Invasive Species Council of British Columbia

For Educators

Unit: We Care for the Land – Activity 5: Biodiversity Scavenger Hunts

Grade: 4 to 6

Duration: 30-45 minutes

Setting: Outdoor

Subjects: Language Arts, Science

Physical Activity: Yes

Become more observant and get to know the incredible diversity of life surrounding us with active and engaging scavenger hunts, including Biodiversity A to Z and Biodiversity Action Cards. Consider our role in helping to protect biodiversity from harmful impacts such as the spread of invasive species.

This is the fifth activity in the Grade 4-6 Learning Resource, We Care for the Land and Prevent the Spread of Invasive Species. Please see the Overview for this resource for more information, including the lesson sequence.

This resource was created through the financial support of the Provincial Intermediate and Middle Years Teachers’ Association (myPITA).

Learning Objectives

By participating in this activity students will: 

  • Be able to observe and describe examples of biodiversity.
  • Understand that invasive species can reduce and impact biodiversity.
  • Know that we can make a difference to help protect native biodiversity.
Inquiry Questions
  • What is biodiversity and why is it important?
  • How can I help to protect or enhance native biodiversity near me?
  • What are some impacts of invasive species on biodiversity in British Columbia?
BC Curriculum Links

Science Curricular Competencies

  • Experience and interpret the local environment (Grades 4-6)
  • Express and reflect on personal/ shared or others’ experience of place (Grades 4-6)
  • Make observations in familiar or unfamiliar contexts (Grades 5-6)
  • Demonstrate curiosity about the natural world (Grade 4)
  • Make observations about living and non-living things in the local environment (Grade 4)
  • Collect simple data (Grade 4)
  • Identify some simple environmental implications of their and others’ actions (Grade 4); Identify some of the social, ethical, and environmental implications of the findings from their own and others’ investigations (Grades 5-6)

Science Content

  • First Peoples concepts of the interconnectedness in the environment (Grade 5)
Materials
  • pencils and clipboards if using the Biodiversity A-Z scavenger hunt

Documents to Download

Background Information

Biodiversity-  or biological diversity-  is the variety of all of the different kinds of life – plants, animals, fungi, insects, spiders, other invertebrates, and microorganisms in an area. Every one of these organisms live and work together in ecosystems to maintain and support life on earth, and exist in delicate balance.

Biodiversity can be measured at different scales or levels. For instance, genetic diversity is a measure of the variety of genes and traits within a species; species diversity is the variety of species within a habitat or ecosystem; and ecosystem diversity is the vareity of ecosystems or habitat types within an area of land and water.

Biodiversity is essential and supports all life on Earth- including humans. Biodiversity builds healthy, resilient ecosystems that provide us with all we need to survive and thrive, including clean air and water, the food we grow and eat, and climate regulation. Biodiversity also has important economic benefits as natural or agricultural resources, supports human health, such as through pest control and medicines, and has cultural value of its own inherent worth independent of human needs.

From the rugged Pacific coast to towering glacier-clad mountains, to hot and dry interior grasslands and old growth temperate rainforests, British Columbia has the greatest variety of landforms, ecosystems, and lifeforms of any province in Canada. Within the 950,000 square kilometers that encompass BC is the greatest biological diversity in Canada: over 50,000 documented species! British Columbia has more species of plants (3,500), mammals (165), butterflies (264), reptiles (21), and amphibians (20) than any other province in Canada. Almost 100 species have the majority of their global range found in BC, meaning they are found almost nowhere else in the world.

Today we are in a global biodiversity crisis due to habitat loss and human impacts around the world. Invasive species are considered the second greatest threat to biodiversity after habitat destruction. By observing and noting biodiversity in our own backyard we can foster a greater understanding for the variety of life in our area, develop a deeper connection to it, and learn about ways that we can help to protect it.

Preparation
  • Print and prepare scavenger hunt/s.
    • One copy of A to Z for each student or pair.
    • Biodiversity Action Cards: there are 25 action cards plus 15 optional blank cards for you to customize. Depending on the number in your group, print 1-2 copies of the card sheet, cut along the perforated lines, and put all cards in a grab bag. There should be at least one action card for each person in the group.
  • Identify a search area where there are likely to be many of the items on the scavenger hunt list. Assess for safety and accessibility.
Procedure

  1. Use a thinking routine such as Think, Puzzle, Explore (Project Zero, Harvard Graduate School of Education) to have students discuss or build a concept map of what is biodiversity and why it is important. A simple definition of biodiversity (biological diversity) is all of the variety of living organisms in an area. Ask for examples of biodiversity, considering different scales. For example: ecosystem diversity in your region may include the wetland, estuary, and surrounding forest. Species diversity includes all the different types of birds in the park. Genetic diversity includes the different sizes and shapes of leaves on one type of maple tree.
    • Ask students where they think they can find biodiversity. At a nearby forest, lake or ocean? In the schoolyard or the neighbourhood? Let them know that biodiversity is everywhere and we will go outdoors to explore it in the schoolyard or nearby.
    • The purpose is to become more observant and aware of the variety of life surrounding us. You don’t need to be able to identify the organisms you’re looking at! Just look closely, be curious, and have fun!
  2. Introduce invasive species. Invasive species are plants, animals, or other living organisms that are introduced to a new place where they spread and take over, causing harm to the environment or to people. Invasive species are so harmful to the environment that they are considered a leading cause of the loss of biodiversity around the world, including here in British Columbia. Here is a short video that you can show to your students to introduce them to invasive species: Invaders! Invasive Species in British Columbia (Government of BC; 1:42)
  3. Go outdoors. Define the search area boundaries, the amount of time you will spend doing the activity, and the call to bring everyone back to a central gathering spot.
  4. Scavenge! (See instructions for each scavenger hunt below)
  5. Reconvene as a group and share some findings and reflections.

Scavenger Hunt Instructions

Biodiversity A to Z

There are two versions of this scavenger hunt to choose from depending on your group, the area where you will be doing the hunt, and your learning goals.

  • Pictorial A to Z is filled in with pictures of items to look for for each letter of the alphabet.
  • Blank A to Z is blank and allows for creative searching and a connection to language arts. You could use this scavenger hunt to search for specific organisms, such as A=alder tree, B=bumblebee; or to search for items that match descriptive words/adjectives for a letter of the alphabet, such as S=slimy, T=toothed leaf margin, W=whistling bird call. Remind students that they can also include non-living things in their scavenger hunt, such as Rocks, Soil, Sunshine, Wind, Rain, Fragrant smell, etc. Students can use words or sketches to show what they found.

Instructions

  1. Pass out copies of the scavenger hunts to every student or pairs/small groups. Review anything that is unclear and offer some examples for the blank A-Z.
  2. Set some guidelines (only select natural objects – nothing human-made, do not pick live plants, leave things the way you found them, stay on trails, etc.) and delineate the boundaries where students can explore.
  3. Find and draw or list something in nature for each letter of the alphabet on the Scavenger Hunt Checklist.
  4. Once completed, gather together and ask students to categorize their lists into living and non-living things. Discuss what are some characteristics of living (e.g. respond to the environment; grows; reproduces; etc.) and non-living things. Discuss how living and non-living things interact in an ecosystem and contribute to biodiversity.

Biodiversity Action Cards

In this scavenger hunt you play together as a group where each action card is a separate individual task. There are 5 categories of things to find, plus blank cards: 

  • Invasive alert! Look for features and adaptations often associated with invasive species.
  • Biodiversity hunt. Discover variation and diversity in the organisms and habitats nearby.
  • Prevent the Spread! Do a task and discover how you can help protect biodiversity by preventing the spread of invasive species.
  • Nature Detectives. Look for clues that wildlife is everywhere.
  • Partner Up! Find a buddy and share your thoughts and findings.
  • Bonus: Blank cards. Make your own action cards specific to your group and region.

Instructions

  1. Distribute one Action Card to each person in the group. They set out within the defined area to search for that item or do a task.
  2. After they find the item or do the task, students can get a new card by swapping with another student or trading for a new action card from the grab bag. Encourage them to not treat it like a race and to spend some time exploring, observing, and being curious with each of their Action Cards. If they select the same card twice, they can still go out and try to find something else to match that card.
  3. In this version you can play for as long as time permits.
  4. Once completed, gather together and discuss the experience.
Reflections and Assessment
  • What observation or action from this activity was most interesting or meaningful to you and why?
  • How do you think this activity would be different if you did it in a different location? Describe another place and how you think it would compare.
  • Give some examples of biodiversity that you observed in this activity.
  • What are some things that we can do to help protect biodiversity?
Accessibility and Adaptations
  • Instead of handing out Biodiversity Action cards, the teacher could read cards aloud and have everyone search for the same thing or do the same action (competitively- as a race, or cooperatively- looking together).
  • The pictorial version of Biodiversity A to Z may be best for students who are new English language learners, struggling readers, or those less experienced with outdoor learning.
  • If you have students in your group with mobility challenges, do a scavenger hunt from a stationary viewpoint and see how many things can be seen in place. Or use the blank Biodiversity A to Z hunt and have the student think of things starting with that letter and then have them send a buddy out to try to find it.
  • For active groups, select a large area where students can move or run while exploring and doing the biodiversity hunt.
Extensions
  • Learn more about the diversity of species and ecosystems in British Columbia by reading about grasslands, northern forests, temperate rainforests, and other main ecosystem types in BC. See the Additional Resources section for links. Dig deeper with some research on a native or invasive plant or animal in BC.
  • Repeat the scavenger hunt in other locations or habitats. Compare and contrast findings.
Connections to First Peoples’ Perspectives

Did you know that under certain conditions, collecting animals and plants can increase biodiversity?  Indigenous knowledge of the land not only allowed for long-term sustainable harvesting of food and medicine plants but even benefitted other species and increased biodiversity!  Learn more and check out the case studies on management of berry plants, camas, cedar, clams, salmon, and bitterroot in the Everything is One lesson plan.

Additional Resources