Zoologists at the San Diego Zoo want middle school students to understand that they're a part of a vibrant web of life that deserves respect and protection. To bring this lesson to light, employees from the zoo's education department suggest one experiment that focuses on the importance of making investments and sacrifices to protect biodiversity. Each student in a group receives a picture of an animal or organism which he attaches to his shirt. Teachers should try to give "unpopular" organisms, such as fungus, to popular kids, and vice versa. Each student also receives an imaginary $3 million dollars that they use to fund the protection of different species, represented by different kids in the classroom that have each pleaded their case. The students' choices will show that, even if some organisms don't seem important, all are important for life.
This experiment is designed to demonstrate how much biodiversity exists in a local area, even in our own backyard. Put students in groups and assign each group an area to study, such as a patch of woods, grassland, lawn (as long as the grass is three years old and not chemically-treated), wetland or a city park. Students should take note of all the different plant species and organisms they see. Assigned areas for study should be of a practical size. Later, have all the groups compare their findings, and observe what areas have more biodiversity than others. Explain that this situation also exists on the large scale. For example, biodiversity is richest in tropical rain forests, yet rain forests cover just a small portion of the earth. Emphasize the importance of protecting these areas.
This experiment will require a bit of research. It's designed to show students how the destruction of habitats, whether by natural factors or human influence, affects biodiversity. Find large-sized poster boards of different colors and set these on the floor. Each color represents a particular habitat. Assign each student to an endangered or threatened species within a certain habitat, and have them stand on the poster board representing that habitat. Explain how each species relates to its environment and how it survives there, and also why its threatened, whether it be by drought, building of housing development. Then remove one of the poster boards, representing the habitat's destruction, forcing the students to find another poster board to stand on. Emphasize and discuss the ensuing disruption and how that plays out in real life.
The authors of "It's a Jungle Up There" detail an experiment that teaches about the biodiversity in jungle treetops. The experiment was designed for middle school students and focuses in particular on how much life relies on tiny pools of water in the trees. To replicate this experiment, place cups, which are meant to replicate cup-like plants found in jungle tree canopies, in different locations throughout a local tree. Supervision is a definite must for this experiment. If the situation seems too dangerous for kids, have an adult place the cups. Put water in each of the cups, make note of each cup's location, and determine for how long you'll keep each cup in the tree. Observe the different organisms that settle in each water cup over time. Emphasize the importance of sufficient fresh water in sustaining biodiversity.