Biomes of the World

This webquest is intended for Missouri students in a high school science class.
The webquest fulfills the following NETS stadands by ISTE:
http://www.iste.org/Libraries/PDFs/NETS-S_Standards.sflb.ashx
1. Creativity and Innovation
Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and processes using technology. Students:

a. apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes

b. create original works as a means of personal or group expression

c. use models and simulations to explore complex systems and issues

d. identify trends and forecast possibilities 

2. Communication and Collaboration
Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. Students:

d. contribute to project teams to produce original works or solve problems

3. Research and Information Fluency
Students apply digital tools to gather, evaluate, and use information. Students:

a. plan strategies to guide inquiry

b. locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use information from a variety of sources and media

c. evaluate and select information sources and digital media tools based on the appropriateness to specific tasks

d. process data and report results 

4. Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making
Students use critical thinking skills to plan and conduct research, manage projects, solve problems, and make informed decisions using appropriate digital tools and resources. Students:

a. identify and define authentic problems and significant questions for investigation

b. plan and manage activities to develop a solution or complete a project

c. collect and analyze data to identify solutions and/or make informed decisions

d. use multiple processes and diverse perspectives to explore alternative solutions 

It fulfills the following Show-Me Standards of Missouri:
http://dese.mo.gov/standards/

Content Standards (Science):

3. characteristics and interactions of living organisms

4. changes in ecosystems and interactions of organisms with their environments

8. impact of science, technology and human activity on resources and the environment 

Performance Standards:

Goal 1

1. develop questions and ideas to initiate and refine research

2. conduct research to answer questions and evaluate information and ideas

4. use technological tools and other resources to locate, select and organize information

6. discover and evaluate patterns and relationships in information, ideas and structures

7. evaluate the accuracy of information and the reliability of its sources

8. organize data, information and ideas into useful forms (including charts, graphs, outlines) for analysis or presentation

Goal 2

1. plan and make written, oral and visual presentations for a variety of purposes and audiences

3. exchange information, questions and ideas while recognizing the perspectives of others

7. use technological tools to exchange information and ideas

Goal 4

4. recognize and practice honesty and integrity in academic work and in the workplace

5. develop, monitor and revise plans of action to meet deadlines and accomplish goals

6. identify tasks that require a coordinated effort and work with others to complete those tasks 

It fulfills the following grade level expectations (GLE):
http://dese.mo.gov/divimprove/curriculum/GLE/documents/cur-sc-bio-cle-1108.pdf 

Strand 4-1B: Living organisms have the capacity to produce populations of infinite size, but environments and resources are finite.

a. Identify and explain the limiting (biotic and abiotic) that may affect the carrying capacity of a population within an ecosystem

Strand 4-1D: The diversity of species within an ecosystem is affected by changes in the environment, which can be caused by other organisms or outside processes.

a. Predict the impact (beneficial or harmful) a natural or human caused environmental event (e.g. forest fire, flood, volcanic eruption, avalanche, acid rain, global warming, pollution, deforestation, introduction of an exotic species) may have on the diversity of different species in an ecosystem

b. Describe possible causes of extinction of a population

Strand 4-2A: Energy flows through the ecosystem; all organisms capture a portion of that energy and transform it to a form they can use.

a. Illustrate and describe the flow and energy with a food web