Ecosystems | Standard Lesson
Students will explore the idea that living things need each other and their surroundings to survive. Through discussion, movement, sorting, and a simple group activity, students will learn that an ecosystem is a place where plants, animals, water, air, and land work together.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| ecosystem | A place where living things and nonliving things live and work together. |
| living | Something that grows and needs food, water, and air. |
| nonliving | Something that does not grow, eat, or breathe. |
| plant | A living thing that needs water, air, sunlight, and soil. |
| animal | A living thing that moves and needs food, water, and air. |
Show pictures of a forest, pond, and garden. Ask, 'What do you notice? What things are alive? What things are not alive?' Record student ideas on chart paper.
Look at pictures, share observations, and name things they see.
Explain that an ecosystem is a place where plants, animals, and nonliving things are together. Point to examples on the pictures and briefly define living and nonliving.
Repeat key words with the teacher and point to living and nonliving things in the pictures.
Place picture cards in a basket. Invite students to help sort them into 'living' and 'nonliving' groups on the rug or chart paper. Ask simple guiding questions.
Take turns choosing a card, naming it, and helping place it in the correct group.
Call out words like 'plant,' 'animal,' 'water,' 'sun,' and 'air.' Students act them out: grow like a plant, move like an animal, sway like water, shine like the sun, float like air.
Move with the teacher and practice listening for key vocabulary.
Give each student or pair blue and green paper. Students glue or draw a simple ecosystem scene with at least one living thing and two nonliving things. Circulate and ask students to describe their choices.
Create a picture of an ecosystem and share what living and nonliving things they included.
Invite a few students to show their work. Ask, 'How do the living and nonliving things go together?'
Share one sentence about their picture and listen to classmates.
Review the main idea: ecosystems have living and nonliving things that help each other. Restate the vocabulary and revisit the chart from the warm-up.
Say key words with the teacher and answer simple review questions.
End by having students complete the sentence: 'An ecosystem is...' Collect a few responses and celebrate that living and nonliving things belong together in nature.