CONVERSEMOS:
¿Qué cosa te gusta hacer mucho ahora que no podrías haber hecho cuando eras un bebé?
CONVERSEMOS:
¿Cómo harías un dibujo que muestre cómo has cambiado desde que naciste?
CONVERSEMOS:
Si todos los animales eventualmente mueren, ¿habrá animales en el futuro?
¿Cómo sabes?
In this lesson, students explore animal life cycles by thinking about their birthday buddies—all the animals that were born on the exact same day as they were born—and what happens to those birthday buddies over the course of their lives. In the activity, Birthday Buddies Timeline, students develop a model to compare the life stories of different animals. Using this model, students discover that although the lives of animals can be very different, they all have in common birth, growth, reproduction, and death.
Preview activityBirthday Buddies Animal Cards worksheet | 1 per pair |
Birthday Buddies Timeline worksheet | 1 per student |
Glue Sticks
Tape will also work.
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Details
1 glue stick per student
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Scissors
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1 pair per student |
Scrap Paper (8.5 x 11")
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1 sheet per student |
We suggest students work in pairs. Homeschool students can work on their own.
For animals that give birth to live young, their birthday is straightforward. For those animals that lay eggs, we use the day that they hatch from their egg as their birthday. Many science standards state that all animals are born, equating hatching with birth.
Student slideshow: English | Spanish
Teacher printout: English & Spanish
After you complete the lesson and activity, try this extension.
The following readings are free with registration at Readworks.
These readings about frogs and bees, and hummingbirds will keep your third graders thinking about animal life cycles.
For students who are reading below grade level, here are readings about the life cycles of kangaroos (grade1), moths (grade 2), and sea turtles (Grade 2).
For students reading above grade level, check out these readings about the life cycles of butterflies (grade 5), cicadas (grade 5),
After you complete the lesson and activity, try this extension.
You can elaborate student learning and engagement with Mystery Science mini-lessons.
Why do flies just appear in the trash? In this mini-lesson students explore how knowing about fly life cycles helps explain why they seem to appear out of nowhere!
Are butterflies the only animals that start out as caterpillars? In this mini-lesson students explore the life cycles of animals that go through metamorphosis, such as butterflies.
If you are in an NGSS state, these mini-lessons support the DCI LS1.B: Growth and Development of Organisms
After you complete the lesson and activity, try this extension.
Make a Poster — Have students research two different animals and then make a poster comparing and contrasting the life cycles of those animals. For students who need help getting started, check out these free printable coloring pages showing the life cycles of Birds (chicken, penguin), Fish, Reptiles (turtle), Amphibians (frog, salamander), and Insects (ladybug, mealworm, butterfly, ant, mosquito, dragonfly).
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