Teacher sheet · Ages 6–7 · about 45–50 minutes
Where do animals live?
Lesson page: echoesof.science/school/habitats/ages-6-7/ · Pupil worksheet: echoesof.science/school/habitats/ages-6-7/print/
Learning aims
- A habitat is the place where a plant or animal lives.
- A habitat provides food, water, shelter and space.
- Animals have features that suit their habitat (camel, polar bear).
- Small habitats such as under a log are homes too, and must be left as we found them.
Lesson plan
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 5 min | Starter: what does your home give you? Compare with what an animal needs. |
| 10 min | Read the text together. |
| 20 min | Habitat hunt outside. |
| 5 min | Play Who lives where? or do the quiz. |
| 5 min | Share: which place had the most animals? |
Materials for the experiment
- Clipboard and recording sheet
- Pencil
- A magnifying glass
- A soft paintbrush and a clear pot for looking (optional)
- Gloves
Safety: An adult lifts logs and stones and checks the area first for broken glass and other hazards. Wear gloves, do not touch animals with bare hands, and wash your hands afterwards. Put everything back where you found it.
Common misconceptions
| Pupils may think… | Actually… |
|---|---|
| A camel's hump is full of water. | It is fat, which the camel uses for energy. |
| A habitat is just where an animal sleeps. | It must also give food, water and space. |
| Any animal could live anywhere. | Each animal is suited to its own habitat; a polar bear could not live in a hot desert. |
Worksheet answers
- Any animal drawn in a suitable habitat, with food, water and shelter shown.
- The desert.
- Any one of: food, water, shelter, space.
Quiz answers
- What is a habitat? The place where an animal or plant lives. A habitat is a living thing's home.[1]
- What does a habitat give an animal? Food, water, shelter and space. These are the things every living thing needs.[2]
- What is inside a camel's hump? Fat. The hump stores fat, not water.[3]
- What helps keep a polar bear warm? Thick fat and special fur. Fat and fur keep the cold out.[4]
- Where do woodlice like to live? In damp, dark places. Woodlice dry out quickly in dry air.[5]
Going further
Build a 'bug hotel' from logs, sticks and leaves in a quiet corner of the school grounds and look at it again in a few weeks. What has moved in?
Sources used in this lesson
- [1] Habitat (OLogy card) (American Museum of Natural History): reliability High
- [2] Habitat (National Geographic Education): reliability Medium-high
- [3] How do camels survive in deserts? (Natural History Museum, London): reliability High
- [4] Polar Bear (San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance): reliability Medium-high
- [5] Woodlice habitats (Nuffield Foundation (Practical Biology)): reliability High
Full list with links and a note on each source's reliability: echoesof.science/school/habitats/sources/
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