The Ecology Unit that I teach is split into 4 sections: Species, Populations, Communities, and Ecosystems. I like to split up the unit like this, so the unit feels like it builds on itself instead of just a jumble of activities. If you want more info on how I rewrote our Ecology Unit, check out my other blog post here.
During the community section of the unit, we discuss how populations interact and form relationships. That includes symbiotic relationships, predator-prey interactions, competition, and niche partitioning. Below I will review a few of the ways that we teach symbiotic relationships. This can be done in 1-2 class periods, or extended if you need more time. For my students, this is typically a review of 7th grade material, but the activities can be adapted for students with no prior knowledge.
Introducing The Material
I like to start with this video from HHMI, Nature's Cutest Symbiosis: The Bobtail Squid, it is a short video that discusses relationship between the Hawaiian Bobtail Squid and light-producing bacteria. I like this video, because most students think of bacteria as harmful and so they usually think that they can only be parasitic. This gives them a new perspective.
Vocabulary Practice
On this Google Slides you will find descriptions of relationships and vocabulary terms. I print this with 9 or 16 per sheet, then I just quickly chop them up in to squares. I don't put a border or anything on the slides, so then I don't have to be precise when cutting them out. You can laminate and use them year after year or I just put them on cardstock and they tend to stay useable for a few years, I just put them in baggies.
I hand each student or pair of students a baggie with the terms and descriptions. I ask them to read and arrange the descriptions into groups based off of similarities. I don't give them any more information than that. I want them to struggle a bit to find the connections. After 5-7 minutes, I will usually drop a hint...for example, you should have 5 categories or look at the relationships being shown in each example. Then I give them another 4-5 minutes to finish up their groupings. Another way to get kids collaborating would be to have them then check their groups with another student or pair of students. Discuss differences and decide if they want to rearrange their cards.
Then I read off the definition of one of the vocabulary terms. Mutualism, a relationship where both organisms benefit. I have the kids look at their groups to see if any of them match that definition. They put the vocabulary card over the group they think it belongs to. Then I go on to the next definition. It is ok for the students to rearrange and organize their cards again, if they realize they have some of them wrong.
When it is all done, I give them the answers, and students put the cards back into their baggies.
Gallery Walk
I found this lesson plan after some googling a few years ago, https://classroom-assets.freckle.com/science/unit-activities/ecosystem-dynamics-symbiosis-sort.pdf. I use the the full page posters found on page 9-17. I print them in color and laminate them. I then hang them around the hallway, I think it's nice to give the kids a break from sitting and move around a bit.
The students draw a quick little table in their notebook, because that is where we keep all notes and assignment. The table is simple:
Students then walk around (they don't have to start at poster 1) and decide if the organisms benefit (+), are harmed (-), or are neutral (0). It doesn't really matter which organism is 1 and which is 2. After they write down +, -, or 0 for each, they decide what type of relationship it is: mutualism, commensalism, parasitism, or predation.
When students are done, we discuss the answers, and students can correct any of the wrong answers and ask questions.
Creative Assessment
This last part is a 1-day creative assessment. Our honors classes don't always complete this, because often we have more content to cover, but our on-level classes will usually spend another day with the content and give kids time to synthesize their information in a new way.
Welcome to Timber, and ecological dating site. Students have 2 options with this assignment: create a relationship profile of the ecological relationship they are currently in or creating a dating profile of the type of relationship they are looking for. This is supposed to be a little fun and creative. Students can pick any relationship they want to explore and write it from different perspectives.
When we started this, we were completely online, and so the template is an editable google slides that we push out using Google Classroom. However, you could give them the template, and allow them to draw/write the information. I like the digital so they can easily insert real pictures of their organisms.
Here is the assignment if you would like to make a copy and try it out yourself and a student example below.
Happy Teaching!
Mrs. Townsend