Consortium for Ocean Science Exploration and Engagement (COSEE)
Arctic Smorgasbord
Though the walrus spends roughly one third of its time on land, it eats organisms that live on the bottom of the ocean. The first in a series of five, the lesson plan uses a variety of plant and animal cards to have scholars build an...
Curated OER
Sustainability and Extinction
Galapagos Penguins are the only penguins on earth that live north of the equator (in the wild). In this last lesson plan a discussion on how the Galapagos islands developed their populations and diversity sparks the introduction. Two...
Scholastic
Study Jams! Food Webs
Rhinozilla is back to take your lesson plan on trophic levels a step higher! After showing the video on food chains (available through the See All Related Jams button), add to it by showing this one. It deals with omnivores and food...
American Museum of Natural History
Super Teeth
A brief comparison of human teeth versus animal teeth sets the stage for two worksheets. Scholars match a picture of a tooth-filled mouth to the animal to which it belongs and coloring pages featuring a different animal and informative...
Purdue University
Mammals and Ecosystems
Mammals have unique interactions with their ecosystems. Using a multi-part lesson, learners research local mammals using recommended websites and use their findings to create their own paper ecosystems including appropriate mammals. They...
Purdue University
Mammal Food Webs
You are what you eat—or at least a part of what you eat. Budding scientists examine owl pellets to develop their own food webs. They use tooth and skull identification techniques to classify what they find.
Biology Junction
Mammals
Mammals include more than 4,000 species and represent the most dominant land animals on Earth. Scholars learn about the large variety of mammals, including orders unfamiliar to most. The presentation highlights the characteristics and...
Biology Junction
Energy Flow in an Ecosystem
Every living thing requires a food source, thus the interconnections in ecosystems become complex. Scholars learn about these interconnections in a presentation on energy flow. It starts with the sun and moves through many different...
Biology Junction
Energy Flow Through an Ecosystem: Food Chains, Food Webs, and Energy Pyramids
When a minnow eats a piece of plastic, that garbage often tracks through multiple animals, causing harm to each as it passes through the food chain. Scholars learn about food chains, food webs, and energy pyramids with a presentation. It...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Modeling Food Webs in Darién, Panama
It's a jungle out there! Young biologists journey to Darien, Panama to examine the intricate relationships between the organisms that inhabit the jungle. Groups begin by demonstrating an understanding of energy flow in ecosystems, then...
Science Matters
Formative Assessment #3
Thirteen short-answer questions follow a brief food web activity in a formative assessment designed to test knowledge of ecosystems and the energy that flows through them.
K5 Learning
Sharks
"Dun dun... dun dun." A shark! After second graders read a four-paragraph passage about sharks, they respond to four reading comprehension questions that use the text as a basis for the answers.
Chicago Botanic Garden
Leaf Litter Ecology Lab
Some organisms spend their entire lives in leaf litter. The third in a series of six is a great lesson exploring the community of leaf litter. Groups gather and then spread leaf litter over white paper and remove leaves/twigs while...
Polar Trec
Bering Sea Fabulous Food Chain Game
In spring, the Bering Sea turns green due to phytoplankton, which live at the surface, experiencing a population explosion. Groups of scholars play a food chain game, writing down food chains as the game is played. After five to six...
Virginia Department of Education
Succession
The final lesson in a two-part series prompts scholars to create newspaper articles and succession events. Applying their knowledge of the ecosystem and the past examples of succession, they predict what will happen in the future using...
Shelby County Schools
How Ecosystems Work
How does one organism get its energy? What is the main source of energy in an ecosystem? How does the flow of energy affect different types of ecosystems? Answer these questions with a fill-in-the-blank worksheet.
It's About Time
Who Eats Whom?
Packed with visual aids and multiple learning opportunities, an engaging exercise challenges individuals as they explore the role of producers, consumers, and decomposers. After discussing differences between food chains, food...
Virginia Department of Education
Biomes of the World
Incorporate knowledge about biomes and ecosystems in multiple ways while encouraging creativity. Emerging ecologists collaborate and perform research to complete a graphic organizer about various biomes of the world. They conclude the...
Virginia Department of Education
A Salt Marsh Ecosystem
What a web we weave. Pupils use yarn as the primary resource to create a web depicting the intricacies of a salt marsh ecosystem. They participate in a question and answer session, which leads to an in-depth facilitated discussion about...
Virginia Department of Education
Go with the Flow
How does nature's hierarchy relate to our local human environment? Answer this question, along with others, as the class visually depicts the natural hierarchy provided by nature. Pupils discuss each piece of the pyramid and its energy...
Curated OER
Food Chain Activities
Transform young biologists into grasshoppers, lizards, and hawks as you teach them about food chains in an interactive life science simulation. Working collaboratively to act out three different scenarios involving these creatures,...
Exploring Nature Educational Resources
Building A Classroom Food Web
From bears and owls to chipmunks and trees, all life depends on the sun for the energy to survive. Young biologists develop an understanding of this big idea as they arrange this series of plant and animal picture cards into food webs...
BBC
Walking with Dinosaurs
Breath new life into your class's study of dinosaurs with this extensive collection of materials. Offering everything from a printable T-rex mask, word searches, and connect-the-dots activities to informational handouts, hands-on...
Kentucky School for the Deaf
Levels of Organization within an Ecosystem
From tiny organisms to entire biomes, young scientists examine the interdependent relationships tying all living and non-living things together with this collection of ecology resources.