Secondary Lesson Plan Template Date: Monday, February 10th & Tuesday, February 11th Title: The Carbon

Cycle

Subject: Environmental Science Instruction time: 90 minutes Students level by grade: 11th & 12th grade Standard(s) to be addressed: 4E- I can describe which human actions affect the carbon cycle. Specific resources needed for this lesson: 18-24 ping pong balls to represent carbon atoms & role playing cards Lesson Sequence: Acorn to Tree discussion 1. How does a tree grow? a. Uses nutrients from the ground, sucks all of the nutrients up and into the tree. 2. Where does a trees mass come from? a. Nutrients in the ground. 3. What if I told you that a tree grows from this little tiny acorn and that the majority of its mass does not come from nutrients from the ground? Now, how does a tree grow? 4. What else do trees need besides water and sunlight to increase their mass? Let students process and get their misconceptions out while pulling up the video Veritasium video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KZb2_vcNTg (This video addresses common misconceptions about where the mass of a tree actually comes from) What contains carbon? 1. Ask students, what contains carbon? a. Pencils, cup of water, wood, seashells, plastic, fabric, cotton, leather, paper. 2. So what is carbon? a. It is an element that is contained in living and non living things. 3. How does carbon help the planet? a. Carbon is an important element in living things. b. Plants need carbon dioxide to photosynthesize and grow. c. Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere keeps the planet warm and livable. d. Some of the things we use everyday contain carbon. 4. How does carbon hurt the planet? a. Too much carbon dioxide in the atmosphere changes the climate. b. Too much carbon dioxide dissolving in the ocean makes it more acidic. Many marine organisms make their skeletons out of calcium carbonate. They may decline and their ecosystems may be affected. 5. Why isnt it possible to decrease the total amount of carbon on earth?

a. Because there is a finite amount of carbon on earth. However, we can change the amount so that there is more or less in certain places. For plants and ocean animals, it is important for there to be certain levels of carbon in the atmosphere and ocean. Carbon cycle role play 1. Tell students that the carbon contained in any one thing doesnt stay there forever. The carbon contained in any one thing doesnt stay there forever. The carbon atoms move from one thing to another in what is called the carbon cycle. Parts of the carbon cycle happen very quickly, like when plants take in carbon dioxide from the atmosphere for photosynthesis. But, other parts of the carbon cycle happen very slowly. Tell students that in this activity, they will learn how carbon moves from one place to another, by performing a carbon cycle role-play. 2. Divide students evenly into 7 groups. Each group will be a team of actors that will play a certain part of the carbon cycle. Each group will receive one role playing card that can be referred to only if needed. 3. Distribute 2-4 ping pong balls to each group to represent carbon 4. Each group will work together to figure out where else they could send their carbon to as well as who else might be sending carbon to them. 5. Students will work as a group to decide where to send their carbon. As each individual group sends their carbon, the entire class will watch the transfer and decide if it is a correct transfer of carbon. 6. In the first round, each group can only give away one carbon atom at a time. Once they get the hang of it, have a second round where students can split their carbon between different groups. 7. Students must say their script lines to explain the carbon movement that they have chosen. 8. Realistically, multiple groups would move at once. In the real world, carbon moves between all of these areas at the same time. Conclusions How do humans impact the carbon cycle? o Humans extract and burn fossil fuels for energy. Carbon moves from the sediments and rock where fossil fuels are buried into the atmosphere. o Humans cut and burn trees to use land for farming, ranching, or building. Carbon moves from the land plants into the atmosphere.