Science at key stage 3    (Year 7)

• identify features, eg light, temperature range, which are different in different habitats
• describe adaptations to life in a variety of habitats such as:
• water, eg streamlined shapes help animals move through the water, water plants float or have long stems to reach surface waters
• underground, eg streamlined shapes, adaptations for tunnelling, poor sight but good senses of smell and vibration
• woodland, eg colour vision, climbing plants and camouflage, early growth and flowering before the canopy develops
• pick out appropriate adaptations and explain clearly their significance
• make an oral group presentation of their findings

• describe changes in physical environmental factors, eg temperature, light intensity, over a 24-hour period
• interpret data about daily changes and explain in simple terms, eg beginning to get dark
• relate changes in variables, eg light and temperature, to each other
• relate plant and animal activity to environmental changes

• identify a suitable question for investigation
• identify and control relevant variables
• choose an appropriate way of obtaining an adequate sample
• explain why they are, or are not, confident in their results, eg 18 out of 20 times the snails went to the damp, I think this is sufficient; we only used 6 woodlice and 4 of them chose the dark, I think we need to use more than 6 woodlice to be sure

• identify ways in which habitats vary through the year
• describe some strategies which plants and animals adopt to avoid climatic stress

• identify adaptations for particular habitats
• explain the advantages adaptations give an organism

• identify predators and prey from information about commonly encountered animals
• identify features of predators, eg a hooked beak, sharp claws, acute vision, ability to trap prey
• identify features of prey animals, eg camouflage, acute senses, armour, speed
• state how many observations they made and explain why this was appropriate

• sort organisms into a food chain
• explain what is meant by, and identify, carnivore, herbivore, consumer, producer
• identify food chains within food webs and describe what a food web shows
• explain the direction of arrows in a food chain, eg energy from the leaves passes to the caterpillar

• identify plants and animals found in the immediate locality
• state that a wide variety of organisms is found in quite small habitats
• describe and explain what might provide evidence about animals' food
• identify features of plants which may deter animals from feeding on them
• interpret evidence about food sources, eg the bird droppings are purple, so they could have eaten blackberries

• use organisational features of text to identify relevant information about the diet of animals
• place food chains within a food web
• describe how all the organisms in a habitat can be linked together in food webs
• sequence a food chain
• recognise that arrows in a food web or food chain show the direction of energy flow

• predict the effects of altering the numbers of an organism in one part of a food web
• recognise that organisms living in a habitat compete with each other for food resources
• recognise the importance of plants as the food source at the start of all food chains

• predict and explain the consequences of changes in the organisms making up a food web