DESCRIPTION: Students will learn the importance of adaptations to humans and animals, explore various adaptations that animals have to meet their survival requirements, and play a game that illustrates the importance of communication as a form of adaptation. Students will then apply their knowledge in a group activity to observe, research, and present specific adaptation requirements for various animals at our Environmental Centre, then create an animal of their own to live in a specific habitat.
OBJECTIVES: Upon completion of this lesson students will be able to
- Define adaptation as any structural, behavioural, or social characteristic that enables animals to survive and reproduce in their environment.
- Investigate various animals and identify specific examples of adaptation necessary for them to live in their environment.
- Classify groups of animals by their structural characteristics.
- Apply their understanding of various forms of adaptation to design an animal with adaptations for a specific habitat.
AREA OF ACTIVITY: Environmental Centre/and or Group Challenge pavilion
MATERIALS PROVIDED: pencils/paper, string, gloves, pictures of animals, animal natural history information, worksheets
Game supplies: masks, animal cards
Scrap materials: glue, rubber bands, pipe cleaners, felt, Popsicle sticks, etc. clip boards
Skulls: cat skull (carnivore), deer or rodent skull (herbivore), raccoon or fox skull (omnivore)
PROCEDURES: Introduction (15 minutes)
Explain that for the next hour or so the students will be focusing on the idea of adaptation. Ask the group for a definition of adaptation. An adaptation is any physical, social, or behavioural characteristic that enable organisms to survive and reproduce in their habitat. What do all plants and animals need to survive? food, water, air, protection, space. Do they all meet their needs in the same way? Some examples of animal adaptations are beaks. Claws, teeth, tongues, etc. What adaptations do people have? Opposable thumb, upright stature, larger brain and ability to reason
Tell students that they are going to do an experiment to see how well we do without one of our adaptations. Give each student a pair of gloves without thumbs. Give each student a piece of yarn and ask then to tie it into a knot without using their thumb. Ask those who did to then untie their knot. Was it easy or hard? Was it impossible? What would be difficult to do if you lost the use of your thumb? Writing, eating with utensils, opening door etc. It would decrease you gripping ability for almost anything.
Animal Adaptations (20 minutes)
Diet and Dentition
To better understand how adaptations work, the students will take a closer look at some particular adaptations.
What do we need to remain healthy?
Do all animals eat the same food?
If an animal eats only plants what do we call them? Herbivores.
Name a herbivore. Rabbit, grasshopper, deer etc.
What do you call an animal that only eats meat? Carnivore.
Name a carnivore? Wolf, preying mantis, owl etc.
What do you call an animal that eats both plants and meat? Omnivore.
Name an Omnivore? Human, fox, raccoon.
Do they all have the same type of teeth to eat different foods?
Examine three skulls from three different animals. One is an herbivore, a carnivore and an omnivore. Try to decide by looking at the teeth, which one eats plants, meat, and both. Pass around skulls. Have them be gentle. Take a vote to decide each skulls food preference.
Show them:
- Incisors, in front of mouth, are used for cutting.
- Canines, next to incisors, are for tearing and cutting teeth meat.
- Molars, in back of mouth, do the grinding
Can the students think of any other adaptations besides teeth that animals have to satisfy their diet? (Carnivores have strong jaw muscles, herbivores have specialized digestive systems to process the indigestible cellulose in vegetation, Chickens, turkeys, and other seed eating birds have gizzard which grinds tough seed shells before being digested).
All animals have adaptations for them to survive. We just looked at one particular adaptation animals have to survive, jaw structure and function, now let’s take a look at some other forms of adaptation. Show pictures of animals and ask students to name an adaptation it would have. Add some fun facts.
Sound off (open area next to or across from EC) (20 minutes)
Have students imagine that they are animals with poor vision or are active at night. What senses would you use? (hearing, smelling). How would you communicate? (sound). The ability to communicate is a very important one. Can you name some animals that communicate with sound? (crickets chirp, frogs ribbet, whales sing, wolves howl, crows caw, etc.). What do you think these calls communicate? Frogs and crickets call during mating; Crows call often as an alarm signal triggered by the sighting of a predator; the rattlesnakes rattle warns possible predators to stay away; a wolf’s howl may communicate the location of the pack’s members or that a prey has been found.
Directions for the Game
- Explain to students that they are going to pretend to be animals that communicate by sound. They will be wearing masks so they will have to rely on their sense of hearing. Most of the participants will be ― “prey” but one or two people will be ― “predators”. Discuss the meaning of predator and prey.
A Predator is an animal that captures and eats other animals.
A Prey is an animal that predators eat.
- Explain that every prey will have a secret partner, who is the same animal. The object of the game is for the prey to make their animal sound and find their partner before being caught by a predator.
- Pass out masks. Point out the boundaries of the game zone, and select areas along the edge to serve as CAPTURED and SAFE areas. Go over the rules with the group:
- Everyone may move freely, but no running is allowed!
- No peeking!
- If the predator tags you, take off your mask and move to the captured area. Predators must be sure the prey knows that they have been tagged.
- Prey that successfully find their secret partners should take off their masks and go to the SAFE area to watch the rest of the game.
- Have students form a large circle and pass out animal cards with animal calls. Give one or two students a ― “predator” card.
- When everyone has their mask on, shout ― “Sound Off!” to start the first game.
Play a couple rounds if time permits.
Discussion
- Was it difficult/easy to find your partner using only your hearing? Why?
- What two things does communication involve to be effective? Giving and receiving of information.
- What could you do to communicate more effectively? Call less frequently, so you can hear the other person. Set a pattern of calls that could be more easily identified by the other person.
- Was it difficult/easy for the predator to locate his prey? Why?
- What methods did the predator use to locate and catch his prey?
- What other ways do animals communicate without using sound? (freezing, tail flash, body gesture, odour, mimicry/warning colours)
Communication whether by sound or another method, is an important adaptation that helps animals survive. It can help them avoid being eaten by another animal, it can help them to find prey, and it can help them to reproduce by establishing territory, finding a mate, and protecting young.
Animal Adaptation Investigation (30 minutes)
Tell students that they will be working in groups to observe and research an animal at the Environmental Centre to find out how it is adapted to live in its natural environment, and then present their findings to the group.
Divide students into pairs or groups of three and assign each group an animal to research. If available, Students should observe and research at least on animal from each group, an arthropod (tarantula), rodent (rat), lagamorph (rabbit), bird (turkey, chicken), ungulate (Sardinian donkey, goat), reptile (red-eared slider, box turtle).
Pass out each group’s animals’ natural history information and adaptation worksheet.
Have them quietly observe and research their animal’s natural history and complete the worksheet.
If they are unable to identify adaptations for specific questions asked on the worksheet, encourage them to think and be creative. Animals will not be removed from their homes or handled for close examination unless a trained Outdoor School Staff person is teaching or assisting this lesson.
IT IS IMPORTANT THAT THE STUDENTS KNOW NOT TO PICK UP, PET OR FEED THE ANIMALS. ALSO, ALL STUDENTS MUST WASH THEIR HANDS WITH SOAP AND WATER AFTER BEING NEAR ANIMAL ENCLOSURES – NO EXCEPTIONS!
A member of The Outdoor School Staff will be happy to bring the animals out for closer examination and for touching.
Upon completion of the worksheet, bring groups together to present their findings. If possible have students present at their animal’s enclosure, so everyone will have an opportunity to meet and observe all the animals at the environmental centre.
Create a Creature (30 minutes)
We observed a variety of adaptations some of which are structural, behavioural, and social required for an animal to meet its needs for food, warmth, protection, and reproduction. Now you will have an opportunity to apply these adaptations and invent new ones to create your very own animal to live in a specific habitat using the craft materials provided. Challenge students to use natural objects to create their creature. Show the group the Habitat Description Sheet that describes a specific habitat and read a couple of selections. While the students create their creature, they should think about the following:
- A descriptive name for the creature, i.e. a 1-eyed, 1-horned, flying purple people eater:
- What type of food it eats, how it gets it, and how it eats it.
- How it protects itself from enemies.
- How the creature moves.
- How it stays warm or cool.
- How it finds and/or builds shelter, etc.
Give each student a Habitat Description and let their imagination go wild. It is important to stress this part of the activity so students think about what they are creating and don’t just create monsters without concerning why they are creating them.
CONCLUSION (10-15 minutes)
Gather together and have the children share everyone’s creature and its adaptations.
Encourage the use of rational adaptations with real-life uses.
If time permits, have children write descriptions of their creatures and make a display in the Environmental Centre.
