Ecosystems... your turn! speak out!

After seeing the basic characteristics of living things, and the geological external activity on Earth, now we are going to deepen into the interaction phase of biology and geology, which lead us... to the study of ecosystems.

In this unit we are going to discover what are the characteristics of ecosystems and the more important ecosystems around us in our region. But this times it is not going to be explained as usual... it is your turn to speak out! 

Each of the four class-groups has one part of the unit allocated, so that you are going to explain to your partners that section of the unit.

Although I have given each group the general instructions for this task, I have used the presentation that I created for the unit about "The functions of living things: cell structure and organization", so that it can act as an example of how to make a presentation of 15-20 minutes to your colleagues, using Prezi, Haiku Deck or Pow Toon (software for creating online presentations).

Please, take a look at the presentation and use it as a model for yours, and ask me any doubt you might have.

Good luck and enjoy the task!

What is Earth telling us?

In relation to the unit we are developing now: Earth sciences: external geological activity, we are going to explore what is happening with volcano activity nowadays.
In this activity, you have to take a look at the example map generated with Umapper:


* What do you think about the activity of some of the most important volcanoes?
  **  Which tectonic plate are they related to?
  ***  Do they suppose a great risk and geological hazard for the surrounding population or not?
     ****  What is the type of explosions they have?
       *****  Are there any other volcanoes in the surrounding area?
       ******  Is the "Ring of fire" in relation to any of them?
       ******* Could the explosion of any of this volcanoes affect you or your family? why?
                           *******    etc etc.

You have to think about that questions in the class-groups and add and share three important volcanoes from all over the world to the map (title, description and an image are compulsory; any other information is voluntary).

Then, you have to choose in concert one active volcanoes present in the map and make a poster with Venngage with the most relevant information about that volcano (location, images, news' extracts from media, description of the historical record of activity, classification as geological hazard, etc.). This poster will be exposed at the high school walls and someone from the group will have to present it to the rest of the class.

And remember that if you have any doubts, please do not doubt to ask the rest of your group or the teacher about it.

Enjoy it and lava volcanoes!

Reproduction... now it's time to play!

Now that we know why reproduction is so important for all living things and the different reproduction strategies which are carried out by animals and plants, it is time for you to demonstrate yourself and your partners how much you know about this topic.

The following activities are planned to be done in pairs, so that you can check with your partner your doubts and get the correct answer for each one. However, you can do these activities at home all the times you want to, and feel sure about the contents related to this unit.
First, it is time to review the vocabulary of this unit. Here you have the selected vocabulary :
sexual reproduction
With this voki you can check your pronunciation. Try to pronunce the key words of this part of the unir along with the character, one word each of you.


Now, we are going to make a quick about Reproduction in plants. Are you ready? Take a deep breath, because once you have clicked "start quiz" the times starts to run out! and remember, there is just one correct answer per question.

Loading Reproduction in plants!

Animals reproduction is pretty different from plants reproduction, as we have previously seen in class. Click HERE to access the keywords of this part of the unit, and then select the game "Frakle Frog" to start your review of reproduction in animals. Make sure the frog is alive by the end of the game!

Last but not least, you have to solve this crossword in teams, the fastest you can, because the first team to solve it correctly will get a reward. The clues are the following:

Across
1. Male reproductive system in plants 2. Plant which have seeds 3. Cell created during fertilisation 6. Same species organisms living together 8. Female reproductive system in plants 11. Underground stems with buds 12. Organ which produces gametes 13. The union of gametes 14. Gonad which generates ovules
Down 1. Cell involved in asexual reproduction 4. Developing of a new plant 5. Little bulbs produced by leek 7. Pollination by insects and birds 9. Something that remains inactive 10. Gonad which generates sperm

And here is the crossword:

Best luck to all teams!

You are not alone

As stated on the title of this entry, living creatures are sorrounded by other individuals and species. We live in an interconnected ecosphere, where the relations among the diversity of species remains in a delicate balance.

The following video is about that thrid aspect of the vital functions: relations. In "One life" (narrated by Daniel Craig), you will discover many types of relations between species: predation, competition, symbiosis, cooperation, etc.

Your duty about this documentary is to select one scene from it (choose which species you are going to focus your work on) and describe the type of relationships that is being shown (individuals or species, ecological context, biome, actions taking place on the scene, ecological outcomes and further implications). Write it collaboratively on a Google Drive document (following the instructions I gave you in class) and give me access to it.

It is highly recommended for you to watch the entire documentary! You will love it for sure!

Crazy mating strategies

As nature strategies are as varied as life is itself, reproduction is at the top in science, specially when we talk about sexual reproduction strategies. Here you can see some examples of weird and curious strategies, from the flatworms to bees:



And more strange mating rituals:

How do plants make their own food?

All living creatures carry out the three vital functions we have seen in class these days, which are nutrition, interaction and reproduction. When it comes to nutrition we have seen that there are two nutritional models:
- Autotrophs
- Heterotrophs

But, who are the autotrophs? We have seen many algae , many bacteria and all plants are autotrophs. Do you know why plants are very important for the rest of living creatures? Because of photosynthesis and its implications!
Here you can see a video about this essential process:



And for a much more detailed explanation you can watch this one:

Welcome !

This blog is made for the students of "Science 2º ESO" and "Biology and Geology 3º ESO" from the CPEB Las Arenas.
Here you will find information and resources that we have seen in class, and other science information and curiosities. Hope you enjoy the ride and comment on the posts!