GoalSay that some animals live in a very small habitat and some travel across a very big one.
New words
travel · to go from one place to anotherden · a hidden home where a fox sleepshuge · very, very big
Explanation
Some animals have a tiny habitat. A worm may spend its whole life in one patch of damp soil. A snail may hide under the same flowerpot for days. Other animals move about a lot. A fox trots across fields, gardens and woods every night. A whale swims across a whole ocean. Animals that travel far need a big habitat with plenty of food. A habitat can be tiny or huge, but it must give the animal everything it needs.
Worked examples
A snail’s habitat can be as small as one corner of a garden, under a big leaf.
A fox sleeps in its den in the day. At night it goes a long way across fields and gardens to find food.
A whale swims from cold seas to warm seas and back again. Its habitat is huge.
Class activity
Habitat size game (with an adult): go outside to a garden or park. Choose a small animal, such as an ant or a snail, and watch it for five minutes. Mark its path with small stones or draw it on paper. Then walk the path that a bird might fly from tree to tree. Which habitat did you cover more of? Put every animal back and wash your hands.
Practice
1
Which animal has the biggest habitat?
B, the whale.
2
A snail does not travel far. Is its habitat big or small?
Small.
3
A fox sleeps in its den all day. Why does it go out across the fields at night?
