So far in STRETCH, we've done experiments in chemistry and physics. During the week of October 3, we switched gears to explore biology and started a series on biodomes! Now if you are as much into catching bugs as I am, this series is for you! A biodome is a self-sufficient ecosystem that is build to replicate one of the biomes (large outdoor areas on the earth's surface with animals and plants which have adapted to the natural environment - climate, geology, soil, vegetation, etc.). It's great for us scientists because it's a controlled space - one in which we can gleam a lot from. We reviewed the different biomes with the students and for the sake of our experiment, we kept it to these 5 general groups: tundra, forest, grassland, desert, and aquatic. We also discussed producers, consumers, and decomposers in an ecosystem.
This project requires many sessions as we need to first make a "home" for our producers - our food source! Check out the diagram below for how we were able to fashion a simple and self-sufficient biodome just out of plastic bottles, string, and some plotting soil. Each team tailored their biodome a bit depending on one of the 5 biomes they were assigned to replicate. Each group also presented their plans for their biodomes in front of the class. In the interest of time and factoring in the weather, we decided on planting green beans as our food source. I'm super excited to report that after just one week of fall break (no watering and completely self-sustained) our biodomes are working successfully and there are huge, healthy stalks of bean plants in every biodome! Now the next phase is to find some creepy crawling creatures around the school yard and put them into the biodome as our consumers. The last phase would be to find the slimy wormy decomposers - snails, slugs, and worms!
This project requires many sessions as we need to first make a "home" for our producers - our food source! Check out the diagram below for how we were able to fashion a simple and self-sufficient biodome just out of plastic bottles, string, and some plotting soil. Each team tailored their biodome a bit depending on one of the 5 biomes they were assigned to replicate. Each group also presented their plans for their biodomes in front of the class. In the interest of time and factoring in the weather, we decided on planting green beans as our food source. I'm super excited to report that after just one week of fall break (no watering and completely self-sustained) our biodomes are working successfully and there are huge, healthy stalks of bean plants in every biodome! Now the next phase is to find some creepy crawling creatures around the school yard and put them into the biodome as our consumers. The last phase would be to find the slimy wormy decomposers - snails, slugs, and worms!