Teacher sheet · Ages 6–7 · about 45–50 minutes
Living and non-living together
Lesson page: echoesof.science/school/ecosystems/ages-6-7/ · Pupil worksheet: echoesof.science/school/ecosystems/ages-6-7/print/
Learning aims
- An ecosystem is a place where living things, weather and land work together.
- Ecosystems have living and non-living parts.
- The Sun gives energy; plants make food from sunlight; animals eat plants or other animals.
- All parts of an ecosystem depend on each other.
Lesson plan
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 5 min | Starter: show a photo of a rock pool. What can you see? Is it alive? |
| 10 min | Read the text together; act out the grass–grasshopper–mouse–snake–hawk chain. |
| 20 min | Living or non-living hunt with hoops. |
| 5 min | Play Living or non-living? or do the quiz. |
| 5 min | Share: what does your animal need? |
Materials for the experiment
- Clipboard and recording sheet
- Pencil
- A hoop or a loop of string (about 1 metre across)
- A magnifying glass
- Gloves
Safety: An adult checks the area first for broken glass, dog mess and other hazards. Wear gloves, look but do not pick up animals, do not touch mushrooms, and wash your hands afterwards. Leave everything as you found it.
Common misconceptions
| Pupils may think… | Actually… |
|---|---|
| Only animals are living. | Plants, moss and fungi are living too. |
| An ecosystem must be big, like a forest. | Ecosystems can be very small, like a rock pool. |
| Non-living things do not matter to animals. | Animals need water, the right temperature and shelter such as rocks. |
Worksheet answers
- Any small ecosystem drawn with two living things (e.g. grass, beetle) and two non-living things (e.g. stone, water).
- Non-living.
- Sunlight.
Quiz answers
- What is an ecosystem? A place where living and non-living things work together. Plants, animals, weather and land all work together.[1]
- Which of these is non-living? A rock. Rocks are non-living parts of an ecosystem.[1]
- Where do plants get the energy to make their food? From sunlight. Plants use sunlight to make food.[2]
- Can an ecosystem be very small? Yes, a little rock pool is an ecosystem. Ecosystems can be very big or very small.[1]
- What do decomposers do? Break down dead plants and animals. Decomposers break down dead things and waste.[2]
Going further
Make a class 'web of life': pupils hold cards (Sun, grass, grasshopper, mouse, snake, hawk, rain, soil) and pass a ball of string to each thing they depend on. What happens if one card lets go?
Sources used in this lesson
- [1] Ecosystem (National Geographic Education): reliability Medium-high
- [2] Energy flow and the 10 percent rule (National Geographic Education): reliability Medium-high
Full list with links and a note on each source's reliability: echoesof.science/school/ecosystems/sources/
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