all energy comes from the sun plants use the sun’s energy to make food in which process?...

All energy comes from the sun

Plants use the sun’s energy to make food in which

process?Photosynthesis!

We call plants producers because they produce energy from the sun

directly.

Nearly all food chains start with a plant.

Green plants are called producers because they produce their own food.

COPY THIS DEFINITION!

Producers: Plants make their own food.

Animals (and people!) are consumers.

Some consume plants to get the energy they need to live.

Others consume other animals. (Which are you?)

COPY THIS DEFINITION!

Consumers: Animals that need to eat to live.

Producer or Consumer?

CONSUMER

Producer or Consumer?

PRODUCER

Producer or Consumer?

CONSUMER

Producer or Consumer?

On your table:Label each organism as a

PRODUCER or CONSUMER

AND EXPLAIN WHY you chose that.

Animals that eat other animals are called predators.

Some animals are BOTH predators and prey.

This means they eat some animals but are eaten by others.

COPY THIS DEFINITION!

Predators: Animals that eat other animals.

Animals that are eaten by other animals are called prey.

Some prey animals only eat plants.

Some predators (that eat other animals) can also be prey to different animals.

COPY THIS DEFINITION!

Prey: Animals that are EATEN BY other animals.

Prey

Predator

PredatorPreyPredator

Prey

Predator or Prey?

On your table:Label each organism as a PREDATOR

or PREY (or both, maybe…)

AND EXPLAIN WHY you chose that.

FOOD CHAINS

Food CHAINS show what eats what in order to gain the energy it needs to live.

Food CHAINS use arrows to show what eats what.

Eaten by:

Eaten by:

Where are the consumers and producers?

Producer ConsumerConsumer

COPY THIS DEFINITION!

Food Chain: Shows what animals eat. The flow of energy is shown with arrows.

A food chain shows how energy is transferred between organisms

Where does the energy FIRST come from?

How to Build A Food Chain…

ALWAYS start with a PRODUCER!

WHY?

Add a CONSUMER that eats plants.

Add another CONSUMER that preys on other consumers.

Plants absorb sunlight, which gives them energy to produce food. (That’s why we call these producers).

How are we part of a food chain?

How are Humans part of this food chain?

Why do food chains have no more than four or five

links? There cannot be too many links in a

single food chain because the animals at the end of the chain would not get enough food (and hence energy) to stay alive.

Most animals are part of more than one food chain

Sort these animals into a food chain..

Rabbit

Fox

Grass

Sort these animals into a food chain..

Grass

Video: “What Is A Food Chain?”

Watch for different food chains(at the end, you will have to draw one of the food chains from the video)

Your Favorite Food (Chain)

Think of your FAVORITE meal (eg: hamburger and french fries,

pizza, fried chicken and mashed potatoes)

Write down your meal and all of its PARTS

For EACH part of the meal… create a FOOD CHAIN

(eg: If you chose a hamburger, where did the meat come from? The bun? The fries?)

PART II

WARM UPDraw four food chains:remember what always comes first in a

food chain AND then put each organism in the correct order

1. First food chain: deer, tree2. Second food chain: snake, grass,

hawk, mouse3. Third food chain: hawk, grass, mouse4. Fourth food chain: cricket, hawk,

grass, frog

WARM UP1. tree -> deer producer consumer

2. Grass -> mouse -> snake -> hawk producer consumer consumer consumer prey both predator

3. Grass -> mouse -> hawk producer consumer consumer prey predator

4. Grass -> cricket -> frog -> hawk producer consumer consumer consumer prey both predator

In order to live, animals need energy.

Some animals get the energy they need to live from eating plants and other vegetation.

Some animals get their energy from eating other animals.

Some animals eat both plants and other animals.

Animals that eat plants are called Herbivores.

“Herbi” means “plants”.

Herbivores have specialized teeth and stomachs to enable them to get the energy they need from plants.

COPY THIS DEFINITION!

Herbivores: Animals that eat ONLY plants

Example: rabbits and cows

Animals that eat meat are called Carnivores.

“Carni” means “meat”.

Carnivores have specialized teeth and stomachs to enable them to get the energy they need from the bodies of other animals.

COPY THIS DEFINITION!

Carnivores: Animals that eat ONLY meat

Example: Lions and sharks

Animals that eat plants and meat are called Omnivores. OMNI means “ALL”

Humans are omnivores.

Omnivores have teeth and stomachs that enable them to eat and digest both plants and meat.

COPY THIS DEFINITION!

Omnivores: Animals that eat BOTH plants and meat

Example: Humans and bears

Herbivore, Carnivore or Omnivore?

On your table:Label each organism as an

Herbivore, Carnivore or Omnivore

AND EXPLAIN WHY you chose that.

Herbivore, Carnivore or Omnivore?

Organism Herbivore, Carnivore, or Omnivore (EXPLAIN)

Wolf (eatsfoxes andrabbits)

Carnivore: Eats ONLY meat

Moose(eatsgrass)

Herbivore: Eats ONLY plants

Fox (eats rabbits)

Carnivore: Eats ONLY meat

Bear (eatsberries andfish)

Omnivore: Eats BOTH plants and meat

Rabbit(eatgrass)

Herbivore: Eats ONLY plants

Food WebsFOOD WEBS SHOW HOW PLANTS &

ANIMALS ARE INTERCONNECTED BY DIFFERENT PATHS. COPY THIS DEFINITION!

Food Web: Many food chains put together

Is a Food Chain a Good Model?

-Do owls ONLY eat mice?-Do mice ONLY eat grasshoppers?-Do any other animals eat mice?-Do any other animals eat grasshoppers?-AND do other animals in this ecosystem eat grass?

No! A Food Web is a more complete picture of what really happens in nature.

Food WebsHow many food chains can you make from this food web?

Food WebsHow to create a food web…Put the FOUR food chains you drew for warm up together to create a food web

Where would you put the First food chain:

tree deer

Your Food Web…

TABLE: For each organism (trees, deer, etc.), decide whether it is a producer or consumer, predator or prey, and carnivore, omnivore, or herbivore. Mark an X under each category you choose.

OrganismProducers Consumers Predators Prey Herbivores Omnivores Carnivores

Trees

Grass

Deer

Snake

Hawk

Mouse

Cricket

Frog

TABLE: For each organism (trees, deer, etc.), decide whether it is a producer or consumer, predator or prey, and carnivore, omnivore, or herbivore. Mark an X under each category you choose.

OrganismProducers Consumers Predators Prey Herbivores Omnivores Carnivores

Trees XGrass XDeer X XSnake X X X XHawk X X XMouse X X XCricket X X XFrog X X X X

The Bottom of the Food Chain

bottom trees sun grass chain

Plants such as _____________________ and _____________________ are at the _____________________ of the food _____________________. Plants get their energy from the _____________________.

treesgrassbottomchain

sun

The Middle of the Food Chain

deer herbivores rabbits carnivores omnivores

Animals such as _____________________ and _____________________ get their energy by eating plants. They are called _____________________, which means 'plant eaters.' There are many more herbivores on our planet than _____________________, which are animals that eat meat. Humans are ________________

deerrabbits

herbivores

carnivores

omnivores

The Top of the Food Chain predators hunt prey

top lions both

_____________________ such as wolves and _____________________ are at the _____________________ of the food chain. Predators are animals that _____________________ other animals. The animals that they hunt are called _____________________. Some animals are __________ predator and prey.

Predatorslionstop

hunt

preyboth

The Food Web connected energy web more

Most animals belong to _____________________

than one food chain, which means many food

chains are _____________________ together.

Many food chains together form a food

_____________________. The food web shows

how the sun's _____________________ moves

from plants to animals to other animals.

more

connected

web

energy

`

1.  What would most likely cause the rabbit population to decrease (get smaller)? EXPLAIN your answer!(A) An increase in the number of grass and trees(B) An increase in the number of hawks(C) An increase in the number of deer in the area

(D) An increase in the amount of available sunlight

2.   Identify one of each (producer, consumer, predator, prey, omni/carni/herbivore) in the food web.

PART III

Warm Up

What happens to the remains of animals?

(What happens to an animal’s body after it dies? What happens to poop that animals leave on the ground?)

Where does a Food Chain End?

What happens to theOwl after it dies??

Scavengers and Decomposers

The Earth’s Clean-Up Crew!

When animals die, where do their bodies go?

They get eaten! Scavengers and Decomposers eat

dead remains to help keep the Earth clean.

Scavengers: Eat Dead Animals Some animals eat dead

animals. They are called scavengers. Scavengers help break

organic material into smaller pieces.

COPY THIS DEFINITION!

Scavengers: Animals that eat dead animals.

Examples: Vultures, worms, opossums, etc.

SCAVENGERS

Are we done with our food chain, yet?

Are we done with our food chain, yet? Scavengers eat dead stuff, but

they CANNOT eat everything. They leave behind a lot of unused

energy and nutrients. What happens to the scavengers’

leftovers? Decomposers eat the scraps

and break down the remaining organic matter.

Decomposers: Complete the Circle of Energy

Bacteria

The Last Step of the Food Chain

Decomposers

Fungus

Bacteria

The Earth’s

Clean-Up Crew!

COPY THIS DEFINITION!

Decomposers: Organisms that return nutrients from dead remains back to the soil.

Fungus and Bacteria

Decomposers

Decomposers are Everywhere!

And there are LOTS of them!A pinch of soil may contain almost

half a million fungi and billions of bacteria

Decomposer Animation…

What do Decomposers Do???

After scavengers break dead remains into smaller parts,

these smaller pieces are eaten by decomposers.

Decomposers eat animal and plant remains

Decomposers convert all remains into carbon dioxide (which they exhale during respiration) and nutrients. (DECOMPOSERS ARE PART OF THE CARBON CYCLE)

This recycles nutrients to be used again by plants and animals.

What I Need to Know…

Scavengers not the same… Two types of decomposers (fungi

and bacteria) They complete the food chain and

return the nutrients back to the beginning

Important because a) breaks down poop/dead stuff that we don’t want around and b) makes sure that nutrients don’t get wasted

Why are Decomposers Important?

Opinion-Proof

Opinion Decomposers are important and should not

be banned Scavengers not the same… Two types of decomposers (fungi and

bacteria) They complete the food chain and return

the nutrients back to the beginning Important because a) breaks down

poop/dead stuff that we don’t want around and b) makes sure that nutrients don’t get wasted

Opinion Proof_______________

What are decomposers?

(Name the two types)

Decomposersshould not bebanned because they are How do

decomposers help Important. the Earth? (Explain two

ways) Can scavengers

do the job of

decomposers? Explain

A Letter to the President

The Federal Government is planning to ban

decomposers! Write a letter to President Obama

convincing him why decomposers should not be

banned.

How to Write A LetterToday’s Date

President ObamaThe White HouseWashington, DC

Dear President Obama,

I am writing to ask you please do not ban decomposers (EXPLAIN YOUR REASONS WHY: PROVIDE THE PROOF FOR YOUR OPINION.)

Thank you for taking the time to read this letter. I hope you will consider the importance of decomposers.

Sincerely,YOUR NAME (first AND last name), 6th grader at Kennedy Middle School: Charlotte, NC

http://www.mhschool.com/science/2008/student/na/scienceinmotion/Common/SIM.html?Module=../Grade4/Chapter3-MicroorganismsAtWork/

Are we done with our food chain, yet? Scavengers eat dead stuff, but

they CANNOT eat everything. They leave behind a lot of unused

energy and nutrients. What happens to the scavengers’

leftovers? Decomposers eat the scraps

and break down the remaining organic matter.

Decomposers: Complete the Circle of Energy

Bacteria

The Last Step of the Food Chain

SCAVENGER Or

DECOMPOSER?

SNAIL

SCAVENGER Or

DECOMPOSER?

VULTURE

SCAVENGER Or

DECOMPOSER?

MUSHROOM

SCAVENGER Or

DECOMPOSER?

WORM

SCAVENGER Or

DECOMPOSER?

COCKROACHES

SCAVENGER Or

DECOMPOSER?

BACTERIA

SCAVENGER Or

DECOMPOSER?

MOLD

DecomposersWrite and answer:1. What is the difference between

a worm and a mushroom?2. What are the similarities

between snails and mold?3. What trophic level of the food

chain are decomposers?4. How do decomposers help the

food chain?