Justine Foster'sSMARTboard

Lesson

Content Area Science

Standard 5.3 Life Science: All students will understand that life science principles are powerful conceptual tools for making sense of the complexity, diversity, and interconnectedness of life on Earth. Order in natural systems arises in accordance with rules that govern the physical world, and the order of natural systems can be modeled and predicted through the use of mathematics.

Strand B. Matter and Energy Transformations: Food is required for energy and building cellular materials. Organisms in an ecosystem have different ways of obtaining food, and some organisms obtain their food directly from other organisms.By the end of

gradeContent Statement

CPI# Cumulative Progress Indicator (CPI)

4 Almost all energy (food) and matter can be traced to the Sun.

5.3.4.B.1 Identify sources of energy (food) in a variety of settings (farm, zoo, ocean, forest).

NJ Core Curriculum Standards

Every organism requires energy in order to live. Like you, all living things get their

energy from the food they eat so they are able to move and grow.

Example: Plants get energy from the sun, certain animals get their energy from eating

plants, and some animals get energy from eating other animals.

A food chain links the sources of food and energy. It shows how nutrients and energy

is passed from organism to organism starting with plant life and ending with

animal life.

Food Chain

Parts of the Food Chain

A food chain is a sequence in a biological community (an ecosystem). It organizes living things by what they eat or what is eating them.In a food chain, the arrows show a flow of energy. It all begins with an energy source.The next "link" in the chain would be an organism that makes its own food from the energy source. They are called producers (autotrophs).

Energ

y S

ou

rce THE SUN

PLANTS that make their own food from sunlight (using the process of photosynthesis).

Pro

duce

r

Next in the chain are the animals. They are called consumers. This is because they do not make their own

food. Instead, they consume (eat) plants and/or other animals.

There are three groups of consumers:Animals that eat only plants.

Animals that eat only other animals.

Animals that eat both plants and animals.

Omnivores

Examples of Consumers

Herbivores

Carnivores

Omnivores

Toward the "top" of the food chain are animals that have little or no natural enemies. They can be seen as top predators.

Deco

mpose

rs

Primary Decomposers:

Bacteria and fungi

When an organism dies, it is broken down by decomposers and is then turned into nutrients. The nutrients and minerals are then released back into the soil. This then is used by plants, thus completing and repeating the cycle of the food chain.

Parts of food chain:Bird, Flower, Caterpillar

Food Chain Activity

Bacteria

Energy Source

Shark

Fish

Complete the Cycle..

Plankton

Which of the following could be the producer for a food chain?

Which category best describes an animal that only eats plants?

Which of the following describes what a food chain shows?

earthworm No, try again

green algae Correct!

lady bug No, try again

carnivore No, try again

producer No, try again

herbivore Correct!

How energy flows through a community.

Correct!

How animals move in a community. No, try again

Which foods grow the best in a community.

No, try again

Optional Activity:Breakup into pairs.

Using a pen and paper draw and create a different food chain with a partner.

Think of other habitats such as a desert, ocean, rain forest, farm, zoo, pond.

Works Cited

Col, J. (2010). Food Chains and Food Webs: "What's for Dinner?". Retrieved from

Enchanted Learning: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/foodchain/

EconGuru. (2006, October). Fundamentals of Ecology. Retrieved from EconGuru:

http://www.econguru.com/fundamentals_of_ecology/ecosystems.html

EPA. (n.d.). Food Web. Retrieved from EPA United States Environmental Protection Agency: http://www.epa.gov/acidrain/education/site_students/foodweb.html

Fremont Magnet Elementary. (n.d.). Food Chains. Retrieved from Fremont: http://schools.bcsd.com/fremont/4th_Sci_Life_food_chains.htm

Sheppards Software. (n.d.). The Food Chain. Retrieved from Sheppards Software: we make learning fun: http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/content/animals/kidscorner foodchain/foodchain.htm

Smith, R. (2013). Science Games for Kids: Food Chains. Retrieved from Science Kids: http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/gamesactivities/foodchains.html