Introduction
I address you tonight, not as the President of the United States, not as the
leader of a country, but as a citizen of humanity...
We are faced with the very grievous of challenges, the bible calls this day
ARMAGEDDON (the end of all things).
And yet, for the first time in the history of the planet, the species has the
technology to prevent its own extinction.
All you praying with us need to know, that everything that can be done to
prevent this disaster is being called into service.
The human thirst for excellence, knowledge, every step up the ladder of
science, every adventurous reach into space, all of our combined modern
technologies and imaginations, even the wars that we fought, have provided us the tools to wage this terrible battle.
Through all the chaos that is our history, through all of the wrongs and the
discords,through all the pain and the suffering through all of our times,
there's one thing that has merged our souls, and elevated our species above our origins, and that is our courage.....
We are calling on you the students of today and leaders of the future, to
provide us with the information we need to save our planet from the 6th Mass Extinction Event!!
We are calling on you to complete this task for us, to find out all you can
about the wrolds biomes so you can save our planet from the history of mankind and its own mistakes!!
Task
With a 6th Mass Extinction event upon us you have been tasked with finding out about our planets major Terrestrial biomes. (Aquatic biomes will be covered in class)
A biome is a major geographical region, composed of plants and animals that are adapted to the region's physical environment, including weather and climate.
The biomes that will be studied in this Webquest are: Rainforest, Tiaga, Grassland, Tundra, Desert, Savanna.
You will be given the option in class to pick your own biome and every biome will need to be adressed between the class.
You are then to put together the information in a way so as to infrom an expert panel about your biome and what is its importance to the planet.
Process
Visit the web resources to find information about your biome.
You are to gather the following information about your biome:
- climate and weather (annual high and low temperature, average precipitation, types of weather) [include tables, graphs and diagrams if possible]
- animals (endangered and non-endangered species)
- vegetation (major trees, shrubs, plants, crops)
- landforms (mountains, rivers)[include pictures]
- geographic location of the biome throughout the world (include maps and diagrams)
- places of interest (countries, landmarks etc)
Once you have completed your informational section you are to provide and 1-2 sentence analysis of the following questions:
- Why is your biome important?
- What are some reasons people might want to visit your biome?
- What might happen if your biome didn't exist?
Your information will need to be in the form of a powerpoint slideshow which you can email or a word document that you can print.
Time allocation for the task will be at the discretion of the teacher.
Resources
General Information
All About Nature:
Biomes http://www.allaboutnature.com/biomes/pond/pondlife.shtml
Biome Links: http://rmhs.dist214.k12.il.us/classes/lepbilscience/biome.html
Blue Planet Biomes: http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/index.htm
Introduction to Biomes: http://www.runet.edu/~swoodwar/CLASSES/GEOG235/biomes/intro.html (If you get a window asking for a password, click on "Cancel")
Biomes: http://ths.sps.lane.edu/biomes/index1.html Mission:
Biomes: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Laboratory/Biome/
Neighborhoods; Ecosystems, Biomes, and Habitats: http//www.fi.edu/tfi/units/life/habitat/habitat.html
The World's Biomes: http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/glossary/gloss5/biome/index.html
Biomes Thinkquest: http://library.thinkquest.org/C0113340/main.php?section=home
Citing Sources
Citing Internet Sources -
Classroom Connect: http://www.classroom.com/community/connection/howto/citeresources.jhtml
Citation Machine: http://citationmachine.net/
Yahooligan's Teachers Guide: http://yahooligans.yahoo.com/tg/678.html
Encyclopedias
Answers.com: http://www.answers.com/
Encarta: http://encarta.msn.com/artcenter_/browse.html
Electric Library's Free Encyclopedia: http://www.encyclopedia.com
Information Please: http://www.infoplease.com
Animal Pictures
All About Nature:
Biomes http://www.allaboutnature.com/biomes/pond/pondlife.shtml
Maps
World Biome Maps: http://www.worldbiomes.com/biomes_map.htm
World Biomes: http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/world_biomes.htm
Graphic Maps Free Clip Art http://www.graphicmaps.com/clipart.htm
Specific Biomes
Desert Images: http://miragemall.com/desertjpegs/imagesf.htm Desert: http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/glossary/gloss5/biome/deserts.html
Desert Life: http://www.desertusa.com/life.html
Grasslands: http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/glossary/gloss5/biome/grasslan.html
Grassland Explorer: http://www.naturegrid.org.uk/grassland/
Grassland Thinkquest: http://library.thinkquest.org/11353/grassland.htm
Grasslands: http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/grasslands.htm
Rainforest: http://www.interlog.com/~rainfrst/home.html
Rainforest Links: http://www.kidskonnect.com/Rainforest/RainforestHome.html
Tropical Rainforests: http://www.kidskonnect.com/Rainforest/RainforestHome.html
Virtual Rainforest Tour: http://www.bgreen.com.au/rainforest01.html#
Taiga: http://www.kidskonnect.com/Rainforest/RainforestHome.html
Taiga: http://library.thinkquest.org/C0113340/main.php?section=biomes&topic=taiga
Taiga: http://www.runet.edu/~swoodwar/CLASSES/GEOG235/biomes/taiga/taiga.html
Tundra: http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/index.htm
Tundra: http://www.radford.edu/~swoodwar/CLASSES/GEOG235/biomes/tundra/tundra.html
Tundra: http://www.worldbiomes.com/biomes_tundra.htm
Tundra, the Not-So Barren Land: http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/glossary/gloss5/biome/tundra.html
Evaluation
You will be evaluated as a pass or fail based upon the detail of the information and your ability to complete the task.
Conclusion
This task will form the basis for your biomes unit and will lead into the aquatic biomes and food and biomes unit to follow on.
Credits
Craig Marano- Pre-Service Teacher, OceanView College SA