Ecosystems

15 short narrated lessons in 3 chapters, each with pictures, a quiz with a hint and a second try, and an explanation for every answer.

Standards: 5-LS2-1

5th Grade Science · 7 units

What your child will learn

Producers Make FoodExplain that producers like plants make their own food.
Herbivores, Carnivores and OmnivoresDescribe herbivores, carnivores and omnivores as consumers.
Building a Food ChainBuild a food chain showing how matter moves from one organism to the next.
Food WebsExplain how connected food chains form a food web in an ecosystem.
Food Webs Review ReviewReview how producers and consumers are linked in food chains and food webs.

Decomposers: Nature's RecyclersExplain how decomposers like fungi, bacteria and worms break down dead matter.
Returning Matter to the SoilDescribe how decomposers return nutrients to the soil for plants to use.
Matter Goes Around and AroundUse a model to show matter moving among plants, animals, decomposers and the environment.
Compost in ActionExplain how a compost pile shows decomposers recycling matter.
Decomposers and the Cycle Review ReviewReview how decomposers recycle matter so it moves among living things, air and soil.

A Healthy EcosystemExplain that in a healthy ecosystem many species meet their needs in a balanced web.
When One Part ChangesPredict how removing one organism can affect others in a food web.
Invasive SpeciesDescribe how a new species can upset the balance of an ecosystem.
Balance in Ecosystems Review ReviewReview how the parts of an ecosystem depend on each other and what happens when balance changes.
Unit 4 Test: EcosystemsShow what you learned in the whole unit (Food webs, Decomposers and the cycle of matter, Balance in ecosystems) by answering mixed questions.

From the lesson “Producers Make Food”

What is a producer?

Show the answer

A living thing that makes its own food from sunlight. A producer makes its own food using energy from sunlight, like a plant does.

Hint kids see after a wrong try: “Think about photosynthesis.”

Narrated lessons, pictures and quizzes for every grade from K to 8. Works offline.