Thermodynamics_in_Ecosystems_Lesson_Plan

​Lesson Objectives

Students will identify and describe how energy is transformed and conserved in ecosystems using the first law of thermodynamics

Open Ended

What do you know of thermodynamics

Multiple Choice

how many laws are there in thermodynamics?

• Three laws
• Five laws
• Four laws
• Two laws

Multiple Choice

What role does energy transformation play in nature?

• Energy transformation is only relevant in animals

• Energy transformation is essential for sustaining life and ecological processes.
• Energy transformation has no impact on climate change.
• Energy transformation leads to increased pollution levels.

Multiple Choice

What is thermodynamics?

• Thermodynamics is the study of chemical reactions.
• Thermodynamics focuses solely on mechanical systems.
• Thermodynamics is the analysis of electrical circuits.
• Thermodynamics is the study of heat and energy transfer.

Open Ended

What are some examples of energy transformation in nature?

Multiple Choice

What is the first law of thermodynamics

• Energy conservation in thermodynamic processes.
• Energy can not be created or destroyed.

• Heat is a form of matter.
• Heat in matter and the way energy transfers

Labelling

Energy can change forms but cannot be created or destroyed. WHAT IS THE ENERGY TRANSFORMATION SHOWN IN THE PICTURE?

Drag labels to their correct position on the image

ELECTRICAL TO THERMAL

MECHANICAL TO THERMAL

MECHANICAL TO ELECTRICAL

ELECTRICAL TO RADIANT

Multiple Choice

State the second law of thermodynamics

• The total energy of an isolated system remains constant.
• Heat flows from cold to hot spontaneously.
• Energy cannot be created or destroyed.
• The total entropy of an isolated system always increases over time.

Multiple Choice

As you move up the energy pyramid, the size of a population of organisms decreases. True or False?

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

What is entropy?

• Entropy is a measure of energy in a system.
• Entropy is the total amount of heat in a substance.
• Entropy is a measure of the speed of a reaction.
• Entropy is a measure of disorder or randomness in a system.

Multiple Choice

What is irreversibility?

• Irreversibility is the inability to reverse a process or return to the original state.
• Irreversibility is the ability to reverse a process easily.
• Irreversibility refers to a temporary change that can be undone.
• Irreversibility is a process that can be repeated indefinitely.

Open Ended

Explain one way in which energy is conserved in nature.