Students will learn about the grasshopper leg and compare how it is similar to and different from a kangaroo and human leg. The teacher will share information about the grasshopper and model completing an organism profile and SFM analysis.

View Image: High Resolution CT Scan of Grasshopper

View Image: Grasshopper Image

View Image: Kangaroo Image

View Image: Human Leg

High Resolution CT Scan of Grasshopper

• What do all of these organisms have in common? (Have up on the board as the class comes in and have a class discussion before starting the activity)
• The answer is that all these organisms can jump.
• But, each organism has different “machinery” that it uses to jump and thus jumps at different heights and lengths.
• The different heights and lengths the organism can jump is optimized for its environment and the reasons it needs to jump.
• Today we will learn about the “machinery” the grasshopper uses to jump, and how their specific “machinery” relates to what the organism needs to do to survive.

*Different organisms have the same function but accomplish it differently for different reasons.

View Slides: 2.1.2. What does it do? SFM analysis Slides

The presentation begins with a student exploration of the How Grasshoppers Jump interactive website. Students will have 10 minutes to explore the website: How Grasshoppers Jump.

The teacher will discuss the 2.1.2. Grasshopper Organism Profile (students can pull this up on their devices to read along with the teacher. The teacher will share the SFM analysis and 4- Box biological specification can be derived from the organism Profile. 2.1.2. Organism SFM and 4 Box - Grasshopper