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How do animals take care of their babies?

How do animals take care of their babies?
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In this unit, we learned that animals do many different things that help them survive. Let’s look back at two of those things.
Discuss. What is this squirrel doing? How does this help it survive?
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Discuss. What are these squirrels doing? How does this help the baby squirrel survive?
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Animals do many different things to help them survive. Watch, then discuss. This animal is not eating. What do you think it is doing? Why do you think it might be doing this?
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These animals are all carrying things but not eating them. Discuss. What are these animals carrying? What do you think they are going to do with the things they are carrying?
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Read the labels to see if you figured out what each animal was carrying.
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Sometimes those same animals carry different things. Discuss. What is each animal carrying now?
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Each of these animals carries things, but they don’t eat those things. They must have another reason for carrying leaves, grass, and sticks.
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Look at the names of these three kinds of animals. Let’s see where these three kinds of animals go. Let’s see what they do with the things they are carrying.
One kind of animal went up in these trees. There is a big pile of sticks, leaves, and grass up there. Let’s look closely.
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One of these kinds of animals put those sticks, leaves, and grass up there. Discuss. Which kind of animal do you think is up there? Why do you think that?
If we are very quiet, the animal will come out. Click play when you are ready!
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It was gray squirrels! Discuss. Why do you think the squirrels put all of those sticks, leaves, and grass in the tree?
Let’s go back up in the trees. We will look inside the pile of sticks, leaves, and grass. We have to be very, very quiet. Something special is in there.
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The squirrels made a nest for their sleepy babies. The nest is made of sticks, leaves, and grass. Discuss. How does the nest help the baby squirrels survive?
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The nest keeps the babies warm. The nest also keeps the babies hidden so other animals won’t find them. The parents can also feed their babies here. All of these things help the babies survive.
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You might have noticed trash in the nest. The parent squirrels put the trash there. They don’t know that people’s trash can be bad for their babies. This is one of many reasons to always clean up our trash!
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Let’s keep track of where we find animal homes. Get an Animal Homes worksheet. Write your name at the top.
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In the tree, write, “G.S.” for “Gray Squirrel.” This will help us remember where the gray squirrel lives.
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Now, let’s go to a new place. We will find another animal there.
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There is a hole in the ground. One of the three kinds of animals lives there. Discuss. Which kind of animal do you think lives in this hole? Why do you think that?
If you are very, very quiet, one of the animals will come out of its home!
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It was burrowing owls living in these holes in the ground! Discuss. What did you see the parent owl doing for the baby owl? How does this help the baby survive?
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Most owls build nests in trees.
But burrowing owls live in holes called burrows. That’s why they are called burrowing owls. Watch these parent owls dig a burrow and put dry grass into it.
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These are very young baby burrowing owls. They are down in the burrow. They have white feathers that will turn brown when they get older. They are sleeping on a bed of sticks, leaves, and grass that their parents made.
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Burrowing owls keep their young warm and safe in their burrows. They also bring food back to the burrow. All of these things help their young survive.
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In the burrow on this side of your worksheet, write, “B.O.” for “Burrowing Owl.”
We have one last animal home to visit. You might be able to guess which kind of animal lives in this hole! If you are very quiet, the animal will come out.
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Chipmunks dig burrows underground. Watch this chipmunk carry leaves back into its burrow. The chipmunk and its babies can sleep underground on the leaves.
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Chipmunks can also feed their babies in the burrow. These babies are waiting for their parent to bring food to them! A burrow is a safe place to hide, eat, and sleep. All of these things help the babies survive.
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In the burrow on this side of your worksheet, write, “C” for “Chipmunk.”
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Discuss. What did these animals do with the things that they were carrying?
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We visited different animal homes today. Discuss. What did we see animals do to help their babies survive?
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Now you can improve your worksheet. You can draw each type of animal near their home or in their home. You can also color it and add more detail. Be creative!

Image & Video Credits

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Other
Adult and young burrowing owls by neil fisher
Baby chipmunks together in burrow by Margaret M Stewart
Baby squirrels in nest by beckybellew
Burrowing owl emerging from nest by Pronghorn Productions
Burrowing owl flying with mouth wide open by Chase D'animulls
Burrowing owls with nesting material by RobAmyVideo
Chipmunk Stuffing Dried Leaves In Its Mouth Making Cheeks Larger by MicroStockTube
Chipmunk hiding in burrow with leaves in mouth by ER CREATIVE SERVICES LTD
Chipmunk jumping out of burrow by ER CREATIVE SERVICES LTD
Chipmunk with grass in mouth by Nick's Nature Pics
Eastern Gray Squirrels building a leaf nest by Linzy's Vids
Grey squirrel climbing tree with nesting material looking at camera by Clare Lusher
Inside burrowing owl nest by UF/IFAS Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
Owl nest in tree by Jiri Fejkl
Owl nest in tree by Vishnevskiy Vasily
Owl nest in tree by Anita Braconnier
Squirrel with stick in mouth by LinaOli
Credits

Activity Prep

Print Prep
In this performance task, students will observe and interpret the behavior of different animals to see how they care for their offspring.

After a review of the unit, students will visit the homes of three different animals and see what they do to take care of themselves and their offspring. They will see that some animals can make their homes in very different and surprising places, but they share some behaviors in common with one another.
Preview activity
Animal Homes printout 1 per student
Prep Instructions

Before starting this lesson, review the unit Teacher Guide for an overview of the Animal Superpowers Anchor Layer.

Students can work individually, in pairs, or you may choose to work with small groups. Print as many copies of the Animal Homes worksheet as you will need for your students. One copy will be needed for each individual, each pair, or each small group.

With your students, begin the lesson. It begins with a brief unit review. Then, move through the activity. The activity includes a step-by-step guide and discussion questions throughout.

Unit Review

10 mins

Hands-On Activity

35 mins

 
Animal Superpowers Performance Task: How do animals take care of their babies?

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