Living Things and Their Habitats

Science Year 1/2 Food Chains

Talk about food chains and role play the interdependence between creatures in a chain, considering what part each plays in its survival. Explore the school grounds, looking for examples of food chains. Learn about water-based food chains and reconstruct them in tanks of water. Interpret the transfer of energy in a food chain through a dance, using masks and torches.

Session 1 Exploring food chains

Objectives

Role play food chains in the hall! Understand that, in a healthy habitat, all living things depend on each other in different ways.

Science Objectives
i) Explore and compare the differences between things that are living, dead and things that have never been alive (2LvH).
ii) Identify that most living things live in habitats to which they are suited and describe how different habitats provide for the basic needs of different kinds of animals and plants, and how they depend on each other (2LvH).
iv) Identify and name a variety of plants and animals in their habitats, including micro-habitats.
v) Describe how animals obtain their food from plants and other animals, using the idea of a simple food chain, and identify and name different sources of food.

Working Scientifically

  1. Ask simple questions and recognise that they can be answered in different ways.
  2. Observe closely, using simple equipment
  3. Perform simple tests.
  4. Identify and classify.
  5. Use their observations and ideas to suggest answers to questions.
  6. Gather and record data to help answer questions.

Lesson Planning

Teaching

  • Understand what is meant by a food chain.
  • Understand that living things need other living things to survive.
  • Role play the interdependence of a food chain and consider what part each one plays in its survival.
  • Look for examples of food chains in the school grounds (living things eating leaves, for example).
  • Record what they discover with a magnifying glass and sketch book.

Activities

  1. Understand what is meant by a food chain.
  2. Understand that living things need other living things to survive.
  3. Observe parts of food chains in the school grounds and discuss what would happen in the rest of the food chain.

Investigation - exploring
Role play the interdependence of a food chain and consider what part each plays in its survival. Explore the school grounds, looking for examples of food chains.
Year 1
- Observe parts of food chains in the school grounds.
Year 2 -discuss what would happen in the rest of the food chain.

Vocabulary
Food chain, predator, habitats, dependence

Session 2 Creating food chains

Objectives

Think about some simple food chains and make a food chain using laminated cards and string. Challenge each other to string them up in the right order.

Science Objectives
i) Explore and compare the differences between things that are living, dead and things that have never been alive (2LvH).
ii) Identify that most living things live in habitats to which they are suited and describe how different habitats provide for the basic needs of different kinds of animals and plants, and how they depend on each other (2LvH).
iii) Identify and name a variety of plants and animals in their habitats, including micro-habitats.
iv) Describe how animals obtain their food from plants and other animals, using the idea of a simple food chain, and identify and name different sources of food.

Working Scientifically

  1. Ask simple questions and recognise that they can be answered in different ways.
  2. Observe closely, using simple equipment.
  3. Perform simple tests.
  4. Identify and classify.
  5. Use observations and ideas to suggest answers to questions.
  6. Gather and record data to help answer questions.

Lesson Planning

Teaching

  • Understand what is meant by a food chain.
  • Understand that living things need other living things to survive.
  • Explore the school grounds, looking for examples of food chains (living things eating leaves, for example).
  • Create their own food chains

Activities

  1. Explore the school grounds, looking for examples of food chains (living things eating leaves, for example)
  2. Understand what is meant by a food chain and that living things need other living things to survive

Investigation - living things eating leaves, for example
Explore the school grounds, looking for examples of food chains.
Year 1 – Make simple local food chain.
Year 2 –challenge them to create food chains found in other places.

Vocabulary
Food chain, predator, habitats, dependence

Session 3 Dead or alive!

Objectives

Look at a live spider, a dead spider and a toy spider. What are some of the differences between the live spider and the dead one? And the dead spider and the toy one? How can we work out what's alive and not alive? Is it sometimes difficult to tell? Armed with all these questions, go outside and collect something alive, something dead and something that was never alive. Sort these specimens into three categories.

Science Objectives
i) Explore and compare the differences between things that are living, dead and things that have never been alive (2LvH).
ii) Identify that most living things live in habitats to which they are suited and describe how different habitats provide for the basic needs of different kinds of animals and plants, and how they depend on each other (2LvH).
iii) Identify and name a variety of plants and animals in their habitats, including micro-habitats.
iv) Describe how animals obtain their food from plants and other animals, using the idea of a simple food chain, and identify and name different sources of food.

Working Scientifically

  1. Ask simple questions and recognise that they can be answered in different ways.
  2. Observe closely, using simple equipment.
  3. Perform simple tests.
  4. Identify and classify.
  5. Use observations and ideas to suggest answers to questions.
  6. Gather and record data to help answer questions.

You Will Need

Provided Resources

  • ‘Looking for living and dead things’ resource

Additional Resources

  • Fairy lights
  • Clear plastic lidded container boxes
  • Overhead projector
  • Dead spiders and toy spiders
  • Magnifying glasses
  • Cameras
  • Microscopes
  • Torches
  • Sketch books, pencils and paint brushes
  • Freezer bags
  • Collecting pots

Weblinks
BBC Bitesize Dead or Alive: Is it Alive from www.bbc.co.uk
Minuscule Vol. 4, episode 1 from www.YouTube.com

Lesson Planning

Teaching

  • Through observation, explore the differences between things that are living, dead, and things that have never been alive.
  • Find and classify specimens into categories under these headings: living, dead and never been alive.
  • Label the sets with features of each classification.
  • Engage in further discussion around the differences between these categories.

Activities

  1. Understand the differences between things that are living, dead, and things that have never been alive.
  2. Understand the key features of things that are living, as opposed to dead.
  3. Categorise specimens according to their features.

Investigation - exploring, pattern seeking
Explore the differences between things that are living, dead, and things that have never been alive. Discuss the key features of things that are living, as opposed to dead.
Year 1
- Categorise specimens according to their features.
Year 2 - Categorise and label the specimens according to their features.

Vocabulary
Food chain, predator, habitats, dependence, dead, alive

Session 4 Food chain dioramas

Objectives

Research creatures in larger habitats and ask: why do these living things live there? Create dioramas of different habitats and label with research information about the food chain.

Science Objectives
i) Explore and compare the differences between things that are living, dead and things that have never been alive (2LvH).
ii) Identify that most living things live in habitats to which they are suited and describe how different habitats provide for the basic needs of different kinds of animals and plants, and how they depend on each other (2LvH).
iii) Identify and name a variety of plants and animals in their habitats, including micro-habitats.
iv) Describe how animals obtain their food from plants and other animals, using the idea of a simple food chain, and identify and name different sources of food.

Working Scientifically

  1. Ask simple questions and recognise that they can be answered in different ways.
  2. Observe closely, using simple equipment.
  3. Perform simple tests.
  4. Identify and classify.
  5. Use their observations and ideas to suggest answers to questions.
  6. Gather and record data to help answer questions.

Lesson Planning

Teaching

  • Understand that habitats can be small and local but also very extensive (Yr1)..
  • Consider what makes each creature perfectly adapted to their habitat and imagine what would happen if living things wandered into other habitats (lion in the ocean, for example) (Yr2).
  • Create shoebox dioramas for plastic animal toys or laminated images of living things.
  • Annotate the dioramas with researched information.

Activities

  1. Understand that habitats can be small and local but also very extensive.
  2. Understand that creatures are adapted for their own habitats.
  3. Consider a specific habitat and recreate it in a shoebox diorama.

Investigation - exploring, researching, analysing secondary sources
Create shoebox dioramas for plastic animal toys or laminated images of living things. Annotate the dioramas with researched information.
Year 1
- Understand that habitats can be small and local but also very extensive.
Year 2 - Consider what makes each creature perfectly adapted to their habitat and imagine what would happen if living things wandered into other habitats (lion in the ocean, for example).

Vocabulary
Food chain, predator, habitats, dependence, habitat, savannah, rainforest, tundra, micro-habitat, features

Session 5 Classroom aquariums

Objectives

Think about water food chains and reconstruct in tanks of water using found materials, toys and laminated images. Make plastic bag jelly fish and invite others to visit the classroom 'aquarium'. Place information signs around the aquarium.

Science Objectives
i) Explore and compare the differences between things that are living, dead and things that have never been alive (2LvH).
ii) Identify that most living things live in habitats to which they are suited and describe how different habitats provide for the basic needs of different kinds of animals and plants, and how they depend on each other (2LvH).
iii) Identify and name a variety of plants and animals in their habitats, including micro-habitats.
iv) describe how animals obtain their food from plants and other animals, using the idea of a simple food chain, and identify and name different sources of food.

Working Scientifically

  1. Ask simple questions and recognise that they can be answered in different ways.
  2. Observe closely, using simple equipment.
  3. Perform simple tests.
  4. Identify and classify.
  5. Use their observations and ideas to suggest answers to questions.
  6. Gather and record data to help answer questions.

You Will Need

Provided Resources

  • ‘Underwater food chains’ resource
  • ‘Jellyfish aquariums’ resource.

Additional Resources

  • Large clear bottles
  • Blue food colouring
  • Clear plastic bags
  • Elastic bands
  • Clear freezer bags or tubs
  • Found materials
  • Junk modelling
  • Materials for underwater dioramas

Weblinks
National Geographic information from http://ocean.nationalgeographic.com

Lesson Planning

Teaching

  • Understand that food chains exist in watery habitats.
  • Create model water food chains using toys and laminated images.
  • Consider that creatures found in water are perfectly suited to their environment (Yr2).
  • Make jelly fish aquariums and annotate with information.

Activities

  1. Understand that food chains exist in watery habitats.
  2. Create model water food chains and jellyfish out of plastic bags.
  3. Consider that creatures found in water are perfectly suited to their environment.

Investigation
Look at water food chains and reconstruct in tanks of water using found materials, toys and laminated images.
Year 1 /2 - Make plastic bag jelly fish and invite others to visit the classroom 'aquarium'. Place information signs around the aquarium.
Year 2 - Consider that creatures found in water are perfectly suited to their environment.

Vocabulary
Food chain, predator, habitats, ocean, water, micro-habitat, features

Session 6 Creating food chains

Objectives

Think further about food chains and look at the transfer of energy from the sun, through the members of the food chain, and back into the ground. Can you represent this cycle in a dance?

Science Objectives
i) Explore and compare the differences between things that are living, dead, things that have never been alive (2LvH).
ii) Identify that most living things live in habitats to which they are suited and describe how different habitats provide for the basic needs of different kinds of animals and plants, and how they depend on each other (2LvH).
iii) Identify and name a variety of plants and animals in their habitats, including micro-habitats.
iv) Describe how animals obtain their food from plants and other animals, using the idea of a simple food chain, and identify and name different sources of food.

Working Scientifically

  1. Ask simple questions and recognise that they can be answered in different ways.
  2. Use observations and ideas to suggest answers to questions.
  3. Gather and record data to help answer questions.

Lesson Planning

Teaching

  • Be able to describe how some animals obtain their food from plants and other animals.
  • Look more closely at what happens in a food chain. Understand that the sun's energy travels through a food chain and then back into the ground.
  • Interpret the transfer of energy in a food chain through a dance, using masks and torches.


Activities

  1. Understand that the sun's energy travels through a food chain and that this is called a 'transfer of energy'
  2. Interpret the transfer of energy in a food chain through a dance, using masks and torches


Investigation
Look more closely at what happens in a food chain. Understand that the sun's energy travels through a food chain and then back into the ground. (Researching and analysing secondary sources).
Year 1 /2 Interpret the transfer of energy in a food chain through a dance, using masks and torches
Year 2 write an explanation or draw a diagram explaining how the sun's energy is transferred in their group's food chain etc.


Vocabulary
Food chain, predator, habitats, dependence