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How can we protect Earth's environments?
Web of Life Unit | Lesson 6 of 7
Back > Share

How can we protect Earth's environments?

Web of Life Unit | Lesson 6 of 7
Lesson narration:
English Spanish
Scroll for prep
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DISCUSS:
What do you think could be causing the smelly green muck in all these bodies of water?
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DISCUSS:

Why do you think a little algae is good for fish, but a lot of algae is bad for fish?

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DISCUSS:
What might cause algae to grow more now than it did before?
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DISCUSS:
How could fertilizer move from a lawn on land all the way to a lake?
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DISCUSS:

Imagine you live in a lakeside town that’s having problems with harmful algae blooms.

How could the town fix this problem?

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Step
01/16
Today you will work in a team of three. Your team will work together
against the algae. Decide who will be Player 1, Player 2, and Player 3.
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Step
02/16
Get your supplies.
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Step
03a/16
Add 6 patches of algae to each of your 3 lakes.
1 square = 1 patch of algae.
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Step
03b/16
Your team wins if you get all 3 lakes to a healthy amount of algae (only
the gray squares on the map). Your team loses if any 1 lake fills up
fully with algae.
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Step
04a/16
Cut all four Prevent It! projects along the dotted lines.
Fold them along the solid line.
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Step
04b/16
All Players: Read the Prevent It! projects.
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Step
05/16
Place the 4 Prevent It! projects above your map.
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Step
06a/16
Quick Fix cards let you remove some algae right away—but they also
have consequences.
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Step
06b/16
Cut along the dotted line on your Consequences sheet.
Put your Consequences sheet and dice to the side for now.
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If you need a natural stopping point!

Teachers: If you are short on time, this is a good stopping point.

Now that the game pieces are all set up, you can come back and play Bloom Busters next time.

If you’re continuing right now, advance to the next slide.

Step
07/16
Place the Progress Deck facedown on the Progress Deck space.
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Step
08/16
Player 3: Put your name on the End-of-Round Algae Growth
Tracker. Attach a paper clip pointing to “Add 3 algae to each lake”
on the tracker.
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Step
09/16
All players: Take 2 cards from the deck.
Place them face up in front of you. These are your starting cards.
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Step
10/16
Example round: Player 1 takes a card from the deck, talks with their
teammates about what to do, and plays 1 card. Player 2 and Player 3
do the same on their turns. The round is now over.
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Step
11/16
Now you try!
Starting with Player 1, everyone in your team take one turn.
Pause after Player 3 takes their turn.
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Step
12/16
Player 3: Look at your Algae Tracker and see where the paper clip is
pointing. Add that amount of algae to EACH of the 3 lakes.
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Step
13/16
Example Turn: When you complete a Prevent It! project, follow
instructions for rewards. Then flip your Prevent It! project over and
stack used Progress cards on the back.
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14/16
Play the rest of the game with your team.
Need help? Check the Rules page.
When you've finished playing the game, click the arrow to discuss.
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Step
15/16
Discuss:
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Step
16/16
Discuss:
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DISCUSS:
Did you try any Prevent It! projects during the game?
What were the pros and cons?
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oxygen


1 of 8

a type of gas that animals use to breathe and that plants release
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nutrient


2 of 8

a substance that living things need to grow and stay healthy
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fertilizer


3 of 8

a material that contains nutrients to help plants grow

runoff


4 of 8

water that moves across a surface, often carrying materials with it
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algae


5 of 8

tiny living things in water that produce their own food, like plants do
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algae bloom


6 of 8

a quick increase in the amount of algae growing in an area
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environment


7 of 8

all the living and nonliving things in a particular place
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disadvantage


8 of 8

something that is bad or reduces the chances of success
🎉 That’s it for this lesson! How did it go?
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Featured Reviews

“Our classes loved this new lesson! It brought together everything we've been learning into an overall system. My students enjoyed this game the most out of the three this unit, and I enjoyed it the most because it was a cooperative game. ”
· Jessica · Teacher
“As usual. we likes all the parts, and how they work together to help us learn and have fun! The video, game, and quiz are all great! Thank you so much for this amazing program. ”
· Melody · Teacher
“The game was my favorite part of the lesson ”
· · Homeschooler
“The students were really engaged and we had a great discussion. The assessment was designed well for them to demonstrate that they had understood the content.”
· Taira · Teacher
“The students enjoyed the game Bloom Busters AND took away so much from it. Their favorite lesson from this unit yet!”
· Corinne · Teacher
“My 5th grade students thought it was fun, made them think, and said it was "educational". As I walked around the classroom visiting the small groups, it was very nice to see how the students were interacting with one another and were excited when they were able to clean the lakes free from green algae. They definitely want to play the game again.”
· Corey · Teacher
“The lesson was engaging, and the game was so fun! Students were able to apply their learning, and think like scientists!”
· Kristin · Teacher
“This is so amazing! I love the way it walks the kids through issues with algae and protecting our waterways and presents it in a meaningful game format. My students loved this! ”
· Queen · Teacher
“I teach in Michigan, and we focus on the great lake basin and talk heavily about the blooms. We connect this to the zebra muscles and how clearing the water helps the blooms grow. I love it and will save this lesson for our water unit next year. ”
· Jennifer · Teacher
Lesson narration:
English Spanish

Grade 5

Ecosystems & The Food Web

Protecting Environments

5-ESS3-1

Activity Prep

Print Prep
In this lesson, students discover what happens in unbalanced ecosystems and how that can lead to an overabundance of algae and harmful algal blooms. In the activity, Bloom Busters, students play a game in which they obtain and combine science ideas in order to help a community respond to and prevent harmful algal blooms.
Preview activity

I have a Mystery Pack

Bloom Busters Rules printout Print 10 copies
Consequences printout Print 10 copies
Map of Laketown printout Print 10 copies
Prevent It! Projects printout Print 10 copies
Progress Cards & Deck Mat printout
Needs to be prepped prior to lesson. 		Print 10 copies
Scissors
30 pairs
1 Cup (8 oz) Container
Any cup, bowl, or small container will work.
Details
10 cups
Paper Clips
10 paper clips
Bingo Chips
You can use any color, but we prefer green to represent the green algae. Any type of counters can be used.
Details
600 chips
Dice, 6-sided
10
Prep Instructions

We suggest students play the game in groups of three.

Prepare Cups with Bingo Chips

Place 60 bingo chips into each cup. Each team of 3 students needs a cup with bingo chips.

Prepare Decks of Cards

Print out the four pages of Progress Cards and cut along all the dotted lines. If you have a paper cutter, this will make this task easy. Each group of three students needs a deck of cards, so you can place each deck into an envelope or secure together with a binder clip for easy distribution.

Organize Group Materials

Once all the cards are prepared, each group of three students will need a Map of Laketown (2 pages), Prevent It projects (2 pages), Consequences, Bloom Busters Rules, the Deck Mat, and the deck of Progress Cards (52 cards total).

Laminate (Optional)

Once all paper game pieces are cut out and prepared, you can optionally laminate them for future use!

Teacher Background

This lesson focuses on green algal blooms, but algae come in a variety of colors. So depending on where you live, you may be more familiar with different types of harmful algae blooms, such as “red tide”.

Exploration

20 mins

Hands-On Activity

35 mins

Wrap-Up

7 mins

Grade 5

Ecosystems & The Food Web

Protecting Environments

5-ESS3-1

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Credits
 
Ecosystems Lesson 6: How can we protect Earth's environments?

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