Worksheets
Worksheets
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If the urban forests in Bratislava are far away for you, but the topics of outdoor activities interest you and you would like to include them in your teaching, you can download the methodological materials below free of charge.
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During a short trip in nature, students will learn about important milestones in the evolution of life on Earth. They will place selected events on a timeline given by the length of the walk. During the journey, they note how far apart each event occurred, discuss its significance, and learn about the results of several recent investigations. The journey ends by arriving in the present, when we humans study the local ecosystem, already altered by us.
Learning about our species, variation and adaptations
Learning about our species, variation and adaptations
During a short nature journey, students look for and mark on a map several species of plants typical of the site and several different resident signs or displays of animals and other organisms. Each item is followed by developmental tasks that lead students to look for connections and help them develop the skills needed to work with scientific text and data processed in graphs or tables.
Variability as a prerequisite for selection, basics of statistics
Variability as a prerequisite for selection, basics of statistics
Using available natural resources (e.g., seeds), students observe differences in traits among individuals within a population. They measure size, weight, compare colors and shapes, and discuss which of these traits may be advantageous or disadvantageous to an individual. Students calculate basic descriptive statistics and discuss their importance for describing the population under study. They also address the origins of trait variability and read about several interesting cases.
On a selected species of flowering plant, students study variation in two traits - one that is likely related to pollinator attraction and another that is likely unrelated to pollinator attraction. They formulate hypotheses about the importance of individual differences in each of these traits and compare their reasoning with the results of recent research. In activity extensions, they isolate plant pigments or model a flower according to a flowering diagram.
In a research plot in a forest stand, students will determine the age categories of a common tree species and determine the density of its seeds, seedlings, young and mature trees. They discuss the environmental factors that affect tree survival at each stage, as well as the characteristics of trees that may be advantageous to them in certain situations. Finally, they will reflect on climate change and its impact on forest ecosystems.
How to survive the winter
How to survive the winter
During a short nature trip, students observe typical features of an autumn or winter forest. They discuss the challenges that plants and animals face during the cold season and the different ways in which they cope with these challenges. In a simple experiment, they compare the thermal insulation properties of different animal body coverings. They learn how living organisms use special anti-freeze proteins and how these proteins work.
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