Chelsea McWain- Blanford Nature Center School

6th Grade Biology

Ecosystems/ Living vs. Nonliving

AQUINAS COLLEGE
SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
LESSON PLAN
Michigan Curriculum Framework Content Standards and Benchmarks:
S.IP.M.1 Inquiry involves generating questions, conducting investigations, and developing solutions to problems
through reasoning and observation.
S.IP.07.11 Generate scientific questions based on observations, investigations, and research.
MS-LS2-2 Construct an explanation that predicts patterns of interactions among organisms across multiple
ecosystems. *

Unit Outcome:
Earth Science Relationships- The Spheres, Biomes, Ecosystems, Human Alterations of
Ecosystems
Lesson Outcomes:
Classifying abiotic and biotic things
Understanding classifications
Working in groups to brainstorm and taking responsibility for ones own learning
Interactions between the defined living and nonliving things making up an ecosystem
Rationale/Purpose for Lesson:
The students will apply previous knowledge of living things and will be challenged on their
thinking and defend their answers and take responsibility for their learning by having roles in
groups.
Assessment:
I will assess the students understanding of living and nonliving things by having the students
identify whether or not a rock is a living thing using their own precise language to a foreigner
who struggles with English words.
Resources/Materials Required:
Computer and Projector
Board
Marker
Flash Cards x 6 sets
Assessment Worksheets
Living key Note sheet
Random Name Generator
Desks
Introduction and Procedure
Today we are going to delve further into the biosphere.
What is found in the
biosphere.NAME? The student will say living things. I will then ask what is found in the
other spheres then. The students will take a roundabout way to get to nonliving things. I will
then say that the spheres interacting is called an ecosystem. I will then break the word apart and

Chelsea McWain- Blanford Nature Center School

6th Grade Biology
Ecosystems/ Living vs. Nonliving

ask what the prefix eco means. The students will talk about it meaning the environment and
living and nonliving things. I will then ask what a system is. The students say that it is different
parts working together. We will wrap it all back together by thinking about an ecosystem as the
living and nonliving parts of the earth interacting. I will then say that before we can look at the
interactions, we need to know what a living thing is. I will give 4 students a chance to tell me
what a living thing is. When they cannot come up with the whole answer, I will have them all
stand up.
Procedure Beyond Intro:
Random generator
Rules for being in groups
Define the number of each chair
Person 1 moves the cards, Person 2 is the recorder
Person 3 is the first speaker per group- Discuss how the group chose to organize their
cards
Next classification, Person 4 moves the cards, person 5 is the recorder
Person 6 or back to 1 (if no 6th person) to speak on behalf of their group
Next Classification, same rules continue to apply
Groups discuss how they chose to organize their groupings
We then talk about why classification is important
The scientific words for living and nonliving- biotic and abiotic
The students have 1 minute to discuss with their groups about images that will be put into
biotic or abiotic categories
Each group takes turns sending rep up to put images into the categories and must defend
their decision- other groups have the opportunity to argue a decision and suggest an
alternative answer
We create a key together for what it means to be living
Closure:
The students will have the opportunity to prove that they have an understanding for what it
means to be a living or nonliving organism on the fun story problem assessment. When students
are done, they are responsible for coming up to turn in their paper and then getting out their book
to read or science fair notecards to work on until the class is finished.