Space for Species

Provided by: Illinois Department of Natural Resources |Published on: June 20, 2025

Lesson Plans

678

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Synopsis

This lesson plan from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources makes the connection between the effects of development and the fragmentation of biodiversity.
By the end of the lesson, students will understand that habitat fragmentation is one of the most serious threats to biodiversity and that fragmentation does not affect all species the same way.

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Subjects: Biology, Mathematics

Authors: Illinois Department of Natural Resources

Region: United States, Illinois

Languages: English

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Teaching Materials

Positives

This lesson plan has a multiple-day approach to help students understand both animal and plant habitat fragmentation through hands-on investigations, games, and reading materials.
The lesson plan contains all the information needed for the teacher to complete the lessons. Vocabulary, procedural steps, background knowledge, activities, and even misconceptions are addressed to help guide the teacher through the teaching process.

Prerequisites

Teachers should ensure they have all the materials needed for the lesson and have the adequate space needed to complete Part 1 of the lesson series.
The teacher should ensure they have enough student page packets copied for the entire classroom of learners.
In order to plot the species-area curve, students should be familiar with reading data and have a basic understanding of the coordinate plane, including terms such as x and y-axis.
One aspect of the lesson includes students investigating plants around their schools. Teachers should take into consideration what time of year they are completing these lessons and may want to wait until the Spring in order to complete all the activities.
The resource does recommend that students research if any plants nearby are on the verge of extinction.

Differentiation & Implementation

The teacher may want to consider creating skeleton notes and a slide presentation to help grow students' background knowledge as supplied in the lesson plan. Skeleton notes may be helpful for students to follow along with the presentation of important background knowledge and vocabulary before and throughout the lesson.
One of the extension activities calls for students to write a fictional interview between a journalist and a plant or animal species on the verge of extinction. Teachers may want to consider scaffolding such an activity for their variety of learners by using a gradual release model, explicit modeling, and sentence starters.
Teachers may use this lesson to make the connection between the loss of biodiversity and the arts. The lesson explores artwork created to show some of Hawaii's endangered species. Students can then create their own artwork displaying endangered species in their own cities and states. It may also be important to analyze why such artwork is important in the fight against climate change and protecting biodiversity.

Scientist Notes

Teaching Tips

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Resource Type and Format

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Space for Species

Synopsis

Teaching Materials

Scientist Reviewed

Related Teaching Resources