School Talks
CARING FOR ANIMALS & ANIMAL BABIES
Focusing on identifying and naming, describing and comparing different animals with comparisons between young and adult animals. Also looking at how adults look after their young, moving onto how to you after your own pets and other animals.
LIFE CYCLES
Comparing and describing life cycles of different animals, with links to the previous session developing the idea that animals have offspring that turn into adults. This Can also be extended for older groups by using a wider range of more unusual animals, with more complicated life cycles.
HABITATS
The focus here is on identifying living things in their natural habitat and how they are suited to and adapted to their habitat. Also identifying and naming habitats and the animals that live there.
TEETH & EATING
Focusing on nutrition, where animals get their food and what they eat. Identifying the types of teeth and the simple functions of different types of teeth. Comparing the teeth of carnivores, herbivores and omnivores.
BONES & MOVEMENT
This will focus on identifying animals that have skeletons and muscles which they use for movement. Also Identifying specific bones and joints and their functions. We can also show how these animals are different and function differently to invertebrates.
FOOD CHAINS & WEBS
Focusing on identifying and naming a variety of consumers, predators, prey, herbivores, carnivores and omnivores. This will also be explained using food chains and simple food webs how feeding relationships occur, including a variety of habitats and microhabitats.
INTERDEPENDANCE & ADAPTATION
Similarly to the Food Chains session mentioned above, this would be extended using ideas about interdependence and adaptation to look at adaptations in prey and predators, how they are suited and adapted e.g. what makes a good predator.
CLASSIFICATION
The focus is on classifying animals into broad groups according to observable characteristics based on similarities and differences. Introducing the term kingdom and the five kingdoms of all living things, and similarities and differences between vertebrate groups and invertebrate groups.
LIFE PROCESSES
We can look at an overview of what makes up living things, and how we can tell they are living. Focusing on each particular animal shown and how each one has all 7 abilities in the MRS GREN structure. We can also look at things such as animal skeletons, movement and muscles.
VARIATION & CLASSIFICATION
Looking at different species, what makes species different and the variations within these species.
FOOD CHAINS & WEBS
A more in-depth look into food chains, and how the animals we bring fit into different food chains & food webs. We can also look at pyramids of numbers as well as how habits vary the food chain for widespread animals.