Biome Webquest

1
Biome Webquest
2
Biome Journalism

• You and your colleagues at the Vibrant Planet, a
  multimedia broadcast consortium, have been
  selected for a news assignment that will take you
  around the world. So put on your traveling
  shoes, pack your suitcase, and grab your camera.
• The Vibrant Planet has posted lagging sales. It
  wants to boost newspaper readership, TV viewing,
  and sales of cds and videos by generating media
  releases on the effect of global warming and
  human intervention on various biomes of the world.

3

• Your group has been hired to research this
  pressing matter, predict the future of our planet
  and generate a multimedia presentation.

Your team has been selected because each of you
has special talents. Collectively, you know how
to sell the story with words, pictures, and
sound. You have three weeks to meet your deadline
4
Your Task

• Working as a group, develop an in depth
  presentation on the status of your biome
• You may create newsletters, videos, or other
  animated presentation.
• Your presentations will be reviewed by our
  Partners in Education (in other words, your
  peers).

5
PROCESS

• Each team will be assigned a biome by the
  teacher.
• It is the team's job to research the biomes and
  gather facts and information about that biome.
• Each member of the team will become an expert in
  a particular aspect of the biome.
• Team members will save their information to their
  jump drives and the server. They will email their
  daily files to their team members.

6
Team Roles

• Ecologist Animal/Plant Expert . Prey-predator
  relationships, food webs.
• Biosphere specialist Biotic, abiotic and
  limiting factors
• Meteorologist/Geographer Weather, Map and Area
  Expert
• Sociologist Mans Impact

7
PROCESS

• Discuss with your team which role each of you
  will assume.
• Remember that you are all responsible for
  learning about the biome, but your role reflects
  an area of particular focus that you will
  research.

8
Biomes

• Tropical Forest
• Savanna
• Desert
• Polar Mountain Ice
• Chaparral

• Temperate Grassland
• Temperate Deciduous Forest
• Coniferous Forest
• Tundra (Arctic Alpine)
• Freshwater Marine

9
Product

• As a group the team will create a newsletter,
  video or multimedia product that showcases the
  biotic and abiotic interactions within their
  biome, the impact of mankind on the biomes, and
  an assessment of the future viability of
  ecosystems within the biome.
• Use the rubric to help prepare your presentation.
  

10
SOME QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER

• What part of the world will you be traveling to
  as an on-the-spot reporter?
• What kinds of plants and animals live in this
  biome? What factors effect their survival?
• Whats for dinner? Describe the food web.
• What adaptations have organisms made to live in
  this biome?
• What's the weather like?
• How has man effected the viability of the
  ecosystems in this biome?

11
Evaluation-Page 1 Evaluation-Page 1 Evaluation-Page 1 Evaluation-Page 1
Needs work (3 point) Adequate (7 points) Excellent (10 points)
Content
Biome/ecosystems/habitats Information lacking or inaccurate Accurate information, lacking in depth Accurate, relevant information substantiated and show interrelationships
Biosphere-Air, Soil and Water Information lacking or inaccurate Accurate information, lacking in depth Accurate, relevant information and demonstrates understand of interactions
Energy flow Not addressed Energy flow general or vague Energy flow is specifically addressed at multiple levels.
Human impact Information lacking or inaccurate Accurate information, lacking in depth Accurate, relevant information
Creativity Newsletter is inaccurate, uninteresting, or merely demonstrates cut-paste Newsletter has some interesting features Accurate, relevant information which demonstrates reflection and/or transformative thinking
12
Images Images absent Images are not relevant, sparse or not sized Image are relevant to the information presented and have been sized appropriately.
Format-Page Newsletter lacks multiple pages. Pages not linked. No navigation table Multiple pages. Navigation table present but links not working Multiple pages correctly linked.
Format Major errors in layout, grammar Some spelling or grammatical errors No spelling or grammatical errors, format is easy to read
Timeline/per individual Element not submitted Elements consistently late Elements submitted on time.
Fact sheet/per individual Fact sheet turned in but information not extensive Fact sheet turned in, extensive research Fact sheet turned in, extensive research with sources accurately cited.
Presentation Project is missing 2 emailed, printed, saved to server. Project is missing one emailed, printed, saved to server. Emailed, printed out and saved to server.
Total 40 (team)10 individual (individual)50 total