Lesson #2: The Food Web
- Emma Pearson
- Apr 15, 2018
- 3 min read
Aloha! StC's second lesson was about the Food Web! We got to teach students not only what the food chain is, but why it is important and how it affects the entire ocean. Students had the opportunity to explore different marine animals and how they are important to the ocean environment(no matter how small!), and got to partner with their scientist panel once again.
Subject Course: Food Web
Topic: Trophic Levels
Title: Marine Animals in the Food Web and the Importance of Trophic Levels
Level(s): 2nd-4th grade
Lesson Objectives: to encourage students to discover different marine animals and how they play a role in the ocean's food chain.
Summary of Tasks:
(:00-:05) Set up and Introduction to class, pass out one sheet of paper to each student. Have each student write their name at the top of the paper.
(:05-:15) Introduce the questions asked by students to the panel from the previous lesson. Relay the scientist's answers. Note: the information will be dense and therefore will need to be simplified, but is nonetheless very interesting!
(:15-:25) Discuss the food web. What is it? A diagram created to observe the relationships between species. Where is it? Anywhere and everywhere. Who is in it? Anything and everything. Use a whiteboard to create an example of a simple food web(for example: a human, a chicken, a fish, corn, and algae. What happens to the fish if there is no corn? How does this affect humans?).
(:20-:30) Briefly explain and discuss the following four marine groups: photo-autotrophs, herbivores, carnivores, and top predators. Explain each group's characteristics. Ask students for examples of each. What group do humans belong in?
(:20-:25) Activity time! Arrange students into four groups(one for each marine group). Pass out pictures of each marine group to the corresponding table group, and have students discuss what marine group their animal/group eat and what eats their animal/group.
(:25-:30) Choose one student from each marine group to stand in front of the class in a square. Have each student state their marine group, what specific animal they are going to be from that group, and what group they eat and are eaten by. Once all four students present, ask each student to hold one-two strings which demonstrate their connection to other marine groups(for example, have the herbivore student hold one side of a string while the carnivore student holds the other end). Explain that these strings represent connections between each species.
(:35-:45) Use the scissors to cut one string between two marine groups. Ask students: which group does this affect first? By cutting, say, the carnivore's strings, the top predator has no food to eat and is therefore negatively affected. The herbivore is also affected, however, because there will now be more herbivores and not enough photo-autotrophs to support the increase in population. Explain that the extinction of one small and seemingly insignificant species can affect the entire food chain, and therefore, every species is important. Repeat this process 2-3 times with different students from each group.
(:40-:45) Have students write another question to their scientist regarding one of the trophic levels. Accompanying pictures are appreciated(color is a bonus!)
(:45-:50) Collect papers to be distributed to StC scientist panel and collect pictures of marine groups.
Materials:
- paper and writing utensil(s)
- string and scissors
-pictures of each marine group
-StC Food Web Presentation(link)
References:
National Geographic Society
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