What A Tangled Food

Web We Eat!

A WebQuest for 2nd-4th Grade Science

Introduction:

Welcome to an interactive lesson on the food chain! During this lesson, you will find out some interesting facts about the "circle of life" as mentioned by Mufasa in The Lion King. As living things, we all need air, water, and food. We, as humans, work together with animals to keep each other alive. This webquest will show you how we all share energy. You are in for a great experience!

The Tasks:

While studying this website, you will find out some facts that you probably were not aware of about how plants and animals help each other stay alive! You will read, try out quizzes, and do FUN activities that will require you to record your answers concerning what you've read. Don't worry, if you miss something, you will have the opportunity to do it again. Having fun yet? Once you finish these activities, you will create your own food chain! Isn't that amazing?!

Define what the food chain is.
Determine what organisms are included in the food chain.
Develop a knowledge of what roles various organisms play in the food chain and what they eat.
Create your own food chain!

The Process:

Through interactive websites, you will learn about what the food chain is and how a number of food chains make up what we call food webs. You will learn about which animals are classified into the four levels of the food chain and what types of foods these animals eat.

1. Have you ever wondered what a food chain is? Visit this site and look at how the food chain works. Also, find out who or what is included in it. Read the information about the "circle of life" and try the food chain quiz. Record your score by printing the quiz, circling your answers, and writing the number of questions you answered correctly out of six.
2. Explore the African grasslands by putting together a food web using some of the animals that live there. Click on the plant or animal in the left frame that you wish to place in the web and place it in the appropriate place in the web. Print your finished product.
3. What Eats What? Have your ever stopped to wonder what a zebra or giraffe eats? How about the smallest ant or earthworm? On this page, you will click on various animals in the food chain to find out what they eat. Once you finish reading, compare and contrast the eating habits of various animals in the site and record on a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet.
4. Visit the food chain activity page to print and color the plants and animals involved. As always, follow the directions given. Also see how much you can remember by matching food chain words with definitions concerning its parts.
5. Visit this activity to read more about the levels within the food chain. Here you will look at organisms within the food chain as well as find your place in the food chain and tell your role in it. Print your results.
6. Hooray! You've made it through our food chain lesson! In this activity, you will show me what you have learned by using construction paper (five pieces of different colors - 1 must be yellow), a ruler, scissors and glue or tape to make your own food chain!

The Evaluation:

Your individual grade will be determined as outlined below.

	Beginning 1	Developing 2	Accomplished 3	Exemplary 4
You will define what the food chain is.	Realizes that there is indeed a food chain and that it has levels but cannot name the organisms that make up these levels and answers none of the quiz questions correctly	Names the organisms that make up the food chain but does not give examples of them and answers some of the quiz questions correctly	Names and describes most of the organisms that make up the food chain, gives at least one example of the organism, and answers most of the quiz questions correctly	Names and describes all four organisms that make up the food chain, gives three or more examples of these organisms, and correctly answers all questions
You will determine what organisms are included in the food chain.	Groups few or none of the animals into the proper place on the food chain grid	Groups some of the animals into the proper place on the food chain grid	Groups most of the animals into the proper place on the food chain grid	Groups all animals into the proper place on the food chain grid
You will develop a knowledge of what roles various organisms play in the food chain and what they eat.	Colors few or none of the animals correctly according to the code provided and matches few or none of the terms to their correct definitions	Colors some of the animals correctly according to the code provided and matches some of the terms with their correction definitions	Colors most of the animals correctly according the code provided and matches most of the terms with their correct definitions	Colors animals of the food chain correctly according to the code provided and matches all terms with their correct definitions
You will create your own food chain.	Few or none of the strips of paper representing each level of the chain labeled with a correct animal	Some of the strips of paper representing each level of the chain labeled with a correct animal	Most of the strips of paper representing each level of the chain labeled with a correct animal and may see the possibility of linking chains together to make food web	Food chain is immaculate. Strips of paper representing each level of the chain labeled with a correct animal and placed in its proper place and sees the possibility of linking chains together to make webs

Conclusion:

Once you complete the tasks of this webquest, you will understand why humans, animals, and plants need each other in order to live. I know that you have had fun!

Credits & References:

Thanks to Microsoft Office Design Gallery Live for the use of its picture in this webquest.

Teacher Advice:

This lesson is designed for elementary students in grades 2 - 4 but can be extended lower or higher dependent upon what level the student is functional. It is a science lesson which requires the student be knowledgeable of the existence of animals, themselves, and plants as living things. It is also designed to allow a student to work independently and may take more than one class period.

Created for EDU 506 @ FHU School of Education by Pamela N. Yancy-Webber on June 25, 2001.