OBJECTIVE
Students observe a boreal forest or tundra ecosystem.

TEACHING STRATEGY
Students participate in a field trip near their school to observe the characteristics of their local ecosystem.

MATERIALS
Reading the Alaskan Environment student worksheet
Boreal Forest Observations
Tundra Observations
Don't Tear Me Apart or Crush My Home
Clipboards or other hard surface to draw on
Paper and pencil

ADVANCED PREPARATION
Before the field trip, look over the outdoor site available to your students. Try to find as many different features as possible. Check the area to see if there are any hazards that should be avoided. If the area you want to use is not public property, get permission prior to taking your students to the site.

PROCEDURE

1. Explain to the students that they will be going outside to observe areas around the school that have distinct forest or tundra features. Review the Boreal Forest or Tundra Observations with students. If you live in an area that has both tundra and forest you may want to review both sheets.
2. Before heading outdoors, review the "Don't Tear Me Apart or Crush My Home" guidelines for investigating an environment.
3. Take students to your designated area. Give students time for the observations outlined in field notebook page.
4. Back in the classroom, compare observations. Ask the following:
   1. What was the most interesting thing you observed?
   2. Did you see something today that you have never noticed before?
   3. What do you think you saw that made this boreal forest or tundra environment unique from one another and other ecosystems?

EVALUATION Divide the class into partners and trade field notebook pages.Students choose an observation from their partner’s book and discuss how it is unique to the boreal forest or tundra ecosystem. Students compare and critique one another.