Living Systems
Students look at Earth as the interaction of four Earth systems with a focus on the biosphere. Students explore ecosystems and organisms in terms of their interacting parts. Students examine the feeding relationships in ecosystems that move matter among plants, animals, decomposers, and the environment. Students come to understand through a variety of experiences that plants get the materials they need for growth primarily from Sun, water and air, and that energy in animals’ food was once energy from the Sun.
Curriculum Map
Unit: Living Systems
State Standards
5-LS2-2(MA). Compare at least two designs for a composter to determine which is most likely to encourage decomposition of materials.
5-LS1-1. Ask testable questions about the process by which plants use air, water, and energy from sunlight to produce sugars and plant materials needed for growth and reproduction.
5-LS2-1. Develop a model to describe the movement of matter among producers, consumers, decomposers, and the air, water, and soil in the environment to (a) show that plants produce sugars and plant materials, (b) show that animals can eat plants and/or other animals for food, and (c) show that some organisms, including fungi and bacteria, break down dead organisms and recycle some materials back to the air and soil.
5-PS3-1. Use a model to describe that the food animals digest (a) contains energy that was once energy from the Sun, and (b) provides energy and nutrients for life processes, including body repair, growth, motion, body warmth, and reproduction.
Essential Questions
Is planet Earth a system?
How does energy flow through an ecosystem?
How do organisms interact within an ecosystem?
What is needed to sustain a food chain?
How can decomposition occur faster?
What do plants need to grow and how do they obtain those materials?
How do humans affect the ecosystem?
Students will...
Ask questions and defining problems
Developing and use models
Plan and carrying out investigations
Analyze and interpret data
Construct explanations and design solutions
Engage in an argument from evidence
Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information