In this Grade 3 lesson from Science: A Closer Look, Chapter 2, students learn what adaptations are and how specific examples — including camouflage, blubber, mimicry, hibernation, and migration — help plants and animals survive in different environments. A hands-on inquiry activity uses vegetable fat and ice water to help students understand how blubber keeps cold-climate animals like walruses warm. Students practice forming hypotheses, recording data, and drawing conclusions from real-world evidence.
Section 1
Animals Develop Specialized Features to Survive
Plants and animals have adaptations—special structures or behaviors that help them survive in their environments. These include camouflage to hide, fat layers for warmth, and specialized body parts for gathering food.
Section 2
Desert Plants Store Water to Beat Drought
Desert plants survive with adaptations like waxy coatings that seal in moisture, wide root systems to gather rain, and spines to protect from thirsty animals. Many desert animals become nocturnal to avoid daytime heat.
Section 3
Animals Use Mimicry to Trick Predators
Some animals survive by looking like other organisms—called mimicry. Others hibernate during winter to conserve energy when food is scarce or migrate to different locations when conditions become unfavorable.
Section 4
Ocean Creatures Adapt to Watery Homes
Ocean plants use air bladders to float near sunlight, while animals develop fins for movement and specialized breathing systems. Deep-sea creatures like angler fish create light to attract prey in dark waters.
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Section 1
Animals Develop Specialized Features to Survive
Plants and animals have adaptations—special structures or behaviors that help them survive in their environments. These include camouflage to hide, fat layers for warmth, and specialized body parts for gathering food.
Section 2
Desert Plants Store Water to Beat Drought
Desert plants survive with adaptations like waxy coatings that seal in moisture, wide root systems to gather rain, and spines to protect from thirsty animals. Many desert animals become nocturnal to avoid daytime heat.
Section 3
Animals Use Mimicry to Trick Predators
Some animals survive by looking like other organisms—called mimicry. Others hibernate during winter to conserve energy when food is scarce or migrate to different locations when conditions become unfavorable.
Section 4
Ocean Creatures Adapt to Watery Homes
Ocean plants use air bladders to float near sunlight, while animals develop fins for movement and specialized breathing systems. Deep-sea creatures like angler fish create light to attract prey in dark waters.
Book overview
Jump across lessons in the current chapter without opening the full course modal.
Continue this chapter