Engage MS-4

Students will use an interactive carbon cycle game to refresh their understanding of the carbon cycle and add to their body of knowledge about carbon throughout the earth system.

1. Go to the Carbon Cycle Game, from Windows 2 the Universe, http://www.windows2universe.org/earth/climate/carbon_cycle.html
2. Once there, students become a carbon atom and travel through different earth systems to better understand the role carbon dioxide plays. Along their journey students need to record their stops and take a note or two about carbon dioxide’s behavior.  Students will also answer several questions along the journey.  The questions are random, therefore ask your students to write the question and answer they chose in their science notebook.  The evidence and information the students collect will be used at the end of the Engage
3. When students complete the game they will have several options.  Ask them to choose, “Learn more about the carbon cycle” and read about the journey their atom just took.
4. Students have played a game about the carbon cycle and read a short passage too. Now to help take this learning from short term to long term memory students will create an infographic on paper (later this work can be added in their science notebook) or using design software.  Allow students to be creative as they design their infographic.  Only provide students with these guidelines.
   • Neat, correct spelling, and free of grammatical errors
   • Each stop your carbon atom made needs to be documented in your inforgraphic
   • Provide a few details about what’s going on with carbon dioxide at each stop.
   • Provide an image of some kind that to go along with the atom’s stop and details.
   • Utilize the questions you were asked in your infographic or come up with new questions.