Science Station

Vocabulary and Introduction to Molecular Biology Unit

Molecular Biology

Welcome! Today we will begin

discussing our very last unit:

Molecular Biology. Let’s learn some

new vocabulary and what will be

discussed in this unit!

Molecular Biology

This unit is all about how we can get healthy and maintain that health. Humans aren’t the only organisms that need to stay healthy! All animals need to be healthy in order to grow and be strong. Throughout this lesson we will learn how to do that. Let’s get started with some vocabulary words.

Vocabulary

Nutrient-A nutrient

substance or ingredient. A tiny building block for

the body that helps to keep you

healthy.

Vocabulary

Food Chain –

A system that typically begins with plants and

demonstrates who eats who in the

cycle of life.

Plant’s Food

We will discuss the food chain throughout this lesson. Let’s break the food chain down, by talking about each step of the chain, beginning with plants. All food chains usually begin with green plants, like grass or tree leaves. The animals that only eat plants are called herbivores.

Vocabulary

Herbivores –

Animals that only feed on

plant life.

Food Chain

So far, we have only two parts of the food chain,

plants and herbivores. This is

what the food chain looks like so

far!

Food ChainNext, we learn

about carnivores. Carnivores are animals that eat other animals for food; like the lion

that ate the giraffe. Now our food chain has gotten bigger!

Vocabulary

Our last vocabulary word:

Omnivores –

Animals that eat both plants and animals.

Food Chain

Eventually the animals at the top of the food chain, that eat other animals, die as well. When they die, their bodies decompose on the ground. This bacteria and fungi becomes nutrients for plants to make food! So you can see how the food chain is a cycle!

Food Chains

Food chains can be very simple or they can be very complex!! Either way, food chains are very

important.

Food Chains

Food chains are important because all organisms need food. Do you know why organisms need food? Organisms must have food to have energy. And all organisms must have energy to have movement, reproduce, and repair their bodies!

Food Chains

What do you think would happen to a person doesn’t get enough food and nutrients?

Food Chains

What do you think would happen to a person that doesn’t get enough food and nutrients?

Yes! They could get sick!

Food Chains

Since being sick isn’t any fun, so the food chain is very important for us to understand. When you understand your food chain, you will understand what it takes for you to stay healthy and strong.

Human Food Chain

Some animals, including humans have food chains

that look very different. Let’s look

at a few different food chains for

humans.

Human Food Chain

Some people eat foods that

other people do not eat, like

meat. A person who does eat meat might have a food

chain that looks like this:

Human Food Chain

In this food chain, plants were eaten by animals and humans ate the animals. Humans also would possibly eat nuts, fruits, vegetables, eggs, milk, and much more. However, not all people eat animal products, like meat, eggs, and milk. When someone doesn’t eat meat, their food chain might look like this:

Vegetarian Food Chain

Your Food Chain Activity

What does your food chain look like? I would like you to draw a picture of your food chain. Remember, a food chain represents different organisms and who eats who. Therefore, you will not draw a pizza. A pizza is not a plant or an animal. Everything on your food chain will be a plant or an animal, and include yourself.

Your Food Chain Activity

Turn to page 42 in your science notebook. Title the page:“My Food Chain”

Go ahead and get started!

Next Time

Great job today learning about

food chains and why they are

important. Next time we will begin discussing healthy and non-healthy

foods!