Animals Teaching Resources
Explore animal life in your science classroom with printable worksheets, classroom posters, and more teaching resources all about the different types of animals, their life cycles, characteristics and more!
This teacher-created collection includes a series of animal-focused teacher resources covering reptiles, birds, fish, mammals, and amphibians plus resources that classify a selection of vertebrates and invertebrates!
This comprehensive collection of teaching resources includes editable curriculum-aligned lessons on wildlife, endangered species and more — all ready to be printed and used in the classroom!
New to teaching this section of the science curriculum or looking for some fresh ideas? Read on for some tips on teaching about animal classification from our teacher team!
What Is Animal Classification? A Kid-Friendly Definition
In science class (and in professional study) animals are classified into groups based on physical and genetic characteristics. Scientists use a classification system called the Linnaean system to group different animals into progressively more specific categories, starting with the largest (and most inclusive group) and ending with the smallest and most specific group.
The categories are:
- Kingdom
- Phylum
- Class
- Order
- Family
- Genus
- Species
Helping students to remember these categories of biological animal classification, you might want to use a mnemonic such as:
- King Philip came over from Germany swimming.
- King Philip came over for good spaghetti.
- King Philip came over for good soup.
Sometimes the word "domain" is added to the top of the animal classification list, and in those cases you can add the word "dear" to your mnemonic sentences to help your students recall them all.
In the Linnaean system, every animal in nature is assigned a unique scientific name. The name includes their genus and species and it's used globally to refer to that animal — so, for example, a dog is a dog, but it's also a "canis lupus familiarise" according to its scientific name.
The animal classification system is used all around the world to help scientists understand the relationships between different animals and how they evolved over time.
Teaching About Animal Classification in Elementary School
How in-depth should your lesson planning be for animal classification? In the elementary grades, learning classifications of animals sets the stage for understanding how important this system is when scientists are studying animals in the natural world.
Consider this: In elementary school, students typically learn about the basic categories of animal classification, such as mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians.
Your animal classification lessons can extend into learning about specific examples of animals within each category, such as lions and elephants for mammals, and eagles and penguins for birds.
By the time they head off to high school, students should already know the characteristics that define each group — such as the presence of fur or feathers (in birds) or most mammals' ability to give birth to live young. Students should also know about the classification of animals within each group, such as the different types of mammals or birds.
Ready to get started? Explore the resources in this collection!
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Parts of an Animal Body - Labeling Worksheets
Examine and identify animal body parts with printable ‘Label the Animal’ activities for preschoolers and kindergarteners.
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Roll to Create an Animal - Adaptations Activity
Roll to choose cool animal adaptations for a mystery animal using a fun dice game and report template.
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Animal Blubber Experiment - Polar Adaptations Activity
Explores the structural adaptation of blubber with an Arctic Animal Adaptation experiment..
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Facts About Insects Poster
Display this poster showcasing interesting insect facts and characteristics in your classroom.
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Predator or Prey? Forest Animals – Worksheet
Sort animals according to whether they are classified as predators, prey, or both with this worksheet.
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Butterfly Life Cycle Poster and Worksheet
An educational poster and worksheet about the stages of a butterfly's life cycle.
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Adaptive Animals of the Arctic - Adaptations Worksheets
Explore the adaptations of polar animals and discover how they help them survive with a set of cut-and-paste labeling activity sheets.
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Animal Adaptations Foldables - Shutter Card Templates
Write and draw about the behavioral, structural, and physiological adaptations of animals from around the world with a set of fun printable shutter card templates.
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Design the Perfect Dog Breed - Animal Traits Project
Investigate inherited traits that parents pass to their offspring with a Create-a-Puppy selective dog breeding project.
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Animal Adaptations - Structural Adaptation Posters
Highlight some physical adaptations of animals with a printable set of labeled anchor chart.
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Bowerbird Fact File and Research Project
Research the amazing bird that is the Bowerbird with this fact sheet and research templates ready to go.
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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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Would You Rather? Animal Adaptations Game
Discuss and debate the best animal adaptations with the Would You Rather? Animal Adaptation game.
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Butterfly Camouflage Activity Pack
Experience camouflage in butterflies and create an engaging scientific simulation with our printable butterfly camouflage activity pack.
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Survival Spotlight - Physical Adaptations Animal Riddle Worksheets
Shine a spotlight on animal adaptations and solve riddles with printable animal adaptation riddle worksheets.
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Monarch Butterfly Migration Map
Use a Monarch Butterfly Migration map to introduce your students to a natural phenomenon of migratory animal behavior.
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Ocean Animals Word Wall Cards with Pictures
Introduce your students to the amazing animals in the sea with an illustrated ocean animal word wall.
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Ocean & Marine Word Wall Vocabulary
64 marine life word wall vocabulary cards.
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All About Sloths - Animal Research Project Instructional Slides
Use an animated instructional slide deck to guide your students through a sloth research project!
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Food Webs vs. Food Chains – Instructional Slide Deck
Learn the difference between a food chain and a food web with this 18-slide instructional slide deck.
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Food Chains – Teaching Presentation
Learn about the flow of energy in a food chain with this 12-slide teaching presentation.
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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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Parts of an Animal Labeling Activity - Digital Learning Resource
Identify and label animal body parts with an interactive labeling activity for preschoolers.
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Identify Nonliving and Living Things - Printables
Download a pack of Living or Nonliving? Printables to help your students differentiate between living and nonliving organisms.
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Characteristics of Living Things - Science Worksheets
Identify the common characteristics of different animals and animal classes with a pack of printable Animal Class Characteristic Worksheets.
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Animal Classification Word Search Pack - Lower Grades
Introduce your students to the six animal types/classes with a pack of printable animal word search worksheets.
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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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Animals and Their Habitats - Cut and Paste Worksheets
Match the animals and their habitats with a pack of printable cut and paste worksheets.
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Animal Characteristics - Write the Room Activity
Help your young students read and write about features of animals with a printable Animal Characteristics Write the Room activity.
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2nd Grade Reading Passage & Worksheet- Being a Good Pet Parent
Print a 2nd grade reading comprehension passage and worksheet to teach comprehension skills and learn about being a good pet parent by limiting pets' impact on ecosystems.
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Polar Bear Adaptations Reading Comprehension Pack
Learn about the physical adaptations of the polar bear with a set of printable reading comprehension worksheets for 3rd grade.
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Is It Inherited or Acquired? Traits Worksheets
Introduce your students to inherited and acquired traits with printable basic genetics worksheets for elementary grades.