Indiana

Wesleyan University
Elementary Education Lesson Plan Template

Student: Hannah Yoder School:
IWU Supervisor: Co-op Teacher:
th
Teaching Date: Grade Level: 5 grade
Audit Trail:
LESSON RATIONALE
Students learn information best when it is presented in a variety of ways. In this lesson, I present the information in many different formats,
including through a discussion, video, pictures, and group brainstorming. (CAEP K-6 1.a)

READINESS
I. Goals/Objectives/Standard(s)
A. Goal: Understand that energy flows through an ecosystem in the form of a food chain, and that all organisms play an important role
in maintaining the ecosystem.
B. Objective: Students will identify and label components of a food chain and explain how the removal of one organism can have a
large impact on the ecosystem.
C. Standards:
a. IAS: 5.LS.1 Develop a model to describe the movement of matter among plants, animals, decomposers, and the
environment
II. Management Plan
a. Materials:
• Youtube video about food chains, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZOvqYypOuo
• Lincoln Log House
• Document camera
• Student worksheet
• Pictures of animals to hand out to groups
• Paper chain

b. Time: 40 minutes
• Anticipatory set: 3 minutes
• Discussion of definitions: 5 minutes
• Video clip: 5 minutes
• Discussion of video: 5 minutes
• Group practice: 5 minutes
• Scenarios that affect the food chain: 10 minutes
• Closure: 5 minutes

c. Space
• Students will be seated in table groups

d. Behavior
• Students are expected to be focused and remain on task throughout the entirety of the lesson. Collaboration among peers
is encouraged, moderate noise level is allowed. I will use the clap back method to gain student attention.
III. Adaptation to Individual Differences and Diverse Learners-- Demonstrate your understanding of individual differences and
diverse families, culture, and communities unique to the students in this class as you describe the specific instructional opportunities
provided in this lesson.
• Students will be working in groups on the activity
• The video in the lesson will provide a visual for students.
• Students who finish early can create their own food chain.

PLAN FOR INSTRUCTION (CAEP K-6 1.b)

IV. Anticipatory Set
• Have a house or structure of some sort made out of Lincoln Logs displayed on a table as the students walk in. The Lincoln Log
structure should be placed on a base (like a thick paper or book), and should contain a roof. Say to the students, “Here, I have a nice
solid house that has a strong foundation, walls for support, and a roof. Are all of these components critical to the house standing?” If
the students answer yes, continue saying, “Let’s test out how all elements of the house work. What does the roof do for the house?”
The students should respond with something along the lines of it keeps out rain, snow, etc. Have the cup of rice to represent rain,
and pour it over the house. “You’re right, the roof protects the house from rain. Now let’s test the foundation. What does the
foundation do for the house?” The students should say that it keeps the house from falling down. Shake the book slightly, the house
should still be standing. “You’re right, the foundation helps keep the house standing. All of these elements all have an important role in
keeping the house standing.”
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Elementary Education Lesson Plan Template

• “Now, let’s see what happens if I remove some things from the house.” Remove the roof of the house, and pour the rice over it again.
“Without the roof, water can get in, which would cause serious damage over time. But, our house is still standing, right?” The students
nod yes, and remove the base layer of Lincoln logs to the best of your ability without knocking over the house. Say, “I just removed
the foundation of the house. Let’s see what happens when a natural disaster, like an earthquake, hits. Any predictions?” After students
give predictions, shake the book the house is sitting on, and the house should fall over.
• Say to the students, “As we can see, all elements of the house are important in order to keep the house standing. It’s the same thing in
ecosystems- all plants and animals play a critical role in supporting their environment.”

V. Purpose: Today, we are going to examine how energy flows through an ecosystem, and how every plant and animal plays a critical role
in supporting their environment.

VI. Lesson Presentation (Input/Output)
• The lesson will begin with a discussion over key terms that are involved in a food chain, including
o Food chain: The Path that energy and nutrients follow in an ecosystem
o Producers: Plants or animals that use the Sun’s energy to make their own food through a process called photosynthesis.
o Consumers: Any animal that eats plants or other animals
o Primary Consumers: Animals that eat producers
o Secondary Consumers: Animals that eat primary consumers
o Top Predators: Animals at the top of the food chain
• I will start by giving and explaining the first term, food chain, and then I will ask students to infer what the other terms mean.
• After students have given their inferences, I will show the Youtube video and ask the students to listen for the different terms.
• After the video, lead the students in a discussion about the content from the video, being sure to cover what organisms in the video
filled which roles
o The algae were the producers, the mosquitoes were the primary consumers, the small fish were the secondary
consumers, the blue heron was the tertiary consumer, and the alligator was the top predator
o As I go over the terms and the animals from the video, I will have pictures or each organism that I display on the
document camera and place into a food chain.
• Then, review the terms with the students. Ask for a volunteer to come up to the board and point to and describe the function of
each as you say them.
• After this, have the students turn to their shoulder partner and go over the chain again.
• Then, say, “Now it’s your turn to organize animals into a food chain! I am going to pass out pictures, arrows, and labels to each group,
and your job as a group is to organize the animals into a food chain. When you think you have them in the correct order, raise your
hands for me to come over and check.” Hand out the materials (see end of lesson) and worksheet, and walk among the groups as
they work.
• After the students have successfully completed their food chain, hold up a paper chain and say, “As we can see, all of these organisms
play an important part in maintaining their ecosystem. A food chain is kind of like a paper chain. Each organism depends on the others
in order to survive, just like this paper chain. If I tear one in the middle (tear apart one of the middle chains), the chain is no longer one
continuous chain. I wonder what would happen if one animal was removed from the chain?”
• Read various scenarios that happen to the food chain, and have the students brainstorm what would happen to their food chain.
For example, say, “The local fishermen ignored their fishing quota and have overfished the shrimp so that there are none left. How does
this effect the food chain?”
o Continue saying different scenarios, such as:
§ The shrimp population has recovered, but now all of the cod have left our ecosystem because there was no food.
How would this affect our ecosystem?
§ All the sharks in the area have been killed by people scared of sharks. How would this impact the ecosystem?
• (CAEP K-6 3.f) (CAEP K-6 3.d)

VII. Check for understanding. How do you know students have learned? What strategies will you implement if all students have not met
lesson outcomes? Employ one or more strategies to determine student learning.
• The discussion after the video will help me gauge if the students understand the content.
• Walking around and listening to the students working together to organize their food chains will help me see if the students are
understanding the content.
• The student worksheet will also help me gauge student understanding.

VIII. Review learning outcomes / Closure – In what way will you know that all students have learned or met the objective?
• After the students have completed the scenarios and the worksheet, bring the class back together with the last 5 minutes of class
and go over the different scenarios. Then, say, “As we can see, every organism involved in the food chain plays an important role in
maintaining the ecosystem. As we saw, without even the teeny tiny animals, like the algae or shrimp, the entire ecosystem would
collapse.”
• Collect the student worksheets.
PLAN FOR ASSESSMENT
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Elementary Education Lesson Plan Template

Develop a plan for assessing the degree to which your students have mastered the learning outcomes from this lesson. Your plan should
include formal and informal assessment strategies to evaluate and strengthen instruction that will promote continuous intellectual, social,
emotional, and physical development of each student. (CAEP K-6 3.a)
• Formative: The discussion after the video, and the walking among the students as they work in groups.
• Summative: The student worksheet that I collect will help me see if they understood the content.

REFLECTION AND POST-LESSON ANALYSIS (CAEP K-6 3.b)
1. How many students achieved the lesson objective(s)? For those who did not, why not?
2. What were my strengths and weaknesses?
3. How should I alter this lesson?
4. How would I pace it differently?
5. Were all students actively participating? If not, why not?
6. What adjustments did I make to reach varied learning styles and ability levels?
7. Was the video at helping explain the content?
8. Were students able to understand that every organism plays a critical role in the food chain?

Student: School:
IWU Supervisor: Co-op Teacher:
Teaching Date: _____or IDK Grade Level:
Audit Trail:

OPPORTUNITY FOR IMPROVEMENT Format COMPETENT OUTSTANDING

Heading Student uses the provided template for Social

Studies content.
Template Student includes all of the information in the
template heading.
Audit Trail Student includes a list of dates and methods
for communicating with cooperating teacher.
Rationale Statement of rationale for the learning
experience and environment in this lesson.

Goals The lesson plan contains objectives that

connect goals and standards with lesson
Objectives
activities and assessments.
Standards
Each objective should include the
following: Conditions; Desired learning;
Observable behavior; and Accuracy (as
necessary)

NCSS:

IAS:
Management Plan A. Materials:
B. Time:
C. Space:
D. Behavior:
E. Technology: (as appropriate)
Anticipatory Set The anticipatory set is clear and direct and
focuses students’ attention on the lesson.

Purpose The statement of purpose is clearly connected

to the content of the lesson and is presented
 Indiana Wesleyan University
Elementary Education Lesson Plan Template

in terms that are easily understood by
students.

Plan For Instruction

Adaptation to Instructional opportunities are provided in

Individual Differences this lesson. The opportunities are
and Diverse Learners developmentally appropriate and/or are
adapted to diverse students.

Early Finishers
Reteaching-
ELL –
Exceptional Needs-
Lesson Presentation Candidates demonstrate understandings,
for Social Studies capabilities and practices associated with
the central concepts and tools in Civics,
Economics, Geography, and /or History
within a framework of inquiry.

Lesson Presentation The candidate’s lesson demonstrates an

understanding of developmentally
appropriate practice.

The candidate’s lesson includes both

modeling and guided practice.

The lesson presentation includes relevant

activities that encourage student
participation and critical thinking.

Check for The lesson plan includes a plan and the means
Understanding to check for student understanding of the
lesson. A provision is included to reteach all
[CFU] or part of the lesson to all or part of the class.

Review Learning Lesson closure relates directly to the lesson

Outcomes and/ or purpose and/or objective.
Closure

Plan for
Competent 3
Assessment

Formal and Informal A plan for formal and informal assessment [

Assessment mainly formative]throughout the lesson is
included. The assessment strategies are
uniquely designed for the students.

Reflection and Post- The lesson plan includes all required self-
Lesson Analysis answer questions.

SCORING
A lesson plan with elements that do to meet the A competent lesson plan earns a score of An outstanding lesson plan earns a
competent level will receive a score of 33 /40 or lower 34-37/40. score of 38/40-40/40

Additional Comments:
 Indiana Wesleyan University
Elementary Education Lesson Plan Template













Name: ________________________________ Comment [YH1]: Student worksheet

Food Chains!

Write in the order of animals in the food chain from the pictures provided to your group.

Top Predator:

Tertiary Consumer:

Flow of Energy
Secondary Consumer:

Primary Consumer:

Producer:
 Indiana Wesleyan University
Elementary Education Lesson Plan Template

Scenarios:

Write your prediction of what would happen to the food chain based on the scenarios read
by the teacher in the boxes below.

Scenario 1: Overfishing of shrimp Scenario 2: All the cod leave the

ecosystem

Scenario 3: All the sharks are killed by

people scared by sharks.
 Indiana Wesleyan University
Elementary Education Lesson Plan Template

What do these scenarios tell you about the role individual organisms play in maintaining the
food chain?

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
 Indiana Wesleyan University
Elementary Education Lesson Plan Template

Comment [YH2]: Pictures of animals in the food chain to

be cut out for each group to order.
 Indiana Wesleyan University
Elementary Education Lesson Plan Template

Producers
Energy Flow
Primary Consumers
Comment [YH3]: Labels and arrows to printed out for each
group to go along with the pictures.

Secondary Consumers
Energy Flow
Teritary Consumers

Top Predator
Energy Flow

Energy Flow
Energy Flow