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Grade 7 Science Vocabulary · Trimester 3, Topic 3.2

Energy Flow through the Ecosystem

How energy from the sun flows through food chains and food webs, and how matter is recycled between living things and their environment.

Ohio science standards in this unit

  • 7.LS.1 · Matter & energy in living thingsEnergy flows and matter is transferred continuously from one organism to another and between organisms and their physical environments.

18 science words (Tier 3) and 6 academic words (Tier 2). Every word has a plain-language definition and an example sentence, written to support WIDA's Standard 4 (Science) English Language Development standard.

One word list, many ways to practice

These are the same 18 words, used in different tools. Students can start any of them right away. No student accounts or sign-in.

See the words in a picture

Label the Diagram: Energy pyramid

A four-level pyramid with plants at the bottom, a small plant-eater, a larger hunter, and a bird at the top, sunlight shining in, and a mushroom to the side.

Students place 5 words on numbered spots: producer, primary consumer, secondary consumer, tertiary consumer, decomposer. They can turn on meanings and hear each word read aloud.

Teachers: open the same picture in ELLEvision to move labels, add words or audio, and publish your own version. ELLEvision needs a teacher sign-in.

Label the diagram

Break words into meaningful parts

Build It in ELLEments

Science words are often built from smaller parts. 7 words in this unit come with their parts ready, so students can hear each word, read it in a sentence, and build it from its pieces.

  • producerproducer

    Grass is the producer in this food chain.

  • consumerconsumer

    A rabbit is a consumer because it eats plants.

  • decomposerdecomposer

    A mushroom is a decomposer on the forest floor.

  • herbivoreherbivore

    A deer is an herbivore.

  • carnivorecarnivore

    A wolf is a carnivore.

Tier 2 · Academic language

Words students need to talk and write about this unit

These are not science words, but students meet them in every task and question. Pre-teach them alongside the science words.

interact
To act on or affect each other.
“Predators and prey interact in a food web.”
depend
To need something or someone in order to survive.
“Owls depend on mice for food.”
cycle
A set of events that repeats again and again in the same order.
“Decomposers keep the nutrient cycle going.”
flow
To move along steadily in one direction.
“Energy can flow from the sun to a hawk through a food chain.”
predict
To say what you think will happen, based on what you know.
“Predict what happens to rabbits if foxes disappear.”
model
A drawing, object, or idea that shows how something works.
“Draw a model of the food web in a pond.”

Study guide

Words are grouped by the standard they support. Blue tiles show a word’s parts.

Matter & energy in living things (7.LS.1)

producerproducer
A living thing, like a plant, that makes its own food using energy from sunlight.Grass is the producer in this food chain.
consumerconsumer
A living thing that gets energy by eating other living things.A rabbit is a consumer because it eats plants.
primary consumer
An animal that eats producers. It is the first animal in a food chain.A grasshopper is a primary consumer.
secondary consumer
An animal that eats plant-eating animals.A snake that eats mice is a secondary consumer.
tertiary consumer
An animal that eats animals that eat other animals. It is near the top of a food chain.A hawk that eats snakes is a tertiary consumer.
decomposerdecomposer
A living thing, like a fungus or bacteria, that breaks down dead matter and returns nutrients to the soil.A mushroom is a decomposer on the forest floor.
herbivoreherbivore
An animal that eats only plants.A deer is an herbivore.
carnivorecarnivore
An animal that eats only other animals.A wolf is a carnivore.
omnivoreomnivore
An animal that eats both plants and animals.A raccoon is an omnivore.
food chain
A path showing how energy passes from one living thing to the next when one eats another.Grass, rabbit, fox is a simple food chain.
food web
Many food chains in an ecosystem connected together.The food web shows that owls eat mice and snakes.
energy pyramid
A diagram that shows how much energy is available at each level of a food chain.The energy pyramid is widest at the bottom.
photosynthesisphotosynthesis
The process plants use to make food (sugar) from sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide.Photosynthesis brings the sun’s energy into the food web.
cellular respiration
The process cells use to release energy from food, using oxygen and giving off carbon dioxide and water.Cellular respiration gives a running deer the energy it needs.
trophic level
A feeding level in a food chain, like producers or primary consumers.Only about 10% of the energy passes up to the next trophic level.
nutrient
A substance living things need to grow and stay healthy.Decomposers return each nutrient to the soil.
carbon cycle
The way carbon moves between the air, living things, the ocean, and rocks.Burning wood adds carbon dioxide to the air and changes the carbon cycle.
matter
Anything that has mass and takes up space.Matter is recycled in an ecosystem, but energy flows through and is lost as heat.

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