Curated OER
Building a Bird's Nest
Students identify local birds and their habitats. For this wildlife lesson, students list various birds that live in their area and match the descriptions of the birds to the photos. Students build a diorama of a birds nest.
Curated OER
Understanding Interactions Among Local Species and the Local Environment
Students examine the differences between biotic and abiotic factors, explain the difference between habitat and niche and compare how organisms get their nutritional needs. For this local environment lesson students trace the path of...
Michigan State University
In Search of Life
Explore the habitats around you with an activity that takes kids out of the classroom to learn about the local variety of habitats and the living things that call them home. In small groups, scholars investigate their surroundings,...
Curated OER
environment: Fresh and Saltwater Habitats
Students compare and contrast fresh and salt water coastal environments. After describing how sea animals adapt to their habitats, they design a variety of sea creatures and explain how the adaptations aid in the animals' survival. ...
Curated OER
Freshwater Habitats
Students take samples from local freshwater sources and examine them for macroinvertebrate life. They take samples from both shallow and deep freshwater environments, measure temperatures, and classify organisms found in their samples.
Curated OER
Regions and Habitats
Fourth graders identify the different habitats found in the seven regions of the United States. In this ecology lesson, 4th graders write an essay about how humans affect the ecosystem and vice versa. They discuss how changes on one...
Curated OER
Historical Harbor Habitats
Tenth graders create food web displays in the classroom. For this ecology lesson, 10th graders identify the different pollutants in the environment and their effect on organisms. They collect samples of sediments from the harbor and...
Curated OER
Mathematics Alive: Environment and Design of Human Habitats
Third graders explore the structural composition of buildings and houses. In this math lesson, 3rd graders explain how architecture is related to mathematics. They create a blueprint of a structure with at least three different spaces.
Purdue University
Explore Your Habitat
Get a hands-on look at a local habitat. A three-part activity begins with a discussion of the characteristics of a local habitat. Pupils then test their knowledge by playing a game to match animals to their habitats. Finally, they go on...
Disney
Where Do Brown Bears Live?
What do brown bears in Alaska's Katmai National Park need to survive? Pupils explore the unique habitats, diet, and survival needs of this animal. They predict the consequences of removing any integral part of the bear's survival, and...
Project WET Foundation
Explore Watersheds
What makes a watershed? What are the natural and human features of a watershed? How do human features affect watersheds? Where can I find my local watershed? These questions are thoroughly explained in an informative watershed interactive.
Purdue University
Mammals and Ecosystems
Mammals have unique interactions with their ecosystems. Using a multi-part lesson, learners research local mammals using recommended websites and use their findings to create their own paper ecosystems including appropriate mammals. They...
PBS
Reading Adventure Pack: Oceans
Flotsam by David Wiesner and The Magic School Bus on the Ocean Floor by Joanna Cole, illustrated by Bruce Degen, begin a reading adventure pack focusing on oceans. With story listening and thoughtful discussion, scholars complete several...
Curated OER
Local Animal Sort
Students examine the concepts of sorting and classifying animal. They use familiar animals to determine the connections between physical characteristics and categorization.
Curated OER
Interdependence and adaptation
Students use keys to identify animals and plants in local habitats. Students are asked if they remember what the word habitat means. Students make a list of three different local habitats and brainstorm animals and plants they might...
Curated OER
Adaptation and Diversity on Sheffield Island
Written for an exploration of shoreline ecosystems on Sheffield Island, this gives ecology or marine biology buffs a hands-on experience. Using GPS or visual triangulation techniques, they lay transect lines on a high and a low energy...
Community Resources for Science
Food Webs/Clipfish
Human impact on habitats can be alarming. A hands-on activity has learners explore the impact of human interactions with different environments using a gamified approach. They simulate the impact of a species' abundance under different...
Curated OER
Plants and Animals
Students discuss the different types of plants and animals in a local environment. For this science lesson, students name some plants and animals understanding that they require different habitats to live. Students use computers to...
Curated OER
Sprinkles 5
In this environment instructional activity, students read the information and complete the survey about their own local habitats and some of the others in Florida.
American Physiological Society
Hoo Eats Who and What is What in Your Own Backyard?
Bird is the word! Teach life science scholars the importance of our feathered friends and the roles they play in our ecosystem. Using the plan, learners investigate the birds in their areas, determine the biotic and abiotic factors that...
Foundation for Water & Energy Education
How Can a Dam Affect a River? Activity A
Written for Washington state students in life science, this lesson provides an opportunity to examine the residents of local freshwater habitats. You or the class collects a water sample, and learners try to examine what organisms live...
Curated OER
Plants and Animals in the Local Environment
Students recognize the different types of plants and animals living in a local environment. They determine how they require different habitats to live, and relate simple life processes to plants and animals found in local environments.
Curated OER
Create a Field Guide of Local Plants
Students become familiar with making herbarium specimens as well as utilizing field guides to help identify the species which they gather. They use their herbarium collection to create personalized field guides with plants in their...
Curated OER
Illinois' Habitats Happening
Students use the scientific inquiry method to examine the ecosystems and biomes in Illinois. Using the characteristics of a local habitat, they identify the best conditions for an ecosystem to survive and how a slight change can damage...