Lesson 54 of 84 · Light Optics
Simulation⭐ 30 XP⚡ Spark LabEcosystems: Living and Nonliving Parts (Part 2)
Light Optics.
🎯 Your mission
Push the limits. See what changes.
⚡ The twist
Energy never disappears — it just hides somewhere else.
Mind = Blown
🎢 You feel weightless on a roller coaster because you and the seat are falling at the same speed.
Make a hypothesis first
Before you start: which will move faster, and why?
What You'll Learn
Ecosystems include all the living and nonliving things in an area that interact with each other. A pond ecosystem includes fish, frogs, algae, water, rocks, and sunlight.
Key Words
- adaptation
- metamorphosis
Steps
Read the introduction and identify the main idea of this lesson.
Build a model ecosystem in a jar using soil, small plants, and water. Seal it and observe how the water cycle works inside it for one week.
Compare the before and after states.
Write your conclusion: did the results match your hypothesis? What would you change next time?
Check Your Understanding
Question 1
1 of 3What is an ecosystem?
Where you see this in real life
You use this every time you flip a light switch, ride a bike, or kick a ball.
Stretch Challenge
Try this in real life this week.
Time how long a small ball rolls down something, then change the slope and try again.
For the dinner table
“Show me something at home that uses this kind of energy.”
Next Smart Experiment
We'll pick an experiment that matches exactly how you're thinking right now.
Share this experiment
Send it to a parent who's looking for a 10-minute kitchen science win.
Checkout complete lesson on Light Optics for 9th Grade
Get the full Light Optics track as a printable PDF — all lessons, worksheets, and answer keys.