A few weeks ago I published a post with books to use if you are teaching a unit on food chains. I love finding great books to go along with different units of study- it is one of my favorite teachery things to do!
So after coming up with the list of food chain books- it really made me start thinking about the huge AMOUNT of TIME it takes teachers to plan out their units- from books to videos to websites to anchor charts to student resources… and on and on.
So I compiled a list of books, videos and websites that can be used to teach a unit on food chains! I hope this is helpful to you!
BOOKS:
Food Webs: Who Eats What? by Claire Llewellyn
What Do You Know About Food Chains and Food Webs by Suzanne Slade
Savanna Food Chains, Forest Food Chains, Wetland Food Chains
all of these are Bobbie Kalman books
*there are several other habitat food chain books in this series including
desert, seashore, rainforest, coral reef, meadow, grassland, etc.
The Library of Food Chains and Food Webs Series
Producers in the Food Chain by Alice McGinty
Food Chains in a Backyard Habitat by Isaac Nadeau
*love this book to really bring the idea of the food chain into a student’s
frame of reference!
Natures Cleaners by Bobbie Kalman
*super book for teaching about decomposers, scavengers, and detrivores
What If There Were No Gray Wolves? by Suzanne Slade
*EXCELLENT series of books by Suzanne Slade to teach predicting the
effect of removing an organism from the food chain
The Magic School Bus Gets Eaten by Joanna Cole
Carnivores by Aaron Reynolds
*this is a fiction book- would be great to maybe kick off your unit!
VIDEOS:
I was so excited to discover a new (to me) series of videos on YouTube! This series of Crash Course Kids videos are AMAZING! Short, engaging and to the point- oh, and FREE!
Here is the list of Crash Course Kids videos- with links and a brief description of content:
Gotta Eat: Crash Course Kids #1.1 -this video explains why all living things need energy and how that energy comes from the food that is produced (plants) or eaten (animals)
Feed Me: Classifying Organisms: Crash Course Kids #1.2 -this video classifies organisms as carnivores, herbivores, and omnivores- also discusses the role of the sun in the food chain
Fabulous Food Chains: Crash Course Kids #7.1 -this video explains what a food chain is and discusses the links in a food chain
The Dirt on Decomposers: Crash Course Kids #7.2 -this video explains the role of decomposers in a food chain
Home Sweet Habitat: Crash Course Kids #27.1 -this video shows how food chains work in a habitat (forest food chain)
Food Webs: Crash Course Kids #27.2 -this video explains how an ecosystem (food chain) can change when it loses a species
Additional VIDEOS-
Study Jams: Food Chains -this video is a great overview of the food chain
Study Jams: Food Webs -this video is an overview of the food web
Brain Pop: Food Chains -(this video was FREE when I compiled this list- but could be changed as this is a pay to view site) another good overview of the food chain with maybe a little more in-depth information
Also available-
The Magic School Bus Gets Eaten- I haven’t included the links for this video, but there are several available on YouTube or you might have a copy available in your library.
INTERACTIVE GAMES:
Food Chains Game (available on Brain Pop- FREE at the time I complied this list- but could be changed as this is a pay site
Food Chain Game- allows students to build food chains from several different habitats
Get your FREE TEACHER TIME SAVER Planning Partner!
I have put all of this information into an easy handout that you can print out to use while you are planning.
I really hope that you can find something on this list of resources that saves you a little time and makes your planning a little easier!
