Biology Lessons Part 2: Population Biology

   

 Lesson 2.2: Owl Pellets

Knowledge Mapping Teachers' Guide

 

 

Time

 This exercise takes approximately 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Objectives

 Once you have completed this knowledge mapping exercise you should be able to:

1.

 Have a deeper understanding of the biology concepts in Lesson 2.2: Who Eats Whom? - Owl Pellets.
 

SemNet is essentially a thinking, discussion, and knowledge organization tool that can help students to clarify their ideas and understandings about the biology lessons. This exercise illustrates one way to use SemNet as a learning or assessment tool. You might wish to use something less pre-structured in your own classroom. For example, you might just give the students a list of concepts and ask them to create a SemNet with those concepts. This technique would allow students to express more of the individual variations in how they have constructed their knowledge.

The exercise in this lesson are based on the SemNet,"2.2h Who Eats Whom Net" which you can download.

2.2h Who Eats Whom? Net

 

Exercise 1 Self Quiz
 To Do
    1.  Open the semantic network entitled '2.2h Who Eats Whom Net' by double clicking on the file if it is not already open.
    2. Select Mask Related from the Concept menu. This will cover up the related concepts.
    3. 

Select Preferences from the Edit menu. Check to see if there is an 'x' in the box called Ask before Unmasking. If there is no 'x' there, click on the box once and an 'x' will appear. Click on the Set button.

 

Figure 1. Preferences dialog on Edit menu.
 

 

    4. Select Random Jump from the Move menu. SemNet will move to a new central concept. You can use the shortcut for Random Jump by holding down the Command (Apple) key and pressing the semi-colon (;) key.
     5. Using the concepts listed below (Table 1), fill in the related concepts in this Net.
     6. To enter a related concept, click in the box where you wish to enter it. A dialog box will appear, asking you to enter the concept name. Select a concept from Table 1, below, and enter it. Word completion will help you.
     7. When you have finished entering the concept name, click on OK. If you typed in the incorrect response, you can try entering another response or you can click on the Reveal button to unmask the related concept. Once you have unmasked the same related concept as ours, go on to another related concept until you have unmasked all the related concepts in the frame.
     8.

To move to another central concept, select Random Jump from the Move menu.

 

Table 1. Concepts Included in Who Eats Whom SemNet
1. 0-5 skulls 20. medium-> large size
2. 1-3 inches long 21. moles
3. 3/4 - 1 inch wide 22. odorless
4. below the owl roost 23. owl
5. bird (class) 24. owl behavior
6. birds 25. owl nutrition
7. contains few identifiable parts 26. owl pellet
8. contains identifiable prey parts 27. raptor
9. eagle 28. raptor pellet
10. eagle pellet 29. rodents
11. eats food whole 30. sharp claws
12. expelled - 12 hours after eating 31. shrews
13. fur and other debris 32. small mammal distribution
14. generally not useful in science 33. strong digestive juices
15. gray 34. strong stomach muscles
16. hawk 35. tears prey into pieces
17. hawk pellet 36. useful to scientists
18. hooked beaks 37. weak digestive juices
19. many small bones 38. weak stomach muscles

     9. Repeat steps 6 through 8. The SemNet software will take you at random to each of the concepts in the Net which have 3 or more instances (unless you interrupt the sequence by performing another task). Continue in this fashion until all concepts have been reviewed.
    10. Select Do Not Mask Related on the Concept menu. Then close the net called '2.2h Who Eats Whom Net' by clicking in the box in the upper left corner of the window.