Ecosystem Activities for Fourth Grade
Help your fourth grade student to explore the world around her with an educational ecosystem activity. Whether she's investigating the habitats of her backyard or a far away rain forest or ocean system, she can make her own discoveries through hands-on learning lessons that focus on the flora and fauna of various areas. From imaginative art to literacy lesson plans, ecosystem activities provide ways for your elementary school-aged child to grow her investigative and observational science skills.
You don't have to go a far away place to explore ecosystems. Show your fourth grader that ecosystems are everywhere. Start by discussing what an ecosystem is. If he only says something like "plants, trees, bugs and animals," remind him that people and nonliving things, such as rocks and water, can be part of an ecosystem as well. The science pros at The Franklin Institute suggest taking your student into an outdoor area -- you can use your backyard -- and investigating an ecosystem area. Your young scientist can use a magnifying glass to explore the a small-sized section of grass or use his eyes to observe the entire area. bring along a notebook and a pencil so that he can write down his observations or draw pictures of what he sees.
Make your own living underwater ecosystem at home, using an aquarium, suggests The Franklin Institute. Fill the bottom of a fish tank with gravel. Add in a few underwater plants. Avoid anything plastic, opting for the real thing. Fill the tank with water. You may need special balancing tablets, a heater light or a filter for the water, depending on the type of fish that you choose. When the tank is ready, let the fish swim. Have your fourth grader observe the tank continuously for a period of several weeks. Ask her questions as she observes, such as, "How do the fish interact with each other?" or "What do you think the plants provide for the fish?"
If you can't, or don't want to, make your own real ecosystem, your child can create his own imaginatively artsy version. Reuse an old shoe box, and turn it into any ecosystem that your fourth grader wants to explore. Open the box and discard the lid. Turn the box on its side. Give your child a pencil or markers and ask him to create a background for one specific ecosystem. For example, he can draw snowy terrain for an Arctic ecosystem or lush trees for a tropical rain forest. Color or paint in the background. Add paper trees or use modeling clay to make more plant life. The child can sculpt his own animals or insects out of clay, or he can use small-sized plastic play toys.
Not all ecosystems live peacefully, free of intrusion. Your fourth grader can learn how humans, as well as nonnative species, impact the functioning of an ecosystem through an investigative activity. Try a food chain lesson in which you "build" a a string structure. Pick an ecosystem and gather together at least four family members and friends. Designate each person as an animal in an ecosystem, moving up a food chain. Start at the lowest point, and give that "animal" a ball of string or yarn. She can pass it on, still holding one end of the string, to the animal that is next up on the food chain. Continue on until you reach the highest member, with each person holding on to a space on the string. Ask one "animal" to drop or cut her string and see what happens to the rest of the ecosystem. If you have more people, you can build on what is learned in the food chain activity by building a small food web with branches using your extra people. Again use string or yarn to simulate breaking a link.
Based in Pittsburgh, Erica Loop has been writing education, child development and parenting articles since 2009. Her articles have appeared in "Pittsburgh Parent Magazine" and the website PBS Parents. She has a Master of Science in applied developmental psychology from the University of Pittsburgh's School of Education.