Implement this Lesson:
This lesson can be taught as part of an ecosystem unit or Ocean unit.
Lesson Objective:
The student will be able to understand and write about animals critical to Gulf ecosystems including their place in the food chain, possible migration, lifecycle, and other facts.
Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS)
6.11(A) research and describe why resource management is important in reducing global energy poverty, malnutrition, and air and water pollution
6.11(B) explain how conservation, increased efficiency, and technology can help manage air, water, soil, and energy resources
6.12(A)* investigate how organisms and populations in an ecosystem depend on and may compete for biotic factors such as food and abiotic factors such as availability of light and water, range of temperatures, or soil composition
6.12(B) describe and give examples of predatory, competitive, and symbiotic relationships between organisms, including mutualism, parasitism, and commensalism
6.12(C) describe the hierarchical organization of organism, population, and community within an ecosystem
6.13(A) describe the historical development of cell theory and explain how organisms are composed of one or more cells, which come from pre‐existing cells and are the basic unit of structure and function
6.13(B) identify and compare the basic characteristics of organisms, including prokaryotic and eukaryotic, unicellular and multicellular, and autotrophic and heterotrophic 6.13(C) describe how variations within a population can be an advantage or disadvantage to the survival of a population as environments change
7.10(A)* describe the evidence that supports that Earth has changed over time, including fossil evidence, plate tectonics, and superposition 7.10(B)* describe how plate tectonics causes ocean basin formation, earthquakes, mountain building, and volcanic eruptions, including super volcanoes and hot spots
7.11(A)* analyze the beneficial and harmful influences of human activity on groundwater and surface water in a watershed
7.11(B)* describe human dependence and influence on ocean systems and explain how human activities impact these systems
7.12(A)* diagram the flow of energy within trophic levels and describe how the available energy decreases in successive trophic levels in energy pyramids
7.13(A)* identify and model the main functions of the systems of the human organism, including the circulatory, respiratory, skeletal, muscular, digestive, urinary, reproductive, integumentary, nervous, immune, and endocrine systems
7.13(C)* compare the results of asexual and sexual reproduction of plants and animals in relation to the diversity of offspring and the changes in the population over time
7.13(D)*describe and give examples of how natural and artificial selection change the occurrence of traits in a population over generations
7.14(A) describe the taxonomic system that categorizes organisms based on similarities and differences shared among groups
8.10(A) describe how energy from the Sun, hydrosphere, and atmosphere interact and influence weather
8.10(B) identify global patterns of atmospheric movement and how they influence local weather
8.10(C) describe the interactions between ocean currents and air masses that produce tropical cyclones, including typhoons and hurricanes
8.12(B) describe how primary and secondary ecological succession affect populations and species diversity after ecosystems are disrupted by natural events or human activity
8.12(C) describe how biodiversity contributes to the stability and sustainability of an ecosystem and the health of the organisms within the ecosystem
8.13(A) identify the function of the cell membrane, cell wall, nucleus, ribosomes, cytoplasm, mitochondria, chloroplasts, and vacuoles in plant or animal cells 8.13(C) describe how variations of traits within a population lead to structural, behavioral, and physiological adaptations that influence the likelihood of survival and reproductive success of a species over generations
8.13(B) describe the function of genes within chromosomes in determining inherited traits of offspring
Common Animals in the Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is full of amazing life!
It’s like a giant underwater neighborhood where animals of all shapes and sizes live, eat, and play.
From tiny plankton to giant whales, the Gulf is one of the most diverse marine ecosystems in the world!
Fun Facts!
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The Gulf of Mexico has over 15,000 known species of plants and animals!
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Dolphins have been seen playing with seaweed — just for fun!
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Some fish, like the tarpon, can live in both saltwater and freshwater.
The Gulf of Mexico is a bustling underwater world full of life — from the smallest plankton to the biggest whales. Every creature plays a special part in keeping this ocean home healthy and full of wonder!
Possible Books:
- Any book by Susan Tate
Materials Needed:
- Chrome books with google classroom
Lesson Plan:
Advanced Prep:
- Post assignment on google classroom
Engage:
- Talk to students about favorite Gulf animals
Explore:
- Students may work in small groups, pairs, or individually to research their animal.
- Slides Gulf of Mexico Research
- Docs: Gulf of Mexico Animal Research
- Example: Atlantic Menhaden
- Use google drawings to create picture of the animal or its lifecycles
Explain:
- Give feedback to students
Elaborate:
- After taking critics from teacher students rework their slides
Evaluate:
- Students present their work to the class Gulf animal example from Doyle