Thanks for giving us the chance to share things with you that are happening in our classroom. All year long our theme will be interdependence. Our first assignment was a field trip! We were the first elementary class to visit the Pete Dye Golf Course in French Lick, IN. We went to observe the plants and the organisms in the ecosystem. We were asked to help evaluate the area and make recommendations on how to develop a more diverse habitat.
Our study began with learning about ecosystems and all of the necessary components needed to be healthy. At the course we helped collect data with digital tools. We also measured all kinds of things that effects the ecosystems, like moisture content of the soil, soil compaction, the green speed of the golf ball and the height of the grass. We learned how important observing weather conditions are to the course and assisted them in pinpointing exact areas of turf on the irrigation system that needed water and turning on the sprinklers with a computer!
After creating an observation log of producers, consumers, decomposers and nonliving things, we discovered a problem! There weren't enough flowering producers to create a balanced food supply and a diverse, healthy habitat. How do you create such an environment? By attracting more pollinators!
We explained to the course staff that they needed to plant more flowers to attract bees, which are pollinators. Then we helped them plant! Click on the link to a Prezi about our trip.
Check here every week for updates. We will have posts of our science journals, observation logs, science labs, research, photos, and blogs. - Amelia
Sources:
Apple, Russ, Superintendent, Pete Dye Golf Course, French Lick, IN, interviewed August 18,2016.
Indiana Interactive Science,Grade 5, Chapter 6. Glenview, Ill: Pearson Education, Inc, 2012.
"Terrarium in a bottle," www.bottlebiology.org.
-Other resources listed on individual student project projects-