Producers, Consumers & Decomposers
An organism that makes its own food using sunlight
What is a producer?
Where does most energy in a food chain begin?
The Sun.
A push or a pull is called a...
What is a force?
What force pulls objects toward Earth?
What is gravity?
A tool that makes work easier by changing force.
What is a simple machine?
They break down dead organisms and return nutrients to the soil.
What is a decomposer?
What is the difference between a food chain and a food web?
A food chain shows one path of energy; a food web shows many connected paths.
What happens when forces are balanced?
The object stays at rest (if starting at rest).
If you drop two objects of similar shape at the same time, what happens?
They land at about the same time.
Which simple machine is a ramp?
Inclined Plane
All the populations of living organisms in one area.
What is a community in an ecosystem?
If grass becomes non-existent , what happens to rabbits?
The rabbit population decreases because they lose their food source
What happens when forces are unbalanced?
The object moves or changes direction.
Why does a book stay on a table instead of falling?
Balanced forces — gravity pulls down, the table pushes up.
This simple machine has a fulcrum?
What is a lever?
If mushrooms break down a fallen tree, what role are they playing?
What is a Decomposer
What happens to energy as it moves through a food chain?
Some energy is lost at each level.
If you push a box and it does not move, what type of forces are acting?
What is a balanced force?
A force that slows down motion between two surfaces.
What is friction?
How does a pulley make work easier?
It changes the direction of the force.
In a forest ecosystem, all of the decomposers suddenly disappeared. Predict what would happen to the community over time and explain why.
A: Dead plants and animals would build up because nothing is breaking them down. Nutrients would not return to the soil, so producers would struggle to grow. As producers decrease, consumers would also decrease because their food source is reduced. The entire ecosystem would become unbalanced.
Think of a scenario where a predator becomes over-abundant (greedy). What happens to the ecosystem?
Prey population decreases, energy flow changes, and the ecosystem becomes unbalanced
How could you test how stronger pushes affect a ball at rest?
Apply small, medium, and strong pushes and measure how far it travels. Stronger pushes move it farther
Explain how gravity affects motion.
Gravity pulls objects toward Earth, causing them to fall and affecting how they move.
Name two simple machines and explain how they change force.
Lever (reduces amount of force needed). Inclined plane (reduces force by spreading it over distance).