CKSci Unit 2: Energy and Matter in Ecosystems
Focus:
This unit focuses on the scientific concept that energy and matter flow through an ecosystem to individual organisms and back to the ecosystem in a continuous cycle.
Students will learn that every organism on Earth needs energy to live. Both energy and matter cycle through an ecosystem. Life on Earth derives its energy from the sun. Plants and algae take in the energy of sunlight and transform it into the chemical energy of food. When animals eat plants, the chemical energy of food moves into the bodies of animals, so the energy that animals use originally came from the sun.
Number of Lessons: 15
Instruction Time:
- Each Lesson is designed to be completed in one 30–45-minute class period. Some lessons may take more than one class period.
- Some single-day activities and performance tasks might require setting aside a longer block of time.
- This Unit should be completed in 21 classroom days.
- A Pacing Guide is provided within the Teacher Guide.
- A complete list of Materials needed to complete the unit is provided in Online Resources.
Additional Search Terms:
food • energy • living thing • organism • decomposer • producer • consumer • predator • prey • scavenger • glucose • sugar • photosynthesis • chemical reaction • metabolism • energy transformation • transfer • nonfiction • informational text
