SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS COLLEGE

Sogod, Southern Leyte

Final Term Modules in
Teaching Science in the Elementary Grades- Biology and Chemistry

Name: _____________________________________ Score: ____________

Course & Year: ______________________________ Date: _____________
Subject: ___________________________________

Module Title: Part 2: Biology (Living Things and their Environment) Ecosystem
Learning Outcome:
 Identified the basic needs of plants and animals
 Explained how living things depend on the environment to meet their basic
needs
 Discussed the interactions among living things and non-living things in
tropical rainforests, coral reefs and estuaries/ mangrove swamps
 Recognized that there is a need to conserve and protect the environment

====================================================================

I. Concept Notes / Big Ideas / Summary

INTRODUCTION

Nature is amazing. Everything works together smoothly. In the environment, each organism
finds what it needs to survive. Together with the other organisms in the environment, plants and
animals form a busy, healthy community.

This module will introduce you to the interactions of organisms in different of ecosystems. The
module also presents the different ways organisms obtain their food and energy and the different ways
to conserve and protect the environment.
LESSON 1- LIVING THINGS DEPEND ON THEIR ENVIRONMENT FOR BASIC NEEDS (GRADE 3)

Lesson Outcomes:
1. Identified the basic needs of humans, plants and animals such as air, food, water and shelter
2. Explained how living things depend on the environment to meet their basic needs
3. Recognized that there is a need to protect and conserve the environment

Engage

What do we need to live? Not all things that we use are really for survival, meaning you can live
without these. For example, a television is not a must to live, but you cannot live without air. These are
essential things to live. Let us find out more about the basic needs for survival

Pre- Assessment Activity

What to do:

Tasks

Tasks What Resource and How Much you What Wastes Were Generated
Consume
a. Food preparation

b. Personal hygiene

c. Going to School and Back

d. In School

e. Taking Meals (breakfast to

dinner)
1. In your notebook make a table similar to this and fill in the data needed:

2. In what ways can you reduce the resources you consume and the waste generated?

3. Name the positive and negative impacts of the people in your community towards environment. How
do these affect the basic needs of people?

4. Brainstorm ideas as to what will happen to our basic needs that we derive from the environment if
we: (a) make it dirty; (b) gather too many young fish and other sea foods; (c) are wasteful of rice; (d) do
not conserve energy; (e) use too much water during the dry season; and (f) cut trees more than what we
need?

Explain

Basic Needs to Live

Living things have basic needs to perform life processes. These needs are derived from the
environment. For example, humans need water for drinking because 70% of the human body is water.
Humans need shelter to protect them from harsh elements of nature. Animals take in oxygen from the
air. Animals get energy from food that they eat could be plants, other animals or both. Carbon dioxide
and water are needed by plants to produce food in the presence of sunlight. Plants grow in the soil,
water or air because there are nutrients and other substances they need to live. Aquatic organisms need
water as their habitat. Land animals need resting places, like caves and tree trunks. Man has built
houses or barn for his animals.

Protecting Our Environment that Provides Our Basic Needs

It is our responsibility to protect and manage the environment that provides the resources for
our basic needs. There are natural changes on earth such as climate that drastically affect available
resources. Typhoons wipe out habitat of organisms along its path and so with drought, volcanic
eruptions, earthquake, floods and landslides. Rats may reduce our supply of rice and other cereals.
There are man-made changes in our environment that destroy our resources. These include the use of
vehicles that release pollutants to the air, water and soil, mining, industrialization and creating new
cities. The changes in our environment affect living things. Some plants and animals have been extinct
because we destroyed the forest where they live by slash and burn type of agriculture. Our throw away
practice of goods we use creates big demand on the supply and also generates tons of wastes that do
not decay.
LESSON -2 BENEFICIAL AND HARMFUL INTERACTIONS AMONG LIVING THINGS (GRADE 4)

Lesson Outcomes:

1. Described how organisms interact in the environment

2. Identified the beneficial and harmful interactions among living things in the environment

Engage

Show a picture of a heron at the back of a carabao. How does this bird benefit from the
carabao? How does the carabao benefit from this? The bird has food to eat and the carabao loses
parasitic ticks. This is just one example of a long-term relationship known as symbiosis. What do you
know about symbiosis? Do you have a relationship like this? What other organisms have this kind of
relationship?

Explore

Problem: How do different organisms interact with each other?

Explain

Interactions of organisms in the environment may be beneficial or harmful. The interaction is

beneficial if one or more organisms benefit from the interaction. On the other hand, if the organism is
harmed from the interaction, then it is a harmful interaction.

Symbiosis is any relationship that involves two or more species of different kinds living and
interacting together. The different types of symbiotic interactions are mutualism and commensalism,
while parasitism, predation and competition are harmful interactions. Mutualism is a kind of symbiosis
in which both organisms benefit from the interaction. A sea anemone living on the shell of a hermit crab
is an example of mutualism. The sea anemone hides the hermit crab and helps to protect it from
predators. A sea anemone cannot move from place to place on its own. When the hermit crab moves
around, it carries the sea anemone with it. This increases the area in which the anemone can feed. Both
organisms benefit. Give other examples of mutualism.

Commensalism is a kind of symbiotic interaction in which one organism is helped and the other
is neither helped nor harmed. An orchid living in a tree is an example of commensalism. The orchid has a
place to live. The tree is not affected by the orchid. Can you give other examples of this type of
interaction? Parasitism is a harmful interaction. In this type of interaction, the organism that benefits is
called the parasite. The organism that is harmed is called the host. A parasite lives in or on the body of
the host. An example of parasitism is the tick living on the dog. The dog on which the tick lives is the
host, while the tick is the parasite. The tick gets nutrients from the blood of the dog. The dog may be
weakened by the loss of nutrients from the presence of many ticks. Search the Internet for other
examples of parasitism.

Predation is another example of harmful interaction. It is the eating of one living Organism by
another. It is also known as predator-prey relationship. The organism that is eaten is called the prey and
the organism that kills and eats the other organism is called the predator. Examples of predation are
snakes feeding on chicks, eagle feeding Oh monkey and shark feeding on small fish. What are other
examples of predation?

Competition is another example of harmful interaction. Plants may compete for available
nutrients, water, sunlight and soil. Animals compete with both members of the same species and with
other species for resources, food and hiding places to avoid Predators. If the competition is between
organisms of the same species, it is called

Activity:

What to do:

1. Visit a garden or a farm.

2. Find the different organisms listed below. Observe how these organisms interact with each other.
3. Identify the relationship among these organisms.

Organism A Organism B How they interact Effect of the interaction to the

organisms
Butterfly gumamela

Orchid Tree

caterpillar Leaf

4. Answer these questions:

a. What do you call the organism that benefits from the interaction with another organism?
b. From the activity, which of these organisms have beneficial relationship with other organisms? Which
has harmful relationship with other organisms? Why?
c. For you, which is the best relationship? Why?
LESSON 3- INTERACTIONS IN ESTUARIES AND INTERTIDAL ZONES (GRADE 5)

Lesson Outcomes:

1. Identified the interactions among living and non-living things in estuaries and intertidal zones
2. Described the different ways to protect and conserve the estuaries and intertidal zones

Engage

Show students a necklace and a bracelet. What is common in them? Each of these object is
made up of links in a chain. What happens if one of the links is disconnected? If a link is broken in a
necklace or a bracelet, that piece of jewelry can no longer be worn. This lesson will introduce you to the
concept that organisms in the environment cannot live without interacting with their environment. For
example, a bird interacts with several biotic and abiotic factors. To build a nest, a bird uses dried grass,
dirt and branches as building materials. A bird eats insects and other living things to survive. They may
also use non-living to nest in. Weather also impacts the lives of many birds. When the weather becomes
cold in some regions, birds are forced to migrate in warmer climates.

Explore

An ecosystem refers to the interactions that exist among organisms and between organisms and
their physical environment. The habitat is the place where organisms live. When a number of different
species live together in a habitat, we co call this as a biotic community. Ecosystems vary in size (small –
body of cat with ticks and mites a big one like a rain forest of the Amazon), and place where these are
found. Different ecosystems compose a biome and biomes compose the biosphere. The living world is
the biosphere. Let us discuss further examples of ecosystems found in the Philippines.

Aquatic ecosystems are the intertidal zones, coral reefs, the open sea, estuaries (mangroves),
ponds, lakes and rivers. Intertidal zones are regions in the coastal areas that are covered by water at
high tide and exposed at low tide. Tide pools form in rock crevices along shoreline of coastal areas and
these are affected by tides. Some water are left in pools and rock spaces during low tide enabling sea
stars, clams, brittle stars, small fishes and crabs to move about. Animals like barnacles attach themselves
on rock surfaces to remain in place when the tide recedes. Clams dig on the sand and sea anemone
close their tentacles. Animals adapt to changes in temperature salt content of water and sunlight
exposure.

What are estuaries? A region where the river meets sea water is an estuary, Estuaries are
affected by high and low tides. The water vary in levels of salt content. There may be an intertidal zone
with mangroves growing in it. Mangrove swamps, salt marshes, sea grass beds, sand or mudflats are
examples of estuaries. Mangrove swamps are found in many coastal shores of the country. In Panay for
example, several mangrove forests include century old sturdy trees. Mangrove trees are able to live in
salty water, like Rhizopora, Sonneratia and Avicenia. They have special roots, such as prop roots, cable
roots, knee roots and plank roots that enable them to survive. Some species even release salt particles
in their leaves. Fishes, crabs, snails, oysters, shipworms, prawns and shrimps are plenty in mangrove
swamps. Several interactions occur in mangroves - hermit crab borrow empty shell of snail as shelter,
milkfish competing with other species for food, ants make nests in tree trunks, and birds feed on fruits
of the trees. Mangroves protect the coasts from being eroded by storm surges. Commercially important
species use mangroves as breeding or nursery grounds. Mangroves are natures' chest of food for
humans, including medicines, dye, materials for shelter, boat and lumber for furniture. Stands of nipa
palm are established for roofing materials and rows of bakhaw or Rhizophora are planted for firewood
and lumber. Extensive roots of mangroves remove silt and debris making the water clean. The
mangroves are natural cleaners of the air as they use carbon dioxide for photosynthesis and release
oxygen.

There are several examples of interactions that are anchored on feeding relationships. These are
mutualism, commensalism, parasitism, predation, competition, and cooperation. In any of the
ecosystems we examine, these interactions occur but involve different species living things.

Disturbances in ecosystems are either naturally or man-made occur. For example, typhoons may
bring about landslide, floods, storm surges that destroy habitats and wipe out organisms. Forests were
converted to agricultural uses limiting the habitat of the forest animals. Many species have been
endangered because of human activities logging, mining, hunting, and tourism.

Many fishponds and coastal areas that were not protected by buffer zones of mangroves were
destroyed by storm surges. As human population increases, it puts pressure on resources from
mangroves like overharvesting of fishery and forestry products. Man dredges and fills in the edges of
mangroves to expand land and the mangrove swamps are gone. Roads and buildings for residential and
commercial uses fill up the area. In many cities, the estuaries receive pollutants from oil slicks and spill.

Maintaining balance and sustainability is a major challenge in the ecosystems we have studied.
While we have man-made ecosystems (farm, city, fishponds, dams, seaports), it is a must that we have
conservation practices. There are government laws, proclamations and regulations on the use,
protection, conservation and management of resources that the Department of Environment and
Natural Resources, the Local Government and the community people have to work together for proper
implementation. It is the Philippine Environment Code (P.D. 1152) that began the crafting of laws
dedicated to environment. LGUs have various ordinances, programs and awards for environment. Along
coastal areas, you might pass by a sign that this particular barangay is a marine sanctuary. There are
protected areas like parks and wildlife. People may involve in tree farming for land and mangrove
forests. They are also key players in integrated coastal resource management programs. Schools have
various initiatives war on waste, school in a garden, composting, tree planting, and landscaping,
environmental quiz contests, green schools award to intensify knowledge and improve practices for
environmental protection. Peoples' organization at the local, national and even international levels are
in harmony in protecting our environment. It is suggested that each one should know about our laws to
ensure its successful implementation. The challenge is Mother Nature?

Activity- Estuaries - Mangrove Swamps

Problem: What are found in estuaries?

What to do:

Note: Prior to the lesson, assign students to bring the following materials: pictures of mangrove swamps
and organisms living in it, pictures of a mouth of a river and fish pond and cartolina. A visit to a nearby
mangrove swamp is also fun and informative, or if there is none in your area, a video from the internet
will do.

1. Identify the physical factors and biotic components of a mangrove swamp and man-made fish pond.
2. The mouth of a river (the one nearest to the sea) is an estuary. What environmental conditions may
be observed in that body of water?
3. What interactions may be found in a mangrove swamp?
4. From your knowledge of food sold in the market, such as oysters, list more organisms that are raised
in fishponds and mangrove swamps that are food sources.
5. What products are derived from mangroves that we use in the home as medicinal, food, beverage,
lumber, charcoal, dye and more?
6. What may destroy our mangrove ecosystems?
7. Name some ways that we should do to protect and manage properly our rich resources.
8. Create a poster to campaign for mangrove education. Display your poster and let your classmates
walk along the display inside your room or corridor walls. Your poster must include a question or
challenge that readers may reflect on.
LESSON 4-INTERACTIONS AMONG LIVING THINGS IN CORAL REEFS AND TROPICAL RAINFORESTS (GRADE 6).

Lesson Outcomes:

1. Discussed interactions among living things and non-living things in coral reefs and tropical rainforests
2. Explained the need to protect and conserve tropical rainforests and water ecosystems

Engage

The earth is our only home, take care of it!!! You see this campaign in some schools. Knowing
our environment therefore is very important. Let us look into some of the interesting interactions in
different ecosystems. We are familiar with habitats the places where organisms live such as water, land,
or air. But we will explore in the next activities the interactions of living things (biotic) and physical
environment (abiotic) components and find out how humans affect coral reefs and tropical rainforest
ecosystems. It would be wonderful if you can visit the beautiful ecosystems nearest your school and
commune with nature.

Explain

Coral reefs are the most beautiful underwater ecosystem in the sea. A reef is made by corals,
soft bodied cnidarians with tentacles that secrete chalk-like substances forming cups that serve as their
homes. These are the stony or hard corals. Soft corals do not form cups. Extensive colonies over the
years can form mounds of reefs. The Philippines is home to the Tubbataha Reef, a world heritage natural
formation. This is home to thousands of animal species like crabs, sea slugs, eels, soft corals, stony
corals, jellyfishes, shellfishes and different species of sea stars and fishes. A clown fish may hide on the
tentacles of sea anemones, a kind of interaction. An island can grow out of a coral reef. Gleaning of
shellfish is a favorite pastime of many fisher folks at low, low tide in shallow waters with coral reefs.

Coral reefs are trampled upon by beach goers. Coral reefs get blasted by dynamites. Resorts,
hotels, restaurants and even houses discharge untreated waste water into shore waters. Boracay was
closed for more than 6 months to rehabilitate the island due to water pollution, neglect of
environmental clean-up and dense coastal development. Solid wastes affect any ecosystem when not
disposed properly in sanitary landfills. Land and water pollution from man's activities destroy our
environment.

The tropical rain forest. The biotic community in a forest is the trees- hardwoods like narra,
lauan, molave and associated species like abaca, orchids, bamboo, vines, ferns and shrubs. Monkeys,
fruit bats, snakes, butterflies and other insects, spider, birds, tree frogs, monitor lizards and many more
are found in forest. The forest floor may be covered by thick mats of mosses and liverworts and crawling
millipedes and centipedes that find food. The country also has mossy forest where the common plants
are mosses in the forest floor or in masses in tree trunks and branches. Interactions in forests are those
between abiotic and biotic factors. Water, sunlight, soil, minerals, gases and elements of climate are
factors needed by biotic components. For example, a tree needs sunlight, water and carbon dioxide to
produce food. A woodpecker needs a tree trunk for shelter, build nests and capture food from
surroundings. A butterfly sucks nectar from orchid flowers and distributes pollen grains to other orchids.
A fruit bat feeds on ripe fruits and distributes undigested seeds. Mosquitoes bite human beings in the
forest. Ear fungi decompose dead trunks of trees. In these cases, plants are producers, animals are
consumers (herbivores that feed on plants, carnivores that feed on animals, and omnivores that feed on
both plants and animals) and fungi are decomposers. The relationships or interactions are varied in
ecosystems. Grasslands or meadows abound in our country and they are also ecosystems on land. In
other parts of the world, there are desert, temperate forests, and tundra, taiga and scrub forests.

Activity:

Problem: Whats Inside a tropical rain forest?

Note: students must visit a tropical rain forest and observe the plants and animals. A video of tropical
rainforest will do.
What to do: fill up the following chart and answer the questions given

K W L
What do I Know? What do I want to learn? What have I learned?

2. Answer the following questions:

a. What can you infer of the physical characteristics such as (a) rainfall/ moisture, (b) temperature, (c)
soil type, (d) sunlight, (e) geographical location?
b. What animals may live in this forest? What enable these animals to live in this habitat?
C. What plants are dominant?
d. What interactions among organisms may be found in this ecosystem? List as many and describe each
one.
e. Why and how should we protect, conserve this ecosystem?