Energy Needs

Overview

This lesson helps students understand that all living things need energy to survive, but they obtain it in different ways. Through an interactive hands-on activity, children will categorise local plants and animals based on their energy sources, deepening their understanding of food chains and ecosystems.

Curriculum Alignment

British Columbia Curriculum – Science Grade 3

• Big Idea: Living things have specific needs to survive.
• Curricular Competencies:
  • Use observations to describe patterns and connections in local ecosystems.
  • Represent simple systems that show energy pathways through living things.
  • Communicate findings and ideas clearly.
• Content:
  • Energy flows through plants and animals in local ecosystems.
  • Plants make their own food; animals get energy by eating plants or other animals.

Learning Objectives

By the end of the lesson, students will:

• Identify and categorise living things as producers (plants) or consumers (animals).
• Describe how living things get energy to survive.
• Understand the basic concept of energy flow in ecosystems.
• Work collaboratively to complete a sorting and classifying activity.

Materials Needed

• Picture cards of local plants and animals (e.g. salmon, Douglas fir, black bear, moss, deer, crow)
• Large sorting mats labelled “Get Energy from Sun (Producers)” and “Get Energy from Eating (Consumers)”
• Whiteboard and markers
• Sticky notes
• Student science notebooks
• Clipboards and pencils
• Timer or stopwatch

Lesson Structure (45 minutes)

1. Introduction (10 minutes)

• Begin by asking students: “What do all living things need to survive?” List their answers (likely food, water, air, sunlight).
• Introduce the term energy and explain that all living things need energy to grow, stay alive, and do things.
• Briefly discuss how plants get energy from the sun through photosynthesis (without going into complex biology).
• Explain that animals get energy by eating plants or other animals.

2. Hands-On Activity: Sorting Energy Sources (25 minutes)

Step 1: Divide the students into 4 groups of 5.

Step 2: Provide each group with a stack of picture cards representing local plants and animals.

Step 3: Give students two sorting mats:

• “Gets energy from the sun (producers)”
• “Gets energy from eating plants or animals (consumers)”

Step 4: Groups discuss and place their cards on the correct mat.

• Teacher circulates, prompting questions:
  • “Why do you think this plant goes here?”
  • “Do you know what this animal eats?”
  • “How does this animal get its energy?”

Step 5: After sorting, have groups present one or two cards they were unsure about and explain their choices.

3. Consolidation and Reflection (10 minutes)

• As a class, reflect on what the students learned:

  • How do plants get their energy?
  • How do animals get theirs?
  • What happens if one part of this energy chain is missing?

• Write key points on the board with student input.

• Have students draw in their science notebooks the two categories (producers and consumers) and write one example they learned.

4. Assessment / Observation

• Formative assessment based on group participation and sorting accuracy.
• Listen to group discussions and presentations to assess understanding of energy needs.
• Review student notebook drawings and explanations for accuracy and reflection.

Adaptations and Extensions

• For students needing support, provide picture cards with short audio clips describing the organism’s energy source.
• For advanced learners, challenge them to explain what happens to energy when an animal eats another animal (basic food chain).

Cross Curricular Connections

• Language Arts: Speaking and listening skills during group work and presentations.
• Social Studies: Discuss the importance of local plants and animals to Indigenous peoples, connecting energy flows to traditional ecological knowledge.

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Teacher’s Notes:

• Emphasise British Columbia’s local ecosystems relevant to the students’ own community for deeper engagement.
• Use local species to strengthen place-based learning and foster environmental stewardship.
• Encourage curiosity by allowing students to ask questions beyond the scope of the lesson.

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This carefully structured lesson ensures that students know why energy is fundamental to life and how it moves through ecosystems, fulfilling key competencies in the BC Science curriculum for grade 3.