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...

Young scientists play tag as they act out the food pyramid in the ocean ecosystem. Energy circles pass from the smaller prey to the predators and at the end of the activity, a data chart and analysis questions allow pupils to apply their...

Looking for a fresh take on traditional food/energy pyramids? Conduct an innovative activity where pupils build their own! The lesson uses research data from Gorongosa National Park in Mozambique for a real-life safari touch. Scholars...

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...

The reintroduction of a species to an area doesn't always go as expected. Scholars learn about the reintroduction of wolves into Yellowstone National Park with a video, reading, and discussion questions. They complete a hands-on activity...

Emerging biochemists more fully understand the flow of energy in ecosystems as they explore the laws of thermodynamics and relate them to energy transfer in food chains. They also investigate heat loss from the human body and how...

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...

Learners of many ages discuss how all organisms rely on other organisms for their survival. They construct a food web and energy pyramids, and write an informative essay about the food web that they have designed.

What's in the water? Encourage your class to further explore this question and learn about pond ecosystems, food chains, and food webs as they complete this hands-on activity. They view the environment from a new perspective...

Fourth graders describe the various kinds of soils and how plants and animals are affected by them. They describe the baic needs of plants, scoring at least a 3 or 4 on a 4-point rubic. Students are able to predict and/or infer what...

Ninth graders complete a unit of lessons on ecosystems, organism interactions, and energy flow. They create a key for known species of fish, diagram the movement of energy through an ecosystem, and create and present food chains and food...

Fifth graders discuss the relationship between producers, consumers, and decomposers as they look at the energy pyramid. While working in small groups, they create an ecosystem that includes all or some of the given categories, and they...

Young learners explore nutrition and the food groups in these two mini-lesson plan ideas. First, kindergarteners have a discussion about their health and how different foods contribute to it before making their own personal food pyramid....

Students, in groups, create a slide show about the ecosystem and answer critical thinking questions based on their research.

How is energy transferred within an ecosystem? What would happen to a food web if one of the organisms was removed? Elementary or middle school ecologists examine these questions and more in a comprehensive 5E learning cycle lesson....

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...

Encourage peer collaboration and assist with the creation of visual aids to identify carbon, water, and nitrogen cycles as your class learns more about nature. They discuss relative information, create a visual aid...

Students discover the connection between plants and animals by discussing simple food chains. Students explore what may happen when parts of a food chain are removed. Students wrap up the lesson by writing a story about a food chain.

Young scholars study the concept of food chains and create a physical forest food chain pyramid. In this balance of nature pyramid lesson, students identify the ingredients needed on each level of the pyramid then make connections...

Students discuss the concept of a food chain in the California ecosystem. in this food chain lesson, students look at different cards and sort them into herbivores, carnivores, decomposers, and omnivores. Then they use these cards to...

Students consider the USDA daily recommendations to create a "feed" product for middle schoolers. In this Health instructional activity, students learn about the ingredients in feed that is fed to livestock and apply the method to...

Students understand what physical adaptations are and how they help an animal to survive. In this adaptations lesson, students research four animals and then make an original animal that has adaptations to make them survive.

Learners create a collage. In this animal classification lesson, students discuss why and how scientists classify animals. Learners view pictures of different animals and decide which class each animal belongs to. Students compare...

Students design, build, draw, or bake a creature of their choice and present to the class. They write a paper including the creature's habitat, method of getting energy, their creature as a producer or consumer, predator or prey species...