PLT Stem Extension Activities Celery Straws: A STEM activity for PLT Activity #63‐ Tree Factory Grade Levels: 3‐6 Materials:  Blue food coloring  Red food coloring  10 beakers or cups (2 per group)  1 gallon of water  15 sticks of celery (3 for each group)  Knife/cutting instrument Objective: To better understand how xylem works within a tree or plant NGSS Correlations: 4LS‐1 ‐ Construct an argument that plants and animals have internal and external structures that function to support survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction Background: Review the different parts of the tree trunk and their functions using a tree cookie or cross‐section diagram of a tree. Refer back to pages 269‐270 in your PLT activity book for a description of each tree trunk element. Get students thinking more in depth about xylem by asking some of these questions:  Where does the water transported by the xylem come from?  How large do you think the xylem and phloem transport “tubes” are?  Why do you think xylem and phloem are located near the center of the tree trunk and the bark is located on the outside? If the class is more advanced/a higher grade level you might be able to discuss how the water moves up the tree (opposite of gravity) and talk a little bit about the forces of pressure and capillary action. Activity: 1. Split the class into 5 groups.  It is possible to have more groups, but make sure that beaker and celery amounts are increased accordingly. 2. Instruct the students to fill the beakers with equal amounts of liquid 3. Either go around to each group or have the groups put 6 drops of red food coloring in one beaker and 6 drops of blue food coloring in the other beaker. 4. Instruct the students to put one stick of celery into each beaker (2 for each group). 5. Have the students to examine the remaining celery stick.  They should break the celery apart, look at its different parts (leaves and stem) and compare them to the parts of a tree 6. Have the students predict how far they think the food coloring will travel in the celery stick after 20 minutes and after 1 hour. 7. After 20 minutes, have the students examine the celery stick in the blue dye. 8. Go around to each group and cut the celery stick in half vertically for the students so they can record how far the food coloring has moved up the celery stick. 9. After 1 hour, have the students examine the celery stick in the red food coloring. 10. Go around to each group and cut the celery stick in half vertical for the students so they can record how far the food coloring has moved up the celery stick. 11. Use the information gathered to calculate how fast the food coloring traveled up the celery stick (cm/minute). 12. Lead a discussion on how fast water travels in a tree by reviewing the answers to the Background questions and expanding on those concepts. #22 Trees as habitat Biodiversity extension Grade Level: K‐2 Subjects: Math, Science NGSS: 2‐LS4‐1 Concepts: Biodiversity Classification Objectives: Students will: ‐Count and classify organisms ‐Practice using tally marks Time: 50 minutes Materials: Pencils, Datasheets, Clipboards Background: Biodiversity refers to the variety, or diversity of life in an area. There are different ways to measure biodiversity including counts of the number of species (species richness) and comparing the abundance of different species (species evenness). Biodiversity varies among habitats, and can be influenced by habitat factors including latitude, elevation, climate, weather, soil, and biota. Introduction: Start the activity with a class discussion about biodiversity. Ask students what diversity is. Then ask them what “bio” means to bring the concept together. Tell children they will be examining biodiversity around their schools. Have a brief discussion about the general groups of animals used here (Mammals, Birds, Amphibians, Reptiles, Insects) if students are not familiar with them already. Activities 1) Explain and show kids how to make tally‐marks 2) Put children into pairs and give each pair a clipboard, pencil, and datasheet. 3) Take children to an area of the school yard with trees. Give them 10 minutes to look for animals in the trees. Kids should classify animals into groups (Insects, Birds, Amphibians/Reptiles, Mammals), and then make a tally on the datasheet for each animal they see. 4) Take kids to another spot in the schoolyard that is different somehow, and repeat the activity. 5) Bring kids back to discuss what they found. Ask them which group had the most animals? The least? Ask them if there were differences in the two areas examined? Have them discuss what they saw in the environment that might have impacted the results. Extensions for older students: Sign your classroom up for Project Noah, and join the Global Schoolyard Bioblitz Mission (http://www.projectnoah.org/missions/10164691). Have students will upload their animals to be ID’d so they can count species richness in their schoolyard. Have students construct graphs of their data. #81 Living with Fire Prescribed Burn Plan Levels: Grades 6‐8 NGSS: MS‐LS2‐4; MS‐LS2‐5; MS‐LS1‐5, MS‐ESS3‐3 Concepts: ‐Some ecosystems are adapted to fire and need regular fire to maintain themselves ‐These ecosystems change and become hazards to humans without regular burning ‐Man‐made interventions can be used to maintain these systems and reduce risk to humans Time: Approximately 50 minutes Materials: Local burn plan or included example burn plan. Pencils, paper, Internet access, 4‐5 computers. Background: Some ecosystems have evolved with fire over time. Many trees and plants in these habitats have developed special adaptations to live with fire. However, without regular fires, these ecosystems change over time, and less fire adapted species can take over. In southern pine forests, hardwood trees, such as oaks, will start to fill in between the pine trees. This leads to loss of open space and reduces ground cover which is important for the gopher tortoise (a keystone species) and other animals (red‐
cockaded woodpecker, flatwoods salamander, indigo snakes). These fire suppressed forests can also become hazards to humans as fuel builds up in these systems. To keep these ecosystems healthy and to prevent large scale wildfires that can harm humans and human property, managers often utilize prescribed burning events to maintain these fire‐adapted systems. Activity: 1) Start by talking with the students about forest fires. Ask them if they think fire is always bad. Ask them for examples of forest fires they have experienced or seen on the news. Explain how some ecosystems are used to frequent fires (such as in Florida), and have developed adaptations to survive them. Example: Longleaf pines. http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/tree/pinpal/all.html#FIRE ECOLOGY. Very young trees can regrow from the root if the above ground portion is killed during a fire. As the plant grows bigger, the point of growth at the top (called the terminal bud) is surrounded by moist needles, which helps extinguish fire threatening the bud. The bud also develops protective scales. Young trees grow rapidly so they quickly reach the point where small scale fires will not destroy their needles. Older trees also have thick bark to protect the trees. Talk to the students about what happens when these systems do not experience frequent burning (Other trees take over and crowd the canopy. Groundcover dies from no sunlight. Some animals can’t get food). Explain how forests have not been allowed to burn in a lot of places due to attitudes towards fire and human encroachment into forested areas. You can also ask them how lack of fire could be a hazard to humans? (Buildup of fuel) 2) Ask students to think of potential forest management strategies to keep forests healthy that are not experiencing natural fire cycles. What are the pros‐cons of each strategy? Some examples: 1. Manual removal (chainsaws, etc) (requires lots of labor, can be dangerous) 2. Herbicides (Worry about herbicides in the forest, need trained staff and chemicals, may not get rid of large trees without multiple applications, groundwater contamination? Negative impacts on wildlife?) 3. Prescribed fires. Only fire helps some plant species germinate (common in western U.S.) but they can be risky if not done in the right conditions. Managers have to make extensive burn plans before they carry out a prescribed burn. Requires extensive training. 3) Students know what fuels a fire from the original activity: Oxygen and fuel. Ask them what factors in an environment can influence these: (Amount and type of vegetation, soil moisture, wind, temperature, relative humidity.) 4) Break students into groups of 4‐5 to come up with a basic set of conditions for when they would want to have a prescribed burn. Have groups share their results with the class and through discussion, come up with a set of general ideas. 5) Examine a real burn plan and compare to the class ideas. 6) Obtain a local burn plan from a nearby group or agency. Have groups use the NOAA Climatic Data Center (http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/) to look up weather and climate information to determine which month or season best matches the burn plan for the different factors. #51 Make Your Own Paper Levels: 1‐8 Subjects: science, visual arts, math, language arts, engineering Concepts: changes in matter and energy, measuring, counting, recycling Background: For both younger and older students the concept of recycling and reducing waste could be introduced. For the older students, if different states of matter and transfer of energy has not been discussed then that could be appropriate teaching material to set up for this. For younger students concepts of using a ruler to measure, and counting, could be introduced. Activity: After making the pulp stir in local, native wildflower seeds, and proceed with submerging the deckle and making the paper. Or place the seeds on the paper right after it has been removed from the deckle. Younger students could count the number of seeds they put on instead of putting a random number on. When the paper is dried students could write a poem or story on the paper after measuring the length and width of their paper. Ultimately the students can ‘plant’ their paper at home or in a school garden and watch their flowers grow. The concepts of recycling could be discussed, as well as other topics like what a plant needs to grow. For older students, after completing the above activity, they could record the number of flowers that germinated to the number they planted. Different states of matter could also be discussed and where they think plants get their energy from. Instead of placing seeds in the paper students could also create their own experiment by creating hypotheses of what material(s) would work the best for paper, see if they could make water resistant paper, and have a contest for whose paper is the strongest. More in depth discussions could also lead into how a tree grows and the life history of a tree from forest to paper mill. #50 “400‐Acre Wood” Land use management extension Grade Level: 7‐8 Subjects: Math, Science NGSS: MS‐ESS3‐3 & MS‐ESS3‐4 Concepts: Community planning, Resource valuing, Land use management, Debating STEM Applications ∙ Science o Students will learn about the science of community planning and the type of decisions that go into developing natural areas. ∙ Technology o Students will use calculators to help determine the value of resources on a proposed piece of land. Students can also utilize the “Environment” section of the Department of Housing and Urban Development website to see what other environmental factors go into community planning. ∙ Mathematics Students will use the PLT Activity #50 Student Datasheets to calculate the monetary value of the natural resources in the proposed land area. Objectives: Students will be able to: ∙ Calculate monetary value of natural resources ∙ Develop land use management plans ∙ Analyze land use management plans ∙ Debate about use of specific resources within a land use management plan Time: 60 minutes Materials: Pencils, Paper, Calculators, PLT Activity #50 Student Datasheets (on pages 222‐223), Proposed Land use Maps Background: Community planning is the process of planning for a future community where it often involves the structuring of expansion for a community. This process can begin with certain groups within a community proposing what they believe the community should look like in the future. Each group develops a land use management plan to recommend to the community, especially the community leaders. Yet, to create a plan, each group must calculate the value of the resources on the potential land area in order to best suggest what should be done with the area. Once plans are developed, the groups come together at a town meeting to present their plans and see which are approved. Introduction: The teacher should ask the students several questions to begin this activity: ∙ Can anyone cut down trees anywhere in the public areas in their community? Why or why not? ∙ Can any citizen make a decision on adding or taking away something in their community? ∙ What is community planning? From here, the teacher should discuss the concept of stakeholder involvement in community planning and the purpose of town hall meetings. Explain to the students that this activity will involve them acting out a town hall meeting to debate over a management plan for a piece of land within their community. Activity 1. Divide the class into 6 different interest groups within a community (i.e., farmers, timber industry, environmental groups, local residents, a national convenience store chain, and state park representatives). 2. Provide the students with brief biographies of who they are and why they want the land. 3. Instruct the groups to work together and create a land use plan using their group biographies and the “What’s the Score” datasheets from the “400 Acre Wood” activity (pgs. 222‐223) where they calculate the amount of money they would generate from implementing their land use plan. 4. Instruct each group to create a 3 minute presentation to argue for the land management decisions. 5. Student groups will then present their arguments to the class in the form of a town‐hall meeting. 6. The teacher shall make the final decision on the land management plan. Debriefing From here, in the discussion, ask the students about their thoughts during the debate at the town hall meeting. ∙ Did they feel other plans were similar or different than their plans? ∙ Was it hard to make a decision on an individual basis? ∙ Was it difficult to make a decision as a group? ∙ What should be done with the land? Why did you make your decision? Lastly, discuss the complexity that comes with making land use decisions and reasons why it takes total stakeholder involvement (aka a community) to make these decisions. Direct students to the Department of Housing and Urban Development website looking at environmental factors that go into community planning (http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/comm_planning/environment/) for more information. Champions in Your Neighborhood: A STEM activity for PLT Acitivity #67‐ How Big Is Your Tree? Grade Levels: 4‐8 Materials: ‐5, 50’ tape measures Substitution: Meter sticks can be used for larger measurements Smaller tape measure can be used for tree circumference ‐Handouts ‐Clipboards ‐Writing utensils Objective: To reinforce tree‐measuring methods and calculations learned in the PLT activity Background: American Forests is the oldest national nonprofit conservation organization in the country and advocates for the protection and expansion of America’s forests. They started the National Big Tree Program, which is a conservation movement that aims to locate, appreciate, and protect the biggest tree species in the United States. Each species of tree can have a champion tree, and trees of different species are nominated all over the country to earn the title of champion tree for that species. Trees become champions by earning the most champion points in their species category. Champion points are determined by three measurements: 1. Tree Height 2. Trunk Circumference 3. Average Crown Spread Tree Height measurement method (same as PLT activity) Tree’s height = Student’s height x Tree’s Shadow Student’s Shadow Trunk Circumference measurement method: 1. Measure the distance around the trunk of the tree, in inches, at 4 ½ feet above ground level. This point is called the diameter breast height (DBH). 2. If the tree forks at or below 4 ½ feet, record the smallest trunk circumference below the lowest fork. Record the height at which the measurement was taken. Trees should be considered separate if the circumference measurement below the lowest fork places the measurement on the ground 3. If the tree is on a slope, measure 4 ½ feet up the trunk on the high and low sides of the slope. The DBH is the average between both points. If the tree is on a steep slope, take the measurement at 4 ½ feet above the midpoint of the trunk. 4. If the tree is leaning, measure the circumference at 4 ½ feet along the axis of the trunk. Make sure the measurement is taken at a right (90 degree) angle to the trunk. Average Crown Spread measurement method: Two measurements of the crown spread are taken and recorded, in feet, at right angles to one another. 1. Measure the widest crown spread, which is the greatest distance between any two points along the tree’s drip line. The drip line is the area defined by the outermost circumference of the tree’s canopy where water drips to the ground. 2. Turn the axis of measurement 90 degrees and find the narrow crown spread. 3. Calculate the average of the two crown spread measurements using this formula: Average Crown Spread = Wide spread + Narrow spread 2 Activity: 1. Hand out worksheets with fill‐in the blanks for the three measurements that are taken into account for the Champion tree point system: Incorporating formula examples with fill‐in the blanks would also be helpful in aiding comprehension and calculations.  Tree height  Tree circumference at breast height (4.5 feet)  Average crown spread 2. Split the class into 5 groups and give each group a tape measure (or tape measures if substituting), a clipboard with the handout attached, and a writing utensil. 3. Have each group find a tree (or have 5 picked out beforehand) and calculate its number of ‘Champion’ points. 4. The tree with the greatest number of points is nominated as the class’s Champion Tree. 5. Nominate the class’s trees for Biggest Tree in the respective tree species category! Supplemental video about the Big Tree Program: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=AZ4yA7ayc9w&noredirect=1 More information about the Big Tree program can be found here: http://www.americanforests.org/our‐programs/bigtree/ More information on measuring requirements for nominating a Big Tree: http://www.americanforests.org/bigtrees/big‐tree‐measuring‐guidelines/