audio: dial conference number 866.740.1260 Code: 4972943
Polar ecosystems: tundra, Arctic and Southern Oceans
Polar ecosystems in a warming world
Ecological misconceptions
Teaching resources from Beyond Penguins and Polar Bears

Featuring resources from Tundra: Life in the Polar Extremes – Issue 13, April 2009 http://beyondpenguins.nsdl.org Resource list for Stafford County webinars can be found at http://www.diigo.com/list/nsdlworkshops/staffordcounty

Arctic Tundra Physical Factors Cool climate – short summers, long winters Extreme variability in daylight hours Low intensity solar radiation Permafrost © Canadian Museum of Nature / Musée canadien de la nature All rights reserved. http://nature.ca/ukaliq/021des/a196_fwb_e.cfm

Arctic Ocean: Coastal Ecosystem Physical Factors Sea Ice Salt water Average water temperature just below 32 F

Southern Ocean http://www.coolantarctica.com/Antarctica%20fact%20file/wildlife/whales/food%20web.htm Physical factors Sea ice Salt water

Changing Ecosystems: Climate Change and Pollution
Decrease in sea ice
Decrease in primary producers and zooplankton
Loss of hunting/breeding platform for polar bears, seals, walruses, penguins
Warming ocean water
Increase in wind stress (decreased productivity)
Stresses amphipods and other organisms
Possibility of invasive species
Ocean Acidification
Stresses amphipods and other organisms
Heavy metals and pollutants
Accumulate up food chain
Very high levels in apex predators such as polar bears
Impacts at all levels of food webs

Where Creatures Live
In this lesson, students discover that the environmental conditions of a place determine the types of plants and animals that live there.
Video Clips
Interactive Web Activity
Using Technology to Learn about Ecosystems

Poll #2 I most commonly search for multimedia materials by:
Doing general searches on Google
Searching larger collections like NSDL
Going to specific educational sites I always go to first
Basing my selection on colleagues’ recommendations
Select your answer by pushing on your touch tone pad

More Online Resources

Ecological Misconceptions Students may think: Ecosystems are not a functioning whole but simply a collection of organisms. Ecosystems include not just the organisms but also the interactions between organisms and between the organisms and their physical environment. Formative assessment, targeted instruction focusing on relationships

Arctic Creatures Mobile Students read about diatoms, copepods, Arctic cod, ringed seals, walruses, and polar bears. They create a mobile to represent the interactions between organisms in the arctic food chain. Download an accompanying podcast from the magazine or iTunes!

Making the Forest and Tundra Wildlife Connection

Wolf and the Moose Donna Dewhurst, US FWS Simulate predator/prey relationships through a tag-like game Vary numbers of predator and prey to reflect changing conditions Follow-up discussion to extend understanding Modify activity for other animals Andrew Johnson, Flickr

Bearly any Ice A variation of the predator/prey tag activity that includes declining sea ice as a result of climate change. Encourages students to consider the impact of changing environmental conditions on food webs and ecosystems. Amanda Graham, Flickr

Poll #2 A common misconception elementary students have related to energy flow of ecosystems is that:
Students rarely think energy is measurable and quantifiable.
Students tend to associate energy only with living things, in particular with growing, fitness, exercise, and food.
Students have difficulty in identifying the sources of energy for plants and also for animals.
All of the above.
Select your answer by pushing on your touch tone pad --from Atlas of Science Literacy, Project 2061, AAAS

Let’s pause for questions from the audience…. http://nsdl.org

Integrating Literacy: Feature Stories “ A Tundra Tale” in Issue 13, April 2009 “ A Whale of an Ocean” coming soon – Issue 14, May 2009

Integrating Literacy: Virtual Bookshelf Tundra by Aaron Frisch Who Eats What? by Patricia Lauber Arctic Appetizers by Gwendolyn Hooks A Tundra Food Chain by Rebecca Hogue Wojahn and Donald Wojahn

Integrating Literacy: Writing Ecosystem Journalism Students blend scientific research, expository and creative writing as they create a newspaper for an ecosystem. All About Our Town: Using Brochures to Teach Informational Writing Students create a brochure about the physical and living components of an ecosystem. Modify original lesson.

Biome is Where the Art Is Students demonstrate understanding of a biome by creating collages from torn paper and glue. Other ideas Children’s books Dioramas/Trioramas Life-Sized Models Extend and Assess Student Understanding

Interested in learning more? Beyond Penguins Web Seminar Series: Arctic and Antarctic Birds April 21, 2009 6:30pm - 8:00pm April 2009, Issue 13 http://beyondpenguins.nsdl.org Beyond Penguins and Polar Bears Blog http://expertvoices.nsdl.org/polar Beyond Penguins and Polar Bears Podcasts January 2009, Issue 10

THANK YOU! http://beyondpenguins.nsdl.org Jessica Fries-Gaither [email_address] Resource list for tonight’s presentation: http://www.diigo.com/list/nsdlworkshops/staffordcounty

National Science Digital Library Resource Center Kaye Howe, Executive Director Susan Van Gundy, Deputy Director NSDL Brown Bag Moderators: Eileen McIlvain, Communications Manager Robert Payo, Outreach & Professional Development Manager

THANK YOU! Be sure to fill out our survey- look for a new box to pop open on your computer screen

Ecosystems: Life in the Polar Extremes

by The Ohio State University, College of Education and Human Ecology on Sep 24, 2010

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Ecosystems: Life in the Polar Extremes Presentation Transcript