AP Environmental Science Unit 1 The Living World Ecosystems Unit BUNDLE!

This is a complete unit bundle, containing all the PowerPoints, guided notes (free), and aligned classwork activities for AP Environmental Science (APES) Unit 1: A Living World - Ecosystems. If you are new to teaching AP Environmental Science or would like to revamp/spice-up your class, this bundle is for you! Other than familiarizing yourself with the PowerPoints and setting-up labs, you will not have to do much planning at all!

My Story:

I'm a visual learner so I empathized with my students through my first year "survival slides." They were resources I found online, and I would describe them as “traditional college-esqe.” I tweaked slides of course, added bits here and there, but I didn’t make them from scratch. This is partly because I was new to teaching APES and so I relied on others, and partly because I, probably like you, am busy (I teach 5 preps and have two babies at home).

During the summer after COVID locked down schools, I made a commitment to change my PowerPoints. My goal was to engage my students so much as they watched me through computer screens that they wouldn’t check socials or watch Netflix in the background. The pay-off has been nothing short of extraordinary!

Last year (2021-2022) was the first year I had students in-person with my new PowerPoints. I’ve realized that having stunning, interactive, animated presentations is a game-changer in class enthusiasm, effort, retention, and yes – exam scores! There are obviously many important aspects to student success in this amazing class – reading and comprehension, investigations, critical thinking, math skills, etc – but the instructor-led PowerPoints are the foundation to learning a new topic. They have the ability to set the tone for class culture, learning, and engagement. My students didn’t crack open a textbook last year and my scores were the best I’ve ever had.

With my knack at PowerPoint design, I am bringing my strengths together and hoping to help others see the same results that I have.

What You Will Receive in Your Download:

• 1. A "Unit 1 Overview" document, which clearly lays out the order I teach the Unit 1 objectives and the classwork I do each day.
• 2. A full-year pacing guide.
• 2. Eight interactive, visually-stunning, simplified, and thorough PowerPoint Presentations. Please watch the video preview above to get a better sense them. My presentations incorporate clear graphics, gifs, animations, and hit-or-miss jokes :). They also include bell ringers/warm-ups for every lesson, and slide notes to help guide instruction and discussion. My PowerPoints are designed to not only engage students from beginning to end, but also cover all the information in the CED as effectively as possible. To achieve this, the lectures inter-weave content, over-arching themes, case studies, and essential learning skills.
• 3. The unit 1 guided notes in a single document (both with and without blanks). I actually have students print the copy with blanks at home, unless parents request otherwise. We have to buy our own paper at our school so parents usually help out when I tell them this. You can make it a bonus to print them. I also make note completion a grade on test days. Guided notes allow students to watch and listen, while only noting key vocabulary and labeling of diagrams. I find this is the most effective note-taking/learning style.
• 4. Eight separate matching guided notes without blanks (for students with special accommodations).
• 5. Eight separate matching guided notes with blanks.
• 6. Activities that go with each lesson. I am a BIG fan of mixing it up. Unit 1 activities include videos, virtual labs, drawing food webs, making digital posters, coloring, and games.
  • Day 1: Introduction to APES:
    • The Lorax and video guide (free)
    • Happy Fishing Lab (free)
  • Day 2: Introduction to Ecology: An activity sheet that includes an online virtual simulation on niches and competitive exclusion.
  • Day 3: Community Ecology: students draw a food web on the desks with chalk and then answer aligned questions.
  • Day 4: The Water Cycle: students complete a worksheet that utilizes a video on how important freshwater is to civilization. They look at stomata under a microscope, play the water molecule travel game, label a water cycle diagram, and answer conclusion questions.
  • Day 5: The Carbon Cycle: all the drawings on google are incomplete in one way, shape of form. Students use a pre-made landscape to draw the BEST carbon cycle out there (very structured).
  • Day 6: The Nitrogen & Phosphorous Cycles: Nitrogen cycle worksheet which includes a dice game, questions, and labeling a pre-made diagram. (Free)
  • Day 7: Terrestrial Biomes: students color a map of the major biomes and watch a 20 minute video going over the major terrestrial biomes.
    • Biome book (free)
    • Biome Speed Dating (free)
  • Day 8: Aquatic Biomes: students work on a "digital textbook" poster on aquatic biomes, before and after human impact. Please watch the walk-through for this on the product page.

Relevant Links to Other Resources/Money-Saving Bundles:

• Semester 1 Bundle (notes only)
• Semester 1 Bundle (notes and activities):
• Semester 2 Complete Bundle
• Full Year Bundle Complete Bundle

CONNECT WITH ME

• Join my email list HERE! You will get automatic access to 3 FREEBIES with many more throughout the year. I promise not to clog your inbox – just keep you abreast of awesome products and sales!

Terms of Use:
These products were created for single classroom use by the original purchaser only. Even if modified, they cannot be shared. If you would like to share these resources with colleagues, then please purchase additional licenses or share my store link. I have purchased a commercial business license for distribution of the media, therefore, nothing in this bundle can be posted online, including your classroom website, Microsoft Teams, Google Classroom, etc. If you would like to share the content of the PowerPoints with students, you must post the watermarked and flattened PDFs available in the resource download. You may record a lecture and post it online, as long as the link to students is private. You may not use my PowerPoints for any for-profit purposes, including Outschool, public YouTube videos, and similar educational platforms. Thank you for understanding these guidelines.

Reviews

If you and your students enjoyed this resource, I would greatly appreciate a review! Reviews help buyers decide whether or not to purchase my product. If you have any negative feedback, please email me first so I can help you until you are 100% satisfied. Reviews also earn you credits that may be redeemed at checkout for future purchases!

Contact Me

If you have any questions, concerns, or special requests, please contact me in the Q&A section above or email me at AshleyLGrapes@gmail.com. I usually respond within the hour. I hope you and your students enjoy! Thank you!