What if all the ants disappeared?

What if all the ants disappeared?
Lesson narration:
English Spanish
Scroll for prep
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DISCUSS:
Would it be a big deal if all the ants in a park went away?
Why or why not?
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DISCUSS:
How might different plants and animals in this park ecosystem be connected?
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Step
01/14
You’ll play the game in a group of four.
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Step
02/14
Get your supplies.
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Step
03/14
Give each person in your group one sheet.
Cut along the dotted lines to make a set of cards.
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Step
04/14
One person, mix up the cards.
Then, put them in a stack face down.
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Step
05/14
Each player takes a card and reads the WHOLE card aloud.
Then, each player puts the card face up in front of them.
Taking turns, repeat this for all the people in your group.
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Step
06/14
Each player takes another card and reads the card aloud.
If the cards DO make a food chain, put them next to each other.
If the cards do NOT have a connection, put the card in another row.
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Step
07/14
On the rest of your turns, you have two choices:
Pick a new card OR steal a card from another player.
But you can’t steal a card if it’s already in a food chain.
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Step
08/14
You get bonus points for food chains that are 4 cards or longer.
You can rearrange your food chains whenever you’d like.
Look for hidden connections!
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Step
09/14
Keep taking turns and make as many food chains as you can.
When you run out of cards, the game is over.
Keep all the cards on your desk so you can figure out who wins!
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Step
10/14
For each food chain, you get 1 point for each card in the chain.
If there are 4 or more cards in a chain, you get 2 bonus points.
Add up your score now on your Food Chain Finale worksheet.
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Step
11/14
Find your longest food chain.
Complete question 2 by writing in the names of all the plants and
animals in that food chain.
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Step
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Share some of the longest food chains.
Then, compare those food chains to one another.
Discuss:
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Step
13/14
Find the Ant card for each group that played the game.
Answer questions 3 and 4 on your worksheet.
Discuss:
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Step
14/14
Discuss:
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DISCUSS:
What do animals get from food?
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DISCUSS:
Where does each animal in this food chain get its matter from?
Where did the matter start out?
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predator


1 of 13

an animal that hunts and eats other animals
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prey


2 of 13

an animal that is hunted by and eaten by another animal
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carnivore


3 of 13

an animal that eats only other animals
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herbivore


4 of 13

an animal that eats only plants

omnivore


5 of 13

an animal that eats both plants and animals
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consumer


6 of 13

a living thing that eats other living things
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food chain


7 of 13

how living things are connected through what they eat and what they are eaten by
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food web


8 of 13

many different food chains found in one place
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model


9 of 13

a pretend version of something that scientists use when the real thing is too big, small, or complicated to work with

system


10 of 13

a group of things that affect each other and function as a whole
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ecosystem


11 of 13

all the living things that interact with each other and their environment in one place

matter


12 of 13

anything that takes up space and has weight; can be in different forms such as solid, liquid, or gas
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matter flow


13 of 13

the movement of material through an ecosystem, such as through food chains and food webs
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Lesson narration:
English Spanish

Lesson details

Grade 5

Ecosystems & The Food Web

Food Chains & Matter Flow

3 reviews

Activity Prep

Print Prep
This lesson was revised on June 14, 2025. Here is a link to the previous version.
In this lesson, students explore how the plants and animals in a park ecosystem are connected to one another through food chains. In the activity, Eat or Be Eaten, students play a game in which they develop model food chains to describe the movement of matter between living things. They use those models to investigate what happens when a species is removed from the ecosystem.
Preview activity

Vocabulary

Vocabulary

Student slideshow: English | Spanish

Teacher printout: English & Spanish

I have a Mystery Pack

Eat or Be Eaten Cards printout
Print on card stock if possible. 		1 per group
Food Chain Finale worksheet 1 per student
Food Chain Finale Answer Key teacher-only resource 1 per class
Rules for Eat or Be Eaten worksheet 1 per group
Scissors
1 pair per student
Prep Instructions

We suggest students work in groups of four. Homeschool students will need a partner to play the Eat or Be Eaten game as it is designed for 2 to 4 players.

Each group of players will need enough table space to lay out their cards as they form food chains. Clusters of student desks work well for this.

We've provided some Teacher Tips to help you guide your students and answer any clarifying questions about how the game is played.

Standards

Jump to

Exploration

10 mins

Hands-On Activity

30 mins

Wrap-Up

15 mins

Lesson details

Grade 5

Ecosystems & The Food Web

Food Chains & Matter Flow

3 reviews

Extend this lesson

Unit Reading

Unit Reading

What Can Young People Do to Protect the Environment?

In this reading, students learn simple steps they can take to help protect the environment.

Mini-lessons

Mini-lessons

You can elaborate student learning and engagement with Mystery Science mini-lessons.

  • Why are flamingoes pink? In this mini-lesson students discover that what an animal eats in a food chain can affect that animal in surprising ways.

If you are in an NGSS state, this mini-lesson supports the DCI LS2.A: Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems

Transcripts

Download this Lesson to your device so you can play it offline:
Credits
 
Ecosystems Lesson 1: What if all the ants disappeared?

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