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Science Activity Sheet

Quarter 2 – MELC 6
Week 6
Interactions Among Living and
Non-Living Things in Estuaries and
Intertidal Zones

REGION VI – WESTERN VISAYAS

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Science 5
Activity Sheet No. 6- Interactions Among Living and Non- living Things in
Estuaries and Intertidal Zones
First Edition, 2020

Published in the Philippines

By the Department of Education
Region 6 – Western Visayas

Republic Act 8293, section 176 states that: No copyright shall subsist in any
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impose as a condition the payment of royalties.

This Learning Activity Sheet is developed by DepEd Region 6 – Western

Visayas.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this learning resource may be

reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical
without written permission from the DepEd Regional Office 6 – Western Visayas.

Development Team of English Activity Sheet

Writer: Janet M. Toriano, Vivian Tiguelo

Illustrator: Janet M. Toriano
Layout Artist: Vivian Tiguelo, Edna Rose P. Gueco

Schools Division Quality Assurance Team:

Joey Ian C. Singson, Aline D. Vieja,
Jo-ann D. Selomandin
Edna Rose P. Gueco
Ellen G. De la Cruz
Division of Bacolod City Management Team
Gladys Amylaine D. Sales
Michell L. Acoyong
Janalyn B. Navarro
Edna Rose P. Gueco
Ellen G. De la Cruz
Regional Management Team
Ma. Gemma M. Ledesma
Josilyn S. Solana
Elena P. Gonzaga
Donald T. Genine
Rovel Salcedo
Moonyeen C. Rivera,
Anita S. Gubalane,
Minda L. Soldevilla,
Daisy L. Lopez,
Joseph M. Pagalaran

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Introductory Message

Welcome to Science 5!

The Learning Activity Sheet is a product of the collaborative efforts of the

Schools Division of Bacolod City and DepEd Regional Office VI - Western Visayas
through the Curriculum and Learning Management Division (CLMD). This is
developed to guide the learning facilitators (teachers, parents and responsible
adults) in helping the learners meet the standards set by the K to 12 Basic Education
Curriculum.

The Learning Activity Sheet is self-directed instructional materials aimed to

guide the learners in accomplishing activities at their own pace and time using the
contextualized resources in the community. This will also assist the learners in
acquiring the lifelong learning skills, knowledge and attitudes for productivity and
employment.

For learning facilitator:

The Science Activity Sheet will help you facilitate the leaching-learning
activities specified in each Most Essential Learning Competency (MELC) with
minimal or no face-to-face encounter between you and learner. This will be made
available to the learners with the references/links to ease the independent learning.

For the learner:

The Science Activity Sheet is developed to help you continue learning even
if you are not in school. This learning material provides you with meaningful and
engaging activities for independent learning. Being an active learner, carefully read
and understand the instructions then perform the activities and answer the
assessments. This will be returned to your facilitator on the agreed schedule.

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Name of Learner:___________________________________________________
Grade and Section ________________________Date: _____________________

Science Activity Sheet No. 6

Interactions Among Living and Non-Living Things in
Estuaries and Intertidal Zones

I. Learning Competency with Code

Discuss the interactions among living things and non-living things in estuaries
and intertidal zones. (S5LT-IIh-8)

II. Background Information for Learners

The Philippines, being an archipelago, is surrounded by seas and oceans and is

rich in coastal areas which are affected by the rising and receding tides.

Figure 1. Intertidal Zones – Shoreline - Foreshore

These areas which are constantly exposed to the changing tides are called
intertidal zones or commonly known as seashore and foreshore or sometimes
referred to as littoral zone. The intertidal zone is the area along a coastline that is
between the high tide mark and the low tide mark. Intertidal zones are homes to
many kinds of marine animals and birds. Whether it is a rocky coast, a sandy beach,
or a salt marsh, life in the intertidal zone needs to survive extreme conditions- both
above and below the water. When the tide is low and the intertidal zone is above
water, the things that live there can be exposed to warmer temperature and brighter
light than they were below the water.

Estuaries are areas of water and their surrounding

coastal habitats typically found where river meets the
sea. Estuaries are often called “nurseries of seas”
because numerous animal species rely for nesting and
breeding. They have dynamic environments, where
there are variations in water chemistry including water
salinity, as well as physical changes like the rise and
fall of tides, thus organisms living there must be
adoptive. Figure 1.Top:Hill-cliff estuary
Bottom: River-Lake estuary

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 A. Abiotic Factors

Table 1. Abiotic factors and their effects to estuaries

Abiotic Description Effect to estuaries
factors
Amount of -a sunshine or solar -used by photosynthetic organisms like
sunlight radiation that is visible at phytoplankton, seaweeds, and sea grass
Earth’s surface in making their own food
-crucial to produce oxygen for living
things in the estuaries
-less sunlight in an estuary means less
photosynthetic organisms can support
other organisms
Salinity of -saltiness or dissolved salt - some organisms prefer to breed in places
water content of a body of water with low salinity
-salinity of estuaries is
lower than that of the sea
and ocean.
Temperature -the hotness or coldness of - temperature of the water must not be too
or water water hot or cold for the young organisms to live.
-affected by tides and presence of
mangroves in the area.
Types of soil - type of soil is determined - the kind of living things that live in the
by the kinds of rock area depends on the type of soil due to the
present in the area nutrients it contains
-some types of soils are rocks, sand,
pebbles, or clay.

Waves -a ridge or swell on the - affected the type of organisms living in

surface of a body of water the estuary
rushing to the shore -some organisms like mussels and
seaweeds attach themselves to rocks so
that they will not be carried by the waves.

B. Biotic Factors

Table 2. Biotic factors and their habitat

Aquatic Organisms
Habitat Description
living
Coral Reefs - teeming with many corals corals, different kinds of
- coral reef formations are in this area fishes, jellyfishes, sea
due to a large number of corals living anemones and sea stars
- serves as a sanctuary for young
fishes

Mud flats - also known as tidal flats clams, crabs, migratory

- a large amount of mud deposited on birds, mussels, mollusks,
it sand dollars, and
- usually comes from the sea and shellfish
river.

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Habitat Description
Mangrove Forests - protect the coasts against erosion
caused by waves, winds, and tides
- protect coral reefs and sea grass
beds from silting or deposition of sand
- breeding grounds for different kinds
of fish and shellfish.
Rocky shores - shores which have many rocks
deposited
-rocks serve as the hiding places for
the small crabs and prawns.
Aquatic Organisms
living
algae, barnacles,oysters,
shrimps, lobsters, crabs,
different kinds of fish and
shellfish
barnacles, crabs, hermit
crabs, limpets, mollusks,
prawns, sea stars, and
shrimps

Salt marshes - area filled with sea water during high clams, mussels, oysters,
tide and becomes drained when it is shrimps, and snails
low tide.
-marshy due of the decomposing plant
matter in the area.

C. Shore Zonation

Read the selection below and study the life in the Intertidal zone.

Figure 1. Divisions of intertidal zones

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 Intertidal zone exists anywhere the ocean meets the land, from steep, rocky
ledges to long, sloping sandy beaches and mudflats that can extend for hundreds of
meters.

Marine biologists divide the intertidal region into four distinct physical
subdivisions based on the amount of exposure each gets. These are the splash
zone, high or upper intertidal zone, the middle intertidal zone, and the lower
intertidal zone.

Table 3. Subdivisions of intertidal zone

Physical Marine Organisms
Description
Subdivision Present
*more a part of the land than the lichen, periwinkle snails
ocean
Splash zone
* rarely submerged
*very high tides on severe storms
*flooded during the peak season purple shoreline crab,
High or Upper *once or twice daily high tides barnacles, and blue-green
Intertidal zone * out of the water for the long sea weeds
stretches in between
*generally submerged except for a mussel bed, sea urchins,
Middle Intertidal
fairly short period during the turn snails, sea stars, and sea
zone
of the low tide anemones
*exposed during the lowest spring anemones, red algae,
Lower Intertidal
tides Dungeness crab, sea stars,
zone
sea urchins, and kelp

III. Activity Proper

Activity 1: Environment and Me

Materials
Copy of Templates number 1 and 2, paste, pair of scissors

Safety Precautions: Be careful in handling scissors!

Directions.
1. Study the living things and non-living things in Template number 2.
2. Using a scissor, cut the picture of living and non-living things and paste
them appropriately in Template number 1.

Activity 2: My “Picture Perfect Life” Intertidal Zone

Materials
Copy of Templates number 3 and 4 paste, pair of scissors

Directions.
1. Study the phrases/pictures relative to intertidal zone in Template number
4.
2. Using scissor, cut these picture/phrases and paste them in Template
number 3 to complete the concept map

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 Guide Questions:
1. Differentiate estuary from intertidal zone.
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________

2. What are the living organisms and non-living organisms that are usually
found in an estuary and intertidal zones? Write your answer in the table
below.

Areas of Water Living Organisms Non-living Organism

Estuaries

Intertidal Zones

3.How do living and non-living organisms interact in estuaries and intertidal

zones?
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________

IV. Reflection
Why estuaries and intertidal zone important to living things and non-living
things?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________

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V. Answer Key
Activity 1: Environment and Me - Template No.1. Graphic Organizer (“Environment and Me”)

Activity 2: My “Picture Perfect Life” Intertidal Zone - Template No.3- Graphic Organizer

Guide Questions:
1. Estuaries are areas of water and shoreline where river meets the ocean or another
large body of water, while intertidal zones are area between the high tide mark and the
low tide mark at the coastal shore.
2.
Areas of Water Living Organisms
Estuaries aquatic plants, marine animals, and microorganisms
mussel bed, sea urchins, snails, sea stars, and sea
Intertidal Zones anemones, purple shoreline crab, barnacles, and blue-
green sea weeds
3. The estuary and intertidal zone are two ecosystems where each group of living and
non-living things interacting with each other. The physical environment of the
ecosystem is the habitat where organisms live. The habitat must provide
the organisms within it with what they need for survival such as food, water, oxygen
and minerals.
Reflection
Estuaries and intertidal zones are two ecosystems which can support living and non-living
things. They are two ecosystems that served as habitat to many kinds of marine organisms.
Estuaries are often called “nurseries of seas” because numerous animal species rely on for
breeding and resting. Also, Intertidal zones are homes to many kinds of marine animals and
Activity 1: “Environment and Me”
birds.

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Template 1: Estuaries

Directions.
1. Study the living things and non-living things in Template number 2.
2. Using a scissor, cut the picture of living and non-living things and paste
them appropriately in Template number 1.

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Template No.2- “Environment and Me” Material kit

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 Activity 2: My “Picture Perfect Life”
Directions.
1. Study the phrases/pictures relative to intertidal zone in Template number
4.
2. Using scissor, cut these picture/phrases and paste them in Template
number 3 to complete the concept map.

Template 3: Intertidal Zone

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Template No.4 - Intertidal Zone Material kit

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 VI. Other References

Sarte, E. T.,et al. (2016). Science Beyond Borders 5; Vibal Group ,Inc., Quezon
City; pp.84-86, 90-92.
Sarte, E. T., et.al (2016). Science Beyond Borders 5 Teacher’s Manual; Vibal
Group, Inc., Quezon City; pp. 59-61.
NOAA (National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration)
www.sciencelearn.org.nz>resources>1230-life-in-the-estuaries [Accessed: December
5, 2020]
https://pixabay.com/photos/estuary-lake-river-landscape-water-3898284/ [Accessed:
December 5, 2020]
https://pixabay.com/photos/estuary-hills-cliffs-mountains-5669056/ [Accessed: December 5,
2020]
https://pixabay.com/photos/key-west-florida-palm-trees-ocean-292173/ [Accessed:
December 5, 2020]
https://pixabay.com/photos/coast-oregon-pacific-beach-3726436/ [Accessed:
December 5, 2020]
https://pixabay.com/photos/shoreline-beach-ocean-pacific-340334/ [Accessed:
December 5, 2020]

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