Biology Lessons Part 2: Population Biology

Lesson 2.7: How Do Populations Grow? Knowledge Mapping Exercise

Time	Approximately 1 hour.
Objectives	Once you have completed this knowledge mapping exercise you should be able to:
	1.	Use a semantic network as the basis for writing an essay.
Exercise 1	Preparing a Writing Exercise for Fifth or Sixth Graders Beginning with a Small Population Growth Net
Introduction		Imagine that you are teaching this lesson, "How Do Populations Grow?," to your class of fifth or sixth graders. Assume they are familiar with knowledge mapping using SemNet.
	1.	First determine the goal of the exercise. Supposing the goal is to help students understand the basic factors affecting populations and population growth.
	2.	The assignment will be for the students to write a one-page essay based upon a small semantic network called "2.7d Pop Growth Exercise Net."
	3.	First ask your students to construct an outline from the net, including both the relations and the concepts. You could give them the computer-based net to work from, or the graphic frames from the net captured in Figures 1 and 2 at the end of this lesson.
	4	You could either construct the outline with the entire class participating, or you could ask your students to do it in small groups.
	5.	Finally, ask your students to use this outline to write a one-page essay about population growth.
Figure 1. Graphic frames from "2.7d Pop Growth Exercise Net."
Figure 2. Graphic frames from "2.7d Pop Growth Exercise Net" continued.
Figure 2. Graphic frames from "2.7d Pop Growth Exercise Net" continued.  ecosystem composed of non-living environment includes water supply includes climate includes weather includes solar energy includes habitat includes shelter composed of living environment includes community includes population has characteristic popultaion size determined by births increased by food supply   decreased by predation decreased by disease decreased by pollution decreased by competition determined by deaths increased by predation increased by disease increased by pollution increased by competition   decreased by food supply determined by immigration determined by emigration determined by carrying capacity has characteristic population equilibrium has characteristic population growth pattern includes S curve includes J curve includes Boom and crash cycle` includes exponential growth has characteristic genetic variation