Ecoregions of Texas

TEKS:

The student knows that natural events and human activity can impact Earth systems.  The student is expected to:

7.8(B)  Analyze the effects of weathering, erosion, and deposition on the environment in ecoregions of Texas. 

ELPS:

Vocabulary: natural events, human activity, Earth Systems, weathering, erosion, deposition, Environment, ecoregions.

Key Concepts:  There are ten ecoregions in Texas and each of these regions support a wide range of ecosystems, soil types and land features. These ecoregions are:  East Texas Pineywoods, Gulf Coast Praries and Marshes, Post Oak Savannah, Blackland Prarie, Crosstimbers and Praries, South Texas Plains, Edwards Plateau, Rolling Plains, High Plains, and Trans-Pecos.  Weathering is the gradual wearing down of a geological formation due to physical or chemical changes to the surface of rocks.  Erosion occurs when the rock or soil of Earth's surface is moved to another location by the flow of water, ice or wind as well as the constant pull fo gravity.  Deposition occuse as sediment creating by weathering and erosion, then moved by gravity, settles in a different location.  Weathering, erosion and deposition shape the characteristic soil and topography of each ecoregion of Texas.

Essential Questions:

What are the distinguishing abiotic and biotic factors for each of the ten Texas ecoregions?

What are the geograpic locations for each of the Texas ecoregions?

How do factors like chemical composition of the bedrock and characteristics of the climate affect the physical and chemical weathering processes of landforms?

What evidence in sediment or bedrock can be used to interpret the erosional history of the rock?

What evidence in sediment or bedrock can be used to interpret the depositional history of the rock? 

What evidence of weathering, erosional and depositional processes can be cited as characteristic features in the various ecoregions?

Homework: HW_Wk3_6th6wks_7th Grade.docx

Things we need for next week:

Christopher getting granite and perfect fans.

Camie trifold boards

Julie 6 saltlicks

Powerpoint for Monday (we have switched eco-regions to M/T and will be doing the rotation stations on W/Th, Quiz on Friday).

Monday:

Investigation: Weathering, Erosion, and Deposition (Stations 1-4)

1.  Foldable with weathering, erosion, and deposition (computer station)

3 video clips on weathering, erosion and deposition, or brainpop video clip.

2. Compare and contrast mechanical and chemical weathering

limestone dropped on acid 

3. blow dryer modeling beach erosion

4. river delta

5. watershed/ aquafer

6. blowing sand

7.  aquafer station, model of aquafer with sod.

8. Porosity and permiability

9. Lazy river showing pollution and runoff from the farm

Tuesday:

Investigation: Weathering, Erosion, and Deposition (Stations 5-8)

Wed/Thurs: 

Do Now:

Engage: 

Explore:

Explain:  Sometimes weathering, erosion and deposition may occur gradually.  During catestrophic events such as hurricanes and flash floods weathering, erosion and deposition may occur at a rapid rate.  Discuss geological history of the Edwards Plateau:  shallow seas, limestone, geologic events in the Hill Country leading to ingneous intrusions, and metamorphic rock (Marble Falls, Granite Shoals, Enchanted Rock)

Ages of Rocks in Texas, Map

Rock map of Austin

Elaborate:

Groups of students will create a Texas map describing different ecoregions. Ecoregion Information Cards.pdf

     1. Piney Woods

     2. Gulf Coast Plains

     3. Edwards Plateau

     4. High Plains

     5. Trans Pecos

     6. Post Oak Savannah

     7. Cross Timbers and Prair

     8. South Texas

Students will then read Weathering/Erosion/Deposition in the Ecoregion Senario Cards and add the infromation to their maps Weathering_Erosion In Ecoregions of Texas.docx  

Friday:

Powerpoint

Do Now:

Elaborate, continued:  Finish Texas Ecoregion Maps

Evaluate: Qwizdom assessment (Camie will create this).

Complete a Venn Diagram that compares the Edwards Plateau to another Ecoregion.

Students will then complete the Quizdom Assessment over the Texas Ecoregions, their abiotic, and biotic factors and the weathering, erosion and depositional forces/characteristics in each of these areas.