ALEX | Alabama Learning Exchange

Animal Adaptations in the Ocean

Classroom Resource Information

Title:

Animal Adaptations in the Ocean

URL:

https://www.nationalgeographic.org/activity/animal-adaptations-ocean/

Content Source:

National Geographic

Type:

Learning Activity

Overview:

Students review what animal adaptations are, identify marine animal adaptations in a photo gallery, and predict how types of adaptations vary with ocean habitats.

Content Standard(s):

Science
SC2015 (2015)
Grade: 4

11 ) Investigate different ways animals receive information through the senses, process that information, and respond to it in different ways (e.g., skunks lifting tails and spraying an odor when threatened, dogs moving ears when reacting to sound, snakes coiling or striking when sensing vibrations).

NAEP Framework

NAEP Statement::
L4.4: When the environment changes, some plants and animals survive and reproduce; others die or move to new locations.

Unpacked Content

Scientific And Engineering Practices:

Planning and Carrying out Investigations

Crosscutting Concepts: Systems and System Models

Disciplinary Core Idea: From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes

Evidence Of Student Attainment:

Students:

Investigate different ways animals receive information through the senses.
Investigate different ways animals process the information they receive and how they respond to it.

Teacher Vocabulary:

investigate
evidence
transmit
perception
receptors
senses
sensory information
process
memories

Knowledge:

Students know:

Different types of sense receptors detect specific types of information within the environment.
Sense receptors send information about the surroundings to the brain.
Information that is transmitted to the brain by sense receptors can be processed immediately as perceptions of the environment and/or stored as memories.
Immediate perceptions or memories processed by the brain influences an animal's actions or responses to features in the environment.

Skills:

Students are able to:

Identify different ways animals receive, process, and respond to information.
Identify evidence of different ways animals receive, process, and respond to information to be investigated.
Plan ways to Investigate different ways animals receive, process, and respond to information.
Collect and communicate data of different ways animals receive, process, and respond to information.

Understanding:

Students understand that:

Sensory input, the brain, and behavioral output are all parts of a system that allows animals to engage in appropriate behaviors.

AMSTI Resources:

AMSTI Module:
Animal Studies

Alabama Alternate Achievement Standards

AAS Standard:
SCI.AAS.4.11- Identify the sense organs and the information they receive (eyes/sight, tongue/taste, ears/hearing, skin/touch, nose/smell).

Science
SC2015 (2015)
Grade: 7
Life Science

10 ) Use evidence and scientific reasoning to explain how characteristic animal behaviors (e.g., building nests to protect young from cold, herding to protect young from predators, attracting mates for breeding by producing special sounds and displaying colorful plumage, transferring pollen or seeds to create conditions for seed germination and growth) and specialized plant structures (e.g., flower brightness, nectar, and odor attracting birds that transfer pollen; hard outer shells on seeds providing protection prior to germination) affect the probability of successful reproduction of both animals and plants.

Unpacked Content

Scientific And Engineering Practices:

Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect

Disciplinary Core Idea: Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics

Evidence Of Student Attainment:

Students:

Make a claim to support a given explanation including the idea that characteristic animal behaviors and specialized plant structures affect the probability of successful reproduction of animals and plants respectively.

Teacher Vocabulary:

Evidence
Cause and effect
Scientific Reasoning
Characteristics
Behaviors
Specialization
Probability
Reproduction
Validity
Reliability
Relevance

Knowledge:

Students know:

Animals engage in characteristic behaviors that increase the odds of reproduction.
Plants reproduce in a variety of ways, sometimes depending on animal behavior and specialized features for reproduction.

Skills:

Students are able to:

Make a claim to support a given explanation of a phenomenon, including the idea that characteristic animal behaviors and specialized plant structures affect the probability of successful reproduction of animals and plants respectively.
dentify the given evidence that supports the claim (e.g., evidence from data and scientific literature).
Evaluate the evidence and identify the strengths and weaknesses of the evidence used to support the claim.
Use reasoning to connect the appropriate evidence to the claim, using oral or written arguments.

Understanding:

Students understand that:

Many characteristics and behaviors of animals and plants increase the likelihood of successful reproduction.
Animal behavior plays a role in the likelihood of successful reproduction in plants.
Because successful reproduction has several causes and contributing factors, the cause and effect relationships between any of these characteristics and reproductive likelihood can be accurately reflected only in terms of probability.

AMSTI Resources:

AMSTI Module:
Investigating Biodiversity and Interdependence
Studying the Development and Reproduction of Organisms

Tags:

animal adaptation, marine, ocean habitat

License Type:

Custom Permission Type
See Terms: https://www.nationalgeographic.org/terms-of-service/
For full descriptions of license types and a guide to usage, visit :
https://creativecommons.org/licenses

Accessibility

Comments

This resource provided by:

Author:

Stephanie Carver

ALEX Classroom Resource

Animal Adaptations in the Ocean