Ecosystems and biodiversity

Ages 13 to 17 Read alone · about 40 minutes

Read together

An ecosystem is all the living things and non-living parts of a place, and how they interact.

Biodiversity is the variety of life. More variety often makes an ecosystem more resilient.

Do it

1. Mark a one-metre square of ground or lawn. List and count every kind of living thing you can find.
2. Do it again in a different spot, such as a path or a flower patch.
3. Compare the variety. Which spot has more species?
4. Suggest one way to help local nature, such as planting native flowers.

Talk about it

• Which spot is more diverse?
• What would happen if one species disappeared?

For the grown-up

Counting species in a small plot is a simple field method. Look but do not take or harm. The Philippines is one of the world's megadiverse countries. Some Christians describe care for creation as stewardship; present views fairly.

Mark as done

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Where this comes from

• NGSS Lead States, Next Generation Science Standards: For States, By States (National Academies Press, 2013), performance expectation MS-LS2-5 (evaluating solutions for maintaining biodiversity)
• Convention on Biological Diversity, Global Biodiversity Outlook (definitions of biodiversity)

Written with AI assistance and checked against the sources listed. Please read it before sharing it with a child.