Science Station Vocabulary and Introduction to Molecular Biology Unit

Molecular Biology Welcome! Today we will begin discussing our very last unit: Molecular Biology. Let’s learn some new vocabulary and what will be discussed in this unit!

Molecular Biology This unit is all about how we can get healthy and maintain that health. Humans aren’t the only organisms that need to stay healthy! All animals need to be healthy in order to grow and be strong. Throughout this lesson we will learn how to do that. Let’s get started with some vocabulary words.

Vocabulary Nutrient- A nutrient substance or ingredient. A tiny building block for the body that helps to keep you healthy.

Vocabulary Food Chain – A system that typically begins with plants and demonstrates who eats who in the cycle of life.

Plant’s Food We will discuss the food chain throughout this lesson. Let’s break the food chain down, by talking about each step of the chain, beginning with plants. All food chains usually begin with green plants, like grass or tree leaves. The animals that only eat plants are called herbivores.

Vocabulary Herbivores – Animals that only feed on plant life.

Food Chain So far, we have only two parts of the food chain, plants and herbivores. This is what the food chain looks like so far!

Food Chain Next, we learn about carnivores. Carnivores are animals that eat other animals for food; like the lion that ate the giraffe. Now our food chain has gotten bigger!

Vocabulary Our last vocabulary word: Omnivores – Animals that eat both plants and animals.

Food Chain Eventually the animals at the top of the food chain, that eat other animals, die as well. When they die, their bodies decompose on the ground. This bacteria and fungi becomes nutrients for plants to make food! So you can see how the food chain is a cycle!

Food Chains Food chains can be very simple or they can be very complex!! Either way, food chains are very important.

Food Chains Food chains are important because all organisms need food. Do you know why organisms need food? Organisms must have food to have energy. And all organisms must have energy to have movement, reproduce, and repair their bodies!

Food Chains What do you think would happen to a person doesn’t get enough food and nutrients?

Food Chains What do you think would happen to a person that doesn’t get enough food and nutrients? Yes! They could get sick!

Food Chains Since being sick isn’t any fun, so the food chain is very important for us to understand. When you understand your food chain, you will understand what it takes for you to stay healthy and strong.

Human Food Chain Some animals, including humans have food chains that look very different. Let’s look at a few different food chains for humans.

Human Food Chain Some people eat foods that other people do not eat, like meat. A person who does eat meat might have a food chain that looks like this:

Human Food Chain In this food chain, plants were eaten by animals and humans ate the animals. Humans also would possibly eat nuts, fruits, vegetables, eggs, milk, and much more. However, not all people eat animal products, like meat, eggs, and milk. When someone doesn’t eat meat, their food chain might look like this:

Vegetarian Food Chain

Your Food Chain Activity What does your food chain look like? I would like you to draw a picture of your food chain. Remember, a food chain represents different organisms and who eats who. Therefore, you will not draw a pizza. A pizza is not a plant or an animal. Everything on your food chain will be a plant or an animal, and include yourself.

Your Food Chain Activity Turn to page 42 in your science notebook. Title the page: “My Food Chain” Go ahead and get started!

Next Time Great job today learning about food chains and why they are important. Next time we will begin discussing healthy and non-healthy foods!