Lesson Plans

Lesson plans relating to the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment

Authority
Ecosystems consist of communities of interdependent organisms and abiotic
components of the environment; matter and energy flow through these systems
(ACSSU176)
Multi-cellular organisms rely on coordinated and interdependent internal
systems to respond to changes to their environment (ACSSU175)
Sedimentary, igneous and metamorphic rocks contain minerals and are formed
by processes that occur within Earth over a variety of timescales (ACSSU153)
Human Endeavour
Advances in scientific understanding often rely on developments in technology
and technological advances are often linked to scientific discoveries
(ACSHE158)
Making a Nation
The extension of settlement, including the effects of contact (intended and
unintended) between European settlers in Australia and Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander peoples (ACDSEH020)
The short and long-term impacts of the movement of peoples during this period
(ACDSEH085)

Literature
Plan, rehearse and deliver presentations, selecting and sequencing appropriate
content and multimodal elements (ACELY1741)

Year 9 Science:
Lesson 1: Organism interaction within an ecosystem.
Start with the ecosystem as a foundation then ask the inquiry question, How Did
Indigenous People live sustainably in Victoria?

Resources:
Laptop
ICT
Whiteboard Markers
Butchers Paper

Marker Pens
Food Web Activity
Year 9 Pearson Textbook
Worksheet Questions
Assessment Handout. ICT Presentation

Learning Intentions:
Students should know and understand:

Components of the ecosystem

The ecological relationships between species who coexist in an ecosystem
How energy flows into and out of an ecosystem via the pathways of food
webs, and how it must be replaced to maintain the sustainability of the
system

Made up College 9.00am 9.50am

Lesson Component

Plan
Beginning of Lesson

G Goal Setting for the Learners

Setting Objectives
Reinforcing Effort and Providing
Feedback

A Access Prior Knowledge (APK)

Nonlinguistic Representations
Cooperative Learning
Cues, Questions, Advance Organizers

(10 min)

Describe components of ecosystem

To understand the ecological relationships between species who
coexist in an ecosystem
How energy flows into and out of an ecosystem via the pathways of
food webs, and how it must be replaced to maintain the sustainability
of the system
Have a range of pictures of different ecosystems (e.g. Reef, Forest,
Marine, Desert or any other ecosystem that stimulate discussions).
As a class, look at some of the different ecosystems and ask students
what they think an ecosystem is, what an ecosystem is made up of
and what makes different ecosystems unique?
Brainstorm with students on what an ecosystem is the components
of ecosystems and how they all link together to make the system
work (draw this on the board for students to see as they come up
with ideas).
As a class use the brainstorming to create a definition of an
ecosystem to use throughout the unit.
Any Misconceptions? Full class participation.
Middle of Lesson

N New Information
Declarative, Procedural or Both
Summarizing and Note Taking
Homework and Practice

(10 min)

A Apply Knowledge
A thinking skill or practice

Discuss that ecosystems are made of communities of interdependent

organisms.
Students shown a short YouTube video on eco-system.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeu--qFN2g4 (Discovery)
Students write down key points.
Students handed assessment task involving ICT to be completed
during camp. Be a young David Attenborough for a day.

Investigation Food Web Activity

Food web activity. (African Grassland and Antarctica) 2 food webs
due to size of the class.

Identifying Similarities and Differences

Generating and Testing Hypotheses
Cures, Questions, Advance Organizers
Teaching Specific Types of Knowledge

(20 min)

G Generalize the Goal

Setting Objectives
Reinforcing Effort and Providing Feedback
(10 min)

Students select a picture of an organism for food web activity.

Students to research their organism using their netbooks. Species
name, Prey, Predator etc.
Students to communicate with each other and find their prey and
organize the organisms into a food web and then as group place on
back wall. Team work and high order thinking required.
Describe how there are different types of relationships other than
predator/prey.
Discuss the interactions that can take place and those that cant.
Examine what happens if part of the ecosystem is taken away.
Ask students what if your organism became extinct?
Identify questions students may have about ecosystems, record these
and try to answer these throughout the unit.

Homework:
Students are asked to read about the Grampians National Park before next
lesson.
Research an interesting fact about the Grampians.
End of Lesson
Reflect back to the definition of the ecosystem the students came up
with in the first part of the lesson. Do they want to change it? Do they
need to add more to it?
ICT Quick game of KAHOOT to test students understanding. 10
questions with 10 seconds to answer. (I used Kahoot on placement
and found it successful for the lower grades as a formative
assessment).
Students start a science journal to record their learning.

Formative Assessment:
Observing students responses and participation in class discussions and
activities. Full class participation.
Observe students during the food web activity. Are they all contributing?
Dont have the same students always answering the questions.
Extension activity worksheet to promote high order thinking.

Science Journal
Start a science journal to record their learning and reflections as they progress
through the unit. Teachers can use the science journal as part of their overall
assessment and to keep track of students learning throughout the unit.

Food Web Activity

African Grassland & Antarctica Food Web
1. Each organism is cut out and placed face down on table
2. Students select an organism and activity sheet
3. Students fill in activity sheet (species name etc). Discuss with each
other.
4. Go find your prey or predator and talk to other students.
5. Create a food web on the back wall using the picture, worksheet and
arrows provided.

Organisms of the African Plains

Common Name:
Scientific Name:
Where do you live?
What do you eat?

What eats you?

What is my biggest threat?

PHYTOPLANKTON

TOOTHFISH

LEOPARD SEAL

Year 9 Science:
Lesson Plan 2 (School Camp): Longer lesson as no time frame
Students will be taken on a guided tour to consolidate what they have learnt in
class and then a lesson including activities when they return to camp.
Lesson plans relating to the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment
Authority
Ecosystems consist of communities of interdependent organisms and abiotic
components of the environment; matter and energy flow through these systems
(ACSSU176)
Multi-cellular organisms rely on coordinated and interdependent internal
systems to respond to changes to their environment (ACSSU175)
Sedimentary, igneous and metamorphic rocks contain minerals and are formed
by processes that occur within Earth over a variety of timescales (ACSSU153)
Making a Nation
The extension of settlement, including the effects of contact (intended and
unintended) between European settlers in Australia and Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander peoples (ACDSEH020)
The short and long-term impacts of the movement of peoples during this period
(ACDSEH085)

Resources:
Whiteboard
Whiteboard Markers
Butchers Paper
Marker Pens
Labels
Ball of string
Year 9 Pearson Textbook
Worksheet Questions

Learning Intentions:
Students should know and understand:

Different types of fauna and flora

Energy sources of the Grampians
How Indigenous people survived off the land
Fire was the Indigenous people ally

Year Level: 9
Lesson Title: Ecosystem of the Grampians. (Lesson after guided tour)
Lesson Component

G Goal Setting for the Learners

Setting Objectives
Reinforcing Effort and Providing Feedback

A Access Prior Knowledge (APK)

Nonlinguistic Representations
Cooperative Learning
Cues, Questions, Advance Organizers

(20 min)

N New Information
Declarative, Procedural or Both
Summarizing and Note Taking
Homework and Practice

(20 min)

A Apply Knowledge
A thinking skill or practice
Identifying Similarities and Differences
Generating and Testing Hypotheses
Cures, Questions, Advance Organizers
Teaching Specific Types of Knowledge

(20 min)

Setting Objectives
Reinforcing Effort and Providing Feedback

(10 min)

Were the students listening on the guided tour? Great Chase

Game
Students form groups of four. Play a spin off from TV show the
Great Chase. (Each group has 2min of general questions and
questions related to the bushwalk, Were the students listening?
(I used this with my class on placement. Very engaging,
extremely competitive and fun).

Middle of Lesson
Brief discussion about Aboriginal history and artwork.
Artwork is a time scale that tells a story. Notice the ecosystem
depicted in the drawings?
Discuss the energy source of the Grampians and what the land looked
like 30000 years ago and how Indigenous people survived off the
land. Indigenous People were farmers.
Hardly any trees in late 1700s and no uncontrolled fires. Totally
different landscape.
They used fire as their ally. Why?
Play food web string activity. (refer to instructions)
Class discussion on a few topics:
Are rocks important in the ecosystem? Do you remember what
type they were?
Are bush fires good for the environment? Why?
How did Indigenous People survive in this environment? They
must have been cold in winter? Imagine washing in winter as the
lakes would have been freezing.

G Generalize the Goal

Plan
Beginning of Lesson
Students should be able to identify types of flora and fauna of the
Grampians.
Have a better understanding of the ecosystem of the Grampians.
Determine rock structure of Grampians.
Energy sources of the Grampians.

Reminder students about completing the ICT assessment

End of Lesson
Are the Grampians and its ecosystem what the students
expected?
Encourage students to reflect and ask questions throughout the
day and night. What questions could we ask the Aboriginal elder
tomorrow? Food sources, History, how did they cope in winter?
Students record their learning and reflections in their journal.

In the evening, a demonstration by Aboriginal elder on starting a fire and

Aboriginal tradition dance presentation.

Formative Assessment:
Observing students responses and participation in discussions and activities.
Full class participation. Ask questions during bushwalk and at information
centre.
Observe students during the food web activity. Are they all contributing?
Dont have the same students always answering the questions.
Collect ecology worksheet and check students understanding.

Food Web String Activity

The aim of the game is for participants to become aware of the different
interactions taking place in an ecosystem. These interactions might be between
living or non-living things.
You will need:
A ball of string
Labels for each student
How to play:
Each student chooses something from the local environment they would like to
be sun, grass, rain, fish, Kangaroo, wallaby, echidna, snake, water, tree, turtle,
person, flower, soil. Each student needs to be a different thing in the
environment.
Label each participant so that everyone in the circle can see what they are.
Give the ball of string to the first student. They hold onto the end and throw the
ball to the person labelled as the thing in the environment they interact with.
That person then holds the piece of string and throws the ball of string to
someone else they can interact with to form a connection, and so on. For
example, the fish can throw the string to the water, the water can throw the
string to the tree, the tree can throw the string to the sun, the sun can throw the
string to the flower, the flower can throw the string to the bird. This can keep
going until all interactions within the circle have been used up.
To extend the activity, ask student to state what the relationship or interaction
is as they throw the ball of string (encourage the use of scientific language). For
example, when the fish throws the string to the water, the fish states I need
water to live in, and the water then states I give water to trees and throws the
string to the trees and so on. This extension encourages the student to think
about what the relationships and interactions are.
Once students have played the game and understand the interactions going on,
discuss what will happen if parts of the environment are removed. For example,
if the water dries up or becomes so polluted the fish cannot live there anymore.
And if the fish cannot survive, what food will be available for local animals and
people who catch fish as a part of their job?
The game can be played representing several different ecosystems. Teacher
could allow participants to choose what they will be, or to teach students about a
specific ecosystem.

Ecology Worksheet
1. What is a habitat?

2. What is the difference between a producer and a consumer?

3. How were the large rocks formed at the Grampians? What type are they?

4. What wildlife did you see during the day?

5. What wildlife did you see at night?

6. In a food web there are producers, herbivores and carnivores. List what
would happen if:
All the producers died?
All of the herbivores died?

7. Why do ecologists want to find out information about the size of a

population of species in an area?

8. What are some of the important issues the Park Ranger spoke about in
regards to the environment?

ICT PRESENTATION

Be a young David Attenborough for a day

Due Date: 25th October 2016
Weighing: 20%
Student are to individually produce a documentary using multimedia (Go pro,
IPhone or Video Recorder) on any topic (Flora or Fauna, Aboriginal history) to do
with the Eco-system.
It would be preferred that the recording of this assessment be done whilst on
camp to enhance the presentation as if you were the real David Attenborough.
The video should be no longer than 5 minutes and students should discuss topic
with me before researching. Voice over can be used as well as text, image and
sound programs.
Students can work in pairs to help each other film and are encouraged to share
and exchange ideas with others.
Practical considerations such as the choice of subject and area (background
noise), lighting and camera angle etc. are important for the exercise to be
beneficial.
I want you to help and work with each other and have FUN producing this
documentary!!!

Year Level: 9
Lesson Title: Indigenous History at the Grampians (Lesson 4) Located in Computer
room.
Lesson Component

G Goal Setting for the

Learners

Plan
Beginning of Lesson
Students will gain an understanding of indigenous people in the
Grampians and appreciate how they perceived that land by living
sustainably.

Setting Objectives
Reinforcing Effort and Providing
Feedback

A Access Prior Knowledge

(APK)
Nonlinguistic Representations
Cooperative Learning
Cues, Questions, Advance Organizers

N New Information
Declarative, Procedural or Both
Summarizing and Note Taking
Homework and Practice

Prior Knowledge Chart.

Students must fill out a chart (with headings: what we know and what
we would like to know).
Once students have finished this, they can move around and get
answers from peers.
This will give me an indication on how much my students know about
the topic.
Middle of Lesson
Annotating new information about indigenous Australians.
Students use computers to do their own research.
Websites:
1. http://www.visitvictoria.com/Regions/Grampians/Things-todo/History-and-heritage
2. http://www.brambuk.com.au/
3. http://budjabudjacoop.org.au/about-2/gariwerdgrampians/
4. http://www.wartookgardens.com.au/grampians/national/pa
rk/history.asp
5. http://parkweb.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/315
516/Heritage-story-Grampians-National-Park.pdf

A Apply Knowledge

A thinking skill or practice

Students fill out the answers to the Indigenous Australians

Worksheet.
Discuss the worksheet in a class.

Identifying Similarities and Differences

Generating and Testing Hypotheses
Cures, Questions, Advance Organizers
Teaching Specific Types of Knowledge

G Generalize the Goal

Setting Objectives
Reinforcing Effort and Providing
Feedback

End of Lesson
To finish off the class, students get out their Ipads and must open up
Kahoot.
I then put up questions and students use their device to answer
within 10 seconds.
Not only is this engaging for students but it also shows me how much
the students have learnt as the quiz questions are purely from todays
class.

Prior Knowledge Chart.

What do you know about Indigenous

Australians

What do you want to know more about?

Indigenous Australian - Grampians Worksheet.

1. What is the tribe name of the indigenous Australians living in the

Grampians?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________

2. How did the indigenous Australians and European Settlers perceive the
land?
Indigenous Australians

European Settlers

3. What is living sustainably? Did the indigenous Australians live sustainably?

______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________

What is Story time and why did the indigenous Australians do it?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
___________________________________________

4. The indigenous Australians used art and dance, why?

______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________

Men

5. What did the men do and what did the women do?
Women

Year Level: 9
Lesson Title: Reflection of camp (Lesson 10) located in normal classroom.
Lesson Component

G Goal Setting for the Learners

Setting Objectives
Reinforcing Effort and Providing Feedback

A Access Prior Knowledge (APK)

Nonlinguistic Representations
Cooperative Learning
Cues, Questions, Advance Organizers

N New Information
Declarative, Procedural or Both
Summarizing and Note Taking
Homework and Practice

A Apply Knowledge
A thinking skill or practice

Plan
Beginning of Lesson
Students gain an understanding on how they feel about
an environment/ place for example the Grampians.
Use of ICT in lesson.

Create a class discussion on camp.

By forming a class discussion, it allows students to listen to their
classmates and helps give them ideas for their assignment.
Challenge some students first and then students needing
assistance can go last, this helps them get ideas before they talk
in front of the class.
Use the following questions as a prompt:
1. Did the class dynamic change, better/ worse?
2. Did anyone see any improvement on their leadership
skills and working together as a team?
3. Did anyone want to give up and then have a Self-reliance
moment (I can do it; I cant get through this)?
4. What was your favourite part of the camp?
Middle of Lesson
During camp, students needed to take photos with either
a go-pro or their camera phones.
Students are then taught how to print the images from
either the go pro, or camera phone, to then be cut out and
made into a poster.
Students work on their poster, cutting and gluing photos
as well as reflecting on their experience at camp.

Identifying Similarities and Differences

Generating and Testing Hypotheses
Cures, Questions, Advance Organizers
Teaching Specific Types of Knowledge

G Generalize the Goal

Setting Objectives
Reinforcing Effort and Providing Feedback

End of Lesson
Students are able to reflect on their experience at the Grampians.