Should your school rake up every fallen leaf – or leave them alone?
That pile of leaves might provide winter shelter, support a food web, or create a drainage problem. In Leave the Leaves? A Fall Ecology Decision Challenge, students investigate why the answer depends on the location.
Students become environmental consultants tasked with evaluating a fictional school’s fall cleanup plans. They examine ecological evidence, interpret data, and recommend a plan that balances wildlife habitat, school access, and limited maintenance time.
It’s a seasonal connection to your ecology curriculum that gets students using evidence—with no lab supplies, outdoor access, or independent research required for the core lesson.
How It Works
Students begin with a message from Principal Rivera: the school needs a leaf-cleanup plan.
Using three illustrated evidence cards, students explore how fallen leaves affect wildlife, decomposition, soil conditions, and water quality. They then analyze simulated garden data and evaluate three campus cleanup plans against specific requirements.
Next, a grounds team update introduces a tighter time allowance and a choice between two acceptable options. Students weigh the trade-offs and write an evidence-based recommendation to the principal.
The final decision has two defensible answers. Students must explain why their recommendation makes sense.
Students Practice
What’s Included?
10-page student activity
14 pages of teacher support
Use it during a fall ecology unit, before Thanksgiving break, or whenever students are exploring habitats and human impacts.
Please note: The campus scenario, numerical garden data, and maintenance estimates are fictional. The optional extensions are teacher-guided suggestions rather than separate student packets.
Grades: 6–10 | Pages: 24 | Time: Approximately 40 minutes
NGSS Connections: Supports MS-LS2-5 and MS-ETS1-2; supporting connection to HS-LS2-7
