Too many predators or too many prey is not good for a habitat. Pupils learn how the predator-prey relationship serves to maintain healthy populations with a game simulation. Individuals take on the roles of either a predator or prey and play a modified game of tag to model how the populations change within a habitat.

Concepts

predator-prey relationships, predators, prey, animal populations

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Additional Tags

science

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Instructional Ideas

• Vary the ratio of predators and prey and collect data on the time it takes to balance the populations
• Have pupils give examples of other predator-prey relationships and play the game with different pairs

Classroom Considerations

• Allow time to collect and prepare materials

Pros

• Provides important background information
• Includes a teaching guide to help plan for instruction

Cons

• None