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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Movement of Animals Sorting Activity
Classify animals based on their movement methods with a picture-sorting game.
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Animal Coverings Teaching Slides
Discover animals with scales, shells, fur, and other body coverings with an interactive teaching slide deck.
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Australian Desert Animals Mini Book
Read and learn about plants and animals in the Australian desert with a printable mini book for Year 1.
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Classifying Animals Digital Learning Activity
Help students learn how to classify animals based on their characteristics with an engaging ‘Magic Looking Glass’ Interactive activity.
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Types of Insects - Minibeast Fact Cards
Discover facts and features of a variety of insects with a handy set of insect fact cards.
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Animal Classification Worksheets for Foundation Year
Identify and sort animals according to their characteristics with a printable pack of cut-and-paste animal worksheets.
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Plants, Animals & Adaptations – Worksheet
Use this worksheet to identify and describe different animal and plant adaptations which help them survive in their environment.
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How Seasons Affect Plants and Animals Poster Set
Display these informative posters in your Grade One classroom to remind students of the five ways animals and plants adapt to seasonal changes in their environment.
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Winter Animal Adaptations - Peg Cards
Discover which behavioural adaptations animals use to survive the winter with a set of Animals in Winter Clip Cards.
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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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Animal Adaptations Foldables - Shutter Card Templates
Write and draw about the behavioural, structural, and physiological adaptations of animals from around the world with a set of fun printable shutter card templates.
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Animals that Camouflage PowerPoint
Learn about animals that use camouflage to survive with an engaging Animals that Camouflage teaching presentation.
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Butterfly Camouflage Activity Pack
Experience camouflage in butterflies and create an engaging scientific simulation with our printable camouflage butterfly activity pack.
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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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Diagram of an Earthworm Worksheet Pack
Read, learn and label the parts of a worm with a set of printable animal features worksheets.
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Amphibians vs Reptiles Worksheet Pack
Compare Amphibians vs. Reptiles and their characteristics with our printable animal comparison worksheets.
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Characteristics of Animal Classes - Cut and Paste Worksheet
Identify the characteristics and features of different animal classifications with a cut-and-paste activity.
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Nocturnal vs. Diurnal Animals Interactive Task Cards
Identify nocturnal and diurnal animals with an engaging, interactive task card game.
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All About Penguins - Year 1 Leveled Readers
Chill out with a good book and build reading skills with a printable penguin leveled reader for Year 1.
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Features of Insects Mini Book
Learn about the features of insects with a printable decodable book for kids.
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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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Rainforest Animal Printables — Adaptation Trading Cards
Discove rainforest animal adaptations and display your learning with miniature rainforest animal report templates.
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Animals that Hibernate & Migrate Picture Posters
Explore animal hibernation and migration and learn about the animals that use these behavioural adaptations with a printable animal poster pack.
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Classifying Vertebrates Flow Chart Poster
Classify vertebrates using an animal classification flowchart poster.
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Seasons Affect Plants and Animals Flipbook
Use this fun flipbook to teach students how the seasons affect plants and animals while allowing them to connect to prior knowledge by answering questions on each page.
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Vertebrates and Invertebrates Posters
Teach your students the basic differences between vertebrates and invertebrates with printable vertebrate vs. invertebrate anchor charts.
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Bird Beak Lab Activity
Discover how birds’ beaks help them find food and survive in the wild with a hands-on Bird Beak Adaptation Lab.
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Nocturnal Animals Activity Pack
Introduce your students to the creatures of the night with five nocturnal animal activities for kids!
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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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Vertebrate or Invertebrate? Game
Have fun classifying vertebrates and invertebrates with an exciting Google Slides Interactive Science Game!
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Design the Perfect Dog Breed - Inherited Traits Activity
Investigate inherited traits that parents pass to their offspring with a Create-a-Puppy selective dog breeding project.
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Labelled Animal Cell Model Poster
Highlight the different parts of an animal cell with a labelled animal cell model poster.
- Animal Adaptations and Traits Worksheets
- Animal Adaptations and Traits Posters
- 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