Signal Mountain Food Web

Get to know your environment!

Make a Signal Mountain food web with 15 plus organisms from our deciduous forest ecosystem. Take special care to show correct relationships between each organism, arrows should point from the food source to the organism eating the source thus showing the flow of energy. If both organisms could eat each other such as a black rat snake and a red tail hawk a double-ended arrow should be used to demonstrate the fact that both creatures could eat each other. Those seeking to earn an "A" should add scientific names to five or more of the organisms.

Helpful list:

Tennessee Animals

Tennessee Fish Photos  

Fish Key

Tennessee Ornithological Society: Birds  

Non Native Birds

Venomous Creatures of Tennessee

Nonvenomous Snakes of Tennessee  

Snake Poster  

Snake Review

Amphibians and Reptiles of Tennessee


Frog Poster


Salamander Poster

eNature: Field Guides

Rare Animals of Tennessee (Not an easy read) 

Endangered or Threatened Animals

Tennessee Watchable Wild Life

Oh Deer: Limiting Factors & Carrying Capacity!

Activity: Oh Deer!

Main Point: Students will have a working knowledge for carrying capacity and understand how limiting factors contribute to population size.

Vocabulary: Limiting Factor, Carrying Capacity, Trophic Level, Food Chain

Helpful Information:

1. What are limiting factors? Link 1 Link 2

2. Understanding carrying capacity. Link

Q:1 What caused the population decline in 1987?

Q:2 How can the data collected be used to describe the population? Give examples.

Q:3 How can scientist use environmental carrying capacity studies to decide hunting and fishing quotas?

Quick Frozen Critters

Q:1 Why do limiting factors affect the number of organisms living?

Q:2 If you are a country leader, how would you direct a plan to feed your starving nation? Support your answer with facts learned in class.

Main Point is to help students better understand the 10% rule within trophic levels.

Vocabulary: Energy Pyramid, Trophic Levels, Food Chain

Additional Help:

1. Energy Pyramid Ocean

2. Energy Pyramid Video

3. How to play

4. Data Collection

DDT: Peregrine Falcon

How has DDT affected living organisms? Explain how this affects a food chain? Give examples.

Write your answers on a separate sheet of paper and bring them back to class. Directions for Garland.

1. Species Profile: Peregrine Falcon Link

2. Learn more about DDT or

Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (ClC₆H₄)₂CH(CCl₃) Link

Online Ecology Review: Interrelationships

Do you know your decomposers? Play the game and find out.

Play the food chain game!

Carnivore - Herbivore - Omnivore

Welcome 2010-2011 Class!

August 12, 2010

Sixth Grade Science

Welcome to Mr. Swafford’s classroom! I enjoy telling stories and trying engaging activities as we do meaningful schoolwork.

I have two goals for this year. One is to have fun while learning together. The second is harder to measure but no less important: I want each student in my class to feel liked and needed while he/she does his/her very best work.

Here are seven tips that will make your school year great.

1. Have fun!

2. Be a friend. Yes, a teacher can be your friend too, even the hard ones.

3. Have respect!

4. Work for yourself.

5. Always ask questions, especially when you are not sure.

6. Join a club, sport, or an activity.

7. Try your hardest, even when things are not going in your favor.

I trust these tips will help you as you start this school year. Yet if you find you need help, ask one of your teachers; they are here for you! My classroom will be open most lunches. Come into the room if you need a quiet place to study or if you need help with an assignment.

Starting the year off, we will be studying Ecology as our main unit of study. See the reverse side of this letter for a tentative yearlong outline. Teaching will follow the State of Tennessee Science Standards as directed by HCDE policies.

Classroom Expectation

Students are expected to use their agendamates to record homework and as a backup www.smmhs.com. Each student should turn in tasks the day they are due to receive full credit and late work should be placed in the “IN” tray located in the classroom. Science lab journals will be used to record notes, vocabulary, and handouts for review and testing purposes. Benefiting students Holt online offers students the science text, study aids, practice test, short videos and more online. Please login and checkout the wealth of information (passwords given out with the textbook).

Grading: 93-100 = A 10% Homework

85-92 = B 30% Classwork (quizzes, task, labs, projects, journal)

75-84 = C 40% Tests (test, quizzes, performance task, labs)

70-74 = D 20% Exam

0-69 = F

Journals are expected for each student. Notes and vocabulary are kept in the journal for review and testing purposes. Keep journals neat, up-to-date, and present in classes.

Mr. Chris Swafford

swafford_Christopher(at).hcde.org