Science Assessment ~ Ideas ~ The energy released from food was once energy from the sun that was captured by plants in the chemical process that forms plant matter (from air and water).

Key Idea: The energy released from food was once energy from the sun that was captured by plants in the chemical process that forms plant matter (from air and water).

Students should know that:

Food is a source of fuel for animals.
When animals (including humans) use food as fuel, the energy released is used by the animal to carry out life functions such as moving, building body structures, and staying warm.
The organisms in an ecosystem are a part of a food web in which some animals eat plants and other animals eat the animals that eat plants.
Because of these relationships, the food and therefore the energy released from the food can be traced back to plants.
Because plants obtain energy from the sun, the energy released from food can be traced back to the energy released from the sun.

Boundaries:

Elementary assessment tasks may describe matter and chemical processes at the substance level, and should not refer to atoms and molecules.

Percent of students answering correctly (click on the item ID number to view the item and additional data)
Item ID Number	Knowledge Being Assessed	Grades 6–8	Grades 9–12
AP021006	Create a food web and use it to predict changes to an ocean ecosystem if the seaweed starts to die. (CR version)	N/A	N/A
AP022006	Identify a food web and use it to write a prediction about the changes to an ocean ecosystem if the seaweed starts to die. (MC version)	N/A	N/A
AP018007	Create a model and use it to predict how the matter and energy flow within the Shenandoah National Park ecosystem will change in response to the introduction of a new organism. (CR version)	N/A	N/A
AP052004	Create a model and use it to predict how the matter and energy flow within the Shenandoah National Park ecosystem will change in response to the introduction of a new organism. (MC version)	N/A	N/A

No misconceptions are associated with this idea in the selected project.

No NGSS statements are associated with this idea in the selected project.