Content Standard: B. Ecology
Students will understand that there are similarities within the diversity of all living things.
Common Assessment(s):

Performance Indicators Students will be able to:	Essential Elements (Specific grade level learning objectives)			Suggested Performance Activities	Suggested Classroom Assessments	Vocabulary
2. Describe how almost all animals' food can be traced back to plants.	Students will be able to tell the difference between a plant and an animal and identify the food and the consumer.			Students will describe a food chain and the order of plants and animals in it: McGraw-Hill Science: Ch.10, lesson 3, PP. 226-229 Read and discuss Everybody's Somebody's Lunch by Cherie Mason McGraw-Hill Science: Play Food chain game P. 229D MAP Tasks: Animal Spaces (B2) OR Up Close and Personal (B3)	Students will glue pictures of plants and animals on varying sizes of paper cups to demonstrate the sequence of a food chain &endash; smallest to largest. Larger covers the smaller.	Food chain Order Plants Animals Demonstrate Sequence Smallest Largest Varying sizes
3. Give examples of how one change in a system affects other parts of the system.	Students will be able to draw a food chain and talk about what happens if it's interrupted.			McGraw-Hill Science: Play Food Chain game p. 229D, but leaving out random link or adding more of one level of animal. McGraw-Hill Science: P. 238 Problems and Puzzles: List living things and nonliving things. What happens when one is gone?	Classroom discussion of the results of the game Discuss what would happen to the other groups.	Examples Change Affects System Random link Level Groups
4. Describe different ecological systems on earth.	Students will be able to tell what a rainforest, desert, ocean and pond are and what animals and plants they might expect to find there.			Make murals of various ecological systems.	Given pictures of 3 ecological systems and an assortment of animal pictures, students will sort the animal pictures to place them in their correct environments.	Earth Ecological system Rainforest Desert Ocean Pond
5. Describe a familiar local environment.	Students will be able to talk about the plants and animals that inhabit a pond.			McGraw-Hill Science: Ch. 9 and 10: Make a classroom mural of a pond with its life forms. McGraw-Hill Science: P. 213 B Puppets activity: A Pond in Spring	McGraw-Hill Science: P. T215B Make a paper pond. P.TR 124 McGraw-Hill Science: Problems and Puzzles p. 240 "What's Wrong With This Pond?"	Local Environment Life forms Familiar