Explore the interconnectivity of the organisms by asking students to predict what might happen if a particular producer or consumer was removed from the food chain. Easily Prepare This Resource for Your Students How well a food chain works depends on how much energy the first producers need. The producer gives energy to the first consumer, who then gives it to the second and third consumers. Remember, sharing your thoughts not only helps you gain a deeper understanding but also contributes to the Species in a food chain are interdependent. This interdependence helps to maintain the population of any one species in the ecosystem. While this poster will look wonderful displayed on your classroom wall, its versatility extends far beyond a mere classroom display! Use this food chain poster to enhance your students’ learning through whole-class analysis and discussion. Use guiding questions to explore the flow of energy through the food chain, such as:

Ecological modelling often uses food chains (such as a three-species food chain). They are simplified versions of real food webs, but the way they work and the math behind them are complicated. Primary consumers - Organisms that feed on the producers. Examples of these are the monkeys, macaws, tapir, butterflies, sloths and toucans.

As autotrophs are the foundation of all ecosystems on Earth, this type of food chain is used by most ecosystems. Spend more time lesson- doing and less time lesson- planning when you grab these activities and teaching resources too! Consumers are living organisms that cannot produce their own food and obtain energy by consuming other organisms. For example, lions, tigers, wolves, foxes, etc. The length of a food chain is a continuous variable that shows how energy moves from the lowest to the highest trophic (feeding) level. It is also an indicator of the structure of an ecosystem. Sometimes, a single organism is eaten by a lot of predators, or it eats a lot of other organisms. Because of this, a lot of trophic levels become linked.

Producers - Organisms that produce food for the community. These are usually the trees, shrubs, and other plants A food chain is a line of organisms where nutrients and energy move from one to the next as one eats the other. https://www.khanacademy.org/science/ap-biology/ecology-ap/energy-flow-through-ecosystems/a/food-chains-food-webs Alongside the visual depictions of these food webs are some subject-specific terminology. This key vocabulary poster supports the understanding of the other Food Web Posters. With words like “prey,” “consumers,” and “heterotroph” defined and illustrated, these posters make a great display and learning scaffold for independent learning. Post them on your science bulletin board and enjoy exploring some wonderful ecosystems. Another way to use the Food Chain Pictures is for a display. Why not hang them up around your classroom, they’ll brighten up your room and also be there as a point of reference for the children. Have a look at our Food Chains Display Banner or Food Chain Display Letteringthat you can add to your display!

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Producers can utilise only 1% of the sunlight through photosynthesis to prepare their food. The energy is lost in the form of heat to the environment and in metabolism when plants are eaten by the next trophic level. This rule highlights the efficiency of energy transfer and the challenges of supporting higher trophic levels in ecosystems. With these Food Web Posters, you could spark a discussion about the polar bear's plight in the arctic food web, explore how algae are formed, or even consider what might happen if grasshoppers disappeared from the savannah. These questions will help your children understand the relationship between living things. Print the posters, slip them into a clear sleeve, and use them in your guided groups as a reminder. After understanding the food chain, we realise that the life of one organism depends on that of another.

For an even better way to find KS2 resources, discover tailored suggestions, and much more - visit the KS2 resource HUB! GO TO KS2 HUB Primary consumers are the organisms that eat the primary producers. Most of the time, the main food source for herbivores is plants, but they may also eat algae or bacteria. Each of the above groups is called a “trophic level,” and it shows how many energy and nutrient transfers, or “consumption steps,” are between an organism and the energy source that started the food chain, such as light. As we’ll see below, it’s not always easy to put organisms in the right trophic level. People are omnivores, which means they can eat both plants and animals. What is Food Web? In this case, herbivores are called “primary consumers,” while carnivores are called “secondary consumers.” Organisms that eat producers make up the second level of the food chain. So, the second trophic level is made up of organisms that are primary consumers or herbivores. Food chains DescriptionFood chains are of two types on the basis of the primary energy source: Detritus and Grazing Food chain. Grazing Food Chain For an even better way to find KS1 resources, discover tailored suggestions, and much more - visit the KS1 resource HUB! GO TO KS1 HUB Another important part of the food chain is another kind of living thing. These are decomposers, which eat dead organic matter and break it down to make soil. Without decomposers, many ecosystems would not exist. This is because plants get nutrients from the soil, which starts the process over again. There are more than 100,000 different kinds of decomposers, such as bacteria, fungi, and worms. Print the posters and display them in your classroom for students to reference when doing independent work.