Course Description
Discover the importance of wildlife in our environment! Studies focus on various habitats, wildlife populations, watershed ecology, and the biology and natural history of fish, amphibians, and reptiles. Students develop skills in wildlife observation and identification. This course can count towards science credit requirements for graduation.
Core Curriculum Content Standards
PA Common Core: Science and Technical Subjects (2012)
Reading Informational Text: Students read, understand, and respond to informational text – with emphasis on comprehension, making connections among ideas and between texts with focus on textual evidence.
GRADES 9-10
- Determine the central ideas or conclusions of a text; trace the text’s explanation or depiction of a complex process, phenomenon, or concept; provide an accurate summary of the text.(3.5.9-10.B)
Science, Technology & Engineering, and Environmental Literacy & Sustainability (2023)
Life Science
Grades 9-12
- Use mathematical representations to support claims for the cycling of matter and flow of energy among organisms in an ecosystem.(3.1.9-12.H)
- Use mathematical and/or computational representations to support explanations of factors that affect carrying capacity of ecosystems at different scales.(3.1.9-12.I)
- Evaluate the claims, evidence, and reasoning that the complex interactions in ecosystems maintain relatively consistent numbers and types of organisms in stable conditions, but changing conditions may result in a new ecosystem.(3.1.9-12.M)
Environmental Literacy & Sustainability
Grades 9-12
- Analyze and evaluate how best resource management practices and environmental laws achieve sustainability of natural resources.(3.4.9-12.G)
Units
Unit #1 - Intro. and History
Unit #2 - From World Biomes to PA Habitats
Unit #3 - Ecology
Unit #4 - Watershed Ecology and Fish Management
Unit #5 - Amphibian Biology and Species of PA
Unit #6 - Reptile Biology and Species of PA
Course Resources
https://lancasterwatersheds.org/
https://www.fishandboat.com/
https://www.paherps.com/
