Grade 8 - Our Changing World
SUMMARY
An 8-9 Week Unit for Middle School Level
This unit is designed for eighth grade, but could be adapted for grades 6-8. Students learn how changes in physical environments affect our ecosystems by investigating how sea ice is changing over time and how melting glaciers affect stream flows, erosion, and habitats for fish and wildlife. They participate in a WebQuest to explore how a warming climate might affect life in the Bering Sea. Students then take a close look at changes in their local environment by interviewing long time residents and observing repeat photographs of the local landscape. Finally they create a digital story to share the potential effects of a warming climate with others.
Essential Questions
- How do changes in physical environment affect our ecosystems?
- What impacts will a warming climate have on Alaska Seas and Watersheds?
Enduring Understandings
- Climate patterns cause physical changes in the environment.
- Physical changes in the environment can change the conditions for life.
- Science and technology can be used to detect and solve problems.
Ocean Literacy Principle Addressed
- The Earth has one big ocean with many features.
- The ocean supports a great diversity of life and ecosystems.
- The ocean and humans are inextricably interconnected.
LESSON PLANS
Arctic Sea Ice Data
This 5-6 day investigation challenges students to think about how sea ice is changing and the effects of a warming climate on sea level in Alaska.
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Melting Sea Ice and Sea Level
Students investigate whether melting Arctic sea ice affects sea levels by observing an ice cube melting in a cup of water. They record predictions, analyze results, and discuss how ice displacement explains why sea ice melt does not raise sea levels, with extensions exploring water density differences.
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Temperature and Sea Level Rise
Students investigate how warming seawater affects sea levels by measuring water expansion when heated. They analyze their results, discuss thermal expansion’s role in sea level rise, and explore the broader impacts of melting Arctic sea ice on climate and ecosystems.
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Changing Landscape
Changing Landscape asks students to analyze “repeat photographs” (taken from the same vantage point at different times) of Alaska glaciers to observe the effects of retreating glaciers on the landscape.
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Location: Classroom
Activity Type: Hands-On, Multimedia
Melting Ice
Students investigate how melting glacial ice affects sea levels by conducting an experiment comparing land and sea ice melt. They analyze predictions, record observations, and discuss the implications of rising sea levels, including regional variations and climate impacts.
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Stream Table
Students use a stream table to model how melting glaciers impact stream flow, erosion, and habitats. Through hands-on experiments, they observe sediment transport, canyon formation, and siltation, analyzing the effects of increased glacial melt on landscapes and ecosystems.
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Transparency/Turbidity
Students construct a mini Secchi disk to investigate transparency and the effects of increased turbidity from the increased flows as glaciers melt on aquatic and marine ecosystems.
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Glacier Game
Review the effects of retreating glaciers and increasing stream flows and erosion on river, coastal, and ocean ecosystems.
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Bering Sea Expedition WebQuest
In this 6-8 day investigation, students use a WebQuest activity to research the effects of melting sea ice in the Bering Sea Ecosystem. The students create research proposals to earn a place on the scientific research vessel Healy, and present their findings and proposals to a “Research Board committee”.
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Location: Classroom
Activity Type: Multimedia, Project
The Old Days
Students interview long-term residents to document environmental changes over the past 50 years. They summarize their findings in reports and create a newspaper to share with the community.
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Location: Classroom
Activity Type: Multimedia, Project
Using Photographs to Document Change
Students compare historical and recent photos of their local environment to document physical changes over time. They analyze causes of change, predict future transformations, and discuss the impacts on ecosystems.
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Location: Classroom
Activity Type: Multimedia, Project
Explaining Impacts of Environmental Change
In this culminating activity, students will share their knowledge of the impacts of environmental change with others by creating a digital story of the potential effects of a warming climate in their community, the Arctic, and/or the Bering Sea.
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Location: Classroom
Activity Type: Multimedia, Project
AUTHORS
Derek Bynagle, Kenai Peninsula School District
Linda Casassa, Kuspuk School District
Brenda Papoi, Sitka School District
Carol Scott, Fairbanks Northstar Borough School District
Stephanie Hoag, Curriculum Consultant, Juneau
Marilyn Sigman, Science Content Specialist
Marla Brownlee, Alaska Sea Grant