EGYPTIAN AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
Elementary Science Department
Semester 2 GRADE 5
Name :
Date :
Homework sheet 6.3
Write the letter of the best choice
______1. Ecosystems have producers, consumers, and decomposers. Why are decomposers important in an
ecosystem?
They are herbivores and keep down the population of plants.
They are carnivores and keep down the population of animals.
They produce more food for other organisms.
They break down dead plants and animals.
______2. Which of these things can function as a decomposer?
bread
leaves
fungus
rotting meat
______3. In a rotting-log ecosystem, how are both the fungi that grow on dead bark and the beetles that eat
the wood alike?
They are predators.
They are producers.
They are the decomposers.
They are the energy source.
______4. Erin needs to complete the chart below.
Facts about . . .
Consumers
Producers
Decomposers
Which statement belongs in the “Decomposers” column?
eat plants
eat plants and/or animals
use photosynthesis to make food
return nutrients to the soil
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______5. A tree in the forest grows old and dies. It gradually falls apart inside, and finally falls over. In
time, fungus is visible on the fallen log. What is this process called?
decomposition
molding
ecosystem
producing
______6. Which of these happens during the time a fallen log is decomposing?
The fallen log slowly begins to die.
The fallen log continues to produce food.
The materials in the log combine into new, complex parts.
The materials in the log are broken into smaller, simpler parts.
______7. Alex notices a small spot of fungus growing on an orange in the back of his refrigerator. He
doesn’t eat the orange. He looks at the orange again a week later. Which of these is he most likely to
observe?
The fungus has gone away.
The fungus has not changed.
The fungus has grown larger.
The fungus has changed color.
______8. Jackson and Kathryn were assigned to observe the growth of fungus on a hamburger bun. They
sprayed one half
of the bun with water and sealed it in a plastic bag. They left the other half of the bun dry and sealed it in
a different plastic bag. Over time, what did they observe?
Mold grew faster on the dry bun.
Mold grew the same on both buns.
Mold did not grow inside sealed bags.
Mold grew faster on the moistened bun.
______9. Below is a diagram of a basic food web.
What is the best word to put in to replace the letter X?
decomposers
first-level consumers
predators
second-level consumers
______10. Which of these is a decomposer?
bread
heat
mold
water
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