Notes for 10/10/07
Photosynthesis
Plants make their own food by a process called photosynthesis.
Plants are called producers because they produce their own food.
Plants use water, carbon dioxide(Co2), chlorophyll, and sunlight to make their own food.
Photo means light.
Synthesis means putting together.
Most of photosynthesis occurs in the leaves.
The food that the plant makes is a sugar called glucose.
The chemical formula for photosynthesis is:
(CO2 + H2o) + (sunlight + chlorophyll) =
glucose(C6H12O6) + Oxygen(O2)
Plant and Animals Interdependence
Plants and animals need each other.
Animals inhale O2 and exhale CO2. Plants inhale CO2 and exhale O2.
Animals eat the plants and plants rely on animal waste for fertilizer.
Plants also need animals to disperse their seeds.
Source: Harcourt Science, 200, A96-A101
Cycles
Notes for 10/15/07
Ecosystems
The physical environment includes all the non-living things in an area like soil, weather, landforms, air, and water.
A single living organism is called an individual.
A group of the same kind of individuals in an area is called a population.
All the different populations in an area grouped together are called a community.
The community and its physical environment are called the ecosystem.
Where a population lives is called its habitat.
Different populations can share a habitat but each population has its own job or niche.
Source: Harcourt Science, 2000, B28-B31
Notes for 10/19/07 and 10/22/07
Energy Transfer
1. All living things get and use energy.
2. Organisms use the energy to grow and reproduce.
3. The sun supplies the energy for almost every ecosystem on Earth.
4. Plants make their own food with CO2, H2O, and energy from the sun. Plants are called producers because they make their own food. Plants store unused energy in their roots, stems, and leaves.
5. All other organisms, except for plants, must eat to get energy. They are called consumers.
6. Plants are the beginning of the food chain. The food chain is how the energy is passed through the communities.
7. Herbivores are the organisms that eat plants.
8. Carnivores are the organisms that eat herbivores.
9. Omnivores are the organisms that eat the producers, herbivores, and carnivores. They are usually the top predator.
10. Decomposers are the bacteria that eat anything that was alive and return the nutrients to the soil.
Source: Harcourt Science, 2000, B34-B39