Timber!
Provided by: Population Education |Published on: June 10, 2022
Lesson Plans Grades 3-5, 6-8
Synopsis
- This game will allow students to observe how the starting population size of trees in a forest and the rate of deforestation affect forests over time.
- Students will work in groups of four to complete the game, record the changes in the number of trees on the worksheet, and graph the data.
Subjects: Social Studies, Biology, Mathematics
Authors: Population Education
Region: Global
Languages: English
Teaching Materials
Positives
- This resource is interactive and involves role-playing skills.
- The activity combines math, science, and social studies concepts.
Additional Prerequisites
- Teachers need to enter their email addresses to download the lesson.
- Teachers must gather supplies for the game.
Differentiation
- Students can plot their graphs on graphing paper or use the linked digital graphing tool.
- If students need support, the teacher could walk four students through the simulation as a demonstration for the whole class. Teachers could project the worksheet on the board and the class could work together to fill in the numbers.
- Students could apply this concept to other natural resources that must be managed in a sustainable way.
- Spanish classes could use this lesson to help students apply their knowledge in reading, writing, and speaking Spanish.
- Other resources on this topic include this video on Indigenous sustainable forestry practices, this video that shows how nature can balance and restore ecosystems, and this activity on learning about climate history from tree stumps.
Scientist Notes
Teaching Tips
Standards
Resource Type and Format
About the Partner Provider
Population Education
Population Education provides K-12 teachers with innovative, hands-on lesson plans and professional development to teach about human population growth and its effects on the environment and human well-being. Human population has grown from 1 billion to 8 billion in just over 200 years, so it is critical to examine human impacts on wildlife, climate, and natural resources while working toward equality and justice for the world’s people. Through memorable, standards-aligned classroom activities like simulations, cooperative challenges, and debate, Population Education inspires students to tackle a variety of real-world problems and to become positively engaged in their communities as the next generation of leaders and policy makers.
All resources can be used for your educational purposes with proper attribution to the content provider.
