Science
Course: Seventh Grade
Unit: Ecological Succession, Supporting Organisms, Survival of an
Organism
TEKS/Prerequisites
Guiding
Sample
Questions/
Assessment
Specificity
Designated Grading Period: 4th Grading Period
Days to teach: 33 Days 4-5 days for each TEKS
7.10c
Observe, record, and describe
the role of ecological
succession such as in a
microhabitat of a garden with
weeds.
(Supporting Standard)
Ecological
Guiding Questions
- What are the
stages of succession
and how are climax
communities
established?
Teacher Notes:
Primary and
Secondary
Succession may
include
deforestation,
flood/drought, fire
Revised Spring 2016
A glacier recedes and
exposes bare rock.
Which of the
following
will most likely occur
next?
A. The bare rock
will quickly
break down into
soil.
B. Small animals
will move into
the area.
C. Lichen will
colonize
the bare rock.
D. Trees will start to
grow over the
bare rock.
Vocabulary
Succession
Microhabitat
Primary succession
Secondary
Succession
Pioneer species
Lichens
Instructional
Strategies/ELPS
Resources/
Weblinks
District-Wide
Investigation:
Students collect data
from schoolyard
microhabitat studies
and share with other
campuses through an
online notebook.
- Resort Tycoon
- Biome Data
Table
Resource: STEMscopes:
https://n11052d40706.acce
leratelearning.com/login
ELPS SE/Strategies:
3J: manipulatives
2H: comprehension
strategies
Biodiversity
http://www.globalissues.or
g/issue/169/biodiversity
STEMscopes:
https://n11052d40706.acce
leratelearning.com/login
Science
Course: Seventh Grade
Unit: Ecological Succession, Supporting Organisms, Survival of an
Organism
TEKS/Prerequisites
Guiding
Sample
Questions/
Assessment
Specificity
7.10a
Observe and describe how
different environments,
including microhabitats in
schoolyards and biomes
support different varieties of
organisms.
Guiding Questions
- What biotic and
abiotic factors
make up biomes?
- What is the
significance of
microhabitat
investigations?
- What are the
characteristics in an
ecosystem?
Designated Grading Period: 4th Grading Period
Days to teach: 33 Days 4-5 days for each TEKS
Vocabulary
A particular species ofHabitat
lizard lives
underground for
Microhabitat
much of the day,
escaping the heat.
This species of lizard Schoolyard
probably lives in
a _____.
Biome
A. desert
B. deciduous forest
C. tundra
D. ocean
Organism
Abiotic
Biotic
Revised Spring 2016
Instructional
Strategies/ELPS
Lab Activities
-From Pond to
Forrest Introduction
- From Pond to
Forrest Lab
- Succession:
Equilibrium in
Ecosystems
Activity
- Disturbance and
Succession Lab
Exemplary Lesson
Role of Ecological
Succession
TEKS 7.10C
ELPS
SE/Strategies:
Link:
http://ritter.tea.state.t
x.us/rules/tac/chapter
074/ch074a.html
3H: Structured
Conversation
2H: comprehension
strategies
Resources/
Weblinks
Resource: Stemscopes:
https://n11052d40706.acce
leratelearning.com/login
Google Drive: Middle
School Science Google
Drive: Middle School
Science
Science
Course: Seventh Grade
Unit: Ecological Succession, Supporting Organisms, Survival of an
Organism
TEKS/Prerequisites
Guiding
Sample
Questions/
Assessment
Specificity
7.10b
Describe how biodiversity
contributes to the
sustainability of an
ecosystem.
(Supporting Standard)
Guiding Questions
-Why is
biodiversity
important?
- What factors in an
ecosystem sustain
life and allow
biodiversity?
Teacher Notes:
- Biotic and abiotic
factors promote
biodiversity
Revised Spring 2016
Which of the
following
increases the
sustainability of an
ecosystem?
A. increased
biodiversity
B. increased
external
stimuli
C. decreased
heredity
D. decreased
internal
stimuli
Designated Grading Period: 4th Grading Period
Days to teach: 33 Days 4-5 days for each TEKS
Vocabulary
Biodiversity
Instructional
Strategies/ELPS
Lab Activities
Intro to Biodiversity
Contribute
Sustainability
Ecosystem
Biotic
Abiotic
Exemplar Lesson
Biodiversity
TEKS 7.10B
ELPS Strategies:
http://ritter.tea.state.t
x.us/rules/tac/chapter
074/ch074a.html
4F: visuals/video
3J: manipulatives
2H: comprehension
strategies
Resources/
Weblinks
Texas Eco-Regions
http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/kids
/about_texas/regions/
Food Webs
http://www.gould.edu.au/foodwe
bs/kids_web.htm
World Biomes
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/g
lossary/gloss5/biome/
Abiotic vs Biotic Worksheet
http://printableworksheets.in/?dq
=Biotic%20And%20Abiotic%20
Factors
Science
Course: Seventh Grade
Unit: Ecological Succession, Supporting Organisms, Survival of an
Organism
TEKS/Prerequisites
Guiding
Sample
Questions/
Assessment
Specificity
Designated Grading Period: 4th Grading Period
Days to teach: 33 Days 4-5 days for each TEKS
7.12a-- investigate and
explain how internal
structures of organisms have
adaptations that allow specific
functions such as gills in fish,
hollow bones in birds, or
xylem in plants
Internal structure
Guiding Question
What internal
structures increase
the survivability of
certain organisms?
On the savannah,
which animal is
best adapted for
feeding on the
leaves of trees?
a. zebra
b. hyena
c. giraffe
d. lion
Which adaptation is
best suited for flying?
Vocabulary
Revised Spring 2016
Lab Activities
- Squirrel Islands
Organism
Adaptation
Exemplar Lessons.
TEKS 7.12A.
Adaptations
Specific
Function
Xylem
Gills
a. light, hollow
bones
b. large body size
c. large amounts of
body fat
d. strong, dense
bones
Instructional
Strategies/ELPS
From pictures of
various animals,
explain their
adaptations for
specific functions
ELPS Strategies
http://ritter.tea.state.t
x.us/rules/tac/chapter
074/ch074a.html
4F: visuals,
manipulatives
2I: Perspective-Based
Activities
Resources/
Weblinks
STEMscopes:
https://n11052d40706.acce
leratelearning.com/login
Google Drive: Middle
School Science
Science
Course: Seventh Grade
Unit: Ecological Succession, Supporting Organisms, Survival of an
Organism
TEKS/Prerequisites
Guiding
Sample
Questions/
Assessment
Specificity
7.11c-- identify some changes
in genetic traits that can have
occurred over several
generations through natural
selection and selective
breeding such as the
Galapagos Medium Ground
Finch (Geospiza fortis)or
domestic animals
(Supporting Standard)
Guiding Question
What is natural
selection and how
is it related to
adaptation?
The organisms with
favorable traits are
more likely to thrive,
reproduce, and pass
their traits on to
future generations.
This is known as:
a. selective breeding
b. artificial selection
c. natural selection
d. genetic
engineering
Designated Grading Period: 4th Grading Period
Days to teach: 33 Days 4-5 days for each TEKS
Vocabulary
Gene
Trait
Generation
Natural selection
Instructional
Strategies/ELPS
Resources/
Weblinks
Lab Activities:
-Natural Selection
game: wolves vs.
rabbits
-Nature at Work Lab
-Bird Beak Lab
-Pepper Moth Lab
Stemscopes:
https://n11052d40706.acce
leratelearning.com/login
Selective breeding
Galapagos Finch
Domestic
Survival
Exemplar Lesson.
TEKS 7.11C. Natural
Selection
Google Drive: Middle
School Science
ELPS Strategies
http://ritter.tea.state.t
x.us/rules/tac/chapter
074/ch074a.html
4F: visuals
3J: Graphic
Organizer
Revised Spring 2016
Galapagos Finch
http://www.pbs.org/safarch
ive/5_cool/galapagos/g53_
more.html
Flipchart: Natural
Selection and Variation
Science
Course: Seventh Grade
Unit: Ecological Succession, Supporting Organisms, Survival of an
Organism
TEKS/Prerequisites
Guiding
Sample
Questions/
Assessment
Specificity
7.11b-- Explain variation
within a population or species
by comparing external
features, behaviors, or
physiology of organisms that
enhance their survival such as
migration, hibernation, or
storage of food in a bulb
Guiding Question
What external
structures or
behaviors increase
the survivability of
certain organisms?
Teacher Notes:
Variations and
features behaviors
and physiology in a
population are
because of genetic
variations.
Which of the
following is least
likely to produce
genetic variation in a
population?
a. natural selection
b. sexual
reproduction
c. asexual
reproduction
d. mutation
Tulips store food in a
bulb to survive until
the next growing
season. Which of the
following adaptations
is most similar?
Designated Grading Period: 4th Grading Period
Days to teach: 33 Days 4-5 days for each TEKS
Vocabulary
Variation
Population
Lab Activities:
Blending Butterflies
Species
Behavior
Exemplar Lesson
Variations Within
Populations
TEKS 7.11B
Lab Activities
Physiology
No Thumbs Activity
Migration
ELPS
SE/Strategies:
Link:
http://ritter.tea.state.t
x.us/rules/tac/chapter
074/ch074a.html
4F: Concept
Attainment-hands on,
manipulatives
External feature
Hibernation
Bulb
a. a male bird’s
brightly colored
feathers
b. a grizzly storing
fat in her body to
hibernate
c. monarch butterflies
migrating south for
the winter
d. a bison’s horns
helping him fight
rival males
Revised Spring 2016
Instructional
Strategies/ELPS
Resources/
Weblinks
Google Drive: Middle
School Science
Science
Course: Seventh Grade
Unit: Ecological Succession, Supporting Organisms, Survival of an
Organism
TEKS/Prerequisites
Guiding
Sample
Questions/
Assessment
Specificity
7.11a-- Examine organisms or
their structures such as insects
or leaves and use dichotomous
keys for identification
(Supporting Standard)
Guiding Question:
How are
dichotomous keys
used to identify
organisms?
Specificity
-Teachers may
consider asking
students why it is
necessary to
identify and
classify organisms
Teacher Note
- Students were
introduced in 6th
grade to the
classification
systems with
domains as the
highest
classification level.
Revised Spring 2016
Designated Grading Period: 4th Grading Period
Days to teach: 33 Days 4-5 days for each TEKS
Vocabulary
Instructional
Strategies/ELPS
Resources/
Weblinks
What is the
Organism
purpose of a
dichotomous key? Structure
Pamishan Creatures D.Key
Lab Activities:
http://www.biologycorner.com/
- Alien/Pamishan
worksheets/pamishan.html
Dichotomous Key
a. define terms
related to plants
b. divide data into
two equal levels
c. separate coarse
and fine particles
d. classify
organisms
Exemplar Lessons
Dichotomous Keys
TEKS 7.11A
Insect
Dichotomous key
Classification
Identification
Domains
What is the first
division of living
organisms?
a. Kingdom
b. Phylum
c. Class
d. Order
http://sciencespot.net
/Media/sillysci.pdf
- “Fun With
Classification”
- Leaf Tree ID
- Shoe
Classification Lab
Exemplar Lessons.
TEKS 7.11A.
Dichotomous Keys
ELPS SE/Strategies:
Link:
http://ritter.tea.state.tx.u
s/rules/tac/
chapter074/ch074a.htm
l
4F: visuals
3J: Graphic Organizer
Google Drive: Middle School
Science
Taxonomy Intro
http://www.saburchill.com/chapt
ers/chap0111.html
http://www.biologycorner.com/
worksheets/taxonomy_interpret.
html
ID a Tree
http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Educati
on/ConservationCentral/walk/wa
lk4.html
Insect Dichotomous Key
http://www.insectidentification.o
rg/insect-key.asp
Google Drive: Middle
School Science