Animal Needs
Readiness
TEKS Objective
The student is expected to observe the way organisms live and survive in their ecosystem by interacting with the living and non-living elements.
Essential Understanding
The student knows that there are relationships, systems, and cycles within environments.
Science Background
Wildlife’s Requirements for Survival: Texas Parks and Wildlife (PDF) - Learn about the three basic needs of animals (food, water and shelter) and how to provide them when setting up backyard animal stations.
Wildlife’s Requirements for Survival
Texas Parks and Wildlife, www.tpwd.state.tx.us
Signature Lesson
Habitat Breakdown: Texas A&M University (website) - Students engaged in this game to learn about interdependence within an ecosystem, interact with living and non-living elements, and investigate the critical roles that food, water, shelter and space play in enabling organisms to survive in their native habitats. Includes assessment and math connections.
- Supporting Lessons
- Extensions
- Assessment Ideas
- Literature Connections
- Related
TEKS - Additional Resources
Supporting Lessons
Animals’ Needs: BioEd Online (website) - Students compare a worm model to a live worm, create a terrarium that enables the class to observe live worms over time, and learn how worms interact with living and non-living elements within their environment.
Elaboration Lessons and Extensions
How Many Black Bears Will Reproduce? North American Bear Center (PDF) - This role-playing game simulates factors affecting bear survival in the wild and teaches students about an environment’s carrying capacity, competition for survival within a species, and basic needs of living things.
How Many Black Bears Will Reproduce?
North American Bear Center, www.bear.org
What Animals Need to Live: Penn State University (website) - Students name the four things animals need to survive; define herbivore, carnivore, and omnivore; and understand the concept of an animal’s habitat.
What Animals Need to Live
Penn State University, School of Forest Resources, sfr.psu.edu
Assessment Ideas
- Have students respond, either verbally or in writing, to each statement below.
- Identify three things that every living thing needs to live.
- Describe two things that might happen if an animal’s needs are not met.
- Explain why an animal sometimes may not be able to meet its needs.
- Have each student draw a picture of an animal in its natural environment, being sure to include all resources that the animal needs to survive. Next, instruct each student to write a paragraph describing his/her picture, and identifying the animal as an herbivore, carnivore or omnivore.
Literature Connections
Animals Eating: How Animals Chomp, Chew, Slurp and Swallow. Hickman, Pamela (ISBN-13: 978-1550745795)
How Animals Live: The Amazing World of Animals in the Wild. Berttram, Esther (ISBN-13: 978-0439548342)
Additional Resources
Build Your Wild Self: Wildlife Conservation Society (website) - Fun, interactive site that allows students to learn the characteristics, traits and adaptations of various animals while “building” cartoon versions of themselves with different animal parts.
Build Your Wild Self
Wildlife Conservation Society, www.buildyourwildself.com
Bug Fun!: University of Kentucky Department of Entomology (website) - A robust resource to support your instruction about insects. Includes crafts, projects, games and jokes.
Bug Fun!
University of Kentucky Department of Entomology, www.uky.edu/Ag/Entomology
TEKS Navigation
Grade 5
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