1. Michigan Standards
1.1. 2-LS4-1: Make observations of plants and animals to compare the diversity of life in different habitats
1.2. 1A-IC-17: Work respectfully and responsibly with others online
2. Context #1: What is a habitat?
2.1. A habitat is a place that an animal or plant lives. It provides the animal or plant with food, water, and shelter.
2.2. Different habitats are home to different animals. They live well together because they all do things to help keep the whole habitat healhty and in balance.
3. Context #2: Different types of habitats
3.1. Grassland Habitat
3.1.1. Places that receive more rain than deserts but less precipitation than forests. Most plants here are grasses, which don't need as much water as forest vegetation
3.1.2. 1/4 of the planet is covered by grasslands. Places include: Africa (savannas and veldts), South America (pampas), North America (prairies or grasslands), Europe and Asia (steppes), Australia (rangelands).
3.1.3. Usually found in dry interior of continents between the mountains and deserts. Most were formed tens of thousands years ago after the last ice age.
3.1.4. Who lives here? zebras, gazelles, wildebeests, cheetahs, lions, leopards, kangaroos, ostriches, deer, antelope, rabbits, prairie dogs, and buffalo.
3.2. Polar Habitat
3.2.1. Polar habitats cover the top and bottom of planet Earth at the North and South Poles. The North Pole is surrounded by the Arctic Ocean. There isn't any land here, just a group of continually shifting ice sheets. Parts of Canada and Greenland are near the North Pole. The South Pole is located on Antarctica. The area is mostly land, but it is completely covered with a layer of ice that's almost three miles thick.
3.2.2. Average winter temperature is about -22 degrees F. At the south pole, it is even colder at -129 degrees F. There are two seasons, winter and summer. In the summer the sun shines 24 hours a day, but never gets high enough above the horizon to warm things up. It is dark all day during the winter. There is plenty of snow, but little rain. Some parts of the arctic are considered deserts because of the lack of rainfall
3.2.3. It is too cold and dry for trees to grow, but some types of small shrubs, lichens, mosses, and algae are able to grow in the harsh climate
3.2.4. Who lives here? Polar bears, arctic foxes, walruses, humpback whales, penguins, and narwhals
3.3. Desert Habitat
3.3.1. Deserts are the driest places on Earth. They get fewer than 10 inches of rain a year. Many were formed 8,000 to 10,000 years ago. Some are super hot during the day, highest temperature recorded was 134 degrees F in California and Nevada's Death Valley in 1913.
3.3.2. It seems nothing can live in a desert because it is so dry. But most deserts are full of life, with plants and animals that have adapted to survive without much water. Some plants, like cacti, store enough water in their stems to last until the next rain. Other plants, like mesquite grass, have very small leaves that curl up in the daytime to conserve the water they have.
3.3.3. Who lives here? Kangaroo rats in the Sonoran Desert get water from seeds they eat. Some carnivores, such as desert foxes, get enough liquid from their prey. Most desert animals stay underground or beneath shady rocks during the day. Many come out to hunt for food at night, when it's cool
3.4. Forest Habitat
3.4.1. Lush, warm, wet habitats. Trees in the rainforest grow very tall because they have to compete with other plants for sunlight. Kapok trees can grow to 200 feet. The tallest trees spread their branches and leaves blocking the light from the trees below, and creating a canopy over the forest.
3.4.2. There are four layers, the emergent layer is made up of the very tallest trees that rise higher than the rest of the forest. The canopy, the leaves and branches of the trees all touch one another or are connected by vines. The understory is full of small trees and plants that do not need much light to grow here. The last layer is the forest floor where only a few plants grow because its so dark
3.4.3. Most rainforests are found near the equator where it tends to be hot.
3.4.4. What plants are here? lianas are thick, woody vines that grow up the trees. Orchids, bamboo, and bromeliads are other rainforest plants
3.4.5. Rainforests help to stabilize the climate of the world not only by making rain but also by absorbing carbon dioxide.
3.4.6. Who lives here? more than half the world's animals. Vampire bats, anacondas, bengal tigers, orangutans, chimpanzees, dragonflies, tree frogs, hundreds of species of ants, and plenty plants and animals that haven't been discovered
3.5. Freshwater Habitat
3.5.1. Rivers, creeks, lakes, ponds, and streams are all freshwater habitats. So are wetlands like swamps, which have woody plants and trees, marshes which have no trees but lots of grasses and reeds. Freshwater accounts for only three percent of the world's water. Freshwater habitats are homes for more than 100,000 species of plants and animals
3.5.2. Who lives here? fish, snails, worms, turtles, frogs, marsh birds, mollusks, alligators, beavers, otters, snakes, insects, river dolphin, diving bell spider.
3.5.3. What plants live here? algae, cattails, water lilies, aspen, willow trees. They help keep the water clean by using their root systems to filter pollution and excess nutrients from the water.
3.5.4. Lakes are formed by different acts of nature. Most appeared after glaciers moved across Earth leaving giant-bowl shaped hollows in the land that filled with rainwater and runoff. Rivers are created when melting snow or ice runs down mountains, following grooves and channels of the land on the way to the sea. Rivers always flow to an ocean.
3.6. Ocean Habitat
3.6.1. Earth's surface is more than 70 percent covered by oceans. Oceans are areas of salty water that filled enormous basins on the Earth's surface. Oceans help keep the planet warm. The ocean currents carry heat around the planet. Without oceans, Earth would be an icy rock.
3.6.2. Temperature, ocean depth, and distance from the shore determine the types of plants and animals living in an area of the ocean. Coral reefs are one type of habitat, they are called the rain forests of the sea because the wide variety of animals found here. Such as, seahorses, clownfish, and sea turtles.
3.6.3. Kelp forests found along the coastlines of the Pacific and Antarctic provide food and shelter for marine life. Sea lions, whales, shore birds, and others make meals of the smaller critters that hide in leaves.
3.6.4. Other habitats aren't actually in the ocean, such as estuaries. Estuaries are areas where rivers and oceans meet and have a mix of saltwater and freshwater. Oysters, crabs, and many birds like great herons and egrets live here.
3.6.5. Who else lives here? jellyfish, shrimp, zooplankton, sharks, manta rays, ocean sunfish, blue whales, dolphins, porpoises, sea lions, algae, seaweed, kelp.
4. Context #3: Activities
4.1. Create a habitat that would fit good for a certain animal
4.1.1. Students will have an animal chosen. It is the students job to use their resources to create a proper habitat for the animal to live and thrive in
4.2. Magic School Bus: The Great Habitat Game
4.2.1. The Magic School Bus | Games | The Great Habitat Match | Scholastic.com
5. Assessments
5.1. Habitat Sort: whose home is this?
5.1.1. Each slide will have a picture of a certain habitat. There will be a row of single animal pictures. Students will be able to select the correct animal that lives in the habitat.
6. Class Details
6.1. Grade Level: 1st Grade
6.2. Subject Area: Science, ecosystems
6.3. Notes from:
6.3.1. National Geographic: Habitats