Create a Creature

Objectives

• Assess survival needs and interactions between animals and the environment.

Materials

• Per Group of 3 students:
  11 x 17 sheet of paper
  tape
  white glue or hot glue guns
  markers/crayons
  scissors
  a variety of different craft materials, such as:
  pipe cleaners
  balloons
  styrofoam
  egg cartons
  feathers
  yogurt pots
  CDs
  wire
  popsicle sticks or wooden stir sticks
  cloth scraps

Key Questions

• What special features does your animal have?
• How do those special features help the animal find food? Move around?
• Can you think of a real animal that has the same or a similar features?

What To Do

1. Divide the class into small groups.
2. Use the paper and markers/crayons to create and draw an imaginary environment. This environment should include such factors as temperature, light, water, food, and predators.
3. Use the craft materials provided to create a model of a creature (or draw a creature) that is specialized to live in its environment. Students should include how the animal moves in their environment, what the animal eats, and how it catches its food.
4. Name your creature with a name that suits its appearance, lifestyle, or environment.
5. Take turns presenting your creature to the class, explaining how your creature survives in its environment.
6. Hang the creatures from the ceiling against a wall so that it is hanging in front of its imaginary environment.

Extensions

• For a simpler variation, give each group a description or image of a real environment. Then have students imagine and create an animal that lives in this environment.
• Look at some extreme environments around the world and discuss how animals survive in these environments.
• Examine the environments on other planets in our solar system and imagine what special features animals would have in order to survive there.

Other Resources

French version of this resource | Créer une créature