Session 1
Session 1
Print version of "Bay and Pond Food Webs": PDF • Word
Conduct this session in the classroom.
- Read aloud Crabbing in the Bay (.pdf only). Discuss the importance of underwater grasses for crabs and the importance of crabs to Virginia's economy. Ask students why the pregnant crab was returned to the Bay. What would happen if fishermen kept pregnant crabs?
- Tell students that the class is going to study the food webs of two water environments: the Chesapeake Bay and a pond. Ask students to state some similarities and differences between the two environments. Explain or review the concept of food webs. Tell students that to understand the relationships within a food web, one must learn about its plants and animals.
- Assign a bay organism to each student. Some important Bay organisms include:
- algae
- bay anchovy
- blue crab
- bluefish
- bristle worm
- Canada goose
- canvasback duck
- clam
- diamondback terrapin
- dragonfly
- eel
- eelgrass
- great blue heron
- horseshoe crab
- jellyfish
- osprey
- oyster
- redhead grass
- shad
- shrimp
- sponge
- starfish
- striped bass
- widgeon grass
- wild celery.
- Direct students to research their organisms. (See Using the Library Media Center for Project Research and Using the World Wide Web for Project Research in the Project Action Guide.) Provide books, fact sheets, and website URLs (see Resources). Tell each student to find a picture of the assigned organism, one or two interesting facts about the organism, and its energy source. An animal's energy source is that which it eats.
- When students have gathered enough information, provide them with construction paper, drawing materials, and string. Instruct students to draw a picture of their organism and to write on it the energy source and facts gained from their research. They should then attach the string to the drawing so that it may be worn around the neck.
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