Lesson Plan 2:
Ecology and Ecosystem

Student Inquiries
(letters in parenthesis refer to Lesson Activities) :

What is an ecosystem? (F)

How do ranchers maintain healthy ecosystems? (A, B, D, E, F)

Why do ranchers care about the environment? (A, E, F)

What is a rangeland? (A, B, C, E, F)

How do rangelands affect water quality?(A, B, C, D, E, F) Where does my food come from? (A, C, E)

What is grazing? (A, C, D, E, F)

Who grazes? (A, E, F)

What do grazers eat? (A, C, E, F)

How much can grazers eat? (A, B, C, D, E)

What does grazing do to the plants? (C, E, F)

Where does grazing occur? (A, E, F)

How does grazing affect the ecosystem?(A, B, C, D, E, F)

Do livestock and wildlife graze the same? (A, E, F)

How do livestock and wildlife live in the same ecosystems together? (A, E, F)

How much grazing can occur each year? (A, B, D, E,)

What types of recreational uses can occur in conjunction with grazing? (A, E)

How long can/have rangelands be(en) grazed? (A, E)

How do grazing and ranching impact me? (A, E, F)

Why can cows, sheep, and big wildlife species eat so much grass? (A, E, F)

How does overgrazing wear out rangeland resources? (A, B, C, D, E, F)

How do ranchers know what the conditions of their rangelands are? (A, E, F)

How does ranching benefit wildlife? (A, B, E, F)

How much land area is covered by rangeland in America? (A, C, E)

How do plants get energy to grow? (A, B, C, D, E, F)

How do the parts of an ecosystem rely upon each other? (A, B, C, D, E, F)