Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs Teachers: Canyonlands: Tonight Our Guest Is

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
This lesson will help students understand that animals adapt to abiotic and biotic conditions in their environment, some of which have evolved over a long period of time through the process of natural selection, and identify the...
Handout
Chicago Zoological Society

Chicago Zoological Society: Zoo Explorer: Aardvark

For Students 9th - 10th
Get acquainted with the unusual aardvark by reading this animal guide from the Brookfield Zoo. Highlights include quick facts, a photo, and details on its appearance, eating habits, and other characteristics that define this nocturnal...
Article
Curated OER

Kids Health: Hey! A Scorpion Bit Me

For Students 3rd - 5th
This site is provided for by Kids Health. Scorpions are nocturnal, which means they sleep mostly during the day and are active at night. Read about characteristics of scorpions, where they live, and what to do if you are stung by one.
Handout
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of Natural History: American Mammals: Antelope Jackrabbit

For Students 4th - 8th
Antelope Jackrabbits are nocturnal and crepuscular, and almost never vocalize. They are probably the fastest runners of their genus, with a top speed of 72 km per hour. Learn more about the Lepus alleni, more commonly known as an...
Handout
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of Natural History: American Mammals: California Deermouse

For Students 4th - 8th
California Deermice are nocturnal, with peak activity periods near dusk and dawn. Adults are fairly sedentary, spending much of their time nesting under fallen logs or debris, in trees, or in the dens made by other rodents. Learn more...
Handout
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of Natural History: American Mammals: Bailey's Pocket Mouse

For Students 4th - 8th
Bailey's Pocket Mice are solitary, nocturnal, and live in burrows. Pocket Mice mostly eat seeds, using their "pockets," fur-lined, external cheek pouches, to bring seeds to their nests, where they store them in preparation for leaner...
Handout
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of Natural History: American Mammals: Cinereus Shrew

For Students 4th - 8th
Mainly nocturnal and rarely seen, the Cinereus Shrew is nonetheless common and widespread below the timberline in northern deciduous and coniferous forests, in both wet and dry habitats. It is also known as the Masked Shrew and the...
Handout
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of Natural History: American Mammals: Southern Short Tailed Shrew

For Students 4th - 8th
The Southern Short-tailed Shrew is a highly active, primarily nocturnal predator. It is most common in moist, well-drained hardwood forests or pine stands, especially where deep organic litter provides easy burrowing for shelter and...
Handout
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of Natural History: American Mammals: Snowshoe Hare

For Students 4th - 8th
The Snowshoe Hare is broadly distributed in the north from coast to coast and occurs in a variety of habitat types, including swamps, hardwood forests, and mixed and evergreen forests. Nocturnal like most members of the family, this hare...
Handout
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of Natural History: American Mammals: White Eared Pocket Mouse

For Students 4th - 8th
One subspecies of the White-eared Pocket Mouse may be extinct, and the other is extremely rare, consisting of isolated, relict populations near the western Mojave Desert in California. White-eared Pocket Mice are nocturnal and probably...
Handout
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of Natural History: American Mammals: Ringtail

For Students 4th - 8th
Ringtails are nocturnal, cat-sized carnivores. They are good climbers and are found in habitats that range from dry canyons to wet woodlands, in highland and lowland terrain. Learn more about the Bassariscus astutus, more commonly known...
Handout
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of Natural History: American Mammals: Swift Fox

For Students 4th - 8th
Swift foxes are primarily nocturnal, but can sometimes be seen sunning themselves near the entrance to a den. They live on prairie grasslands just east of the Rocky Mountains. Learn more about the Vulpes velox, more commonly known as a...
Handout
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of Natural History: American Mammals: Fulvous Harvest Mouse

For Students 4th - 8th
The fulvous Harvest Mouse is a nocturnal species that lives in grassy fields where there are shrubs. These Mice are good climbers, and build baseball-sized nests up off the ground, in vegetation. Learn more about the Reithrodontomys...
Activity
Read Works

Read Works: All About Bats

For Teachers 1st - 3rd Standards
[Free Registration/Login Required] This nonfiction passages describes the characteristics of bats. This passage is a stand-alone curricular piece that reinforces essential reading skills and strategies and establishes scaffolding for...
Activity
Read Works

Read Works: A Real Life Bat Man

For Teachers 4th - 6th Standards
[Free Registration/Login Required] This passage describes the responsibilities of a chiroptologist, a person who studies bats for a living. This passage is a stand-alone curricular piece that reinforces essential reading skills and...
Handout
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of Natural History: Snowy Owl

For Students 9th - 10th
This Smithsonian website has a brief, but thorough, article on the Snowy Owl that also includes a picture and an extensive quote from the 19th Century naturalist Edward Nelson.
Handout
Other

Osito the Kinkajou

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn about kinkajous from a scientific standpoint, their habitat, behavior, diet, and the like--and learn how to keep these South American animals as pets.
Handout
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of Natural History: Hall of Mammals: Bushbaby

For Students 9th - 10th
Brief illustrated overview of the bushbaby and an accompanying video demonstrate the physical adaptations that allow this animal to communicate with family members.
Handout
Canadian Museum of Nature

Canadian Museum of Nature: Striped Skunk

For Students 9th - 10th
The Canadian Museum of Nature offers a detailed drawing of a striped skunk followed by a brief description of the animal.
Article
Scientific American

Scientific American: A Promenade With Prosimians

For Students 9th - 10th
This article, published by Scientific American (September 2002), takes a look at the lemurs and their next of kin at the Duke Primate Center.
Handout
Unique Australian Animals

Unique Australian Animals: Tasmanian Devil

For Students 9th - 10th
The Tasmanian devil is a real Australian marsupial mammal and nothing like the cartoon character as you will find out in this illustrated article.
Handout
Unique Australian Animals

Unique Australian Animals: Red Tailed Phascogale

For Students 9th - 10th
Discover the Australian red-tailed phascogale, also called the brush-tailed marsupial mouse, in this illustrated article.
Website
Enchanted Learning

Enchanted Learning: Wild Skunks

For Students Pre-K - 1st
Here you can find all kinds of useful information about wild skunks, including how they "spray," what they eat, and what they look like.
Activity
Other

Port Discovery Children's Museum: Stem at Home: Bug Bingo

For Students Pre-K - 1st
Did you know that there are more than 1.5 million species of named bugs? You can find so many bugs right in your own back or front yard and you can have some fun of your own playing the two Bug Bingo games.

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