CU 1.15Habitats of the World

1. 1

   Lay out the desert and the polar photographs, the two most different. Ask: 'Is it hot or cold? Wet or dry?'

2. 2

   Name them: 'This is a desert. It gets very little rain. This is a polar habitat. It is very cold, with ice and snow.'

3. 3

   Show the cactus and the camel. Say how each lives with little water, and place them on the desert.

4. 4

   Show the polar bear and the seal. Talk about thick fur and fat for the cold, and place them on the polar photograph.

5. 5

   On later days add forest, grassland, ocean, and rainforest one at a time, with two or three animals and a plant for each.

6. 6

   Invite the child to sort a mixed set of cards and check with the control chart.

7. 7

   Find each habitat on the Continent Globe, including the deserts and forests of Utah.

What catches the child’s eye

• Learning that polar bears and penguins live at opposite ends of the earth
• Animals built for their home, such as a polar bear's thick fur or a camel's wide feet for sand

Extensions, easiest to hardest

1. Find out that polar bears live near the North Pole and penguins near the South Pole, so they never meet in the wild
2. Sort Utah animals and plants into the habitats found in Utah: desert, forest, grassland, and wetland
3. Match habitat photographs to the words hot, cold, wet, and dry
4. Make a habitat booklet with one page per habitat