Measure the amount of energy in a peanut by igniting a chemical reaction. Classes use a laboratory setup to burn a peanut and measure the amount of heat it releases through a temperature analysis. They calculate the number of Joules of...

Here is a well-designed science lesson plan that shows learners that everything that organisms do in ecosystems, including running, breathing, burrowing, growing, requires energy. After a thorough discussion of their own eating and...

An ecosystem is really just the flow of energy through many different living organisms. A study of Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book leads to an environmental science activity in which learners study how various factors can affect...

Seventh graders discover the interconnectedness of plants and animals in ecosystems. In groups, they create a food web and discuss the problems when one link of the chain is broken. To end the lesson, they set up a balanced environment...

Students observe populations and determine the functions (e.g., decomposers, producers, consumers) they serve in an ecosystem. They investigate the energy flow ecosystems. Students investigate factors (.g., Resources, light, water) that...

When life gives you mold, make penicillin. Scholars design an inquiry experiment to determine what causes rotting and mold growth. It also covers decomposers and the important role they play for other living things. 

Young scholars consider why we eat and where our food obtains its energy. They illustrate food chains that might be found on an open field, dissect owl pellets, identify the remains of animals in the pellets, watch videos and participate...

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...

Although written for middle schoolers, there is no reason that a 3rd, 4th, or 5th grader could not also learn about food chains through the dissection of owl pellets. After you introduce the topic, learners complete an owl research...

Students create a miniature rainforest ecosystem, a terrarium. Students then explain how the continuous flow of energy and food in the ecosystem allows it to sustain itself.

Sixth graders discuss and describe consumers and producers. They discuss and describe predator-prey relationship. Students review food chains. They form a circle, and each student is given an ecosystem card. Student at the top is given...

Seventh graders create a model of an ecosystem and label it to show structure and function. They research the food web of an aquatic animal and also trace energy flow from the primary producer up the food chain.

Fourth graders investigate ecosystems. In this ecosystem lesson, 4th graders explore producers, consumers, and decomposers and study the interdependence of each.

Learners explore how the energy flow through a system is related to trophic levels. They investigate how organisms affect the cycling of elements and water through the biosphere. Students participate in lab activities to observe ways...

Students carry out an outdoor land study in which they identify organisms living in the soil, and any other animals living within the site. Groups also examine abiotic factors. They respond to a series of questions concerning their data...

Students describe the changes undergone by rocks during the rock cycle and develop an understanding of the interconnectedness of the rock cycle.

Tenth graders examine how energy is lost through different trophic levels.  In this trophism lesson plan students construct a food web and view a video. 

Students create their own land or water environment. They make their environment livable for all the different animals they collect to put in it. Students research the types of animals that they can have in their environment, and how...

Seventh graders discover how an ecosystem works by creating one in class.  In this Earth science lesson, 7th graders study vocabulary terms associated with ecosystem and read environment handouts.  Students create an...

Seventh graders create ecosystems in a jar which they observe over the course of the school year.

A lab activity is a great way to incite thoughtful questioning and scientific processes. Pupils will collect organisms with a Petri dish, make observations, sketch the organism, ask questions, then attempt to identify the specimen...

Students investigate the food chain by researching the Internet.  In this ecosystem lesson, students view the video "Competitor and Predator" and read a book from the series "The Magic School Bus."  Students utilize a worksheet...

Students investigate the water cycle. In this water cycle lesson, students create an ecosystem within a 2-liter bottle. Students record scientific observations as they observe the water cycle within their ecosystem.

Students are introduced to the Gaia hypothesis by examining a conceptual sketch. In groups, they analyze the way they can use Dewey's method for problem solving to solve problems within the environment. They are given a problem facing...