Science // Ecosystems & Habitats

Simple Food Chains

Describe how animals obtain their food from plants and other animals, using the idea of a simple food chain, and identify different sources of food

Ages
6 to 7
Type
Concept
Builds on
5 topics
Leads to
2 topics
Standards
1 code

Quick check

Can the learner draw a food chain showing how a caterpillar eats a leaf and then a bird eats the caterpillar?

Ask this to see whether the topic is secure.

Topic // Mastery

What mastery looks like

What a learner can do once this topic is secure.
  • Draw a simple food chain with at least three organisms using arrows to show energy flow
  • Explain that food chains always start with a plant (producer) that makes its own food
  • Use the terms 'producer' and 'consumer' correctly when describing a food chain

Topic // Map

Where this fits

What to learn first and what this topic opens up, with the reason for each link. Required links come first.
  • RequiredMust come first
  • HelpfulHelps, but not essential

Before this

5 topics
  • Herbivores, Carnivores & OmnivoresRequired

    Organisms & Life Processes // Ages 5 to 6

    Must know carnivore/herbivore/omnivore to understand food chains

  • Habitats & Basic NeedsRequired

    Ecosystems & Habitats // Ages 6 to 8

    Must know about habitats and interdependence before learning food chains

  • Minibeasts in the food chainHelpful

    Insects & Minibeasts // Ages 5 to 7

    Garden minibeast food chains provide concrete examples for curriculum simple-food-chains

  • Ocean Food ChainsHelpful

    Ocean Life // Ages 5 to 7

    Ocean food chain parallels curriculum simple food chain concept

  • Rainforest AnimalsHelpful

    Rainforests // Ages 5 to 7

    Rainforest animals provide rich examples for simple food chains (exploratory age 5 -> curriculum age 6)

You are here

Simple Food Chains

Ages 6 to 7 // Concept

Leads to

2 topics
  • Food Chains & Energy TransferRequired

    Ecosystems & Habitats // Ages 8 to 9

    Must understand simple food chains before constructing complex ones with producer/predator/prey terminology

  • Changing EnvironmentsHelpful

    Ecosystems & Habitats // Ages 8 to 9

    Food chain knowledge helps understand knock-on effects of environmental change

Topic // Research-informed

Teaching notes

From the Marble Skill Taxonomy. These notes have not been validated in classrooms, so treat them as a starting point for your own judgement.

The approach

For ages 6–7, children learn that a simple food chain shows food-energy passing along a sequence that always starts with a plant (a producer that makes its own food) and flows to animals (consumers). The crux is the arrow convention: the arrow means 'is eaten by / energy flows to' and points from the food to the feeder. Activities span building and drawing a three-link chain, interpreting a given labelled chain, checking structure through ordering and matching, and talking through an organism's place in the chain including what happens if the producer is lost. Aligns with UK DfE KS1 Year 2 'Living things and their habitats'.

Common misconceptions

  • Drawing arrows the wrong way (pointing from the eater to the food).
  • Starting a food chain with an animal instead of a plant.
  • Thinking the arrow means 'eats' rather than 'energy/food flows to'.
  • Believing plants get their food by eating, like animals, rather than making it.
  • Treating the top predator as the 'start' or most important, rather than the producer.

Useful representations

  • A three-link chain with directional arrows (plant→herbivore→carnivore).
  • Producer/consumer labels attached to links.
  • An 'is eaten by' arrow key.
  • Familiar organism cards to arrange into a chain.

Teaching practices

  • Establish the arrow convention explicitly and early: the arrow means 'is eaten by / energy flows to', pointing from food to feeder.
  • Insist every chain STARTS with a plant (producer) and elicit why (only plants make their own food).
  • Use local, familiar organisms first (grass→rabbit→fox) before exotic ones.
  • Draw and read chains both ways — build one, then interpret a given one — to consolidate direction.
  • Link to prior herbivore/carnivore knowledge so consumer roles make sense.

Activities to try

  1. 1

    Build and arrow a three-link food chain

    Why it works: Every food chain starts with a plant that makes its own food, and arrows track food-energy flowing from the eaten to the eater.

    1. Arrange organism cards (grass, rabbit, fox) into the correct order, left to right.
    2. Draw an arrow between each pair of organisms, pointing from the one that is eaten to the one that eats it.
    3. Say aloud what each arrow means: 'is eaten by / the food and energy pass to the next animal.'
    4. Label each link as 'producer' (the plant) or 'consumer' (each animal).
    5. Explain why the chain must begin with the plant: the grass makes its own food, but the rabbit and fox must eat to get theirs.
  2. 2

    Interactive chain reference: read the roles and the arrow

    Why it works: The arrow carries a fixed meaning ('is eaten by / energy flows to') and each organism has a role (producer or consumer) that stays consistent across the chain.

    1. Study a labelled grass→rabbit→fox chain.
    2. Tap or point to each organism to reveal its role: 'I eat… / I am eaten by…' and whether it is a producer or consumer.
    3. Tap or point to each arrow to reveal that it means 'is eaten by / energy flows to'.
    4. Retell the chain in your own words, naming producer and consumer and reading each arrow correctly.
  3. 3

    Order the chain and choose the starting rule

    Why it works: A food chain has a fixed structure — producer first, then consumers — and the arrow direction and role labels can be identified reliably.

    1. Put a scrambled set of organisms (grass, rabbit, fox) into the correct chain order.
    2. Answer: 'What does every food chain start with?' and choose the plant/producer.
    3. Answer an arrow-direction item: which way does the arrow point between two organisms?
    4. Match each organism to its label: 'producer' or 'consumer'.

Topic // Standards

Curriculum standards

Codes for the curriculum statements this topic maps to. Each publisher owns its standard text.
The national curriculum in England: Key stages 1 and 2 framework document
Y2.Sci.LTH.4

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