GMO Science Lesson Plan

Lesson Number: 6
Title: Movement of Matter and GMOs
Candidate: Melissa Boyce
Lesson Goals
*Central Focus of the Learning Segment:
Movement of Matter (Food chain, importance of organisms in this chain for the ecosystem)
*Related Skills
Identifying each part of food chain from sun to plant to animal (etc.), describing movement of matter
*Standard(s) Addressed:
NGSS
Develop a model to describe the movement of matter among plants, animals, decomposers, and the environment. 5-LS2-1
Obtain and combine information about ways individual communities use science ideas to protect the Earths resources and
environment. 5-ESS3-1
*Materials/ Instructional Resources:
Food Chain Worksheet (+Pencils)
SMARTBoard
Chromebooks
Links:
Example Food Chain:
https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_8Fm3N97r00/VGWpLF7ezeI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/-BQ4JLwX6G0/s640/complete-circle-foodchain.png
http://www.onegreenplanet.org/environment/how-the-butterfly-can-shape-an-ecosystem-and-why-we-need-to-protect-them/
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/feb/17/peter-defazio/are-gmos-causing-monarch-butterflies-become-extinc/
*Learning Objectives

*Assessment:

Objective 1:
Students will be able to identify the movement of matter
between organisms by creating a food web and describing
where the energy first comes from and where it ends, and
how changes in the web can cause changes in the movement
of matter.

Related Assessment:
Students will draw and label their own food chain containing the
Monarch butterfly going from sun to plant to an animal that eats
plants to an animal that eats an animal, describing both how the
matter moves through the food chain and how the food chain can
change if one part changes.

Lesson Considerations

Pre-Assessment:
Where do humans get their energy from? Where do animals? Where do plants? Does anyone know what a food chain is?
Prior Academic Learning and Prerequisite Skills: (within context of unit)
They should understand what a GMO is and how it can keep a plant healthy.
They should also be aware these GMOs transfer energy to us, since we eat it as food, as was referred to with the discussion on
hunger and its relation to GMOs.
Misconceptions:
Students may not pick up at first to start at the sun and soil. They can be led to this with a discussion on where plants get their
energy from. They may also not pick up on the soil being decomposed parts of dead plants and animals. There can be mention of
what happens to an apple when its left on the ground (flies eat it, it rots, etc.). These misconceptions can be addressed in the
example as well.
Time

*Lesson Plan Details

Lesson Introduction:
Do the preassessment and a review on what was learned previously in the unit. (above) (Call on random students to share.)
This will get the students thinking about where energy comes from and how it moves from organism to organism. Some
students may already know what a food chain is.
Say: Today, we will be looking at how energy moves from organism to organism and how we can show that in a diagram
called a food chain. We will also be exploring what happens when one part of the food chain is changed, possibly due to the
growing of GMO food. This will be an example exploration of how growing GMO food may affect the environment.
Learning Activities:
Say: Lets say we have a mouse. (Draw on board).
Ask: What does a mouse eat? Possible response: cheese, insects, etc. (If they say cheese, remind them its a wild mouse.)
Ask: What does the insect eat? Plants.
Ask: Where does the plant get its food from. It makes it itself from water, soil, sun.
Ask: What eats a mouse? A bird.
Ask: What happens when the bird and mouse die? It rots, turns into soil.
While you go through these questions with the students, draw the organisms on the board with arrows to make a food
chain.
Ask: Why do you think I drew it this way? What do the arrows show? How the matter/energy is moving from organism to

organism.
Show the example food chain as another related example: https://3.bp.blogspot.com/_8Fm3N97r00/VGWpLF7ezeI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/-BQ4JLwX6G0/s640/complete-circle-foodchain.png
Have students read through it and talk about how it compares with your example. What are the similarities/differences?
What parts do you think are always included in a food chain? Sun, soil, plants, animals, decomposers, arrows from one to
another and around in a cycle.
Say: Now, I am going to have you all try out making your own food chain. In order to do this, I will give you one part of the
food chain to work off of. (Show worksheet). As seen here, the third part of the chain is a Monarch butterfly. You will take out
your Chromebooks and work in your table groups to research online and help you complete the worksheet. You will be
drawing and labeling each part in the boxes, then writing how matter/energy is transferred from one organism to the other
for each step in the section numbered 1-5. You will wait for instructions on the bottom part later.
Have students look up what the Monarch butterfly eats and who its predators are, and then work on their food chain.
Once students finish up (around 10 minutes), have students look up:
How does the Monarch butterfly benefit the environment? Share.
(Good link: http://www.onegreenplanet.org/environment/how-the-butterfly-can-shape-an-ecosystem-and-why-we-need-toprotect-them/
Ask: What would happen if we lost the Monarch butterflies? Discuss.
Now have them look at:
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/feb/17/peter-defazio/are-gmos-causing-monarch-butterfliesbecome-extinc/
Have students skim through the article, while they think about what a decline in Monarch butterflies would do to the
environment and its possible connection to GMOs.
*What planned supports will you use for the whole class, individuals, and/or students with specific learning needs?
Table groups include students of mixed abilities (subject, academic, and language-wise), so that they can help each other
complete the tasks. Activities include both visuals and text for different kinds of learners. I also modeled a lot so that the
task was more accessible for all students.

Closure:
Instruct students to now look at the bottom portion of their worksheet. Read through the question. Students should talk
about what they found out about how GMOs may be affecting this food chain and what consequences that may have on the
environment.
Give them time to write. Once finished, they should turn it in to your desk.