Digital

Unit Plan Template

Unit Title: Population Biology

Name: Elizabeth Johnson

Content Area: Biology

Grade Level: 9th

CA Content Standard(s)/Common Core Standard(s):

HS-LS2-1. Use mathematical and/or computational representations to support explanations of factors that affect carrying capacity of ecosystems at different
scales. [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on quantitative analysis and comparison of the relationships among interdependent factors including boundaries,
resources, climate, and competition. Examples of mathematical comparisons could include graphs, charts, histograms, and population changes gathered from
simulations or historical data sets.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include deriving mathematical equations to make comparisons.]


Big Ideas:

Ecosystems have limits to the number of organisms they can support.

Environment affects population growth and population growth affects the environment.

Unit Goals and Objectives:

Students will be able to:

1. Compare relationships among interdependent factors
2. Use mathematical representations to support explanations of factors that affect carrying capacity.
3. Explain how carrying capacity of ecosystems is affected by different factors at different scales.

Unit Summary:
This unit covers population biology. Students will learn how populations grow, the different factors that affect population growth, and understand human
population growth. The unit will begin by discovering what the students already know about this topic through two entry-level assessments. The students will
receive the basic knowledge of the concepts and will begin to think critically about population growth and human population growth with a teacher. The
students will follow along with their lecture guide and participate in the class discussion (think-pair-shares). The students will then apply their knowledge by
doing the webercise activity. They will think critically and demonstrate their understanding of population growth. They will then work with a partner to become
closer with a scientific informational text in order to better understand the real world issues concerning human population growth. To finish the unit, the
students will create an online interactive poster demonstrating all that they have learned and applying their knowledge by researching a Southern Californian
coast species.




Assessment Plan:

Entry-Level:

Formative:

Survey: Introduction to Population Biology

Class Discussion: How do populations
grow?

Summative:

Think-Pair-Share Questions throughout

Population Biology lecture
Vocabulary Quiz
Webercise-Population Biology!
Graphic Organizer: Informational Text
(Scientific Articles)

Species Population Project

Unit Test

Lesson 1
Student Learning Objective:

Explain how carrying
capacity of ecosystems is
affected by different factors
at different scales.

Acceptable Evidence:
Through the students
discussion during the class
lecture I will be able to
monitor their ability to
demonstrate the learning
objective. I will also be able to
see evidence of this with their
completion lecture guides
which will be checked over.

Instructional Strategies:
Communication
Collection
Collaboration
Presentation
Organization
Interaction

Lesson Activities:
This lesson will be completed over two 50 min periods.
Survey (EL)
We will begin this unit and lesson 1 with an online survey
(http://msjohnsonspopulationunit.weebly.com/assessments.html) that will
indicate to me, as the teacher, what the students might already know about the
subject of population biology as well as bringing to their attention of what they
need know for this unit.

Class Discussion (EL)
The survey will lead us into a class discussion discussing the class ideas of how
populations grow. The question How do populations grow? will be on the board
and the class will have 5 min to discuss with a partner about the answer before
sharing with the class. We will discussion everyones ideas as a class for 10
minutes before moving into lecture.

Class Lecture (F):
The class will then follow along with the lecture with their lecture guide. There
will be informal, formative, progress-monitoring assessments throughout the
teacher-led lecture. The students will understand the basics of population biology.
They will understand the principles of population growth, what limits growth,
what affects growth, and human population growth. Throughout the lecture are
questions to monitor the students learning and to encourage critical thinking
about population biology and how to apply it. These questions will be presented
in a think-pair-share format so that the students have time to think about the
question and are able to converse with their peers before sharing with the class.

Vocabulary Quiz (F):
A vocabulary quiz will be given before continuing on to the next lessons. This will
provide me, as the teacher, the knowledge how the students are grasping the
terminology associated with this topic and if any areas need to be readdressed
before moving on as lessons 2-3 build upon lesson 1. The students will be

informed of their results the day after they take the quiz.

Lesson 2
Student Learning Objective:

Use mathematical
representations to support
explanations of factors that
affect carrying capacity.

Acceptable Evidence:
The students will turn in their
own work in response to the
webercise questions, which
consists of interpreting and
creating graphs or
mathematical
representations, concerning
factors that affect carrying
capacity of a population.

Instructional Strategies:
Communication
Collection
Collaboration
Presentation
Organization
Interaction

Lesson Activities:
This lesson will be completed over one 50 min period (possibly 2).
Webercise (F):
The students will delve deeper into population biology and demonstrate their
knowledge through this exercise. The students will work in pairs, but individually
write their own answers down on a separate sheet of paper. They will review
what was learned in the previous lesson and use that knowledge to complete the
online interactive about a scenario involving lions in Africa. They must
demonstrate understanding of population biology and apply their knowledge to
create population graphs and use critical thinking to answer the questions on
their own piece of paper, which will be turned in for a grade. This exercise will
inform me how well the students are grasping the concepts and if any areas need
to be readdressed or retaught.

Acceptable Evidence:
The graphic organizer and the
Species Population Project
will demonstrate the
students ability to
understand how species
shapes and environment and
visa versa. Especially with the
completion of the interactive,
online poster through
ThingLink they will
demonstrate how they
compared relationships
among interdependent
factors.

Instructional Strategies:
Communication
Collection
Collaboration
Presentation
Organization
Interaction

Lesson Activities:
This lesson will be completed over four 50 min periods.
Graphic Organizer (F):
After the students have grasped the basics and applied their understanding of
population biology in a specific environment, they will then become closer to a
scientific text about human population growth and what it means to Earths
environment. This is a hot-topic, real world issue that world is trying to
understand. The students will read a scientific text about human population
growth and fill out a graphic organizer, collecting specific information from the
article to help them fully understand it. They will write down what they already
know, what questions they have and hope to find answers to in the article, what
information was found in the article, what the data in the article means, and the
main points of the article. They are then to write down what further questions
they have and I will encourage them to look at the articles provided on the unit
plan webpage resources tab to read further into this topic.

Species Population Project (S)
The students will then demonstrate their understanding of this unit by pairing up
and collaborating with a peer to create an online, interactive poster through
ThingLink. They will research about a species that lives off of the Southern
Californian coast and collect information about it regarding its population size
over the years, its limiting factors, and the human impact on this species.

Unit Test (S)
The unit will end with a summative, unit test in which the students will
demonstrate their understanding of this topic by answering multiple-choice
questions and free response questions that will require critical thinking.

Lesson 3
Student Learning Objective:

Compare relationships
among interdependent
factors

Unit Resources:
Biology: The Dynamics of Life textbook

Digital Unit Plan: http://msjohnsonspopulationunit.weebly.com/

Webercise: http://animals.about.com/cs/zoology/a/zoo101ae.htm

Webersice: http://smartgraphs-activities.concord.org/activities/225-africanlions-%20modeling-populations/student_preview

Webercise: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/nature/population-ecology.html

Article for Graphic Organizer: http://www.populationeducation.org/sites/default/files/the_people_connection.pdf

Species off the Southern Californian Coast: http://www.cabrillomarineaquarium.org/exhibits/marine-life.asp

Population Data of Species: http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/sars/species.htm#casealion

ThingLink: https://www.thinglink.com/

Useful Websites:
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/human-overpopulation-still-an-issue-of-concern/

http://newsfeed.time.com/2013/01/11/overcrowding-nah-the-worlds-population-may-actually-be-declining/

http://www.economist.com/news/international/21619986-un-study-sparks-fears-population-explosion-alarm-misplaced-dont-panic

http://www.forbes.com/sites/stratfor/2015/02/17/population-decline-and-the-great-economic-reversal/

http://www.cnbc.com/2015/04/27/baby-bust-millenials-birth-rate-drop-may-signal-historic-shift.html

http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2014/07/falling-fertility-rates/