Eco-Tours Part One – Welcome to the Marsh

Students observe the parts of a marsh ecosystem and compare that to parts of another ecosystem.

Lesson Overview

What makes a cranberry marsh an ecosystem?

The purpose of the lesson is to help students become familiar with a cranberry marsh. Students begin by examining the cranberry marsh as a whole. Students then identify and categorize the integral parts of the marsh, as well as the surrounding environment.

The lesson begins as the student is presented with a set of images of cranberry marshes. Adjacent land with vegetation is visible. In some of the images it is autumn and harvest time is underway. The marshes are being harvested differently; one is being harvested using a cranberry raking machine while the other has water reel harvesters dislodging fruit and being corralled with a boom. The set of images also includes; humans at work; machinery and tools in use; cranberries still attached – and separated from – the vines; animals, clues about the season; and buildings.