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 elementary and middle school teachers.
This collection of elementary school science curriculum 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 curriculum-aligned instructional slide decks, 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 behaviors 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
Behavioral Adaptations
One way that an animal can adapt is through a process called behavioral 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.
What Are Some Animal Adaptation Examples for Kids?
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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Is It Inherited or Acquired? Traits Worksheets
Introduce your students to inherited and acquired traits with printable basic genetics worksheets for elementary grades.
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Survival Spotlight - Physical Adaptations Animal Riddle Worksheets
Shine a spotlight on animal adaptations and solve riddles with printable animal adaptation riddle worksheets.
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Desert Animal Adaptations - Trading Card Templates
Discover amazing desert animals’ adaptations and display your learning with printable animal trading card templates.
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Facts About Insects Poster
Display this poster showcasing interesting insect facts and characteristics in your classroom.
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Animals With Adaptations - Worksheet Pack
Use these animal adaptation worksheets when teaching students about the structural, behavioral, and physiological adaptations of animals.
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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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Characteristics of Living Things - Science Worksheets
Identify the common characteristics of different animals and animal classes with a pack of printable Animal Class Characteristic Worksheets.
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Echidna Adaptations – Reading Worksheet Pack
Discover the adaptations of the echidna with a printable reading passage and comprehension worksheet pack.
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Kangaroo Adaptations – Reading Comprehension PDF Worksheets
Discover amazing kangaroo adaptations with a printable Reading comprehension worksheet pack.
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Vertebrate or Invertebrate? Game
Have fun classifying vertebrates and invertebrates with an exciting Google Slides Interactive Science Game!
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Inherited and Acquired Characteristics - Worksheet Pack
Determine if animal features and characteristics are inherited or acquired traits with an engaging Animal Traits Cut and Paste Worksheet Pack.
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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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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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Adapting, Migrating, & Hibernating Animals Research Project
Set this classroom project for students to explore the topic of how seasons affect animals, and develop a species-specific profile on a chosen animal.
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Plant & Animal Adaptations Poster Set
Display these informative posters in your 2nd grade classroom to remind students of the five ways animals and plants adapt to seasonal changes in their environment.
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Animal Adaptations Word Search
Develop science vocabulary skills with a printable animal adaptations word search.
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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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In the Arctic - Free Decodable Book
Engage your students and inspire them to read and learn about life in the Arctic with a printable book for 2nd grade.
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Animal Group Fact File Worksheets
Research and write about the characteristics of different animal groups with printable Animal Group Fact File Worksheets.
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Human Inherited Traits Activity - Science Experiment
Engage your students in learning about the traits inherited from their parents with a fun Human Inherited Traits Lab activity.
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Parts of an Animal Labeling Activity - Digital Learning Resource
Identify and label animal body parts with an interactive labeling activity for preschoolers.
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Inherited vs. Acquired Traits Bingo Game
Understand the difference between inherited and acquired traits by playing a few rounds of Inherited vs. Acquired Traits Bingo!
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Animal Features Playdough Mats
Use our Animal Playdough Mats to introduce your kindergarten students to the physical features of animals.
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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.
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Insect Investigation - Parts of an Insect Activity
Take a peek at the features and characteristics of insects with an engaging Insect Investigation Lab activity.
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Vertebrates and Invertebrates Teaching Slides
Teach your students about the characteristics of vertebrates and invertebrates with an interactive teaching slide presentation.
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Animal Characteristics - Write the Room Activity
Help your young students read and write about features of animals with a printable Animal Characteristics Write the Room activity.
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Fennec Fox Adaptations - Close Reading Worksheets
Read and learn about Fennec Fox adaptations with a set of printable Reading Comprehension Worksheets for 5th grade.
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Polar Bear Craft Template
Pair a polar bear craft and informational writing to create a fun winter animals bulletin board.
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Animal Body Coverings Poster Set
Discover the different animal body coverings (feathers, fur, scales, skin and shells) with a set of printable posters.
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Labeled Animal Cell Model Poster
Highlight the different parts of an animal cell with a labeled animal cell diagram.
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Types of Bird Feet and Bird Beaks - Adaptations Lesson Slides
Take a look at the types of bird beaks and feet that help our flying friends survive in different environments.
- Animal Adaptations and Traits Worksheets
- Animal Adaptations and Traits Posters
- Animal Adaptations and Traits Games
- Animal Adaptations and Traits for Kindergarten
- Animal Adaptations and Traits for 1st Grade
- Animal Adaptations and Traits for 2nd Grade
- Animal Adaptations and Traits for 3rd Grade
- Animal Adaptations and Traits for 4th Grade
- Animal Adaptations and Traits for 5th Grade
- Animal Adaptations and Traits for 6th Grade