Chemical Competition in Peatlands
These lab exercises were designed to enhance students’ understanding of the concept of chemical competition in ecology. They use the moss Sphagnum to illustrate the concept, which shows students that competition occurs between plants. Many of the traditional examples show competition as a physical battle between animals. By using the chemical alteration of the environment by Sphagnum, a teacher can also review the concept of pH, in a biological framework. As a result, the lab can be used in either an ecology unit or a chemistry unit, within a biology course. The lab was designed for 10th to 12th grade classrooms.
| Associated files | |
|---|---|
| Format | |
| Primary or BEN resource type | |
| Secondary resource type | |
| General Biology Core Concepts | |
| Discipline Specific Core Concepts | |
| General Biology Competencies | |
| Life science discipline (subject) | |
| Keywords | pH, moss, Sphagnum, ecology |
| Key taxa | bryophyte, moss, Sphagnum |
| Audience | |
| Intended End User Role | |
| Language | |
| Educational Language | |
| Pedagogical Use Category | |
| Pedagogical Use Description | This lab exercise uses the moss Sphagnum to examine chemical competition in plant ecology. These lab exercises were designed to enhance students’ understanding of the concept of chemical competition in ecology. They use the moss Sphagnum to illustrate the concept, which shows students that competition occurs between plants. Many of the traditional examples show competition as a physical battle between animals. By using the chemical alteration of the environment by Sphagnum, a teacher can also review the concept of pH, in a biological framework. As a result, the lab can be used in either an ecology unit or a chemistry unit, within a biology course. The lab was designed for 10th to 12th grade classrooms. At the end of the activity students will be able to operate a pH meter, create a graph using student collected data, and interpret their results. |
| Aggregation Level | |
| Structure | |
| Full Name of Primary Author | Jon Swanson |
| Primary Author Controlled Name | |
| Primary Author Affiliation | Edwin O. Smith High School |
| Primary Author email | jswanson@eosmith.org |
| Secondary Author Name(s) | Jessica M. Budke, Bernard Goffinet |
| Secondary Author Affiliation(s) | University of Connecticut |
| Secondary Author Email(s) | jessica.m.budke@gmail.com, bernard.goffinet@uconn.edu |
| Added By Id |
|
| Submitter Name | Jessica M. Budke |
| Submitter Email | jessica.m.budke@gmail.com |
| Rights | Dr. Bernard Goffinet Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology University of Connecticut |
| License | |
| Publisher | |
| Review type | |
| Drought and Water Ecosystem Services Collection | Off |
| Conservation Targets Under Global Change Collection | Off |
| Big Data Collection | Off |
| Editors Choice | No |
| Resource Status | |
| Date Of Record Submission | 2014-07-27 |
| I Agree to EcoEdDL's Copyright Policy & Terms of Use | No |
| Date Of Record Release | 2014-10-14 09:29:20 |
| Last Modified By Id |
|
| Date Last Modified | 2014-10-14 09:29:20 |
| Release Flag | Published |
(no comments available yet for this resource)
Create a Login
Resource Comments