Education: Classroom Kits from the San Diego Zoo
Kit
1: Animal Adaptations
Grade level K–3
Theme
Animals
must find innovative ways to survive in the wild.
Elephants use their prehensile trunks to move
objects, jaguars use their tails to help them
balance, and mountain goats use their coloring
to blend into the surrounding habitat. This kit
makes use of seven lessons on birds, reptiles,
and mammals to illustrate how animals are adapted
to their environments.
Skills Tested
Language arts, science ability, artistic skills, mathematics, and physical education
Lesson Material
Elephants—A language-based activity in which students create their own elephant using their acquired knowledge of elephant adaptations.
Sun Up, Sun Down—Students learn the concept of "diurnal" and "nocturnal" by playing the "AM/PM" game.
Beastly Adaptations—Students apply their knowledge of different species' similarities and differences and construct a book of adaptations shared by the species.
Adaptation Bingo—Traditional board game and group art project teach students about adaptations.
Concentrating on Tails—Students play a version of concentration and create their own art to learn about animal tails.
Move It—Students act out and answer questions about different adaptations.
The Nose Knows—Students play a game about scent-based adaptations.
