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Learner Outcomes
- Students will be able to define Global Change.
- Students will become aware of the effects of global
warming on grasslands.
- Students will be able to use satellite imagery to
develop a plan for testing various types of grasses in
different areas of a grassland.
- Students will use a spreadsheet to develop a plan for
planting a test plot in a grassland.
- Students will develop a hypothesis about testing
grass growth.
Concept Introduction
Students will assume the role of an agronomist.
Students receive information about climate change and its
possible effects on grasslands in western Nebraska and
eastern Colorado. Students will examine data related to
temperature change, examine satellite imagery of Garden
County Nebraska, and examine different varieties of grasses.
Students will then develop a hypothesis and an experiment to
test it. Students will present their hypothesis to the
class.
Teacher Preparation
Technology
The lesson will cover about one 50 minute period. Teachers
need to be familiar with DataSlate and its basic operations.
The on-line tutorial is available for teachers to become
familiar with the software. Teachers need to also be able to
decompress compressed zip files. Ability to enter data into
a spreadsheet is also necessary. Browsers need to have the
Real Player plug-in
installed. The computer used should be at least a Pentium 90
(166 is better) with 16 MB of ram or a Power Macintosh with
32 MB of ram. Either platform needs a CD-ROM.
Background
A recent study indicates that global warming has caused a
problem for western grasslands. Daytime high temperatures do
not seem to be the problem. Night time highs are the
problem. It's during late winter and early spring that the
problem occurs. Night time highs have risen and the last
frost date occurs an average of two weeks earlier than it
had twenty years ago. Native grasses now germinate too late.
Noxious plants instead germinate early and deplete the
moisture in the soil as well as compete for other resources
needed by the grasses. To compound the problem, cattle do
not graze on the weeds. Students will be asked to develop an
experiment that will allow ranchers to adapt to this change.
They will examine various types of grasses to supplement the
native grasses. They will examine a variety of grasses,
compare costs and calculate the cost conduct the experiment.
This is an excellent activity for cooperative groups.
Students will develop a persuasive presentation to present
to a group.
Resources
The Seed
Shop
Real
Audio Broadcast from NPR
(Requires Real
Player)
Lesson
Introduce the concept of climate change to students. Discuss
possible effects of global warming. Assign students to
cooperative groups. Tell students that they will be
reviewing information about a recent study on climate change
and grasslands. Inform the students that they will need to
develop a hypothesis and an experiment to test the
information they received. They will not need to conduct the
experiment, however they will need to present their
hypothesis to the class. Give the students time to work at
the computers.
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