Mr. Hogendoorn's Science Classroom : Culminating Task

Hello Parents and Students of Grade 9 Academic Science,

I would like to take this opportunity to introduce our Culminating task for our Sustainable Ecosystems unit of study. It is important that everyone is on the same page, and that students begin thinking about their topic of focus throughout the unit.

Students will be conducting open-ended research regarding invasive and endangered species. They will use all prior knowledge pertaining to sustainable/unsustainable ecosystems, biomes, abiotic/biotic factors, habitats, communities, and populations. We will be tying together all of the knowledge and content. The students will also have to analyse data and draw graphs, using Gizmos. We will have various mid-point check-ups throughout the unit in the form of mini-presentations, research projects, and quizzes.

In the culminating task, students will all extend their learning, as they will formulate a plan of action when dealing with increasing numbers of a population (invasive species) that threaten the sustainability of an ecosystem, as well as the decreasing numbers of a population (species at risk), also threatening the sustainability of an ecosystem.

Please have your child explore the links on this webpage early on in the unit. They should have picked an invasive species and an endangered species (living in the same ecosystem) by the end of the second week. I have also attached the rubric (how I will assess the project), and the handout, which is step-by-step, to guide students in their research.