OpenSciEd: 7.4 Matter Cycling and Photosynthesis

Grades 6–8. During this unit students work to answer the question, "Where does food come from, and where does it go next?" The unit begins with students reflecting on what they ate for breakfast. Followup questions lead them to consider which breakfast items might be from plants. Students explore what else is in food and discover that foods from plants not only contain sugars but also proteins and fats. To figure out how plants could make these food molecules and where plants get the matter and energy to do that, students conduct a series of investigations. They construct an explanation for the central role of photosynthesis in all food production, including synthetic foods. They obtain and communicate information to explain how matter gets from living things that have died back into the system through processes done by decomposers. And finally, they develop and use a model to explain that the major atoms that make up food are continually recycled between living and nonliving parts of a system.

Unit materials are available as a 1-class unit kit (item #523901), 1-class refurbishment set (item #523904), 5-class unit kit (item #523901U5), and 5-class refurbishment set (item #523904U5). Carolina Certified Version*.

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*All enhancements to materials and instruction for this Carolina Certified Version of the unit are approved by OpenSciEd to preserve the integrity of the storyline and the instructional model.