An 8-week biology research and physical crafting sequence integrating classification, cell structure, biochemistry, genetics, evolution, microbiology, and ecosystem dynamics. Students choose a deciduous forest species to research, construct an anatomically detailed piñata, and compile an academic portfolio aligned with Virginia standards.
I can pose and refine a testable question to deepen system understanding. I can design and improve a model to test interactions or investigate systemic feedback loops.
I can pose testable questions to help me investigate. I can design a model to test an idea, explaining its strengths, parts, functions, and structural limitations.
I can ask research questions and build models showing how one thing affects another (simple cause and effect).
I can ask questions to learn about something I observe, and build basic models to show what a real thing looks or works like.
SCI.2 Represent & Interpret Data
I can choose coordinate graphs or multi-variable visual layouts following strict conventions. I can use visual features to highlight trends and complex patterns.
I can select the best way to display data based on data type, and use graphs, tables, or charts to clearly show trends, differences, or patterns.
I can organize information into standard tables, graphs, or charts that make patterns easier to see and explain my formatting.
I can label and complete simple charts or visual maps (e.g., tally tables, food web webs) to help others see simple relations.
SCI.3 Scientific Reasoning
I can construct explanations using strong evidence and sound reasoning, linking them to system models. I can critique competing claims by analyzing evidence quality.
I can construct an explanation using valid evidence and clear reasoning to describe a phenomenon, and create arguments containing specific claims.
I can make scientific claims and support them with multiple pieces of evidence (measurements, observations, or cycle facts).
I can use simple evidence to support my ideas ("because I saw...") and explain what I observed or already know.
SCI.4 Design Solutions
I can formulate innovative solutions to complex design challenges. I can plan and manage projects, identify possible design failures, and iterate based on feedback.
I can apply structured design criteria, build detailed 3D models with proper physical proportions, and resolve structural design problems systematically.
I can plan a basic project step-by-step, draft simple diagrams, and outline the materials required to construct a physical model.
I can describe a simple design problem, list basic craft steps, and build a simple representative layout with cardboard/paper.
Identifying Wildlife & Mapping Your Chosen Organism's Lineage
Biology SCI.1 & SCI.4 Focus
Part 3: Forest Dichotomous Key
Use the dichotomous key below to classify three mystery species discovered on an expedition in a Virginia forest.
1a. Organism possesses a rigid internal bony skeletal structure (Vertebrate) .................... Go to 2
1b. Organism lacks an internal bony skeletal structure (Invertebrate) ........................ Go to 4
2a. Body is fully covered in insulating feathers .................................... Broad-winged Hawk (Buteo platypterus)
2b. Body lacks insulating feathers .................................................... Go to 3
3a. Body is covered in warm, insulating fur ............................................. Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes)
3b. Body has smooth, moist skin without fur or scales .................................. Wood Frog (Lithobates sylvaticus)
4a. Organism has functional flying wings and large specialized eyes ....................... Luna Moth (Actias luna)
4b. Organism lacks flying wings; possesses a segmented, tube-like body ................. Earthworm (Lumbricus terrestris)
Mystery Organism X:
Found wriggling in damp soil. Backboneless, has segmented rings, no wings.
Common Name:
Scientific Name:
Mystery Organism Y:
Spotted on an oak branch. Possesses backbone, red fur, and a fluffy white-tipped tail.
Common Name:
Scientific Name:
Mystery Organism Z:
Collected on night trap. Lacks backbone, green wings with long tails, feathered antennae.
Common Name:
Scientific Name:
Part 4: Focus Species Scientific Classification Log
Identify your chosen focus deciduous forest species for the 8-week physical project. Research and log its scientific taxonomic lineage, and detail the characteristics that justify its classification.
Focus Organism Selection
Select a native deciduous forest species for your scientific portfolio.
Common Name:
Scientific Name (Genus species):
Diagnostic Characteristics
List two biological or physiological features of your selected organism that dictate its classification into its taxonomic class:
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Domain
Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Order
Family
Genus
Species
Eukarya
Animalia
*Recall: Genus names must always be capitalized, and species lowercase. When handwritten, the complete scientific binomial name should be clearly underlined.
If yes, it is a Broad-winged Hawk! If no, go to Step 3.
Step 3: Thick Fur?
If yes, it is a Red Fox! If no, it is a Wood Frog!
Unit 1: Evolutionary Systematics Slide 5 of 6
Week 1: Tree of Life Project Portfolio Lock-In
Focus Species Lock-In
Today, you will officially choose the native deciduous forest organism that you will research, analyze, and physically construct over the next 8 weeks.
Next Action Steps
1
Select your species from the official approved deciduous forest roster.
2
Complete Part 4 (Scientific Classification Log) on Page 2 of your worksheet.
Scientific Goal
By the end of today's lab, you must have your species' complete scientific lineage mapped from Domain down to Species. Log this in your portfolio folder!
Unit 1: Evolutionary Systematics Slide 6 of 6
None (Passive)
High to Low
__________________________________________
Active Transport
_________________
_________________
Sodium-potassium ion pumps or bulk vesicle moves
Part 4: Tonicity Scenarios & Modeling Project
4. Environmental Pressure Scenario:
A white-tailed deer drinks from a hypertonic salty mineral spring in the forest. Explain how this salt concentration affects its blood cells via osmosis. Will the cells expand or shrink?
5. Kinetic Model Connection:
Inside your focus animal's physical cardboard armature, draw or sculpt a representative cellular boundary (membrane or cell wall) and highlight three organelles that cooperate to maintain homeostatic metabolism. List your planned modeling materials (e.g. foil membranes, yarn channels, etc.):
Wild Woods Cellular Blueprints Worksheet Page 2 of 2
Substrate binds active site
3. Define the key mechanics of catalyst enzymes:
Lock and Key Fit: Why does an enzyme catalyze only one specific chemical reaction?
Denaturation: How do extreme changes in environmental pH or temperature affect active site binding?
Part 4: Catalyst Performance Inquiry
Students monitored the digestion of starches in salivary amylase at various temperatures. Use their data to answer the questions below.
Inquiry Data Table: Amylase Rate
Tube Temp (°C)
Digestion Rate (mg/min)
0°C
0.1 (Inactive)
37°C (Deer Temp)
4.8 (Optimal)
65°C
0.0 (Denatured)
4. Analyze Data Trends:
Evaluate why the reaction rate dropped to zero at 65°C. What structural change occurred in the protein catalyst's active site?
5. Kinetic Model Alignment:
How will you physically label your animal's primary digestive organs on the exterior shell? Write down the scientific name of the enzyme you will write on your exterior "enzyme marker" tag (e.g. amylase, pepsin, lipase):
Wild Woods Molecular Engines Worksheet Page 2 of 2
If producers in a 100 m² plot of deciduous forest generate 50,000 kJ of solar chemical energy, calculate the energy available to:
A. Primary Consumers: ___________________ kJ
B. Secondary Consumers: _________________ kJ
C. Tertiary Consumers: ___________________ kJ
5. Kinetic Model Integration:
For your physical piñata, how will you represent "heat loss" and ATP conversions? Under what metabolic active/inactive tags will you label these (e.g. cellular respiration tag on the model's muscle, etc.)?
Wild Woods Forest Energetics Activity Page 2 of 2
Genetically Identical?
_________________
No (Highly Diverse)
Chromosome Level
Diploid (2n)
_________________
Part 4: Driving Variation in Deciduous Populations (BIO.5c, BIO.7b)
Genetically diverse populations possess greater resilience to changing climates and selective pressures (e.g. disease, cold winters). Diversity arises from independent assortment, crossing over during meiosis, and random gamete combinations.
Crossing Over & Gametes:
Explain why homologous chromatid exchange ("crossing over") is essential for meiosis, and how this prevents offspring from being identical to parents:
5. Kinetic Model Integration:
For your physical piñata model, you will install "Genetic Tags" showing your organism's translated protein strands. Explain how your model will show the difference between a diploid cell (on somatic skin) and a haploid gamete (on reproductive tags):
Wild Woods Code of the Woods Worksheet Page 2 of 2
A. Predict Population Shifts:
Describe what will happen to the frequency of the recessive "f" allele in the gene pool over 10 generations:
B. Heritable Adaptation:
Explain why natural selection operates on expressed phenotypes rather than genotypes directly:
Part 4: Speciation & Population Survival Limits (BIO.7d)
If a population has high genetic diversity and slow environmental shifts, it can adapt over time. However, if a lineage split occurs and groups can no longer interbreed, speciation occurs. If a population cannot adapt, it faces extinction.
4. Reproductive Isolation:
Explain how physical barriers (such as rivers or newly constructed human highways splitting the forest) can lead to speciation over millions of years:
5. Kinetic Model Integration:
On your physical piñata, you will label one prominent adaptation favored by natural selection. What physical feature of your model is this, and what is its selective advantage?
Wild Woods Forest Inheritance Lab Page 2 of 2
Red Fox
Wood Frog
Part 4: Physical vs. Molecular Evidence (BIO.6f)
Modern classification systems are adaptable to new discoveries. Traditionally, physical attributes defined groups, but comparative genomics (DNA sequencing) has reshaped evolutionary trees.
4. Comparative Genomics:
Explain why having highly similar DNA sequences is a more robust indicator of shared ancestry than having similar physiological structures (which can result from convergent evolution):
5. Kinetic Model Integration:
On the final exterior layer of your piñata, you will install a "Fossil Ancestor Lineage" tag. How will you represent its evolutionary timeline and connection to extinct organisms?
Wild Woods Deep Time Clues Packet Page 2 of 2
[ ] Shrubs and woody brush establish, outcompeting the smaller pioneer grasses.
Part 4: Watershed Engineering Challenge (BIO.8d)
Human activities such as deforestation, intensive farming, and fertilizer run-off cause watershed pollution and algal eutrophication. Design and describe a solution below.
4. Design Criteria & Constraints:
Explain how a newly planted riparian buffer strip (a zone of trees/plants along streams) reduces chemical run-off and protects aquatic flora/fauna:
5. Final Model Presentation:
For the final exhibition, you will present your piñata alongside your scientific portfolio. List 2 ways your model physically illustrates ecosystem integration:
Wild Woods Ecosystem Equilibrium Project Page 2 of 2
