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Science at key stage 3    (Year 8)

Unit 8D: Ecological relationships
Section 14: How do living things in a community depend on each other? (2)

QCA

Objectives
Children should learn:
  • to identify patterns in data
  • that a pyramid of numbers describes the numbers of food plants, herbivores and carnivores in a habitat
  • that there is a flow of energy from the producer to the final organisms in the food chain

Activities

Outcomes
Children:
  • Provide pupils with data on the numbers of animals and plants in a community and what they feed on. Ask them to count up numbers of producers, herbivores and carnivores, and to look for patterns in the results and to repeat for a different set of data. Ask pupils whether the pattern in the two sets of data is the same. Show them how to represent the data as a pyramid of numbers and explain the usefulness of this model in considering the interdependence of living things.
  • Show pupils examples of inverted pyramids of numbers, eg involving an oak tree, and ask them to explain how these are different.
  • draw pyramids of numbers from data provided
  • explain how a pyramid of numbers describes the number of producers, herbivores and carnivores in a habitat
  • describe how there is a flow of energy from the producer to the final organisms in the food chain

Points to note
  • Pupils will have considered energy transfer in unit 7I 'Energy resources'.
  • The term 'trophic level' is not required at this stage.
  • Data on numbers of animals in the community studied in the field should be used for this activity, if available. This can then be built on using secondary data.

Sections in this unit

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This unit is divided into sections. Each section contains a sequence of activities with related objectives and outcomes. You can view this unit by moving through the sections or print/download the whole unit.
1. How can animals be classified? (1)
2. How can animals be classified? (2)
3. How can green plants be classified?
4. How do plants, animals and environmental conditions interact in a habitat? a) How can we collect data to answer questions about a habitat? (1)
5. How do plants, animals and environmental conditions interact in a habitat? a) How can we collect data to answer questions about a habitat? (2)
6. How do plants, animals and environmental conditions interact in a habitat? b) What lives there? (1)
7. How do plants, animals and environmental conditions interact in a habitat? b) What lives there? (2)
8. How do plants, animals and environmental conditions interact in a habitat? c) Why do the communities differ in different habitats? (1)
9. How do plants, animals and environmental conditions interact in a habitat? c) Why do the communities differ in different habitats (2)
10. How do plants, animals and environmental conditions interact in a habitat? c) Why do the communities differ in different habitats? (3)
11. How do plants, animals and environmental conditions interact in a habitat? d) How big are the populations in the habitat? (1)
12. How do plants, animals and environmental conditions interact in a habitat? d) How big are the populations in the habitat? (2)
13. How do living things in a community depend on each other? (1)
14. How do living things in a community depend on each other? (2)
15. Reviewing work