Animals Teaching Resources
Explore animal life in your science classroom with printable worksheets, classroom posters, and more teaching resources all about the different types of animals, their life cycles, characteristics and more!
This teacher-created collection includes a series of animal-focused teacher resources covering reptiles, birds, fish, mammals, and amphibians plus resources that classify a selection of vertebrates and invertebrates!
This comprehensive collection of teaching resources includes editable curriculum-aligned lessons on wildlife, endangered species and more — all ready to be printed and used in the classroom!
New to teaching this section of the science curriculum or looking for some fresh ideas? Read on for some tips on teaching about animal classification from our teacher team!
What Is Animal Classification? A Kid-Friendly Definition
In science class (and in professional study) animals are classified into groups based on physical and genetic characteristics. Scientists use a classification system called the Linnaean system to group different animals into progressively more specific categories, starting with the largest (and most inclusive group) and ending with the smallest and most specific group.
The categories are:
- Kingdom
- Phylum
- Class
- Order
- Family
- Genus
- Species
Helping students to remember these categories of biological animal classification, you might want to use a mnemonic such as:
- King Philip came over from Germany swimming.
- King Philip came over for good spaghetti.
- King Philip came over for good soup.
Sometimes the word "domain" is added to the top of the animal classification list, and in those cases you can add the word "dear" to your mnemonic sentences to help your students recall them all.
In the Linnaean system, every animal in nature is assigned a unique scientific name. The name includes their genus and species and it's used globally to refer to that animal — so, for example, a dog is a dog, but it's also a "canis lupus familiarise" according to its scientific name.
The animal classification system is used all around the world to help scientists understand the relationships between different animals and how they evolved over time.
Teaching About Animal Classification in Elementary School
How in-depth should your lesson planning be for animal classification? In the elementary grades, learning classifications of animals sets the stage for understanding how important this system is when scientists are studying animals in the natural world.
Consider this: In elementary school, students typically learn about the basic categories of animal classification, such as mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians.
Your animal classification lessons can extend into learning about specific examples of animals within each category, such as lions and elephants for mammals, and eagles and penguins for birds.
By the time they head off to high school, students should already know the characteristics that define each group — such as the presence of fur or feathers (in birds) or most mammals' ability to give birth to live young. Students should also know about the classification of animals within each group, such as the different types of mammals or birds.
Ready to get started? Explore the resources in this collection!
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Paired Passage Worksheets-Mammals vs. Reptiles
Compare mammals vs. reptiles and add to your reading instruction with leveled nonfiction, compare and contrast passages and worksheets.
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Arctic Fox Adaptations - Free Comprehension Worksheet
Read and learn about Arctic fox adaptations with a set of printable Reading Comprehension Worksheets for 2nd and 3rd grade.
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Inherited versus Learned Behaviors Poster
Explain the difference between inherited and learned behaviors with a set of printable anchor charts.
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Diagram of an Animal Cell Worksheets
Identify the parts of an animal cell and label them with a set of printable Animal Cell labeling activities.
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Living and Non-Living Things - Word Wall Vocabulary
Discover the world of living and nonliving things, starting with a printable vocabulary word wall..
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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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Insect Word Wall - Insect Names and Pictures
Use a printable insect word wall to introduce your students to the creepiest, crawliest creatures on the planet.
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Food Chains – Worksheet
Use this worksheet to identify and describe the flow of energy in a food chain.
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Plant and Animal Sort - Task Cards
Sort plants and animals using different characteristics with a set of task cards and picture cards.
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Species Survival! Science Word Search
Explore vocabulary related to species survival and sustainability with a differentiated word search.
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Ocean Animals Word Wall Cards with Pictures
Introduce your students to the amazing animals in the sea with an illustrated ocean animal word wall.
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Animals With Scales, Fur, Shells and Feathers Worksheet Pack
Investigate different animal body coverings by sorting and coloring animals with feathers, fur, scales and shells.
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Animal Traits and Behaviors Anchor Charts
Help your students differentiate between inherited and acquired traits, instincts, and learned behaviors with a printable science anchor chart and note-taking organizer.
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Bird Word Wall Vocabulary
Introduce your students to the features of birds and different bird species with bird related vocabulary cards for a word wall.
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Predator or Prey? Forest Animals – Worksheet
Sort animals according to whether they are classified as predators, prey, or both with this worksheet.
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Pets and Their Needs Teaching Slides
Teach your students about the needs of living things with an engaging interactive slide deck about pets and their needs.
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Animal Adaptations - Structural Adaptation Posters
Highlight some physical adaptations of animals with a printable set of labeled anchor chart.
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Animal Flash Cards & Word Wall
Read, write and identify animals around the world with a printable animal word wall with pictures.
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Giant Squid Reading Comprehension Worksheets - 5th Grade
Read and learn about the features and adaptations of the giant squid with reading comprehension worksheets for 5th grade.
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2nd Grade Reading Passage & Worksheet- Being a Good Pet Parent
Print a 2nd grade reading comprehension passage and worksheet to teach comprehension skills and learn about being a good pet parent by limiting pets' impact on ecosystems.
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What Animals Hibernate? Teaching Slides
Discover which animals hibernate and how they survive the winter with an interactive teaching slide deck.
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Animal Adaptations Word Search
Develop science vocabulary skills with a printable animal adaptations word search.
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Build a Food Chain - Sorting Activity
Create food chains for a variety of ecosystems with this hands-on, student-centered activity.
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Food Chains - Interactive Activity
Review producers, consumers and decomposers in food chains with this interactive digital quiz.
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Forest Food Chain – Cut and Paste Worksheet
Create a forest food chain to show how energy flows between organisms with this cut-and-paste worksheet.
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Producers, Consumers, and Decomposers – Interactive and Printable Activity
Sort producers, consumers, and decomposers, with this printable and interactive activity.
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Life Cycles – Worksheet
Give your students an opportunity to compare, observe, and draw different life cycles with this worksheet.
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Producer, Consumer, Decomposer - Poster
A poster explaining the roles of the Sun, producers, consumers, and decomposers in the food chain.
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Endangered Animals Classification Poster
Explore endangered animal classifications with this informative classroom poster.
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Identify Nonliving and Living Things - Printables
Download a pack of Living or Nonliving? Printables to help your students differentiate between living and nonliving organisms.
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Describing Animal Adaptations - Informative Writing Prompt Worksheets
Write to describe animals and their adaptations with a printable pack of informative writing worksheets.
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Animal Classification Word Search Pack - Lower Grades
Introduce your students to the six animal types/classes with a pack of printable animal word search worksheets.