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Population Growth – Effects of the Environment

In this analysis and discussion activity, students develop their understanding of the effects of environmental factors on population growth by analyzing the recovery of endangered species and how growth of bacterial populations can cause food poisoning.

Students learn about the processes that result in exponential or logistic population growth, interpret data from several investigations, and apply their understanding to policy questions.

The first two attached files have the Student Handout. This simpler Student Handout will be suitable for most Middle school students; for high school students, see the activity at https://serendipstudio.org/exchange/bioactivities/pop. The last two attached files have the Teacher Notes with instructional suggestions and background biology. The Teacher Notes also explain how this activity supports the Next Generation Science Standards.

AttachmentSize
Pop Growth Simpler SH.docx1.15 MB
Pop Growth Simpler SH.pdf510.86 KB
Pop Growth Simpler TN.docx535.09 KB
Pop Growth Simpler TN.pdf463.11 KB
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Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. To preserve the value of these learning activities for other teachers, please do not post keys for any questions from any of these activities!

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Authors

Dr. Ingrid Waldron is Professor Emerita in the Biology Department at the University of Pennsylvania. Co-authors include Dr. Jennifer Doherty, who is an Assistant Professor in the Physiology Department at Michigan State University, and Dr. Lori Spindler, who is a Lecturer in the Biology Department at the University of Pennsylvania. They have developed these activities in collaboration with colleagues at Penn and middle school and high school teachers in the Philadelphia area. We are grateful to Craig Douglas for his generous help with graphics.

 

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