The Strange Journey of Atom X

THE STRANGE JOURNEY OF ATOM “X”

Name ______HOUR ______

DUE: ______

Tell the story of a carbon atom traveling through the biosphere.

 Start 350 million years ago, in the time of the dinosaurs  Your carbon atom must end at Discovery middle school in your body in the year 2012.  Your carbon atom must visit 3 continents  Your carbon atom must be part of….

____ Plants ____Herbivore(s) ____ Carnivore(s)

____ Omnivore(s) ___ Decomposers ____the air

___ A famous person from history ____ A fossil fuel ( coal, oil, natural gas )

____ A terrestrial ecosystem ____An Aquatic ecosystem

Use each word below in your essay. Underline the words when used. Use each word in a way that shows that you understand the meaning of the term.

___ Combustion (burning) ___Decomposition (rotting)

___ Photosynthesis ( producers making food… the only way that Carbon enters a food chain )

___ Cell Respiration (the “burning” of food in living cells which releases CO2 )

____ Food Chain ____ Eating ____ Fossil Fuel _____ Carbon Sink

___ Law of Conservation Of Matter _____ Greenhouse gas

____Global Warming.. or ( climate change ) Your essay can be written in the first-person “Hi I’m Ed the carbon atom” Your essay can be written in third person (narrated) “ Ed the carbon atom is in the air”

Your story must be illustrated with pictures. Inlcude a picture of each movement of your carbon atom. The pictures can be poor quality 

SAY HOW THE ATOM MOVES EACH TIME IT MOVES

Example: Don’t say…”The atom started in a plant, then moved to an animal, then moved to the air then into a fossil fuel”

Do say “The carbon atom in the pine cone moved into blood sugar in the muscle cell of a red squirrel when the squirrel ate the pine seeds . When the squirrels cells respirated the sugar in the pine seeds, the carbon atom moved into the air as carbon dioxide

FAQ’s ( Frequently Asked Questions )

1. Can I use the key words more than once? YES

2. Can I name my carbon atom? YES

3. Do I need to underline each term and describe its meaning when I use it? YES

4. Do humans and animals use the carbon dioxide which they breathe in to build their bodies?... NO!! Breathing in CO2 does not allow carbon to stick in your body. When you breathe in CO2 you breathe most of it right back out into the air.

5. How does Carbon get into the bodies of consumers? Answer = Carbon gets into the bodies of consumers when they EAT

6. Do I need pictures? YES. Good pictures? NO 

7. How do fossil fuels ( coal / oil /natural gas ) form? Coal = the remains of land plants which were buried in mud or swamps. Oil and natural gas are the remains of plankton from the oceans which was buried for millions of years and slowly changed instead of rotting. MOVING WORDS. These are the verbs which move carbon around.

Combustion Eating Cell Respiration Breathed out Decomposition Photosynthesis

Hint: To get carbon into a plant. Use Photosynthesis

Hint: Breathing in CO2 is NOT a way to get Carbon to become part of an animals body. Animals breathe in CO2 and breathe it right back out.

SELF CHECK Before turning in: Check your work

_____ I Used all required words in a way that shows their meaning.

_____ I Clearly underlined all required terms

_____ I Said HOW the atom moved to each new location. The dinosaur ate the fern etc…

_____ My story is illustrated. Each movement is shown

_____ I had someone proof read my story and give feedback. I improved the story if needed. I can expect a reader to be able to follow my story