CEIP Ginés Morata
Almería
4th GRADE MINIMUM CONTENTS
UNIT 8: ECOSYSTEMS
► WHAT IS AN ECOSYSTEM?
An ecosystem is made up of all the living
things and non-living things that function
together in one place. All ecosystems are
made up of two components:
Living things. These are all the plants and animals living in the ecosystem.
The environment. These are all the elements that affect the plants and
animals, such as the temperature, type of soil, water, rocks, etc.
► TYPES OF ECOSYSTEMS
There are many different types of ecosystems on Earth. We can
classify ecosystems into two main groups
Terrestrial ecosystems include forests, deserts and
grasslands.
Aquatic ecosystems. They can be:
o Freshwater, like rivers, lakes and ponds.
Desert ecosystem
o Saltwater, like seas and oceans.
Sea ecosystem Pond ecosystem Grassland ecosystem
► FOOD RELATIONSHIPS IN ECOSYSTEMS
In an ecosystem, each type of living thing needs different food.
Plants produce their own food.
Herbivores eat plants.
Carnivores eat herbivores.
Equipo de bilingüismo Javier LG
CEIP Ginés Morata
Almería
Plants are called producers because they produce their own food.
Animals are called consumers because they eat, or consume, other living
things.
Plants are essential to ecosystems because they produce the food
which all other living things need. To represent how living things feed off
other living things in an ecosystem, we
can draw a food chain. A food chain
always begins with a producer.
1.- The grass makes its own food.
It’s a producer.
2.- The deer eats the grass. It’s a
consumer.
3.- The lion eats the deer, it’s a
consumer.
A food chain
► RELATIONSHIPS IN ECOSYSTEMS
Competition: Sometimes living things have to compete to get what they
need. We call this competition
o Predators compete with each other.
For example, lions and cheetahs
hunt the same herbivores.
o Plants in forests compete for
sunlight whereas cactuses in
deserts compete for water. Trees compete for sunlight
Cooperation: Living things also help each
other. We call this relationship
cooperation. Living things depend on each
other for:
o Shelter. Many birds need trees to
build their nests.
Shelter
Equipo de bilingüismo Javier LG
CEIP Ginés Morata
Almería
o Protection. Many animals live in groups to
provide protection from predators. For
example, elephants.
o Transportation. Many plants need insects to
transport pollen to other flowers.
Transportation
► PROTECTING ECOSYSTEMS
Human activity can damage ecosystems in many ways. We pollute the
air and water. We build cities and roads through the countryside. We cut
down forests to use the wood for building, and make paper.
Deforestation, soil erosion, pollution and overexploitation of natural
resources are the most harmful effects of human activity. We can help to
minimize damage to the environment by following ecological rules, for
example:
Don’t light fires.
Don’t drop litter.
Don’t disturb wildlife.
Don’t pick flowers or plants.
Recycle, reuse or reduce the use of paper, glass, plastic and batteries.
Equipo de bilingüismo Javier LG
CEIP Ginés Morata
Almería
UNIT 8: ECOSYSTEMS
ACTIVITIES
1.- Look at the picture of an ecosystem. Classify the living things and
the non-living things.
Non
Living things
Living things
2.- Match the words to the definitions.
Competition When living things help each other
Cooperation When living things compete with each other for what they need
3.- Circle ecosystems. Classify them and then, tick (V) the freshwater
ecosystems.
Terrestrial Aquatic
ecosystems ecosystems
Equipo de bilingüismo Javier LG
CEIP Ginés Morata
Almería
4.- Complete the text about damage to ecosystems.
cities - wood - water - human activity - pollute
roads - air - paper - building - cut down
________________ can damage ecosystems.
We_______________ the _________________
and _____________. We build ______________
and_______________ in the countryside.
We ___________ forests to use the
__________ for ____________ and to make
_____________.
5.- Complete your bilingual dictionary.
E C O S Y S T E M S
- Living thing: ____________ - Forest: _______________ - Countryside: ___________
- Non- Living thing: ________ - Weather: ______________ - Cut down: ______________
- Environment:____________ - Food chain: ____________ - Light fires: ____________
- Terrestrial: ____________ - Predator: ______________ - Drop litter: ____________
- Freshwater: ____________ - Prey: _________________ - Disturb: _______________
- Saltwater: _____________ - Deer: ________________ - Pick plants: ____________
- Lake: _________________ - Slug: _________________ - Deforestation: __________
- Pond:_________________ - Pollute: _______________ - Overexploitation: ________
- Grassland: _____________ - Building: _______________ - Harmful: ______________
- - -
Equipo de bilingüismo Javier LG
CEIP Ginés Morata
Almería
6.- Complete the activities and answer the questions.
Equipo de bilingüismo Javier LG
