Back to the lesson plan builder
Lesson length30 min45 min60 min
Questions🔀 New questions

Print the plan for yourself; the student sheet prints on its own page after it.

Science lesson plan · 3rd grade (Year 4 in England) · 45 minutes

Why some animals live in groups

Ecosystems and food chains

CCSS NGSS.3-LS2-1England: KS2 Y4 Living things and their habitats

Objective and success criteria

Students will: Why some animals live in groups.

  • 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: Producers, consumers, predators and prey

Leads to: the next skill in this area.

Materials: Food web cards, Arrows to build chains, Mini whiteboards, A diagram or short video clip of the idea, Printed student sheet (below).

Warm-up · 5 min

  • Quick retrieval from earlier learning (Producers, consumers, predators and prey). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
  • Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
  1. lettuce → slug → hedgehog → badger What is the badger in this food chain? (tertiary consumer / secondary consumer / primary consumer / producer) → tertiary consumerPrompt: Start at the plant and count the arrows.
  2. grass → grasshopper → frog → snake Which animal is the predator of the grasshopper? (grasshopper / frog / snake / grass) → frogPrompt: A predator hunts and eats other animals; its prey is the animal it eats.
  3. Food chains: which statement is true? (Producers eat consumers. / A food chain can start with a lion. / Herbivores are predators. / A top (apex) predator has no natural predators as an adult.) → A top (apex) predator has no natural predators as an adult.Prompt: Producers make food; consumers eat.

Hook · 5 min

  • Show a food web and ask what would happen if one animal disappeared.
  • Share the objective: Why some animals live in groups. Read the success criteria together.

I do: model it · 10 min

  • Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
  • Example: How does living in a group help here: wolves hunting as a pack?
  • Step 1: So the answer is: they can catch animals much bigger than one wolf
  • Answer: they can catch animals much bigger than one wolf
  • Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

We do: guided practice · 10 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. How does living in a group help here: wolves hunting as a pack? (they share warmth in freezing winds / adults protect the calves from lions / they can catch animals much bigger than one wolf / one warns the others when a hawk is near) → they can catch animals much bigger than one wolfPrompt: Think about food, safety, warmth and sharing work.
  2. What is one downside of living in a big group? (Nobody ever helps anyone. / Predators can never find groups. / Groups are always too cold. / Food must be shared, and illnesses spread more easily.) → Food must be shared, and illnesses spread more easily.Prompt: Think of a crowded classroom with one packet of biscuits.

You do: independent practice · 10 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 8 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

Exit ticket · 5 min

  • Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
  1. True or false? Fish swim in shoals to make it easier for predators. (True / False) → FalsePrompt: Think of the benefits and the costs.
  2. How does living in a group help here: honeybees in a hive? (they share warmth in freezing winds / workers share jobs like collecting food and caring for young / adults protect the calves from lions / one warns the others when a hawk is near) → workers share jobs like collecting food and caring for youngPrompt: Think about food, safety, warmth and sharing work.

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: Producers, consumers, predators and prey.
  • Use concrete materials: food web 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

  • 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-3.

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

eurekami

Why some animals live in groups

Name

Date

Score/ 8

  1. Question 1

    True or false? Living in a group can help animals stay warm.

    • A. True
    • B. False

  2. Question 2

    How does living in a group help here: fish swimming in a huge shoal (school)?

    • A. they can catch animals much bigger than one wolf
    • B. they share warmth in freezing winds
    • C. adults protect the calves from lions
    • D. it is hard for a predator to pick out one fish

  3. Question 3

    What is one downside of living in a big group?

    • A. Food must be shared, and illnesses spread more easily.
    • B. Nobody ever helps anyone.
    • C. Groups are always too cold.
    • D. Predators can never find groups.

  4. Question 4

    True or false? Some animals hunt in groups to catch bigger prey.

    • A. True
    • B. False

  5. Question 5

    Geese fly in a V shape and take turns at the front. How does this help?

    • A. It helps them see the ground.
    • B. It makes them fly slower.
    • C. Birds behind save energy, and sharing the front spreads the hard work.
    • D. It keeps them dry.

  6. Question 6

    How does living in a group help here: emperor penguins huddling together?

    • A. adults protect the calves from lions
    • B. workers share jobs like collecting food and caring for young
    • C. they share warmth in freezing winds
    • D. they can catch animals much bigger than one wolf

  7. Question 7

    Why do zebras stay close together in a herd?

    • A. Many eyes spot danger, and the stripes confuse lions.
    • B. To make it easier for lions to catch them.
    • C. To keep the grass warm.
    • D. Because they cannot walk alone.

  8. Question 8

    True or false? In a beehive, different bees do different jobs.

    • A. True
    • B. False

Free from eurekami.com

for the adult only

Answer key: Why some animals live in groups

  1. 1. A. True

  2. 2. D. it is hard for a predator to pick out one fish

  3. 3. A. Food must be shared, and illnesses spread more easily.

  4. 4. A. True

  5. 5. C. Birds behind save energy, and sharing the front spreads the hard work.

  6. 6. C. they share warmth in freezing winds

  7. 7. A. Many eyes spot danger, and the stripes confuse lions.

  8. 8. A. True