What do living things need?
Lesson 1
Student Learning Objectives:
- Students will organize animals and plants of different ecosystems.
- Students will defend their organization of the plants and animals through logical explanations.
- Students will be able to identify the consumers, producers and decomposers in different ecosystems.
NGSS:
5-LS2-1.Develop a model to describe the movement of matter among plants, animals, decomposers, and the environment.[Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on the idea that matter that is not food (air, water, decomposed materials in soil) is changed by plants into matter that is food. Examples of systems could include organisms, ecosystems, and the Earth.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include molecular explanations.]
5-LS2-1.Develop a model to describe the movement of matter among plants, animals, decomposers, and the environment.[Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on the idea that matter that is not food (air, water, decomposed materials in soil) is changed by plants into matter that is food. Examples of systems could include organisms, ecosystems, and the Earth.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include molecular explanations.]
Engage: 5 min
Show the students different plants and animals in an ecosystem. This picture contains some ideas.
“These are plants and animals that live in the same place. What ideas do you have about what the animals and plants do in that place?”
Allow the students to think and then raise their hand and explain some of their ideas. Guide them to the answers “eat or drink.” Encourage them on their guesses.
Tell them “I want you guys to think about what else might they do. What might they need to do everyday?”
Allow the students to think and then raise their hand and explain some of their ideas. Guide them to the answers “eat or drink.” Encourage them on their guesses.
Tell them “I want you guys to think about what else might they do. What might they need to do everyday?”
Explore: 15 min
Form the class into groups of five.
Ask the groups, “What is one way these animals are connected? What about plants? Are there any connections your groups can think of between plants and animals?” Let them think for a moment and instruct them to talk amongst their groups
Pass out the animal and plant cards to the different groups of five and ask them “As a group, can you put these animals and plants in any order that makes sense to you?” Give them a bit of time while you are walking around the room, alert, and making sure everyone is on task. Then say “Raise your hand when you are finished and I will come over.”
Check what they have done, then praise them and challenge them to think of a different way that the animals and plants are connected. After each group has finished 1-3 times, ask “I really liked your group for “X” reason, can you share with the class what your group did?” then say “thank you for sharing. Is there anyone else that would like to share?”
After sharing about the order or pattern in which they thought the animals and plants fit together I would then introduce them to a new set of animals and plants for a different ecosystem. Go to each group and ask why they put them in that order and if they could think of another order that would make sense to them. If extra time perform a third or fourth ecosystem.
Ask the groups, “What is one way these animals are connected? What about plants? Are there any connections your groups can think of between plants and animals?” Let them think for a moment and instruct them to talk amongst their groups
Pass out the animal and plant cards to the different groups of five and ask them “As a group, can you put these animals and plants in any order that makes sense to you?” Give them a bit of time while you are walking around the room, alert, and making sure everyone is on task. Then say “Raise your hand when you are finished and I will come over.”
Check what they have done, then praise them and challenge them to think of a different way that the animals and plants are connected. After each group has finished 1-3 times, ask “I really liked your group for “X” reason, can you share with the class what your group did?” then say “thank you for sharing. Is there anyone else that would like to share?”
After sharing about the order or pattern in which they thought the animals and plants fit together I would then introduce them to a new set of animals and plants for a different ecosystem. Go to each group and ask why they put them in that order and if they could think of another order that would make sense to them. If extra time perform a third or fourth ecosystem.
Explain: 7 min
Then have them come up with different groups and draw that many circles on the board. Next, have the students come up to the board and tape their animals, plants or bacteria in the respective circles that the class has come up with. Then ask “Does anyone disagree with where some of these animals, plants, and bacteria have been placed, why?” “What could we call the animal/plants/bacteria in this circle?”
Elaborate: 8 min
So all of these plants and animals are either: consumers, producers or decomposers. Can anyone give me an example of a consumer that is not on the cards I have passed out to you? What about a producer? Now for a more challenging one: what about a decomposer?”
Alright so a place where these plants and animals live is called what ? An ecosystem. What would happen if an ecosystem did not have any decomposers? Take a couple minutes to talk this over with your groups. Whatever answer your group comes up with I need to know why you think that. So all of the roles are very important and are related to each other.
Alright so a place where these plants and animals live is called what ? An ecosystem. What would happen if an ecosystem did not have any decomposers? Take a couple minutes to talk this over with your groups. Whatever answer your group comes up with I need to know why you think that. So all of the roles are very important and are related to each other.
Evaluate: 10 min
Summative: Students will write a paragraph describing what would happen if one of the three (producer, consumer, and decomposer) is not present in the environment with an explanation of why the students think that. **If someone has finished already check their work and encourage them to write about what would happen if another one of the three were to stop functioning.**
References used in Lesson 1:
5-LS2-1 Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics. (n.d.). Retrieved 11/15/2018 from https://www.nextgenscience.org/pe/5-ls2-1-ecosystems-interactions-energy-and-dynamics
Consumer Cliparts #66180 (License: Personal Use). (n.d.). Retrieved 11/15/2018 from http://clipart-library.com/clipart/282104.htm
5-LS2-1 Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics. (n.d.). Retrieved 11/15/2018 from https://www.nextgenscience.org/pe/5-ls2-1-ecosystems-interactions-energy-and-dynamics
Consumer Cliparts #66180 (License: Personal Use). (n.d.). Retrieved 11/15/2018 from http://clipart-library.com/clipart/282104.htm