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Science lesson plan · 1st grade (Year 2 in England) · 60 minutes

Herbivores, carnivores and omnivores

Animals and habitats

CCSS NGSS.K-LS1-1England: KS1 Y1 Animals, including humans

Objective and success criteria

Students will: Herbivores, carnivores and omnivores.

  • 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: the next skill in this area.

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

Warm-up · 6 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. Why does a rabbit need a burrow? (to find sweets / to make the soil wet / to grow taller / for shelter and to stay safe) → for shelter and to stay safePrompt: What does a home give an animal?
  2. What animals need: which statement is true? (Fish do not need oxygen. / Animals need air to breathe. / Animals can make their own food from sunlight, like plants. / Animals only need food, never water.) → Animals need air to breathe.Prompt: Think about what you need to live.
  3. What animals need: which statement is NOT true? (Animals need air to breathe. / Animals get energy from their food. / Animals can make their own food from sunlight, like plants. / Many animals need shelter from weather and predators.) → Animals can make their own food from sunlight, like plants.Prompt: One sentence is a mistake.

Hook · 6 min

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

I do: model it · 12 min

  • Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
  • Example: Is a sheep a herbivore, a carnivore or an omnivore?
  • Step 1: Herbivores eat only plants.
  • Step 2: So the answer is: herbivore
  • Answer: herbivore
  • Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

We do: guided practice · 12 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. Is a pig a herbivore, a carnivore or an omnivore? (herbivore / carnivore / omnivore) → omnivorePrompt: Does it eat plants, animals or both?
  2. Which of these animals is a herbivore? (elephant / wolf / lion / human) → elephantPrompt: Herbivores eat plants, carnivores eat meat, omnivores eat both.

You do: independent practice · 17 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 · 7 min

  • Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
  1. Which of these animals is a herbivore? (tiger / giraffe / owl / shark) → giraffePrompt: Herbivores eat plants, carnivores eat meat, omnivores eat both.
  2. Is a raccoon a herbivore, a carnivore or an omnivore? (herbivore / carnivore / omnivore) → omnivorePrompt: Does it eat plants, animals or both?

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

  • 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-1.

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

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Herbivores, carnivores and omnivores

Name

Date

Score/ 8

  1. Question 1

    Which of these animals is a herbivore?

    • A. crocodile
    • B. tiger
    • C. sheep
    • D. wolf
  2. Question 2

    Humans eat bread, vegetables, eggs and fish. What kind of eaters are humans?

    • A. carnivores
    • B. producers
    • C. herbivores
    • D. omnivores
  3. Question 3

    Is a brown bear a herbivore, a carnivore or an omnivore?

    • A. herbivore
    • B. carnivore
    • C. omnivore
  4. Question 4

    Which of these animals is a omnivore?

    • A. lion
    • B. crocodile
    • C. chimpanzee
    • D. wolf
  5. Question 5

    Is a pig a herbivore, a carnivore or an omnivore?

    • A. herbivore
    • B. carnivore
    • C. omnivore
  6. Question 6

    Which of these animals is a carnivore?

    • A. rabbit
    • B. sheep
    • C. raccoon
    • D. lion
  7. Question 7

    A bear eats berries, roots and fish. What kind of eater is it?

    • A. carnivore
    • B. herbivore
    • C. producer
    • D. omnivore
  8. Question 8

    Is a horse a herbivore, a carnivore or an omnivore?

    • A. herbivore
    • B. carnivore
    • C. omnivore

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Answer key: Herbivores, carnivores and omnivores

  1. 1. C. sheep

  2. 2. D. omnivores

  3. 3. C. omnivore

  4. 4. C. chimpanzee

  5. 5. C. omnivore

  6. 6. D. lion

  7. 7. D. omnivore

  8. 8. A. herbivore