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Science lesson plan · 5th grade (Year 6 in England) · 30 minutes

Decomposers and recycling nutrients

Ecosystems and food chains

CCSS NGSS.5-LS2-1CCSS NGSS.MS-LS2-3England: KS3 Biology: Interactions and interdependencies

Objective and success criteria

Students will: Decomposers and recycling nutrients.

  • I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
  • I can explain each step and say why it works.
  • I can check my answer and spot a mistake.

Before and after

Needs first: Producers, consumers, predators and prey

Leads to: The carbon cycle; The greenhouse effect and climate change; Microorganisms: helpful and harmful

Materials: Food web cards, Arrows to build chains, Mini whiteboards, A diagram or short video clip of the idea, Printed student sheet (below).

Warm-up · 4 min

  • Quick retrieval from earlier learning (Producers, consumers, predators and prey). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
  • Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
  1. grass → rabbit → fox What is the grass in this food chain? (producer / primary consumer / tertiary consumer / secondary consumer) → producerPrompt: Start at the plant and count the arrows.
  2. grass → grasshopper → frog → snake Which animal is the predator of the grasshopper? (grasshopper / frog / grass / snake) → frogPrompt: A predator hunts and eats other animals; its prey is the animal it eats.
  3. Food chains: which statement is true? (Herbivores are predators. / A food chain can start with a lion. / Producers eat consumers. / A top (apex) predator has no natural predators as an adult.) → A top (apex) predator has no natural predators as an adult.Prompt: Producers make food; consumers eat.

Hook · 3 min

  • Show a food web and ask what would happen if one animal disappeared.
  • Share the objective: Decomposers and recycling nutrients. Read the success criteria together.

I do: model it · 7 min

  • Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
  • Example: Which of these is a decomposer?
  • Step 1: Fungi and bacteria are the main decomposers.
  • Step 2: So the answer is: mushroom (fungus)
  • Answer: mushroom (fungus)
  • Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

We do: guided practice · 6 min

  • Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
  • Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.
  1. Compost heaps rot faster when they are… (frozen / completely dry / warm, moist and have air / sealed in plastic with no air) → warm, moist and have airPrompt: Microorganisms need suitable conditions to grow.
  2. Is a sunflower a producer, a consumer or a decomposer? (producer / consumer / decomposer) → producerPrompt: Does it make food, eat living things, or break down dead things?

You do: independent practice · 7 min

  • Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
  • Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.

The 6 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

Exit ticket · 3 min

  • Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
  1. Decomposers: which statement is NOT true? (Matter is recycled in an ecosystem. / Fungi and bacteria are decomposers. / Decomposers return nutrients to the soil. / Decomposers work fastest when frozen.) → Decomposers work fastest when frozen.Prompt: Why do we keep food in the fridge or freezer?
  2. Which of these is a decomposer? (hawk / rabbit / oak tree / mushroom (fungus)) → mushroom (fungus)Prompt: It often grows on rotting logs.

Watch out for

  • Everyday meanings of words getting in the way of the science meaning: define key words explicitly.
  • Remembering facts without the reason: ask "why?" and "what is the evidence?"

Support and stretch

Support

  • Review first: Producers, consumers, predators and prey.
  • Use concrete materials: food web cards.
  • Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
  • Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.

Stretch

  • Move on to: The carbon cycle; The greenhouse effect and climate change; Microorganisms: helpful and harmful.
  • Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
  • Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.

Homework and more practice

Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/science/grade-5.

Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder

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Decomposers and recycling nutrients

Name

Date

Score/ 6

  1. Question 1

    Decomposers: which statement is NOT true?

    • A. Decomposers return nutrients to the soil.
    • B. Decomposition is faster when it is warm and moist.
    • C. Matter is recycled in an ecosystem.
    • D. Fungi are plants.

  2. Question 2

    What do decomposers do?

    • A. make food from sunlight
    • B. break down dead plants and animals
    • C. hunt living animals
    • D. pollinate flowers

  3. Question 3

    Is a owl a producer, a consumer or a decomposer?

    • A. producer
    • B. consumer
    • C. decomposer

  4. Question 4

    Compost heaps rot faster when they are…

    • A. completely dry
    • B. warm, moist and have air
    • C. sealed in plastic with no air
    • D. frozen

  5. Question 5

    Is a soil bacteria a producer, a consumer or a decomposer?

    • A. producer
    • B. consumer
    • C. decomposer

  6. Question 6

    Which of these is a decomposer?

    • A. mushroom (fungus)
    • B. rabbit
    • C. hawk
    • D. oak tree

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Answer key: Decomposers and recycling nutrients

  1. 1. D. Fungi are plants.

  2. 2. B. break down dead plants and animals

  3. 3. B. consumer

  4. 4. B. warm, moist and have air

  5. 5. C. decomposer

  6. 6. A. mushroom (fungus)