Teacher Preparation

Overarching learning goal: By participating in this activity students will understand that food webs are representations of the energy flow within an ecosystem. They will recognise that a food web diagram helps explain the relationships between groups of different organisms, and that food web diagrams can help explain the consequences when elements within a food web change.

Teacher content information: Food webs are usually in the form of a diagram. These arrows indicate how energy moves through an ecosystem. The arrow head always points to where the energy is moving too.

Most ecosystems have hundreds if not thousands of species and it is not possible to draw in all the links as we don’t know enough about each animal.

In this activity a group of plants and animals have been chosen that provide students with a sensible way of constructing a food web. In this food web, 15 organisms have been chosen rather than a couple of hundred that would truly represent a school ground. It would take years for a research scientist to fully work it out.

Student and classroom organisation

Part 1. Food chains

Students may have already learned about food chains. Food chains are an even simpler representation compared to a food web. Ask students to use these three lists of organisms to construct food chains.

List 1: Grass hopper, Tussock grass, Crow
List 2: Honeyeater (bird), Little falcon, Flowering eucalypt
List 3: Little falcon, Flowering bottle brush, Honeyeater, Sugar ant

Part 2. Build a school ground food web

Students are to use this list of organisms to build a food web. Remember that the arrow always points to where the energy flows. A good tip, is to start with the plants and organise them at the bottom of your page. There is an example of an Antarctic food web to assist students.

Fox	Flowering eucalypt
Flowering bottle brush Fox	Tussock grass
Grasshopper	Wood boring beetle
Snail	Sugar ant
Honeyeater	Caterpillar
Leaf bug	Possum
Zebra finch	Magpie
Crow	Little falcon.

Reflection

Ask students to reflect on this activity by answering the following questions (also available on the Student Worksheet). Engage students in a class discussion around their answers:

What would happen to the food web if a cat is introduced?
What would happen if the grasshoppers were killed off due to insect spray?
Explain how all the organisms are connected?

Example of an Antarctic food web:

School Ground Food Web

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