Field,
Forest, and Stream
Ecosystems are not “things” or simply “a place” in nature. Ecosystems are
communities of different species interacting with each other and with the
chemical and physical factors that make up the nonliving environment. Use Project
Learning Tree’s “Field, Forest, and Stream” to conduct a field study of
three different environments. Consider how the non-living elements (sunlight,
soil moisture, temperature, wind, water flow) influence the living elements
(plants, animals, microbes) in an ecosystem.
Iowa Extension
Visit three local ecosystems to conduct your field study. For example,
visit a local wetland, woodland, and prairie. Study the different ecosystems
within Iowa. Highlight some of the unique ecosystems in Iowa such as the Loess
Hills of western Iowa. Does your local area have a unique ecosystem? Find out
and study it further!
Book List
Grades PreK-2
Arnosky, J. 1997. Crinkleroot's Guide to Knowing Animal Habitats. Simon
& Schuster Children's Publishing.
Cefrey, H. 2003. Grasslands. Rosen Publishing Group,
Incorporated.
Dewey, J.O. 1987. At the Edge of the Pond. Little, Brown &
Company.
DK Publishing. 2004. Forest. DK Publishing, Inc.
Fleming, D. 1991. In the Tall, Tall Grass. Henry Holt and Co.
Fleming, D. 1993. In the Small, Small Pond. Henry Holt and Co.
Fowler, A. 1999. Our Living Forests. Scholastic
Library Publishing.
Fowler, A. 2000. Lands of Grass. Scholastic Library Publishing.
Howard, F. 2006. Grasslands. ABDO Publishing Company.
Humphrey, P. 1995. In the Deep, Dark Forest. Steck-Vaughn.
Kosek, J.K. 2003. What's inside Lakes?
Rosen
Publishing Group, Incorporated.
Pascoe, E. and D. Kuhn. 2003. The Ecosystem of a Fallen Tree.
Rosen Publishing Group.
Pascoe, E. and D. Kuhn. 2003. Ecosystem of an Apple Tree. Rosen
Publishing Group, Inc.
Pascoe, E. and D. Kuhn. 2003. The Ecosystem of a Grassy Field.
Rosen Publishing Group, Inc.
Pascoe, E. and D. Kuhn. 2003. The Ecosystem of a Stream. Rosen
Publishing Group, Inc.
Salas, L.P. 2007. Temperate Deciduous Forests: Lands of Falling Leaves.
Coughlan Publishing.
Silver, D.M. and P.J. Wynne. 1997. One Small Square Backyard. The
McGraw-Hill Companies.
Silver, D.M. 1997. One Small Square: Woods. McGraw-Hill
Companies.
Grades 3-5
Beatty, R. 2003. Rivers, Lakes, Streams, and Ponds. Raintree
Publishers.
Biskup, A., and
T. Smith. 2007. Exploring Ecosystems with
Max Axiom, Super Scientist. Capstone Press.
Cole, M.S. 2003. Forest. Gale Group.
Cole, M.S. 2003. Prairies. Thomson Gale.
Erlic, L. 2005. Grasslands. Weigl Publishers, Incorporated.
George, M. 1994. Prairie. Creative Company.
Hawley, E. 2012.
Exploring Ecosystems. Rosen
Publishing Group, Inc.
Horton, C. 1985. Grasslands. Scholastic Library Publishing.
Johnson, R.L. and P.V. Saroff. 2004.Journey into a
River. Lerner Publishing Group.
Johnson, R.L. and P.V. Saroff. 2004. Journey into a
Wetland. Lerner Publishing Group.
Kubesh, K. 2007. Forest Habitats. Hands of a Child.
Lynch, W. and A. Lang. 2006. Prairie Grasslands. T&N
Children's Publishing.
Patent, D.H. 1996. Prairies. Holiday House.
Paul, T. 1997. In Woods and Forests. Crabtree Publishing Company.
Staub, F. 1993. America's Prairies. Lerner Publishing Group.
Tagliaferro, L. 2006. Explore the Deciduous Forest. Coughlan
Publishing.
Grades 6-8
Biskup, A., and
T. Smith. 2007. Exploring Ecosystems with
Max Axiom, Super Scientist. Capstone Press.
Court, J. 1985. Ponds and Streams. Scholastic Library
Publishing.
Currie, S. 2009.
Ecosystems. Cherry Lake Publishing.
Hawley, E. 2012.
Exploring Ecosystems. Rosen
Publishing Group, Inc.
Hoare, B. 2003. Temperate Grasslands. Raintree Publishers.
MacMillan, D.M. 2003. Life in a Deciduous Forest. Lerner
Publishing Group.
Murray, P. 1997. Prairies: Biomes of Nature. The Child' World
Inc.
Novacek, M. J. 2007. Terra : Our 100-Million-Year-Old Ecosystem--and
the Threats That Now Put It at Risk. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux.
Richardson, G. 2008. Ecosystems. Weigl
Publishers, Inc.
Rotter, C. 2002. The Prairie. Creative Company.
Vyn, K. 1978. The Prairie Community. New York: Julian Messener.
Grades 9-12
Biskup, A., and
T. Smith. 2007. Exploring Ecosystems with
Max Axiom, Super Scientist. Capstone Press.
Boon, W. and H. Groe. 1990. Nature's Heartland: Native Plant
Communities of the Great Plains. Ames:
Currie, S. 2009.
Ecosystems. Cherry Lake Publishing.
Kurtz, C. 1996. Iowa's Wild Places. Ames: Iowa State University
Press.
Madson, J. 1994. Where the Sky Began: Land of the Tallgrass Prairie.
Iowa City: University of Iowa Press.
Manning, R. 1997. Grassland: The History, Biology, Politics, and Promise
of the American Prairie. Penguin Group.
Richardson, G. 2008. Ecosystems. Weigl
Publishers, Inc.
Thompson, J.R. 1992. Prairies, Forests and Wetlands: The Restoration
of Natural Landscape Communities in Iowa. University of Iowa Press.
Links
Wikipedia:
Ecosystem
IPTV: What Are
Ecosystems?
