Food Webs & Food Chains Complete Lesson Plan - MS

Everything you need for an engaging middle school unit on food webs and the flow of energy through ecosystems is included in this comprehensive, editable resource. With ready-to-use presentations, worksheets, student-choice projects, and assessments, this multiday lesson minimizes prep while maximizing learning. Differentiated, student-led activities keep your class engaged and allow you to focus on supporting student success.

Essential Questions

• How can you diagram the flow of energy through a living system?

• How would you describe food webs in different ecosystems?

Texas Teachers: This lesson aligns with the 2017 TEKS and will not be updated for the 2021 TEKS.

Why Teachers Love This Lesson

✔ Differentiated materials for all learners
✔ Multimodal learning keeps middle school students engaged
✔ Maximum flexibility – Printable and digital formats included
✔ Editable PowerPoints so you can customize for your classroom
✔ Spanish translations for vocabulary, reading passage, and INB pages

The Lesson Framework

This lesson follows the 5E Instructional Model, a research-based approach covering Engagement, Exploration, Explanation, Elaboration, and Evaluation.

Engagement

• Objectives and Word Wall Cards with English and Spanish vocabulary

• Teacher file with engaging discussion ideas and classroom activities (many include student-led explorations or common misconception checks)

Exploration

Your students will take the lead in this differentiated, multimodal station lab, designed for all learning styles. With nine flexible stations, students will explore energy flow and feeding relationships within ecosystems through a variety of interactive activities.

Input Stations – Absorb and explore new learning

• Explore It! – Hands-on demo or experiment connects students to key concepts.

• Read It! – Differentiated passages in English and Spanish with comprehension questions.

• Research It! – Students investigate online resources and answer inquiry-based prompts.

• Watch It! – Students learn through a short video and reflective discussion.

Output Stations – Demonstrate understanding

• Organize It! – Hands-on card sorts or digital manipulatives reinforce classification skills.

• Write It! – Open-ended written responses develop science communication skills.

• Illustrate It! – Students create visual diagrams of food webs to enhance memory retention.

• Assess It! – Application tasks and vocabulary-in-context exercises check mastery.

Bonus Station – Challenge It!
Fun extension activities such as crosswords, games, or mini-projects engage early finishers and advanced learners.

Explanation

• Editable PowerPoints (standard and interactive versions) with built-in differentiation

• Interactive Notebook templates in multiple formats (digital and print, English and Spanish)

• Guided note-taking templates for structured content review

Elaboration

Student-choice projects on food webs and energy flow encourage creativity and extend learning beyond the classroom.

Evaluation

• STAAR 2.0–aligned assessments in two levels (standard and modified)

• Review questions and worksheets for class discussion, test prep, or homework

Flexible for Any Learning Environment

Every component of this resource—station labs, presentations, and interactive notebooks—works seamlessly both in-person and online. Whether your students are on campus or learning virtually, they’ll stay engaged in meaningful, hands-on science.

This is a finished product; it will be updated with formatting or corrections as needed. Future improvements and new features will be sold as a separate product.