The Amazing Ant

The ant is truly amazing.  

Like many of you, I also get irritated by them.  But have you ever taken a few minutes to just watch ants?  

This past week end our family joined several other families for a Memorial Day picnic.  We live in the deep South, so it was no surprise to anyone when the ants found our picnic so quickly.  Like other normal people (a biology teacher is rarely normal, but this time I was!) I tried to flick them away from our food and off the picnic table we were using.  

I happened to look down at the ground around the picnic table and spotted the ant hill.  One of us had already stepped in the middle of it, and the ants were in a frenzy.  What caught my eye was the site of the ants lifting the eggs and/or pupae and carrying them to safety.  It was a pretty amazing site, and our group became interested in watching the busy work of these ants.

As I am the biology teacher in the group, my friends began to ask me questions, such as "How do they lift an object that seems as big as they are?"  Other than knowing that they are insects and undergo complete metamorphosis, I had few answers to offer the group.  Since I love being able to spout off biological facts to anyone who will listen, I knew that I had some research to do about ants.

These are some amazing facts that I discovered:

1.   Ants can lift objects that are 20 to 50 times their own body weight.  

2.   Ants live 45 to 60 days.

3.   The ant brain only contains 250,000 cells.  It would take a colony of 40,000 ants to have the same brain size as one human.

4.   Ants have powerful jaws that open from side to side.  They cannot swallow food.  They swallow the juice from the food as they chew.

5.   There are over 10,000 species of ants.  

6.   Each ant colony has one or more queens.  The job of the queen is to lay eggs.

7.  Worker ants are sterile.  Their job is to look after the queen, take care of the eggs and larvae, search for food, clean up the nest, and defend the nest.

8.   Fertile males have one job only.  They mate with the queen and usually die shortly after.

9.   Ants have an amazing ability to communicate with each other.  They use their antennae for tactile communication as well as for smell.  They use chemicals to alert other ants of danger or to lead them to a promising food source.  A trail of scent (pheromone) is used to lead other ants to a source of food.  Cave ants use high pitched squeaks to communicate in the dark.

10.   Some ants live in a mutualistic relationships with plants.  The acacia ant lives in the huge thorns of the acacia tree.  In return, the ant protects the plant from being eaten by herbivores.

11.   Ants evolved 130 million years ago and lived alongside the dinosaurs.

12.   Ants were farmers before humans.  Many species of ants grow and cultivate fungi to support the hive.

13.   Ants are found in almost every corner of the world.  They are not found in Antarctica, Greenland and a few other remote islands.

14.   Ants do not have lungs.  They breathe through a set of spiracles and trachea, which is essentially a bunch of holes along their abdomen.

Here are some links to sites for more information and for some pretty amazing pictures:

National Geographic:  Ants

10 Things About Ants You Didn't Know

7 Reasons Ants Will Inherit the Earth

Happy Teaching!

Who wants FREE teaching materials?

Yep, all are FREE!

You will definitely want to check this out.  I have been meaning to write about this for weeks, but with the end of school madness, I am just now getting around to it.  "Mrs. O", a teacher/author from TeachersPayTeachers.com, put together an amazing list of free teaching materials.  These  materials are always available for free from TpT, but Mrs. O organized these materials into one document.   The document consists of hundreds of links to the free materials and the links are organized by grade level and subject area.

Hundreds of Freebies For Your Classroom!

As you can see from the Table of Contents, there is something for everyone here.  Be sure to bookmark or save this.  It will be a treasure trove when you start the new school year!!

Happy Teaching!!

Outdoor Outings! Love 'Em!!

A great day for hiking!

This past Sunday, my family made the mistake of asking me what I wanted to do for Mother's Day.  Whenever I am asked a question like this, my answer is always the same......  Let's go for a hike!

It just so happens that we live just a few miles from a fairly large river.  Along this river are old growth forests and cypress swamps.  My family is very prepared for one of my outdoor outings.  Everyone quickly donned their hiking boots, water bottles and bug spray.  We live in the deep south..... bug spray is NOT optional!!

The woods are gorgeous at this time of the year, and I always have my camera.  I thought I would share some of the amazing sights from our 2 hour hiking expedition.

In the south, the waters are dark and murky,
but the cypress trees are just gorgeous.
Luckily, we did not come across any water moccasins.  

This area of the swamp is completely covered in duckweed.  It completely covers the surface of the water and is often found in eutrophic conditions.  You might think that it would be destructive by the way it completely covers the surface, but not so.  It is a very simple plant with no leaves or stems.  They consist of just a small thallus.  Duckweed is high in protein and is an excellent food source for the waterfowl.  Duckweed is often used in bioremediation because they grow rapidly and are excellent absorbers of mineral nutrients, especially nitrates and phosphates.  They are great water purifiers.

We saw many types of waterfowl, along with their babies.
Here is a Canada Goose with babies.

Is there anything more precious than baby ducks??
Mama duck was close by, just outside of the picture.

Now this is one amazing sight!!  This owl was out and about
 hunting at around 3 pm.
 It was a dark and overcast day, but even so, I have never seen 
an owl at this time of the day.

We had the pleasure of watching this little guy fishing for crawdads.  

It was a great day spent in the woods.
Many thanks to my family for indulging my every whim on this wonderful Mother's Day!

For My Mom, the Biology Teacher

My mom passed away in 2001, but not a day goes by that I don't think of her.  My mom was a biology teacher, and now I am a biology teacher, too.  My mom was an inspiration to so many people.  We grew up in a very small, rural town in the deep south.  Many of her students never dreamed they could attend college and have a different sort of life than the one they were accustomed to.  She taught them that they could do whatever ever they wanted if they worked hard enough.   She also taught them biology.
Growing up with my mother was quite the adventure!  At a very young age, I was looking at pond water under a microscope and marveling at the creatures I saw there.

I could spot liverworts and bladderworts growing so close to the ground in a swampy area that no one else would even know they existed there.  She always had her wildflower books with her, and the car would come to a screeching  halt whenever she spotted a potentially new wildflower along the road.

The car also stopped for turtles.  They simply had to be moved to the side of the road and out of harms way.  She showed me touch-me-nots and explained how touching them caused the cells to lose turgor pressure and that was why the leaves folded up.  Once on a family vacation to the beach, a dead sting ray washed up on shore.  We dissected it!  She took us fishing and canoeing and walking through the woods.  I caught lightening bugs like all kids do, but I knew the how and why of their flashing.

I have two daughters.  I have taken them on many of these same adventures.  They can amaze their friends with all sorts of biological  facts.  They love going on nature walks with me.  I thank my mother again for the closeness I share with my daughters.  She passed a love of nature to me, and as I passed this on to my daughters, we formed a strong and unbreakable bond to one another.

What choice did I have but to become a biology teacher, too?  I have now taught biology for 28 years.  I sincerely hope that I have inspired some young mind along the way.  Good luck to all my AP students who are taking the AP Biology exam tomorrow.

Thanks, Mom.  I love you.

PS - She was also an avid bird watcher.  She loved hummingbirds best of all.  Mom, this hummingbird is for you.

Reinforce Protein Synthesis with this Fun Game

Click image to view in my TpT store.

Sometimes when I teach  DNA, RNA, and protein synthesis, I feel like the only person in the room that "get's it" is me!    Many of my standard Biology I kids struggle with these concepts.  The whole idea of transcription and translation just leaves them looking like a deer in the headlights!  So I use this little activity to help get the point across.  It is called:

Determining the Traits of a Mystery Organism Through Protein Synthesis

After teaching the basics of protein synthesis, have your students work through this.  Given the DNA sequence of 6 genes, the student will determine the mRNA sequence, followed by the tRNA sequence.  Students will then de-code the codons to see what amino acids are needed to build a particular protein.  I have found that my students understand the concept of protein synthesis much better after doing this activity.  And best of all, they get to color their mystery organism at the end.  It never ceases to amaze me how much high school students still love to color!  This activity is appropriate for grades 7 through 10.

The printable lesson is perfect for traditional classroom settings, and the paperless, digital Google Apps version is perfect for distance learning and 1:1 classrooms. 

Transpiration Lab for High School Biology: Simple Plant Transpiration Experiment

Plant transpiration can be a challenging concept for high school biology students, especially when it is only taught through notes or diagrams. This simple plant transpiration lab helps students understand what plant transpiration is by observing water loss in leaves through an easy, hands-on classroom experiment. Designed for high school biology courses, this transpiration lab makes plant water movement visible, measurable, and meaningful.

I often find that my students are woefully lacking in their knowledge of plants. When time runs short at the end of the school year, plant units are usually the first to be cut. Because I enjoy teaching plants, I make it a priority to leave time each year for a plant unit.

This version of a plant transpiration lab is incredibly easy to set up, clean up, and take down. It uses a simple materials list and includes all the components I want in a lab activity, including data collection, graphing, critical thinking, problem solving, data analysis, and drawing conclusions. Plus, it is fun, and students always enjoy doing it.

TL;DR and want to see the activity in my TpT store? Click here.

What is Plant Transpiration?

Plant transpiration is the loss of water vapor from a plant through the leaves. As the stomata open to allow carbon dioxide to enter the leaf for photosynthesis, water vapor escapes the leaf and enters the atmosphere.

For trees and other tall plants, moving water from the roots to the top of the plant is a challenge. The major force in water transport is provided by the evaporation of water from the leaves during transpiration. As water is lost, the movement of water out of the leaf pulls water upward through the xylem all the way down to the roots. This process is known as transpiration pull.

Traditional Plant Transpiration Lab Using a Potometer

Traditionally, biology teachers used potometers to measure water loss from leaves during transpiration. Does this image bring back memories of a failed lab? Potometers are notoriously difficult to set up because it is hard to create a tight seal around the plant stem and rubber tubing. Without a good seal, results are unreliable, and students often crush the delicate stem during setup.

Transpiration Lab for AP Biology and High School Biology

This simple plant transpiration lab is easy to set up, clean up, and take down, making it ideal for high school biology classrooms. Go to your local nursery or Walmart and buy some small bedding plants. I like to use begonia plants. The begonia is a good choice because it has a thick and fleshy leaf. 

Place the plants in small (250 mL) beakers. Water them thoroughly. In this experiment, you want to measure the amount of water lost from the leaves, so you have to ensure that no evaporation occurs from the soil in the beaker. Place a plastic sandwich bag around the beaker and wrap it very tightly around the stem of the plant. A bit of tape may be needed to keep the sandwich bag wrapped tightly around the stem. Only the leaf should be sticking out of the plastic bag.

The only way water is getting out of this beaker is through the leaves of this plant!

Determine the amount of water lost from the leaves by massing the entire setup. Be sure to get an initial mass before the experiment begins. In the photo shown, the initial mass was 195.57 grams.

Testable Variables in a Plant Transpiration Experiment

Now for the testable variables. What factors will cause an increase or decrease in the rate of transpiration? This lab will test 3 different environmental factors.

• One plant will be placed in continuous light for 24 hours. 
• One plant will be placed in front of a blowing fan for 24 hours.
• One plant will be placed inside a plastic bag that has been spritzed with water to create high humidity.
• The fourth plant will serve as a control.

Every experiment needs a control. In this transpiration lab, the control plant is not exposed to any experimental environmental factors. While the control plant is still transpiring, it does so under normal conditions, allowing students to compare results accurately.

Allow the plants to sit for 24 hours. After this time period, each plant is massed again. Students are often amazed at how much water has been lost through the leaves. All final masses should be compared to the control to determine whether the environmental factor tested caused an increase or decrease in the rate of transpiration.

There are also some uncontrolled variables in this experiment. The plants are not identical, and each has a different total leaf surface area, which can affect transpiration rates. Even so, students collect clear data showing the effects of environmental conditions on plant transpiration.

Adapting the Transpiration Lab for Different Grade Levels

Elementary: At the elementary level, it may be enough to demonstrate that water is absorbed by roots and released through leaves. Students can make predictions, form hypotheses, and practice steps of the scientific method.

Middle Grades: Middle school students can calculate the rate of water loss per minute, test additional variables such as darkness or temperature, or compare transpiration rates among different plant species.

High School Biology and AP Biology: High school students can remove leaves to calculate surface area and determine water loss per unit area. Students may also research mechanisms of transpiration such as cohesion, adhesion, capillary action, and transpiration pull.

After the experiment, I take the plants home and place them in my flower beds.

For additional plant kingdom resources, consider short video segments from The Private Life of Plants by David Attenborough. Many clips are available on YouTube and are typically three to five minutes long. Students always enjoy them.

Frequently Asked Questions About Plant Transpiration Labs

What is plant transpiration?
Plant transpiration is the process by which water moves from a plant’s roots, through the stem, and out of the leaves as water vapor. This water loss helps regulate temperature and supports the movement of water and nutrients throughout the plant.

What is a simple plant transpiration experiment for high school biology?
A simple plant transpiration experiment uses a live plant placed in a sealed container so that water loss occurs only through the leaves. By measuring mass before and after the experiment, students can observe and quantify transpiration.

How does this transpiration lab work for AP Biology?
This transpiration lab works well for AP Biology by allowing students to analyze variables such as light, humidity, air movement, and leaf surface area. Students can collect quantitative data, graph results, and connect observations to concepts like transpiration pull and water potential.

Why is a control important in a transpiration lab?
A control plant provides a baseline for comparison. By comparing experimental plants to a control, students can determine whether specific environmental factors increase or decrease the rate of transpiration.

Plant Kingdom Complete Teaching Unit Bundle

Photosynthesis Complete Teaching Bundle

Lab: Flower Dissection

Lab: Leaf Structure and Function

Lab: Pigment Chromatography

Lab: The Stomata

Reviewing for the AP Biology Exam

Click picture to download PowerPoint.

The key to success is REVIEWING!!

If you have taught AP (Advanced Placement) Biology, then you know that the amount of material that must be covered before the exam is daunting.  I have had great success with my AP exam scores.  I normally have between 60 to 80 students take the exam each year.  For the 2011 exam, I had 65 students sit for the exam, and we had an average score of 4.3.  Admittedly, this is one of the best years I have ever had.  It was a great group of students who were highly motivated.  Those kids absorbed everything I threw at them.  They then dug deeper and deeper on their own outside of the regular class time.

The group I have this year makes me very proud!  I will have 61 taking the 2012 exam.  They are every bit as motivated and talented as the group I had last year.  They have such potential to do well!!  I just have to convince them how important it is to study and review for the exam.

I am convinced that the key to success is how you review the material with your students.  I began to review with my students on February 1.  I am most fortunate to have a 70 minute class each day.  I give a prayer of thanks for this each and every day, and I realize that most AP teachers do not have this luxury.  Beginning on February 1, I use the first 10 to 15 minutes of class to review a topic that we have previously covered earlier in the school year.  The remaining class time is used to cover new material.  The day before the AP exam in May, I am still reviewing and still covering new material!!

We have to convince our students that they must review, review, review before the exam.  I have written a set of powerpoints that I use for review. These are not teaching powerpoints.  These are just slide after slide of question and answer.  The students are not going to remember every little detail, so I try to make sure that they are solid on the basic facts.

Here is one of my review PowerPoints that I hope you will download.  It covers the characteristics of carbon and the organic compounds.

AP Review: Carbon and Organic Compounds ---- It's FREE!!  I hope you find this useful for your classroom.

Happy Teaching and good luck on the AP exam!