Overview & Lesson Sequence

Focus on Standards & Assessment

Materials Needed, Preparation & Planning, Management Strategies

Background Info

Intro Activity
Why Study Populations?

Meet the Aphids

Research Project
Aphid Population Growth

Data Analysis I

Data Analysis II

Optional Activity
The Power of Exponential Growth

References

Glossary

Suppliers

Resource Sheets

Great Gravidity Home

CISEO Home

Intro Activity: Why Study Populations?

Class Time Required: approximately 30 minutes

Start a general discussion about populations using the following prompts to assess students' prior knowledge.

Why is it important to study how groups of organisms grow in number or are reduced in number? For example, what might a sudden reduction in birds tell us? (Change in the environment that also may affect humans; some say the rapid decline in the global amphibian population is a wake up call that there is something wrong with the environment.)

Why would we be concerned about a sudden abundance of insects such as mosquitoes? (Mosquitoes are pests and may carry disease, for example, West Nile virus, malaria and dengue; their increase could indicate a change in the environment such as a warming of the planet.)

What is a population? (A group of organisms of the same species) How are populations affected by their environment? (The availability of food, water, shelter, space, climatic events, etc...)

Why are some people concerned about humans overpopulating the earth? (The earth is a closed ecosystem that, like other ecosystems, has a limited carrying capacity.)

What variables affect the number of individuals in a population? For example, what causes the number of people in our community to change over the course of 5 to 10 years? (People moving out, people moving in; people dying, people being born.)

Note the extent of student understanding and any misconceptions they may have. You may want to adjust the lesson or adjust lab groups based on their answers. It is not important at this point if students cannot answer the questions correctly. They will be exploring many of these concepts as they do their research project.

Finally, ask: What questions do you have about populations and population growth? (Post on flip chart paper; review answers at regular intervals throughout the lesson; add questions that may arise.)