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Email: cmlorena@gmail.com Food Chains & Webs Lesson Plan
CONCEPTUAL LENS
Interdependence
ESSENTIAL QUESTION
What significance does energy flow have on interactions between living organisms in an
ecosystem?
MAIN GENERALIZATIONS
1. Living organisms depend on interactions between one another and their physical environment
to survive.
2. Interactions between living organisms and the environment drive the flow of energy.
3. Energy flow cycles nutrients and materials that living organisms need to survive.
4. The sun is the main source of energy in an ecosystem.
MATERIALS
For the teacher For the students (each)
Computer station Science journal
Projector Writing utensil
Internet access Index cards or half sheets of white paper
Slideshow file Markers or crayons
Dry erase markers and eraser Scissors
Ball of yarn Tape
PREPARATION
Lesson Plan Summary
Bloom Remembering Comprehension Application Analysis Synthesis Evaluation
Taxonomy
Level X X
This lesson plan is the first arrangement in the ecosystems unit. It serves as an introduction to food
chains and food webs. Students have previously learned about producers and the different types of
consumers (herbivores, carnivores, omnivores, and detritivores). They are asked to use deductive
reasoning by breaking down their dinner into its individual ingredients. Students reasoning skills are
also employed to categorize the ingredients into plant or animal, and to further classify animal
ingredients into different types of consumers. With this background knowledge and the creation of
food chain and food web models, students should be able to produce generalizations about energy flow
in ecosystems.
With the generalizations, students can move forward and learn more in-depth about interdependence in
ecosystems. The last half of the lesson introduces the activities for the next 2-3 days. Students will work
in collaborative groups to design and create an ecosystem comic strip. Students will select a community
of organisms that may be found at a local state park. Each member will pick and choose an organism,
research information, compile organism profiles and create a comic strip that demonstrate the
relationships of their organisms and the role of energy flow in their particular community.
INSTRUCTIONAL METHODS
following questions:
Students should look at the diagram again. What can students say
about ecosystems based on this diagram? What patterns do they
see? Answers should include the following: there are different
organisms in an ecosystem, the organisms interact with one
another, there is a general flow of energy from producers to
consumers, and the energy flow starts with the sun.
Bubble-map diagrams,
classification of ingredients,
Reasoning food chains and food web
X X
Proficiency models, class discussions,
construct of food web on
product
Student self-assessments,
Dispositions X X
rating scales on handout
ACCOMODATIONS/ MODIFICATIONS
Speak loudly and clearly.
Repeat instructions twice.
Call on various students to read text.
Provide visual graphics.
Move around and check on students.
HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT
Students must do this assignment: 3 points.
1. Log onto the class website and complete the online vocabulary quiz.
2. Students who scored 6/10 items incorrectly must retake the quiz!
STUDENT INVOLVEMENT
Encourage students to obtain additional research materials by contacting local park rangers
and/or members of the community. They can ask for brochures, animal field guides, and set up
online Skype interviews and conferences with biologists and naturalists.
Encourage students to set up bake sales as fundraisers, arrange a field trip to the local park, set
up guided tours with a park ranger, and take pictures and/or video of their trip to add to their
product.
Students are given choice on type of organism and habitat and design flexibility of comic strip
product.
Students are given voice through group roles, self-assessments and rating scales.
Salter, Irene. (2005, August 26). My Science box: hands-on science curriculum for the adventurous
teacher. Retrieved from http://www.mysciencebox.org/foodwebs
Anderson, B, Dixon, E, & Hayden, B. (n.d.). Create a food chain (k-2). Retrieved from
http://www.sd5.k12.mt.us/glaciereft/foodchk2.htm
Nye, Bill. (Producer). (2008). It's the food web [Web]. Retrieved from
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbWyrcY5i3s.
BrainPOP. (Producer). (n.d.). National geographic for kids: food chain movie [Web]. Retrieved from
http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngexplorer/0309/quickflicks/
Edelman, K, & Amelyan, L. (2009). Bubbl.us: brainstorming made simple. Retrieved from http://bubbl.us/
NYS Department of Wildlife Conservation. Checklist of amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals of New
York State. Retrieved from http://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/wildlife_pdf/vertchecklist0907.pdf.
Animals, Plants, Aquatic Life: Information about species. (2009). Retrieved October 31, 2009 from NYS
Department of Environmental Conservation: http://www.dec.ny.gov/23.html.
Color Brochures and Posters of NY Natural Resources. (2009). Retrieved October 31, 2009 from NYS
Department of Environmental Conservation: http://www.dec.ny.gov/pubs/4791.html.