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Science lesson plan · 2nd grade (Year 3 in England) · 30 minutes

Habitats and microhabitats

Animals and habitats

CCSS NGSS.2-LS4-1CCSS NGSS.3-LS4-3England: KS1 Y2 Living things and their habitats

Objective and success criteria

Students will: Habitats and microhabitats.

  • I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
  • I can explain each step and say why it works.
  • I can check my answer and spot a mistake.

Before and after

Needs first: What animals need to survive

Leads to: Adaptations to habitats; Match animals to their habitats

Materials: Animal picture cards, Habitat maps, Mini whiteboards, A diagram or short video clip of the idea, Printed student sheet (below).

Warm-up · 4 min

  • Quick retrieval from earlier learning (What animals need to survive). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
  • Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
  1. How does a fish get the oxygen it needs? (it does not need oxygen / from the water, using its gills / by jumping out to breathe air with lungs / from the food it eats) → from the water, using its gillsPrompt: Fish have special parts on the sides of their heads.
  2. What animals need: which statement is true? (Animals only need food, never water. / Fish do not need oxygen. / Animals get energy from their food. / Animals can make their own food from sunlight, like plants.) → Animals get energy from their food.Prompt: Think about what you need to live.
  3. What animals need: which statement is NOT true? (Fish do not need oxygen. / Animals need air to breathe. / Animals need water to survive. / Animals get energy from their food.) → Fish do not need oxygen.Prompt: One sentence is a mistake.

Hook · 3 min

  • Show a picture of an unusual animal and ask where it might live and how it survives there.
  • Share the objective: Habitats and microhabitats. Read the success criteria together.

I do: model it · 7 min

  • Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
  • Example: Which habitat is the polar bear best suited to?
  • Step 1: Polar habitats are icy and cold; animals there have thick fur or fat.
  • Step 2: So the answer is: the Arctic (polar)
  • Answer: the Arctic (polar)
  • Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

We do: guided practice · 6 min

  • Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
  • Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.
  1. Which habitat is the octopus best suited to? (the desert / the rainforest / the ocean / woodland) → the oceanPrompt: Think about where it could find food and stay at a good temperature.
  2. Woodlice are found under logs and stones. What does this microhabitat give them? (damp and dark conditions / hot and dry conditions / salty water / bright sunlight) → damp and dark conditionsPrompt: Woodlice dry out easily.

You do: independent practice · 7 min

  • Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
  • Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.

The 6 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

Exit ticket · 3 min

  • Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
  1. What is a habitat? (a type of weather / a kind of food / an animal's baby / the natural home of a plant or animal) → the natural home of a plant or animalPrompt: It is where something lives.
  2. Which habitat is the deer best suited to? (woodland / the rainforest / the ocean / the desert) → woodlandPrompt: Think about where it could find food and stay at a good temperature.

Watch out for

  • Everyday meanings of words getting in the way of the science meaning: define key words explicitly.
  • Remembering facts without the reason: ask "why?" and "what is the evidence?"

Support and stretch

Support

  • Review first: What animals need to survive.
  • Use concrete materials: animal picture cards.
  • Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
  • Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.

Stretch

  • Move on to: Adaptations to habitats; Match animals to their habitats.
  • Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
  • Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.

Homework and more practice

Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/science/grade-2.

Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder

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Habitats and microhabitats

Name

Date

Score/ 6

  1. Question 1

    Which habitat is the camel best suited to?

    • A. woodland
    • B. the ocean
    • C. the Arctic (polar)
    • D. the desert

  2. Question 2

    Why could a polar bear not survive well in a hot desert?

    • A. Its thick fur and fat would make it overheat.
    • B. Deserts have no sunlight.
    • C. It cannot walk on sand.
    • D. It needs to eat cactus.

  3. Question 3

    Which animal lives in woodland?

    • A. rattlesnake
    • B. toucan
    • C. Arctic fox
    • D. badger

  4. Question 4

    Which habitat is the scorpion best suited to?

    • A. the rainforest
    • B. the Arctic (polar)
    • C. the desert
    • D. woodland

  5. Question 5

    Which animal lives in the Arctic (polar)?

    • A. deer
    • B. blue whale
    • C. Arctic fox
    • D. toucan

  6. Question 6

    What is a habitat?

    • A. a kind of food
    • B. the natural home of a plant or animal
    • C. an animal's baby
    • D. a type of weather

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Answer key: Habitats and microhabitats

  1. 1. D. the desert

  2. 2. A. Its thick fur and fat would make it overheat.

  3. 3. D. badger

  4. 4. C. the desert

  5. 5. C. Arctic fox

  6. 6. B. the natural home of a plant or animal