Animal Adaptations

Purpose: To learn how animals adapt to their environments

Materials

• set of animal adaptation cards
• plastic zippered bag

Procedure

1. Print out the animal adaptation cards.
2. Cut out the animal adaptation cards along the dotted lines and separate the clues from the pictures.
3. Lay out the clues and try to match three clues to each animal picture. Use reference books or the Internet if you need to learn more about an animal.
4. Place the animal adaptation cards in a plastic zippered bag when you are finished to keep them in good shape for the next time they are used!

Extension
Make your own animal adaptation cards for someone else to match! You can draw your own images or search the web and print out pictures that match the clues you've researched!

I can get all the water I need from the plants I eat. I can "gallop" at speeds of up to 64 km per hour. My big ears give off a lot of body heat and help to keep me from overheating. My hard outer shell helps to protect my soft body from predators. I can make my own cement to attach myself to stationary objects. I have feathery legs for trapping plankton and other food.

Scales that stick out on the sides of my toes keep me from sinking into sand. My shovel-shaped nose helps me dig a path when I dive under the sand. Special scales keep sand out of my eyes. My partially webbed hind feet help me to swim. My flattened tail acts as a rudder. My teeth help me to shred cattails and other plants to build my lodge.

My thick, brown fur helps to keep me warm in cold water. My webbed hind feet help me swim. My front fins help me crack open shellfish with rocks. My long beak helps me to drink the nectar from plants. My wings help me to hover in one place. My small body is lightweight.