Small Habitats

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In this activity, learners build a model of a self-sustaining habitat (growing grass and beans from seeds). They come to understand the natural conditions which promote plant, animal and human growth, and explore such questions as: What are the parts of a habitat? What are the habitat's sources of energy, food and water? How do the parts of a habitat work together? This activity can be found on pages 35-36 of the activity guide. [Activity is publicly available through a web crawler capture on Archive.org.]

Quick Guide

Preparation Time:
1 to 2 hours
Learning Time:
1 to 7 days
Estimated Materials Cost:
$1 - $5 per group of students
Age Range:
Ages 11 - adult
Resource Types:
Activity, Demonstration
Language:
English

Materials List (per group of students)

  • 1 empty 2 liter soda bottle
  • 1 cup of potting soil
  • ¼ cup of gravel
  • 5 bean seeds or 1 teaspoon of grass seeds
  • 1 rubber band
  • ½ cup of water
  • Plastic wrap
  • Worksheet – Small Habitats
  • Observation Sheet

Keywords

Subjects

  • Earth and Space Science
  • Life Sciences
    • Cells
    • Diversity of Life
      • Plants
    • Ecology
      • Ecosystems
  • Physical Sciences
    • Chemistry
      • Chemistry of Life
  • The Nature of Science
    • The Scientific Process
      • Formulating Explanations

Audience

To use this activity, learners need to:

  • see

Learning styles supported:

  • Involves hands-on or lab activities

Other

Access Rights:

  • Free access

By:

Source Collection

  • Science After School Consumer's Guide

Rights:

  • All rights reserved, TERC, 2007

Funding Sources:

  • NASA, NAS5-26555
  • National Science Foundation, NSF 9730728