TEKS Based Lesson Plan
Subject: 5th Grade Science
Weeks: 3rd Nine Weeks Group 3
Unit of Study: Ecology
Essential Questions:
• What is a food chain?
TEKS/Essence Statements:
5.9(B) Organisms and environments. The student knows that there are relationships, systems,
and cycles within environments. The student is expected to: describe how the flow of energy
derived from the Sun, used by producers to create their own food, is transferred through a food
chain and food web to consumers and decomposers;
Critical Skills/Postsecondary Goals:
• Social Skills: Peer Interaction, Getting Attention Appropriately, Joint or Shared Attention, Sharing
Attention, Conversational Skills, Following Directions, Being aware of Personal Space, Taking
Turns, Cooperation, Accepting Compliments and Praise, Turn-Taking Skills
• Problem-Solving Skills: Peer Interaction, Getting Attention Appropriately, Joint or Shared
Attention, Sharing Attention, Conversational Skills, Following Directions, Being aware of
Personal Space, Taking Turns, Cooperation, Accepting Compliments and Praise, Turn-Taking
Skills, Recognizing need for help, Asking for help, Self-Management, Working with a Peer,
Staying Engaged in a task and/or activity, Working independently, Knowing What is Needed To
Complete An Activity
• Communication Skills: Peer Interaction, Getting Attention Appropriately, Joint or Shared
Attention, Sharing Attention, Conversational Skills, Following Directions, Being aware of
Personal Space, Taking Turns, Cooperation, Accepting Compliments and Praise, Turn-Taking
Skills, Recognizing need for help, Asking for help , Self-Management, Working with a Peer,
Staying Engaged in a task and/or activity, Working independently, Knowing What is Needed To
Complete An Activity, Asking for a break, Raising hand for attention, Active listening,
Commenting, Asking for help, Learning to wait, Turn taking skills, Responding to basic yes and
no questions, Share ideas and opinions, Conversation Skills, Follow directions
Instruction/Classroom Activities:
Small Group Instruction:
Begin the lesson by discussing with the students what they ate for breakfast/lunch. Select one example,
and break down the ingredients. (Example: enchiladas: tortilla, cheese, meat). Write the ingredients on
the board. Then sort the ingredients by which came from plants and which came from animals. After
sorting, then discuss what animals eat. Discuss how many things we eat either come from plants or
consume plants. Discuss what plants need to stay healthy, concluding that plants need sunlight and water
to survive.
After the initial discussion, have the students watch the Discovery Streaming Video: Food Chains and
Food Webs [02:22] Discuss further the food chain concept and show the students the boardmaker file:
Food Chain. This file has an example of a food chain (sun - grass - cow - people). Discuss with the
student how this food chain flows. Ask the students to provide their own examples of a food chain.
North East Independent School District
TEKS Based Lesson Plan
Next have the students watch the Discovery Streaming Video: Producers and Consumers [01:47]
After the students watch the video, identify the differences between producers and consumers. Have the
students provide examples of different producers and consumers.
Ask the students questions such as:
• Why are green plants called producers? (They make their own food.)
• Why are animals considered consumers? (They get their food from plants or other animals.)
• What is a predator? (An animal that eats other animals.)
• What is a prey? (The animal—"a consumer"—that is being eaten.)
As an extension, complete as a group the matching game in word document: “Match”, which matches the
phrases like consumer, producer, prey, and predator with their definitions.
Stations/Centers:
Station 1: On the computer, have the student navigate to the following weblink:
http://www.crickweb.co.uk/ks2science.html#foodchains. Then, have the student click on “Food Chains”.
Students will read about the food chain and the difference between a producer and consumer. They will
also have the opportunity to organize various food chain examples.
Station 2: Using word document, “Food Chain Collage”, have the students create their own food chain
collage by sorting various pictures in the appropriate columns. The students can use the provided picture
in the boardmaker file: Producers & Consumers or they can cut out pictures they find in a magazine and
paste them in the collage.
Station 3: Create a food chain using pictures given. Provide the students with the following picture cards
found in the boardmaker file: Food Chain Station. The students will organize the pictures on a sentence
strip in the correct order based on the food chain.
Individualized Communication Planning: This section needs to be completed based on the
individualized communication needs of the students in your class.
Differentiated Tasks:
Level 3
Level 2
Level 1
The student will organize the
The student will arrange the food
The student will participate
pictures into two columns
chain in order.
putting the food chain in order.
(consumers & producers).
Materials/Resources:
• Glue
• Sentence Strips
• Scissors
• Boardmaker file: Food Chain
• Boardmaker file: Producers & Consumers
• Boardmaker file: Food Chain Station
• Discovery Education Streaming Video: Food Chains and Food Webs [02:22]
• Discovery Education Streaming Video: Producers and Consumers [01:47]
North East Independent School District
TEKS Based Lesson Plan
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Construction paper (5 different colors)
Word Document: “Match”
Weblink: http://www.crickweb.co.uk/ks2science.html#foodchains
Assessment Strategies: This section needs to be completed based on the strategies appropriate for the
students in your class.
IEP Connections: This section needs to be completed based on the IEPs documented in the students’
ARDs in your class.
North East Independent School District