Photosynthesis Aliens

Learning Objectives
Energy
In this unit, students will learn about the energy transformation that takes place throughout
photosynthesis. Energy is a vital concept due to the fact that energy links all living being things
together. It is important that students learn that energy can take multiple changing forms.
Sunlight: Sunlight is the driving force behind photosynthesis, without it, most life on Earth
would disappear. The role of sunlight is a critical concept of photosynthesis and must be
understood by all students in order to gain a basic understanding of photosynthesis.
Requirements
Photosynthesis has very few basic requirements but these requirements are essential to the
process. Other than sunlight plants require an adequate amount of carbon dioxide and water. It
is vital that students understand the requirements needed for photosynthesis so that students can
understand how various plants are grown (on the space station, farming). Through the
understanding of the requirements students will be able to think of new creative ideas to meet the
needs of photosynthetic organisms.
Carbon dioxide: Without carbon dioxide plants could not carry out the light independent
reaction of photosynthesis (Calvin Cycle). The more carbon dioxide plants are exposed to the
easier it is for them to carry out photosynthesis (if all other requirements are sufficiently
available). Carbon dioxide provides the carbon that is fixed during the ligh tindependent
reactions which yield the greatest amount of ATP. Without this reaction plants would not be
able to flourish, there energy gathering would be significantly reduced. Students will understand
the role that carbon dioxide plays during photosynthesis.
Water: Water is needed by all organisms to survive, but its use in plants is different than in
humans. Photosynthesis’s requirement of water is a concept that must be understood by all
students. Students need to understand how vital water is to life on Earth especially to plants.
Students will gain a basic understanding of waters part in photosynthesis and that without it the
light dependent and light independent reactions could not take place.
Products
The end products of photosynthesis are one of the most important aspects of photosynthesis.
Through the production of sugar and oxygen by plants almost all other forms of life are able to
survive. Without the products of photosynthesis almost all life on Earth would perish very
quickly. Students must understand the importance that the end products of photosynthesis play
to all organisms. Students must understand that almost all of the oxygen on Earth is formed by
plants and thus without plants, we would not able to breath. Through this understanding students
will have a better understanding of the importance of one organism on another.
O2: The formation of O2 by plants through the process of photosynthesis is essential for most
species on planet Earth to survive. Plants produce almost all of the O2 present in the air and is
thus vital for our survival. The formation of O2 is one of the major reasons why plants are so
important to humans, we depend upon plants for our survival.
Sugar: The formation of sugar by plants is the final step of photosynthesis and allows plants to
harvest and store energy from the sun. Plants form glucose and sucrose from sun light, CO2 and
H2O From the sugar formed from photosynthesis plants can continue to thrive and produce
offspring.
Inquiry
Inquiry based lessons allow students to explore and discover science on their own with the
guidance of a teacher. Through inquiry, students will become like scientists building models
using their knowledge, revising their models through argumentation and empirical evidence, and
presenting their revised models to the class.
Group Work: This is a vital part of the inquiry process. Through group work students will learn
to work together as a team and as a scientific community. They will learn the meaning of relying
on a community to help with issues and be expected to help each other throughout the process.
Modeling: Students will continue to practice honing their skills at creating initial models based
on their prior knowledge. Students will work in pairs to analyze empirical evidence and revise
their models. Students will present their models to their peers and will spark discussion and
argumentation where the students will need to defend their explanation. Finally students will
revise their models based on evidence that was presented by other groups.
Argumentation: Through the use of argumentation students will improve their public speaking
abilities, confidence, and respect for one another. Argumentation is a necessary part of
modeling, in that it allows students to learn to express their ideas and challenge others ideas in a
public setting as a learning community.
Standards
Energy
NJ Content Standard: Continual input of energy from sunlight keeps matter and energy flowing
through ecosystems. CPI # 5.3.12.B.3
Photosynthesis Requirements
NJ Content Standard: Plants have the capability to take energy from light to form sugar
molecules containing carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. CPI# 5.3.12.B.4
Photosynthesis Products
NJ Content Standard: In both plant and animal cells, sugar is a source of energy and can be used
to make other carbon-containing (organic) molecules. CPI#5.3.12.B.5
NJ Content Standard: As matter cycles and energy flows through different levels of organization
within living systems (cells, organs, organisms, communities), and between living systems and
the physical environment, chemical elements are recombined into different products.5.3.12.B.1
Inquiry and Modeling Standards
NSES: Regardless of the scientific investigation performed, students must use evidence,
apply logic, and construct an argument for their proposed explanations.
NJ Content Standard: Empirical evidence is used to construct and defend arguments. CPI:
Revise predictions and explanations using evidence, and connect explanations/arguments to
established scientific knowledge, models, and theories. CPI #5.1.12.B.3
 NJ Content Standard: Refinement of understandings, explanations, and models occurs as
new evidence is incorporated. CPI: Reflect on and revise understandings as new evidence
emerges. CPI#5.1.12.C.1
NJ Content Standard: Science involves practicing productive social interactions with
peers, such as partner talk, whole-group discussions, and small-group work. CPI: Engage in
multiple forms of discussion in order to process, make sense of, and learn from others’ ideas,
observations, and experiences. CPI#5.1.12.D.1
Broader Curriculum Context
This photosynthesis unit is an inquiry-based unit, which will not only strengthen the student’s
ability to model but will also help students formulate explanations through group work. Other
units throughout the year are also inquiry-based and thus the more experience students have
working with inquiry the better they will be at modeling and group work. This unit will take
place after plant anatomy has been discussed and will give students a view into the way in which
energy is transferred within plants. This unit will also help students have a better grasp of
ecology through the understanding of the importance of plant life to other organisms.
Project Context
The driving problem for this unit is that students will need to act as researchers, trying to
discover how a new species discovered on a new planet can survive their trip to Earth. The new
planet is much like planet Earth except for the lack of people and the extremely high levels of
O2. The indigenous population of planet Zueth are humanoids except that they seem to never
eat, have green skin, wear a strange face mask and drink exceptionally large amounts of water.
Students will be presented with the discovery of Zeuth and the Zeuthians and with the problem
facing scientists (how do Zeuthians survive). The class will be divided into groups (3 students
per group). Students will then be told that NASA tried to bring back a few Zeuthians but none of
them survived the trip. The scientists gave the Zeuthians water from Zeuth but nevertheless they
all appeared to starve to death. Students will then be asked to model how they could have
starved if they were given their nutrients and water. Through argumentation students will
discuss what the best model is and vote on the model. I expect that the model presented will be
that they get their energy from the sun. Students will then be told that scientists tried to bring
another group of Zeuthians to Earth. On this trip the Zeuthians were not given their masks and
for some reason they appeared to die of starvation yet again. Students will be told that the ship
was designed for humans and thus it was filled with O2. Students will be asked to model what
additional requirements the Zeuthians need in order to survive. The final twist of the story will
be when the last group of Zeuthians starves in transport when they are exposed to GreenLight
while being given all other requirements. Students will be told that a DNA test was run on the
Zeuthians and compared to life on Earth. The results were strange, they had more in common
with plants than with animals. We are not able to access any Zeuthian tissue but we need to
design an experiment which tests the importance of each factor on their harvesting of food. We
also need to determine what it is Zeuthians are harvesting from these variables. Teams will
design experiments testing the importance of each factor and what these factors form when
together (sugar). Through the experiments, students will determine how Zeuthians harvest their
food and the safest way to transport a group of Zeuthians to Earth.
Motivation
The motivation for this unit comes from students need to know. Students will want to
learn more about this “alien” race and will find themselves wanting to discover how it is these
people could survive. In addition as NASA continues to explore our solar system more and more
scientists become more and more excited about the prospect of finding life on another planet,
which translates directly to the general public. As our world continues to become more and
more populated we would love to find another planet to either call home or discover a new form
of life.
Assessments
Variables
A. Group work: Students will be working in groups and need to share their findings. Students
should get along with each other; each student needs to be prospective and respectful of others,
and be responsible for their contribution to the group. Students need to aide their other group
members.
B. Modeling with Evidence: Students will need to justify their models with supportive evidence.
Students will need to understand evidence and interpret it correctly. Students need to create their
models based on criteria, evaluate models with other students, and revise their models after new
concepts have aroused.
C. Content: Students should understand that light energy is converted to food energy (sugar) in
plants through the process of photosynthesis. Students should be able to explain the importance
of CO2 and H2O on the process of photosynthesis.
D. Argumentation: Students need to be respectful of others views. Their views need to be based
on evidence and not just opinions. Student’s arguments need to be specific and defend a single
argument. Throughout the lesson students will need to create discussions and defend their model
in which they propose something with supporting evidence.

Estimated Length of Unit

18 Periods or about 3 and a half weeks
Lesson Sequence Time Frame (42-minute class periods)

1.1 1 Period

1.2 1 Period

2.1 1 Period

2.2 1 Period

2.3 1 Period
 2.4 1 Period

2.5 1 Period

2.6 1 Period

3.1 1 Period

3.2 1 Period

3.3 1 Period

3.4 3 Periods

3.5 2 Periods

4.1 1 Period

4.2 1 Period

Materials Needed
The teacher will need to make copies of the “notices” given out by NASA explaining
what has and hasn’t work in reference to the Zeuthians. It is also advisable to have computers in
the classroom or accessible during lessons 3.3 to 3.6 so that students can research during class.
If computers are not accessible the teacher can also provide additional materials for research
during the class. Materials for all of the students labs are needed, which generally include, but
are not limited to, lamps, colored bulbs, plants, water, iodine, and basic chemistry equipment
(test tubes, beakers). Students should also have large posters to display their models, which
should be provided by the teacher these posters will change throughout the semester so there
should be at least 4 posters per group.
Expected Prior Knowledge
Students are expected to have a basic understanding of energy. Students should know
that energy has multiple forms that can be transformed and with each transformation energy is
lost as heat. Students should have basic knowledge of plant anatomy, cell theory, and cellular
energy. Students should know that organisms use sugar in order to survive. Students should
have encountered modeling and argumentation prior to the assignment and are therefore
expected to have a basic understanding of how to model and how to be part of a productive
discussion. Students should also have an understanding of the importance that plants play in the
ecosystem. Students should know that without plants most forms of life on Earth would not be
able to survive.
Expected Student Difficulties
Students may have difficulties creating an experiment from scratch, however this should not be a
problem due to the supervision by the teacher (the teacher should be there to help refine student
ideas). Students may also have difficulties understanding the concept that light energy is
converted into a product which is then used as fuel by the plant (light is turned into sugars). This
concept is not an easy concept to understand due to the fact that something intangible (light) is
turned into something tangible (sugar). Students also may have some difficulty understanding
that only specific wavelengths of light are absorbed by plants, and the color that we see is not
absorbed but is reflected back.
Backbone/ Lesson Sequence
Driving macro-structure: Students will learn about inheritance patterns and meiotic end
products by using a crime scene investigation as the underlying problem context.
Nested Structure 1: Introduction to photosynthesis and Alien problem context. Students will
create their initial models about how Zeuthians are getting their energy.
• Lesson 1.1 - Teams of 3 to 4 students will be created, these teams will be the same
throughout the unit. Students in groups will read the handouts about the Zeuthians and Zeuth.
Students will then begin to model how they think the Zeuthians are getting their energy.
Lesson 1.2 Teams of students will finish their models and begin to present their models. The
teacher will act as the scribe for the class writing what the class thinks are good pieces of
evidence that should be carried over. Students will then vote on a new revised model as a class,
which will become the class model.
Nested Structure 2: Introduce the transportation problem of the problem context. Each piece is
to be introduced one at a time so as to keep the interest of the students throughout the unit.
Lesson 2.1: Students will model why they think the Zeuthians are not surviving even
when given the items they normally have with them.
Lesson 2.2 Through argumentation students will reach a consensus that the Zeuthians
must need sunlight in order to survive.
Lesson 2.3 The next problem will be presented (Zeuthians without their masks starved to
death). Students will add to their models from 2.2 what other requirement they think Zeuthians
need.
Lesson 2.4 Students will present their models and through argumentation will come to the
consensus that the Zeuthians need C02 in order to survive.
Lesson 2.5 Zeuthians will be exposed to green light and will starve to death while others
exposed to white light survive. Students need to model why green light was not absorbed by the
Zeuthians.
Lesson 2.6 Students will present and through argumentation will come to a consensus
that green light is not absorbed because Zeuthians are green.
Nested Structure 3: Students will learn that Zeuthians share over 90% of their DNA with plants
and thus it makes sense for us to study plants rather than Zeuthians for ethical reasons. Students
need to design experiments in order to determine why all of these things occur. Each team will
be responsible for designing their own experiment to test a piece of the model. One group will
test the necessity of CO2 another will test light absorption, another will test no nutrients
(growing a plant in only water), and another will determine what photosynthesis produces
(sugar).
 Lesson 3.1 Students will be given a DNA comparison between plants and Zeuthians. For
homework teams will have to decide what aspect they wish to test and will formulate a brief
outline of how they are going conduct their research.
Lesson 3.2 Teams will discuss which aspect of the model they wish to test. Ideas will be
presented before the class to ensure that their tests are usable.
Lesson 3.3 Teams will continue to discuss and research their proposed experiments.
Lesson 3. 4 Teams will conduct their experiments as researchers.
Lesson 3.5 Teams will act as a scientific community and will share their findings with the
class
Nested Structure 4: Revision of model and conclusion
Lesson 4.1 Students will revise the class model and will discuss why all of the variables
for photosynthesis are important. In addition students will discuss the end products of
photosynthesis.
Lesson 4.2 Students will write a letter as a class to NASA explaining the best way in
which to transport Zeuthians to Earth. They will include all the variables Zeuthians need to not
only survive but thrive during the long journey.