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Grade Level: 9-12Time Required: 1-50 minute class period.Climate Literacy Principle Addressed: EP 2.) Climate is regulated by complex interactions among components of the Earth System. d. Biogeochemical Cycles of greenhouse gases/Carbon Cycle: The abundance of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is controlled by biogeochemical cycles that continually move these components between the ocean, land, life and atmospheric reservoirs. The abundance of carbon in the atmosphere is reduced through seafloor accumulation of marine sediments and accumulation of plant biomass and is increased through deforestation and the burning of fossil fuels as well as through other processes.Learning Objectives: Students develop an understanding of chemical reservoirs, residence times, and the flux mechanisms required to move carbon from one place to another.Students must synthesize the different chemical pathways carbon can take in the Earth System and analyze how these pathways have changed since the industrial revolution.Students develop concept maps and compare them in a paragraph or a Venn diagram.What Students should already know:Students should have a basic understanding of basic natural cycles, like the rock and water cycles. Possible Student Misconceptions:Students may not understand the unequal distribution of carbon in the Earth’s system. Students may not be aware of the amount of time carbon stays in different reservoirs.Students commonly under-estimate the amount of carbon in rocks and sediments.Materials:Reservoir signs for each station. At least 8 die, one for each station. It may be helpful to have more than one at the stations depending on the number of students in the class.Copies of the Student worksheet for each student.Prior to the Lesson:Print off color copies of the Reservoir cards. Hang Round 1 cards around the room and place 1-2 dice at those stations. Introducing the Activity:When students come in to class, hand out the student recording sheets. Have them read through the introduction and instructions.Assign students to the different reservoirs using the table below as a guide. Have them move to those stations.Explain that they will be modeling the motion of carbon atoms through the Carbon Cycle but that they will not be initially assigned to “Marine Sediments and Rocks” or “Deep Ocean”. Be sure to explain that >99% of the Earth’s carbon is in rocks and sediments. To play this game, we are focusing on only the mobile carbon in the carbon cycle.The table below shows the approximate number of gigatons of carbon in each reservoir in 1700 and 2000. These numbers are used to identify how many students will start out in each reservoir.ReservoirAmt in 1700 (Round 1)% of total# of students out of 30Amt in 2000 (Round 2)% of total# of students out of 30Atmosphere2503170093Soil20002371800237Shallow Ocean650821000134Terrestrial Plants7008270093Fossil Fuels5000581735004514Marine Seds & Rock80000000??80000000??Deep Ocean38000??40000??Guiding Students through Activity:Make sure students record every role, including those times when they remain in a reservoir.Students will get “stuck” in certain reservoirs and may think they have done something wrong. Encourage them to follow the instructions.When students have filled their recording sheets, have them return to their seats to draw their concept maps indicating flux mechanisms as arrows and reservoirs as bubbles.When students have completed their concept maps, change the Reservoir cards to the Round 2 set. Assign students to the reservoirs using the table above and have them repeat the process. When students have completed Round 2, make sure they make a new concept map and write a paragraph or sketch a Venn Diagram comparing the two concept maps.Discuss students’ observations with the whole class.Assesment:Students’ concept maps should reflect their record sheet.Their comparative paragraphs or Venn Diagrams should clearly show how the pathways were different in the two rounds. ................
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