Appendix 1

LESSON PLAN
SCHOOL OF EDUCATION

LESSON ORGANISATION
Year Level: 9

Time: 13:30 14:00

Date: 2/03/2015

Students Prior Knowledge:

Learning Area: Science

Strand/Topic from the Australian Curriculum:
Ecosystems consist of communities of interdependent
organisms and abiotic components of the environment;
matter and energy flow through these systems
(ACSSU176)
- Examining how destruction of habitat can affect
population size.

Understand human causes and effects of landscape

degradation; erosion, mining, dams and urban
development.

Can identify ways of protecting significant

landscapes.

Able to identify the three different components of an

ecosystem.

Understand how energy and matter flows through

ecosystems

Can identify and discuss human factors that affect

population size in ecosystems
General Capabilities (that may potentially be covered in the lesson)
Critical and
Literacy
Numeracy
ICT
com petence

creative thinking

Ethical
behaviour

Personal and
Social
com petence

Intercultural
understanding

Cross-curriculum priorities (may be addressed in the lesson)

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
histories and cultures
Proficiencies:(Mathematics only)

Asia and Australias engagement with Asia

Sustainability

Lesson Objectives (i.e. anticipated outcomes of this lesson, in point form beginning with an action verb)
As a result of this lesson, students will be able to:
Understand how deforestation can lead to changes in population size
Compare impacts of clear felling and retention harvesting on the balance of an ecosystem
Discuss how the use of ICT has been incorporated into the lesson
Teachers Prior Preparation/Organisation:

Provision for students at educational risk:

1:1 computer/tablet allocation

Internet access
Links to eco Forest and Google Spreadsheet
Microsoft Excel spreadsheet

Students who finish work early will have an

opportunity to construct their own food webs
Students struggling to grasp the concept will have
1 on 1 time with teacher during the activity time
Interactive ICT activity to help engage all learners
Varied group work and individual work to cater to
both interpersonal and intrapersonal learners

LESSON EVALUATION (to be completed AFTER the lesson)

Assessment of Lesson Objective and Suggestions for Improvement:

Teacher self-reflection and self-evaluation:

[OFFICIAL USE ONLY] Comments by classroom teacher, HOPP, supervisor:

LESSON DELIVERY (attach worksheets, examples, marking key, etc, as relevant)

Motivation and Introduction:
Hand out the variety 3 variety of chocolates/sweet to every students (using
this for our groups also)
as students begin to unwrap and look to eat, ask
If they know where it comes from?
Organic or farmed?
How much land was cleared to make it?
What kind of ecosystem was destroyed, forest?
How many species habitat was permanently erased?

Time

5 min

Lesson Steps (Lesson content, structure, strategies & Key Questions):

10 min

Aims of Eco-forest: 1 min

1.
Understand how deforestation can lead to changes in
population size
2.
Compare impacts of clear felling and retention harvesting on
the balance of an ecosystem
Instructions: 2 min
Lets look at our harvesting area forest info
Define clear felling and retention harvesting look at harvesting
options
Look at species in the harvesting area
Divide students into profit makers, environmentalists, clear fellers
and retention harvesters
Begin sim: 5 min
o 2 min warning: if you have not started to harvest do so now
o 1 min warning: you should have finished harvesting by now
and have started to look at your report
Enter results into Google spreadsheet: 2 min
o Log onto iPads and enter data into online spreadsheet
o We can then paste data into a pre-populated spreadsheet
where we can graph the data and show on the projector.

Resources/References

1:1 computer/tablet
allocation
Link to eco Forest

Link to Google
spreadsheet

Discussion of results
The groups who attempted to have a sustainable, environmentally
aware forestry business, did you achieve your goals? What were your
profits like?

5 min

The groups who attempted to maximise profits and log as much as

possible, what effect did this have on the environment? What were
your profits like?
Identify people from the results graphs that obtained a large profit and
ask them what type of harvesting they did? And what effect did it have
on the ecosystem?
Identify people from the results graphs that retained a large
component of their biodiversity and ask them what type of harvesting
they did? And what effect did it have on the ecosystem?
Identify people from the results graphs that had a combination of
profit and biodiversity and ask them what type of harvesting they did?

From this, we can see the large impacts that habitat loss (through timber
harvesting) can have on an ecosystem. Often business goals and
environmental goals are in conflict with one another so a balance between the
two is needed. The decisions that we make as humans can have a huge
impact on the environment and can destroy ecosystems.
Lesson Closure:(Review lesson objectives with students)
Discussion questions
1. With regard to the following statement: The use of digital
technologies in the classroom allows teachers to take advantage of
students interest and willingness to use technology (Powell, 2014).
Did you feel that the digital technologies used in this lesson ring true
to the statement?

2. With regard to the following statement: There are no technology

shortcuts to good education. For secondary schools that are
underperforming or limited in resources, efforts to improve education
should focus almost exclusively on better teachers and stronger
administrations. Information technology, if used at all, should be
targeted for certain, specific uses or limited to well-funded schools
whose fundamentals are not in question (Toyama, 2011). Do you feel
that the ICT used in this lesson took over the job of the teacher, or
supported the lesson objectives that were put forward?

3. respond to the statement, the eco forest game an inaccurate

irrelevant simulation of green lies discuss. I assume most would

disagree and be forced to identify some of the positives of the game.

Transition: (What needs to happen prior to the next lesson?)

Ensure students have an understanding of the effects of habitat destruction
on an ecosystem. The loss/disruption of energy within an ecosystem will be
the topic of the next lesson
Assessment: (Were the lesson objectives met? How will these be judged?)
Informal assessment
10 min