The Biology Semester-long Course was developed and piloted at the University of …
The Biology Semester-long Course was developed and piloted at the University of Florida in Fall 2015. Course materials include readings, lectures, exercises, and assignments that expand on the material presented at workshops focusing on SQL and R.
This lab utilizes the computer program, Excel. In this exercise students will …
This lab utilizes the computer program, Excel. In this exercise students will generate synthetic data sets based on a simplified model of daily high temperatures in Boone, NC and apply several filtering techniques to the data. A key to this lab is that the students must use Excel in an efficient manner; otherwise, this exercise may take a long time to complete. Thus, the synthetic data sets are intentionally large in size. The overarching purpose of this lab is two-fold: 1) Perform some quantitative data processing and determine the effectiveness of several types of simple mathematical noise filters, and 2) Make a professional interpretation and recommendation based on quantitative results.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
In this lab, students are introduced to the difference between relative and …
In this lab, students are introduced to the difference between relative and absolute dating, using the students themselves as the material to be ordered. Initially, the students are asked to develop physical clues to put themselves in order from youngest to oldest (exposing the inferences we make unconsciously about people's ages), and this will be refined/modified using a list of current events from an appropriate historical period that more and more of the students will remember, depending on their age (among other variables). Absolute age is introduced by having the students order themselves by birth decade, year, month, and day, and comparing the absolute age order to the order worked out in the relative-dating exercise, with a discussion of dating precision and accuracy.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
This three-act film tells the story of the detective work that solved …
This three-act film tells the story of the detective work that solved the mystery of what caused the disappearance of the dinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous period. Shot on location in Italy, Spain, Texas, Colorado, and North Dakota, the film traces the uncovering of key clues that led to the discovery that an asteroid struck the Earth 66 million years ago, triggering a mass extinction of animals, plants, and microorganisms. Science practices in geology, physics, biology, chemistry and paleontology all contributed to the solution to this compelling mystery. Lesson plans are included that have students identify evidence and construct an explanation to tie it together. Summary questions are included at the end and a class discussion is recommended. (This activity will be the only one evaluated in this review.) Another resource is Finding the Crater where students visit different K-T boundary sites. There are also lessons where students analyze various characteristics of the asteroid such as its size and energy, chemical data about the asteroid, and the iridium fallout from an asteroid impact. A hands-on activity where students study the differences in foraminifera fossils below and above the K-T boundary is also included as well as an article that outlines more details about each of the discoveries covered in the film. You can view the film on the website or HHMI will send you a free DVD. Lesson plans including teacher notes and a student handout can be found at http://www.hhmi.org/biointeractive/following-trail-evidence.
Students compare mineral structures shown in ball-and-stick, space filling, and polyhedral diagrams. …
Students compare mineral structures shown in ball-and-stick, space filling, and polyhedral diagrams.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
Copper is an element that is essential to our technology and to …
Copper is an element that is essential to our technology and to our standard of living. Commonly, the copper is extracted from a variety of copper-bearing minerals that occur in veins. These fossilized fluid pathways record a complex set of geologic processes with non-linear couplings that are the products of hydrothermal activity associated with igneous intrusions (e.g. heat transport, mechanical fracture, mineral precipitation, permeability changes). By carefully examining a rock slab and its mineralogy, one can decipher the series of interrelated processes and their resultant impact on the final product.
Students set about to determine the relative age of veins by visual examination of the rock slab provided. Several generations of veins are recorded by different colors representing different minerals. Using cross-cutting relationships, they list the veins from oldest to youngest. Based on their color, they determine the sequence of minerals that fill veins. This provides an opportunity to review why color can be used to identify some minerals but not others. Once minerals are identified, their ideal chemical formula allows the percent copper in the mineral to be determined as well as the additional elements that must be present to form the mineral. The consequent change in mineral chemistry can be linked to the alterations in fluids flowing through the fractures by analysis of fluid-mineral equilibria on activity-activity (a-a) diagrams. For the more advanced classes, relevant thermodynamic data can be provided and students can write hydrolysis reactions and calculate the (a-a) diagram themselves.
Interpretation of the geologic history begins with the matrix and initial conditions and follows through rock fracture, fluid flow, mineral precipitation, evolving fluid composition, fracture sealing, pore-fluid pressure buildup, fracture, precipitation, etc. in a series of feedbacks. A feedback diagram can be provided and used as a base-map for interpretation not only of the sequence but changes to each reservoir, or students can be asked to draw the series of events and their reservoirs with the mechanisms of change. In the end, students understand the complex series of geologic processes that must come together in space and time to produce an ore-deposit that can be mined for our use. They also wrestle with the complications of reading the rock record and with the ambiguity of interpreting the interaction of various mechanisms that control the final product.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
Spreadsheets Across the Curriculum/Geology of National Parks module. Students calculate the haze …
Spreadsheets Across the Curriculum/Geology of National Parks module. Students calculate the haze index and standard visual range from concentrations of particulate matter.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
In this activity, students investigate the fascinating and complex process of decomposition …
In this activity, students investigate the fascinating and complex process of decomposition and lay the foundation for deeper understanding of concepts related to matter and energy transfer in ecosystems. Through exploration and discussion, students go beyond simple definitions. Instead, students discover key characteristics of decomposition as they struggle with creating a sequence for decomposing wood and leaves. They learn the difference between physical decomposition and chemical decomposition and that many things contribute to decomposition, but certain organisms are classified as decomposers. They also search for and discuss evidence of decomposers, make model diagrams to further develop their ideas about the process of decomposition, and discuss decomposition and its role in the cycling of matter. Finally, students are challenged to recognize the evidence and impact of decomposition in the ecosystems they explore.
This activity will help students to explore characteristics of microbes that live …
This activity will help students to explore characteristics of microbes that live in the deep sea. This activity can be conducted as a jigsaw or research project, and can be used with face-to-face, remote, and hybrid students.
Provenance: Beverly Owens, Cleveland Early College High School Reuse: This item is offered under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ You may reuse this item for non-commercial purposes as long as you provide attribution and offer any derivative works under a similar license.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
This activity is a Google Slide playlist that will introduce students to …
This activity is a Google Slide playlist that will introduce students to microbes that can be found in deep sea sediments, and what roles they play in their environment. This playlist is suitable for use in remote, hybrid, or in-person instruction and can easily be added to a Learning Management System.
Provenance: Molly Ludwick, Kings Mountain Middle School Reuse: This item is offered under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ You may reuse this item for non-commercial purposes as long as you provide attribution and offer any derivative works under a similar license.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
Developed for second grade. Students will: use their sense of touch and …
Developed for second grade. Students will: use their sense of touch and sight to discover differences between several types of seeds; discuss why seeds come in different shapes and sizes; make connections between art and science; discuss the growth process of a seed; discuss how different seeds are used in different products.Biology In Elementary Schools is a Saint Michael's College student project. The teaching ideas on this page have been found, refined, and developed by students in a college-level course on the teaching of biology at the elementary level. Unless otherwise noted, the lesson plans have been tried at least once by students from our partner schools. This wiki has been established to share ideas about teaching biology in elementary schools. The motivation behind the creation of this page is twofold: 1. to provide an outlet for the teaching ideas of a group of college educators participating in a workshop-style course; 2. to provide a space where anyone else interested in this topic can place their ideas.
Appreciating the depth of time is a bit like trying to understand …
Appreciating the depth of time is a bit like trying to understand the national debt -- it is easy to rattle off the number, but more difficult to appreciate what it means. Several popular writers have tried to convey the depth of time by incoporating one major (and important!) signpost in their scales: the first historical records of humans on the planet. Mark Twain famously referred to human history as the "skin of paint" at the summit of the Eiffel Tower, and John McPhee the "stroke of a medium-grained nail file" on the middle nail of an outstretched arm.
Eiffel Tower
Reuse: This item is offered under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ You may reuse this item for non-commercial purposes as long as you provide attribution and offer any derivative works under a similar license.
Vitruvian man
Reuse: This item is offered under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ You may reuse this item for non-commercial purposes as long as you provide attribution and offer any derivative works under a similar license.
I would like for you to evaluate these two metaphors for accuracy. How close were Twain and McPhee to appropriately contexualizing human existence in geological time? Use the pdf's of Twain's and McPhee's prose and what you know from class lectures to accomplish the following goals.
(1) Evaluate whether McPhee's and Twain's metaphors are appropriately scaled -- i.e., do their metaphors correctly depict the age of the earth relative to human history? How about if we incorporate the fossil record of humans?
(2) Create your own appropriately scaled metaphor. Add in at least three other "signposts", either biological or geological, into your metaphor and explain why you chose them.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
This activity is designed to introduce students to the way in which …
This activity is designed to introduce students to the way in which thermohaline circulation and the biological pump influence the distribution of nutrients, oxygen, carbon, and radiocarbon in the Atlantic vs. Pacific Oceans.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
Students match microstructures to the deformation mechanisms by which they form; compare …
Students match microstructures to the deformation mechanisms by which they form; compare pairs of photomicrographs chosen to highlight key differences between some common microstructures; and complete a self-quiz in which they identify microstructures and infer deformation mechanisms from photomicrographs.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
This assignment addresses cultural sustainability by asking students to go beyond distinguishing …
This assignment addresses cultural sustainability by asking students to go beyond distinguishing between five subsistence strategies to examining the impact of globalization on diet and culture.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
Students are given 4 hypothetical stratigraphic columns (each roughly 30 m thick) …
Students are given 4 hypothetical stratigraphic columns (each roughly 30 m thick) of deltaic deposits, 3 base maps with section locations, and a map scale. Students subdivide the stratigraphic units into subfacies and interpret subenvironments (delta plain, delta front, prodelta, marine) and describe/list features used to make these interpretations. Using depositional interpretations, 3 bentonite marker beds, and paleocurrent information, students draw 3 successive paleogeographic maps of the region showing delta migration through time.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
A demonstration (with full class participation) to illustrate radioactive decay by flipping …
A demonstration (with full class participation) to illustrate radioactive decay by flipping coins. Shows students visually the concepts of exponential decay, half-life and randomness. Works best in large classes -- the more people, the better.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
One of the great challenges in teaching undergraduates is finding ways to …
One of the great challenges in teaching undergraduates is finding ways to get them to apply knowledge or skills learned in one class to problems encountered in subsequent classes. Case in point: the use of algebra, trig, and even rudimentary calculus in geology classes! This activity presents practical ways we can use to build student confidence in their ability to peer into the meaning of the equations they encounter in sedimentary geology. These techniques include: (1) Surgical Strike Reviews -- 5 to 10-minute review of relevant math principles at the beginning of the appropriate lecture, (2) Unit Analyses -- assigning fundamental units of Mass, Length, and Time to test whether an equation has been derived correctly or to explore the meaning of derivative units of measure that may be unfamiliar to students, and (3) Perturbation Interrogation -- asking students to identify whether the quantity of interest described by an equation will increase or decrease when individual components of the equation increase or decrease.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
This 3-hour hands-on guided-discovery lab activity teaches students the concepts of density, …
This 3-hour hands-on guided-discovery lab activity teaches students the concepts of density, buoyancy, thermal expansion and convection.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
Show caption HideA critical component of this activity involves sharing team data …
Show caption HideA critical component of this activity involves sharing team data with the entire class, done the old-fashioned way on the chalkboard. Details This activity begins with an exploration of a topographic map of the earth, ending with the question: Why is the distribution of topography on the earth bimodal? The students then collect two forms of data. They measure the density of the most common rocks that make up oceanic crust (basalt), continental crust (granite), and the mantle (peridotite). They also measure the density of several different kinds of wood, and how high each kind floats in a tub of water. In each case, they work in teams of two or three and then the entire class shares their data. Based on the data from the wood, they derive an equation that relates the density of the wood to the height at which the block floats in the water - the isostasy equation. They then substitute density values for real rocks into their equation to derive thicknesses for average continental and oceanic crust, and apply their knowledge in order to draw a cross-section of the crust across South America. This activity gives students a real, hands-on and mathematical understanding of the principle of isostasy.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
No restrictions on your remixing, redistributing, or making derivative works. Give credit to the author, as required.
Your remixing, redistributing, or making derivatives works comes with some restrictions, including how it is shared.
Your redistributing comes with some restrictions. Do not remix or make derivative works.
Most restrictive license type. Prohibits most uses, sharing, and any changes.
Copyrighted materials, available under Fair Use and the TEACH Act for US-based educators, or other custom arrangements. Go to the resource provider to see their individual restrictions.
