Fresh From The Vines

Key Points:

• Everything exists within the network of a food web

• All components of the food-web are important, loss of habitat and species diversity puts stress on the entire system

• 4.3.4 Environmental Health

Know that plants, animals and humans are dependent on air and water.

• 4.6.4. Ecosystems and their Interactions

a.       Understand that living things are dependent on nonliving things in the environment for survival.
b.      Understand the concept of cycles.
c.       Identify how ecosystems change over time.

Materials:

• Two sets of pictures of different parts of a sample ecosystem (laminated for longevity), one set made into nametags
• Lengths of yarn
• Paper and Crayons

Opening (10 min.):

            We sit in a circle and go around the room introducing our names and saying what we ate for breakfast. We then talk about how food is important, and how everything needs to eat and that animals each have specific foods that they can eat. The concept of a food-web is introduced. It should be stressed that in a food-web there are no “bad guys” or “good guys;” a skunk is not being mean when he eats a honeybee, he is just hungry. We are not being mean to our sandwich when we eat it, we just have to eat.

First Activity (10 min.):

1. Students are broken up into groups and each group given a food-web kit consisting of pictures of different parts of the model food-web and pieces of yarn (see “model-food web” worksheet). Students are asked to connect these pictures with the lengths of yarn to show what each animal eats. Instructor walks around and helps/ answers questions as they go.
2. The group reconvenes and the instructor arranges the pictures on a board in front of the class (magnets can be helpful here).

Second Activity (25 min.):

1. Each child is assigned a place in our food web and given a “name tag” with a picture of their species. They are told to play tag while moving like the animal they signify, but are only able to tag children representing their food. Music could be played during the tag game to inspire movement play with for their animal actions; this also helps to prevent chaos during the game by reminding them that this is not just a regular game of tag. The each tag “season” lasts one minute:
1. Season 1: played out with standard distribution of animals/plants (In a class of 18: 5 flowers, 5 bees, 3 sparrows, 3 skunks, 2 great horned owls),
2. Season 2: this season it has been very cold and many of the honeybees have stayed inside their hives (the word season may need to be defined). Reduce the number of honeybees by having some sit out this round. At the end of this season ask the children what happened (sparrows and skunks had a harder time finding honeybees to tag).
3. Season 3: there has been a long drought resulting in lower amounts of nectar in flowers for bees to feed on. Lower the number of flowers by having some sit out.
4. Season 4: a road has been built through the forest, cutting down some trees where the Great Horned Owl lived, some owl populations have moved to denser forests nearby. Half of the Great Horned Owls sit out.

Closing (5 min.):

            Students return to their circle and share their drawings with the class.