Animal Adaptations and Traits Teaching Resources
Get ready to teach about animal adaptations and animal traits this school year with printable worksheets, digital activities and more teacher-created resources for primary teachers!
This collection of Australian Science curriculum-aligned resources includes printables and Google Slides templates that have been thoroughly reviewed by our expert teaching team to ensure they're ready for your lesson plans and your students.
Save time on lesson planning with ready-made teacher slides, vocabulary guides and activities that can easily be differentiated to meet your students' individual needs.
New to tackling this topic in the classroom? The expert science teachers on the Teach Starter team have put together the answers to some of teachers' most common questions about animal adaptations and animal traits!
What Are Animal Adaptations? A Kid-Friendly Definition
Let's start with an easy way to explain what adaptation in animals is to your class! Here's a kid-friendly definition from our teacher team:
Adaptation is when animals change their bodies or behaviours to survive better in their environment. Humans may put on a jacket when it's cold outside — that's an example of how we adapt. Animals also have their own special ways of dealing with different environments.
How Do Animals Adapt to Their Environments?
Just as there are countless kinds of animals living around the world, there are many ways that different animals will adapt to their environment. There are two major types of adaptations:
Behavioural Adaptations
One way that an animal can adapt is through a process called behavioural adaptation. This kind of change doesn't require a change in the animal's DNA or its physical features.
Instead, this involves changes in an animal's actions or habits that help them survive in their environment, such as a bear hibernating during the winter.
Structural Adaptations
Another way that animals adapt is through changes to physical features or body parts. These are called structural adaptations, typically occurring over time via evolution, the process of gradual change in species over many generations.
A polar bear's white fur is a good example of a structural adaptation for this tundra animal. The color of the fur helps polar bears blend in with the snowy environment of the Arctic, providing camouflage and making it easier for them to hunt and sneak up on prey.
Animal Adaptation Examples
Looking for more animal adaptation examples that kids love to share with your students? Give these a try!
Desert Animal Adaptations
- Camels have humps that store fat, which they can use as food and water when there's not much available.
- Desert snakes have scales that help them move smoothly on the sand.
- Beetles that live in the desert have a hard outer covering that prevents them from losing water.
Tundra Animal Adaptations
- In addition to the color of their fur, polar bears have thick fur and a layer of blubber (fat) that keep them warm in the freezing cold.
- Arctic foxes can change the color of their fur from brown in the summer to white in the winter to blend in with the snow.
- Caribou have wide hooves that help them walk on the soft tundra and dig through the snow for food.
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Animal Adaptations PowerPoint
Teach your students about the behavioural, structural, and physiological adaptations of animals with an interactive teaching slide deck.
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Penguin Adaptations - Year 3 Reading Comprehension
Explore the fascinating world of penguins and their adaptations with our set of printable Year 3 Reading Comprehension worksheets.
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Plant and Animal Adaptations - Reading Comprehension Passage
Boost reading comprehension skills with a comprehension passage, with questions, about structural, behavioural and physiological adaptations.
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Baby Animals Reading Worksheets - Year 1-2
Learn about animals and their babies with a pack of printable Animal Babies Reading Worksheets for Years 1 & 2.
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Plant and Animal Adaptations - Vocabulary Worksheets
Review key vocabulary associated with plant and animal adaptations with a pair of vocabulary worksheets.
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Structural Adaptations Worksheets
Investigate the structural adaptations of animals with various animal adaptation worksheets.
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What’s My Habitat? Prediction Task Cards
Explore animal features and improve science inquiry skills with printable Habitat Prediction Task Cards.
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Would You Rather? Animal Adaptations Game
Discuss and debate the best animal adaptations with the Would You Rather? Animal Adaptation game.
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Plant and Animal Adaptations - Structural Adaptation Posters
Highlight the physical adaptations of different animals with a set of printable anchor charts.
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Printable Worksheets About Bees - Year 2-3 Comprehension
Use our worksheets about bees to discover what there is to know about bees, how they help plants, and how they make honey.
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Behavioural, Structural and Physiological Adaptations (Classroom Poster Pack)
Print 4 free classroom posters explaining the different types of adaptations in the animal kingdom!
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How Living Things Survive – Teaching Presentation
Use this 13-slide teaching presentation to teach your students about the basic needs and physical characteristics of animals and plants.
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Animal Classes Word Search Pack - Upper Years
Review vocabulary related to animal classes and characteristics of animals with a pack of printable animal classification word searches.
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Animal Adaptations - Worksheet Pack
Use these animal adaptation worksheets when teaching students about the structural, behavioural, and physiological adaptations of animals.
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Animal Adaptation Examples – Anchor Chart Set
Help your students identify physiological, behavioural, and structural adaptations with printable Examples of Adaptations Anchor Charts.
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Features of Animals Bingo Game (F-2)
Explore and identify the external features of animals with an exciting Features of Animals Bingo Game.
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Animal Adaptations for Kids - Worksheet Pack
Identify and label different animal features and discover how these adaptations help animals survive with a pack of printable lift-the-flap matching worksheets.
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Animal Classification Word Search Pack - Early Years
Introduce your lower-year students to the six animal types/classes with a pack of printable animal word search worksheets.
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Animal Adaptations Vocabulary Display
Introduce animal adaptation and behaviour vocabulary with a word wall featuring photographs and definitions of adaptation-related words.
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Free Desert Animal Adaptations Worksheets - Comprehension
Discover desert animal adaptations with a printable reading comprehension worksheet pack for Grades 4-5.
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Roll to Create an Animal - Adaptations Game
Roll to create an animal with cool adaptations using a fun dice game and report template.
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Classification of Animals - PowerPoint
Teach your students about the different classes of animals and their characteristics with an Animal Classification teaching presentation.
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Animal Adaptations Crossword Puzzle
Use an Animal Adaptations Crossword puzzle to review physiological, structural, and behavioural adaptation concepts.
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Animal Features Playdough Mats
Use our Animal Playdough Mats to introduce your Foundations students to the physical features of animals.
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Plant and Animal Adaptations – Word Wall Vocabulary
Build scientific vocabulary skills with a printable display of words relating to plant and animal adaptations.
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Grouping & Sorting Animals Worksheet Pack (F-1)
Identify and sort animals according to their characteristics with a printable of cut-and-paste Grouping & Sorting Animals Worksheet Pack (F-1).
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Human Features Picture Cards
Explore the similarities and differences between humans by using these printable Human Features Picture Cards.
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Animals That Adapt - Research Project & Report
Strengthen your students' understanding of conducting research with an Animal Adaptations research project.
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Koala Adaptations Reading Comprehension Worksheets
Learn about the physical and behavioural adaptations of the koala with a set of printable reading comprehension worksheets for Year 4-5.
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Camel Adaptations - Year Five Reading Comprehension
Learn about the physical and behavioural adaptations of a camel with a set of printable reading comprehension worksheets for Year 5.
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Platypus Adaptations - Reading Passage & Questions
Learn about the physical and behavioural adaptations of the platypus with a set of printable reading comprehension worksheets for Years 3-5.
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What Are Behavioural Adaptations? Digital Interactive Notebook
Discover behavioral adaptations of animals with an independent research-based Behavioural Adaptation Digital Learning Activity.
- Animal Adaptations and Traits Worksheets
- Animal Adaptations and Traits Posters
- Animal Adaptations and Traits Teaching Presentations
- Animal Adaptations and Traits Games
- Animal Adaptations and Traits for Foundation Year
- Animal Adaptations and Traits for Year 1
- Animal Adaptations and Traits for Year 2
- Animal Adaptations and Traits for Year 3
- Animal Adaptations and Traits for Year 4
- Animal Adaptations and Traits for Year 5
- Animal Adaptations and Traits for Year 6