Printable fact sheets in two levels, grades K–2 and grades 3–5, with field trip worksheets that support NGSS for Maryland, Delaware and Pennsylvania classrooms. Guided lessons: grades K–5; research and field activities through high school.
01 / FREE CLASSROOM RESOURCES
Ready-to-teach lesson plans.
Big ideas. Wild discoveries. Eleven lessons built around real animal stories, guiding questions and hands-on exploration.
Inquiry-based 5E lessonsGrades K–5Class-period activitiesFree classroom materials
Choose a topic to see the lesson plan, hands-on steps, grade guidance and related animal fact sheets. Open a lesson below to explore or print it.
01
Habitats: where animals live
Big question: Could a camel and a polar bear trade homes? Why does each animal live where it does?Grades K–5 · About 45 minutes
Extend this lesson for grades 6–12
Grades 6–8: Compare two habitats using temperature, water and shelter as variables. Predict which changes affect each animal.
High school: Build a claim about habitat loss, test it against at least two reliable sources, and explain uncertainty.
Students will
Describe what an animal gets from its habitat: food, water and shelter.
Use evidence from a fact sheet to explain why an animal survives well in one habitat and would struggle in another.
Lesson steps
Engage5 min
Hold up the dromedary camel and polar bear fact sheets. Ask: “Could these two animals trade homes? What would go wrong?”
Explore15 min
Give each group fact sheets from two different habitat groups below. Students find the Habitat line in Fast facts, then one body part or behavior that suits that place, and write each on a sticky note.
Explain10 min
Groups post their notes in habitat columns. Introduce the words habitat (the natural home where an animal finds food, water and shelter) and adaptation.
Elaborate10 min
Each group argues whether its animal would survive well, less well or not at all in a different habitat, using evidence from its sheet.
Evaluate5 min
Exit ticket: “My animal lives in ___. One thing that helps it survive there is ___.”
Adjust it
K–2: Use the K–2 sheets. Sort the animals into four big piles: hot and dry, cold and icy, wet, and forest.
Grades 4–5: Add a change, like shrinking sea ice or a drying rain pool, and predict which animals would be affected.
Listen for
“Camels can close their nostrils to keep out sand.”
“Polar bears hunt seals from the sea ice.”
Grades
K–5
Time
About 45 minutes
Standards (NGSS)
K-ESS3-1 Animals’ needs and the places they live
2-LS4-1 Diversity of life in different habitats
3-LS4-3 Surviving well, less well or not at all in a habitat
You’ll need
Fact sheets from the groups below, chart paper divided into habitat columns and sticky notes.
At Plumpton Park Zoo
Find animals from three habitat groups. Look for the body part each fact sheet describes, such as a Bactrian camel’s long eyelashes or an Arctic wolf’s two-layer coat.
The animals
Tap a name for the animal’s page, or open its printable fact sheet.
Big question: If you visited every animal’s wild home, how many continents would you see?Grades K–5 · About 45 minutes
Extend this lesson for grades 6–12
Grades 6–8: Map the native ranges of three animals and compare climate, vegetation and geography.
High school: Investigate how land use and trade influence species survival across two world regions.
Students will
Find each animal’s native region on a world map and group the animals by continent.
Explain what native and endemic mean, using animals that live wild in only one small place.
Lesson steps
Engage5 min
Ask: “Which animal at Plumpton Park Zoo do you think lives farthest from Maryland in the wild?” Record the guesses.
Explore15 min
Each group takes four to six fact sheets, finds where it lives (the Native region line, or for a farm breed the list below) and places a dot for each animal on a world map, connected to Maryland with yarn.
Explain10 min
Count the animals on each continent. Introduce native (found naturally in a place) and endemic (found naturally in only one place in the world). Ask which animals on the list below live naturally in only one place.
Elaborate10 min
Compare two animals from the same continent that live in very different places, such as the cheetah and the African penguin. What does each one need?
Evaluate5 min
Exit ticket: name animals from two continents and one way their homes are different.
Adjust it
K–2: Use the K–2 sheets. Use a continent puzzle and match each fact sheet’s photo to its continent.
Grades 4–5: Use the Islands group to research why giant tortoises and ring-tailed lemurs live wild in only one small part of the world.
Listen for
“Ring-tailed lemurs live in southern and southwestern Madagascar.”
“The platypus lives in eastern Australia and Tasmania.”
Grades
K–5
Time
About 45 minutes
Standards (NGSS)
2-LS4-1 Diversity of life in different habitats
3-LS4-3 Surviving well, less well or not at all in a habitat
Also builds map skills for social studies
You’ll need
A large world map, yarn, colored dots and the fact sheets below.
At Plumpton Park Zoo
Make a passport page and stamp a continent for each animal students find. Can the class find animals from six continents?
The animals
Tap a name for the animal’s page, or open its printable fact sheet. Farm breeds are listed where the breed was developed.
Big question: Why does a giraffe have such a long neck, a wallaby a pouch and a platypus a bill that senses prey underwater?Grades K–5 · 45 to 60 minutes
Extend this lesson for grades 6–12
Grades 6–8: Compare similar survival challenges in unrelated species and record structural and behavioral solutions.
High school: Evaluate an adaptation claim using scientific evidence, noting advantages and possible trade-offs.
Students will
Find an adaptation on a fact sheet and explain how it helps the animal survive, grow or raise young.
Compare how different animals solve the same problem, such as staying warm or keeping cool.
Lesson steps
Engage5 min
Read three Did you know? facts aloud without naming the animals: seven giant neck bones, a newborn that grows in a pouch and a bill with about 40,000 sensors. Students guess each animal and the job each part does.
Explore20 min
Each group takes one adaptation group below. For every sheet, students fill in a T-chart: the body part or behavior, and the problem it solves.
Explain10 min
Define adaptation: a body part or behavior that helps an animal survive where it lives. Each group shares one problem and its solution.
Elaborate10 min
Label the adaptation in a fact sheet’s Draw it box, or design a tool that copies an animal part. The pig fact sheets ask students to design a digging tool inspired by a pig’s snout.
Evaluate5 min
Exit ticket: “The ___ has ___. It helps the animal ___ because ___.”
Adjust it
K–2: Use the K–2 sheets. Match body-part cards to jobs: dig, climb, swim, stay warm and stay safe.
Grades 4–5: Compare two animals that solve one problem in different ways, like a zebu’s dewlap and a wallaby licking its forearms to cool off.
Listen for
“A binturong’s ankles turn backward, so it can climb down a tree headfirst.”
“A North American porcupine has about 30,000 quills, but it cannot throw them.”
Grades
K–5
Time
45 to 60 minutes
Standards (NGSS)
4-LS1-1 Body structures for survival, growth, behavior and reproduction
3-LS4-3 Surviving well, less well or not at all in a habitat
1-LS1-1 Designs that copy how animals use their body parts
You’ll need
Fact sheets from two or three groups below, a T-chart for each group and drawing paper.
At Plumpton Park Zoo
Sketch one adaptation from life for three different animals, then check each sketch against its fact sheet back in class.
The animals
Tap a name for the animal’s page, or open its printable fact sheet.
Animal groups: mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish
Big question: A platypus lays eggs and a boa gives birth to live young. So what makes a mammal a mammal?Grades K–5 · About 45 minutes
Extend this lesson for grades 6–12
Grades 6–8: Build a simple classification key for the animals and test ambiguous examples.
High school: Compare biological classification with evolutionary evidence, distinguishing shared traits from shared ancestry.
Students will
Sort animals into groups using evidence from their fact sheets: body covering, how the young begin life and how the animal breathes.
Explain why rule breakers like the platypus still belong to their groups.
Lesson steps
Engage5 min
Read from the platypus fact sheet: “The platypus is a mammal that lays eggs.” Ask: “How can that be?”
Explore15 min
Pairs read the Animal group line and the Did you know? facts on their sheet, then sort themselves into five groups: mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish.
Explain10 min
Each group lists what its animals share. Mammals have fur or hair and mothers make milk; birds have feathers and lay eggs; reptiles have scales or shells; amphibians usually start life in water; fish breathe with gills.
Elaborate10 min
Hunt the sheets for rule breakers: a mammal that lays eggs (platypus), a reptile that gives birth to live young (red-tailed boa) and a bird that uses its wings in the water (African penguin). Why do they still belong to their groups?
Evaluate5 min
Exit ticket: “My animal is a ___ because ___.”
Adjust it
K–2: Use the K–2 sheets. Sort by body covering only: fur, feathers, scales and shells.
Grades 4–5: Solve the name traps: the binturong is called a bearcat but is neither a bear nor a cat, the Patagonian cavy is a rodent and not a rabbit, and the giant panda is a true bear.
Listen for
“Koi breathe with gills.”
“A pixie frog starts life in water as a tadpole.”
Grades
K–5
Time
About 45 minutes
Standards (NGSS)
4-LS1-1 Body structures for survival, growth, behavior and reproduction
3-LS1-1 Life cycles, including eggs and live birth
Patterns, an NGSS crosscutting concept
You’ll need
A mix of fact sheets from the groups below and five group signs. The fact sheet library below can show one group at a time.
At Plumpton Park Zoo
Keep a class tally of the mammals, birds, reptiles and fish you see. Which group has the most?
The animals
Tap a name for the animal’s page, or open its printable fact sheet.
Big question: Three bears, three menus: one eats bamboo, one hunts seals and one eats almost anything. Where does each animal’s food energy come from?Grades K–5 · About 45 minutes
Extend this lesson for grades 6–12
Grades 6–8: Make a food web using several species and label where energy enters and is transferred.
High school: Analyze how changes to one population might affect the food web, identifying assumptions in the model.
Students will
Classify animals as herbivores, carnivores or omnivores using the Diet line on each fact sheet.
Build a food chain that starts with the sun and shows how energy moves from plants to animals.
Lesson steps
Engage5 min
Read three Diet lines aloud: more than 98 percent bamboo (giant panda), mainly ringed seals (polar bear), and plants, berries, nuts, insects, honey and small animals (American black bear). Ask: “All three are bears. Why do they eat such different foods?”
Explore15 min
Groups sort their fact sheets into plant eaters, meat eaters and animals that eat both, then write each animal and one food it eats on an index card.
Explain10 min
Introduce herbivore, carnivore and omnivore; all three words are defined on the fact sheets. Build a chain on the board: sun, then plants, then a plant eater, then a meat eater.
Elaborate10 min
Build a tundra food web with yarn: snowy owls and Arctic wolves both eat lemmings, and polar bears hunt ringed seals. Then add the seed spreaders: elephants spread seeds in their dung, and binturongs help fig trees grow.
Evaluate5 min
Exit ticket: draw a three-link food chain that starts with the sun and includes an animal from a fact sheet.
Adjust it
K–2: Use the K–2 sheets. Match food picture cards, like leaves, fish and berries, to the animals that eat them.
Grades 4–5: Compare a grazer (Grant’s zebra) with a browser (reticulated giraffe): what does each eat, and where does it find it?
Listen for
“The giant panda is a bear, but it eats mostly bamboo.”
“Arctic wolves are carnivores; they eat muskoxen, Arctic hares, caribou, lemmings and birds.”
Grades
K–5
Time
About 45 minutes
Standards (NGSS)
K-LS1-1 What animals need to survive
5-LS2-1 Food webs and the movement of matter
5-PS3-1 Energy in food was once energy from the sun
2-LS2-2 Animals that spread seeds
You’ll need
Fact sheets from the groups below, index cards and yarn.
At Plumpton Park Zoo
Watch animals eat. Is each one grazing, browsing or rooting? Compare what you see with the Diet line on its fact sheet.
The animals
Tap a name for the animal’s page, or open its printable fact sheet.
Big question: A joey grows in a pouch, a giraffe calf drops six feet at birth and a sulcata hatchling is on its own from the start. How do animals begin life and grow up?Grades K–5 · About 45 minutes
Extend this lesson for grades 6–12
Grades 6–8: Compare juvenile care, growth and survival strategies across three species.
High school: Research how life-history traits change with habitat conditions, separating evidence from speculation.
Students will
Compare how animals begin life: hatching from eggs or being born live.
Describe what parents and young do that helps the young survive, and how young animals are like, but not exactly like, their parents.
Lesson steps
Engage5 min
Play baby-name match: cria, joey, binlet, porcupette, peachick and kid. Students guess each parent animal, then check the fact sheets.
Explore15 min
Groups read their sheets and place each animal on a Venn diagram: hatches from an egg, or is born live. Then they find one thing a parent does for its young.
Explain10 min
Every life cycle includes birth, growth, reproduction and death. Compare helpless newborns, like a giant panda cub about the size of a stick of butter, with babies that are up fast, like a zebra foal that stands within minutes.
Elaborate10 min
Look at inherited traits: two tawny lions can carry a hidden white gene and have a white cub, and a silver fox is a red fox with a gene change that darkens its fur. How are young like their parents, and how can they differ?
Evaluate5 min
Exit ticket: draw one animal’s life cycle and label one thing a parent does that helps the young survive.
Adjust it
K–2: Use the K–2 sheets. Match mother and baby picture cards and say each baby’s name.
Grades 4–5: Compare how long young stay with their mothers, from a joey’s 280 days in the pouch to brown bear cubs’ two to three years.
Listen for
“Both African penguin parents take turns keeping the eggs warm.”
“A wallaby joey develops in its mother’s pouch.”
Grades
K–5
Time
About 45 minutes
Standards (NGSS)
1-LS1-2 Parents and young that help the young survive
3-LS1-1 Life cycles
1-LS3-1 Young are like, but not exactly like, their parents
3-LS3-1 Inherited traits and variation
You’ll need
Fact sheets from the groups below, a large Venn diagram and baby-name cards.
At Plumpton Park Zoo
Look for young animals with their parents, like the bison calves born at the zoo in spring 2026. What do the adults do?
The animals
Tap a name for the animal’s page, or open its printable fact sheet.
Big question: Arctic wolves live in packs and servals live alone. Why do some animals live in groups?Grades K–5 · About 45 minutes
Extend this lesson for grades 6–12
Grades 6–8: Compare solitary and social species and list observed benefits and costs of living in groups.
High school: Form a testable research question about social behavior and design a nonintrusive observation method.
Students will
Construct an argument, with evidence from fact sheets, that living in a group helps some animals survive.
Compare animals that live in groups with animals that usually live alone.
Lesson steps
Engage5 min
Read the group names from the fact sheets: a mob of wallabies, a troop of lemurs, a fold of Highland cattle, a creep of tortoises and a flock of sheep. Students match each name to its animal.
Explore15 min
Each group reads three or four sheets and records whether the animal lives in a group or alone, who is in the group and what the group does together.
Explain10 min
Share examples. Living in a group can help animals find food, stay safe and raise young. A wolf pack is a family, and ring-tailed lemur troops are led by females.
Elaborate10 min
Compare a loner (serval, cougar or American black bear) with a group animal. Why might a serval, which hunts mostly small rodents, do well on its own?
Evaluate5 min
Claim, evidence and reasoning exit ticket: “Living in a group helps ___ survive because ___.”
Adjust it
K–2: Use the K–2 sheets. Sort picture cards into two piles: lives with others, and lives alone.
Grades 4–5: Debate whether tortoises that share a burrow, or a creep of tortoises, count as a real group.
Listen for
“Ring-tailed lemur troops are led by females.”
“A wolf pack is a family: a breeding pair and their pups.”
Grades
K–5, built around grade 3
Time
About 45 minutes
Standards (NGSS)
3-LS2-1 Groups that help members survive
You’ll need
Fact sheets from the groups below and a claim, evidence and reasoning organizer.
At Plumpton Park Zoo
Watch a herd or troop for five minutes. Who leads, who follows, and how close do the animals stay?
The animals
Tap a name for the animal’s page, or open its printable fact sheet.
Senses and signals: how animals sense and communicate
Big question: How can a platypus find food with its eyes closed, and what is a cockatoo saying when it raises its crest?Grades 1–5 · About 45 minutes
Extend this lesson for grades 6–12
Grades 6–8: Create an observation chart of animal signals and discuss what can and cannot be inferred.
High school: Evaluate the evidence for different sensory adaptations and discuss their limitations.
Students will
Describe how animals take in information through their senses, process it and respond.
Compare the sounds, smells and displays animals use to communicate.
Lesson steps
Engage5 min
Play “Who said that?”: read the barred owl’s call (“Who cooks for you?”), the African penguin’s donkey-like call and a donkey’s bray. Students guess each animal.
Explore15 min
Groups read their sheets and fill a chart: the sense or signal, the information it carries and what the animal does next.
Explain10 min
Senses take in information, the brain makes sense of it and the animal responds. A serval’s huge ears pick up prey, and then it pounces.
Elaborate10 min
Look at signals: a cockatoo raises its salmon-orange crest, a macaw’s bare face turns pinker when it is excited and a peacock spreads a train about four feet long. What might each signal tell other animals?
Evaluate5 min
Exit ticket: “The ___ uses its ___ to sense ___, and then it ___.”
Adjust it
K–2: Use the K–2 sheets. Sort animal facts by sense: seeing, hearing, smelling and touching.
Grades 4–5: Design a device that copies an animal sense, like a heat detector inspired by a ball python’s lip pits.
Listen for
“A platypus bill has about 40,000 electroreceptors that sense prey.”
“A ball python finds prey with heat-sensitive lip pits.”
Grades
1–5
Time
About 45 minutes
Standards (NGSS)
4-LS1-2 Senses, the brain and responses
1-LS1-1 Designs that copy how animals use their body parts
You’ll need
Fact sheets from the groups below and a three-column chart: sense or signal, message, response.
At Plumpton Park Zoo
Stand quietly for one minute and list every animal sound you hear. Which animals are calling?
The animals
Tap a name for the animal’s page, or open its printable fact sheet.
Big question: About 100,000 cheetahs lived in 1900 and about 7,100 in 2017. Why do some animals decline, and how do others come back?Grades 2–5 · 45 to 60 minutes
Extend this lesson for grades 6–12
Grades 6–8: Identify threats to two species and assess how a specific conservation action addresses each threat.
High school: Develop a conservation proposal with sources, trade-offs and measurable indicators of success.
Students will
Read conservation status labels and place animals on the IUCN Red List ladder.
Identify threats and solutions from fact sheets, and propose one action their class or community could take.
Lesson steps
Engage5 min
Share two stories from the sheets: cheetahs fell from about 100,000 in 1900 to about 7,100 in 2017, while Española tortoises came back from just 15 animals to more than 2,300. Ask: “What could make the difference?”
Explore20 min
Groups place their animals on a status ladder using each sheet’s Status line or the list below, then note one threat the sheet names, such as shrinking sea ice for polar bears or poaching for tigers.
Explain10 min
Define vulnerable, endangered and extinct; each word is on the fact sheets. Discuss head-starting, raising young animals safely before releasing them into the wild, and how the Española tortoises came back.
Elaborate10 min
Think local: red-eared sliders are not native to Maryland, and some pet pigs are given up by their owners. What can families do to be responsible pet owners and protect local wildlife?
Evaluate5 min
Exit ticket: “One animal that needs help is ___. One thing that could help it is ___.”
Adjust it
K–2: Use the K–2 sheets. Sort the animals into two piles: doing well, and needs our help.
Grades 4–5: Compare two solutions for one animal and argue which would work better.
Listen for
“Polar bears hunt seals from sea ice, so shrinking sea ice is a problem for them.”
“The quagga, a plains zebra, went extinct in 1883.”
Grades
2–5
Time
45 to 60 minutes
Standards (NGSS)
K-ESS3-3 Ways people can protect living things
3-LS4-4 Solutions when environments change
5-ESS3-1 Communities protecting the environment
You’ll need
Fact sheets from the groups below and a status ladder poster: Least Concern, Near Threatened, Vulnerable, Endangered, Critically Endangered.
At Plumpton Park Zoo
About half the animals at Plumpton Park Zoo are rescued. Look for the heart on exhibit signs, which marks rescued animals, and ask why some animals cannot return to the wild.
The animals
Tap a name for the animal’s page, or open its printable fact sheet.
Big question: Llamas descend from wild guanacos, and scientists made silver foxes friendlier in just ten generations. How do animals change when people raise them?Grades 2–5 · About 45 minutes
Extend this lesson for grades 6–12
Grades 6–8: Compare domesticated animals with their wild relatives and identify traits changed by selective breeding.
High school: Investigate domestication, welfare and biodiversity with evidence from multiple credible sources.
Students will
Tell domesticated animals from wild ones using evidence from fact sheets.
Describe traits people chose in domesticated animals and connect them to traits passed from parents to young.
Lesson steps
Engage5 min
Read the silver fox story: in 1959, scientists in Siberia began breeding silver foxes for friendliness alone. By the tenth generation, 18 percent were extremely tame and acted much like puppies. Ask: “What changed, and how?”
Explore15 min
Groups sort their sheets into domesticated and wild using the Status line or the list below and list one trait people wanted in each domesticated animal.
Explain10 min
Define domesticated (bred by people over many generations) and breed. Use examples from the sheets: alpacas were bred for fiber, zebu pull plows and carts, and koi are ornamental carp in many colors.
Elaborate10 min
Compare cousins: llamas and their wild ancestor, the guanaco; domestic Bactrian camels and the wild camel, a separate species; and dromedaries, none of which are truly wild in their native range.
Evaluate5 min
Exit ticket: “The ___ is domesticated. People raised it for ___.”
Adjust it
K–2: Use the K–2 sheets. Play “Farm or wild?” with picture cards, then name each baby: lamb, kid, foal, calf and cria.
Grades 4–5 and middle school: Discuss why the fox scientists chose only friendliness, and list the puppy-like behaviors that appeared: whimpering for attention, licking hands and wagging tails.
Listen for
“Alpacas were bred especially for fiber.”
“Llamas are domesticated descendants of guanacos.”
Grades
2–5, plus a middle school extension
Time
About 45 minutes
Standards (NGSS)
3-LS3-1 Inherited traits and variation
1-LS3-1 Young are like, but not exactly like, their parents
MS-LS4-5 How people shape inherited traits (middle school)
You’ll need
Fact sheets from the groups below and a two-column chart: wild and domesticated.
At Plumpton Park Zoo
For each farm animal you meet, find on its fact sheet one way people have used it, such as for fiber, for work or as a pet.
The animals
Tap a name for the animal’s page, or open its printable fact sheet.
Big question: Which animals at Plumpton Park Zoo could you meet in the wild in Maryland, and which ones arrived with people’s help?Grades 3–5 · About 45 minutes
Extend this lesson for grades 6–12
Grades 6–8: Use Maryland DNR sources to compare how black bears and porcupines fared in Maryland over the last century, and what helped them.
High school: Research an introduced species in Maryland waters and evaluate one way to limit its spread, citing two credible sources.
Students will
Sort zoo animals into four groups: native to Maryland, winter visitor, gone from the wild in the East, and introduced by people.
Explain one way people have helped Maryland wildlife and one way people have harmed it.
Lesson steps
Engage5 min
Ask: “Which animal at Plumpton Park Zoo do you think could live wild in Maryland today?” Record the guesses.
Explore15 min
Groups read the six animals below and sort them into four groups: native, visitor, gone from the wild in the East, and introduced.
Explain10 min
Define native (found here naturally), introduced (brought here by people) and extinct. Black bears once lived across Maryland; by the 1950s only a few remained in the far west. Today a healthy population breeds in the four westernmost counties.
Elaborate10 min
On a Maryland county map, color Garrett, Allegany, Washington and Frederick counties, where black bears breed, then mark Rising Sun. How far is the zoo from bear country?
Evaluate5 min
Exit ticket: name one native animal and one introduced animal. Why should pet turtles never be released outdoors?
Adjust it
K–2: Use the K–2 sheets. Sort picture cards into “lives in Maryland” and “lives far away,” then find Maryland on a map of the United States.
Grades 4–5: Black bears came back to Maryland, but wild cougars did not. Discuss what an animal needs to return to a place.
Listen for
“Black bears breed in Garrett, Allegany, Washington and Frederick counties.”
“Red-eared sliders are not native to Maryland. People released pet turtles.”
Grades
3–5
Time
About 45 minutes
Standards (NGSS)
3-LS4-3 Surviving well, less well or not at all in a habitat
3-LS4-4 Solutions when an environment changes
5-ESS3-1 How communities protect the environment
Also builds map skills for social studies
You’ll need
A Maryland county map, colored pencils and the fact sheets below.
At Plumpton Park Zoo
Find the six animals below. Which ones could you also meet on a hike or a winter beach walk in Maryland?
The animals
Tap a name for the animal’s page, or open its printable fact sheet. Sources: Maryland Department of Natural Resources, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Maryland Biodiversity Project.
Standards codes are NGSS performance expectations, the science standards used in Maryland and Delaware; Pennsylvania’s STEELS standards include closely matching expectations. The lessons support these standards; they are not an official certification. Ready to visit? See school field trips.
02 / THE ANIMAL LIBRARY
Every animal has a story.
Search by name or explore a category. Open any illustrated fact sheet to print or save it for your class. Each animal has two: a read-aloud sheet for grades K–2 and a sheet for grades 3–5. How the K–2 sheets work.
Pins show roughly where each animal lives in the wild. Farm breeds are shown where the breed was developed. Distances are straight-line miles from Rising Sun, rounded.
04 / INSIDE EACH FACT SHEET
Two pages. Five ways in.
Every grades 3–5 sheet follows the same five-part plan, so once students know one, they know them all. Each sheet is built from the animal’s page on our website, so students can look up the answers there. Page 2 is a before-and-after-your-visit worksheet.
“These educational fact sheets are amazing! What a perfect way for elementary and middle school students to learn about animals, while also providing a great foundation for writing research papers.
Hands down, the best animal resource ever for busy classroom teachers!”
Robin Clark, retired teacher
12345
1
Fast facts
The basics about the animal at a glance.
Before the trip
2
Did you know?
Five surprising facts to start the conversation.
Before the trip
3
Words to know
Science words defined in plain language for students.
Before the trip
4
Think about it
Five questions to discuss, using the animal’s page on our website.
After the trip
5
Draw it
A drawing activity with labels and a box to draw in. At the zoo, students can draw from life.
Every animal also has a K–2 sheet, written to be read aloud in about 5 minutes. It has short sentences, large type, a labeled photo and a map. Page 2 has yes-or-no questions, partner looking, a drawing box and handwriting lines, plus tips for kindergarten and grade 2. Every fact comes from the animal’s page on our website.
Using PebbleGo? The K–2 sheets cover body, habitat, food, life cycle and fun facts, in the same order as the tabs on a PebbleGo animal article, so your class will know the layout. Post our PDF beside the article in Google Classroom or Seesaw, or use it as a second source and compare the two with our recording sheet.
PebbleGo is a Capstone product. Plumpton Park Zoo is not connected with Capstone.
Bring wildlife learning into your classroom before, during and after a visit to Plumpton Park Zoo in Rising Sun, Maryland. These flexible activities encourage students to research animals on our website, make their own observations and explain what they discover.
Choose an animal from our animals at the zoo pages, then have students visit that page to find evidence for their answers. Our Animal Learning Center also includes species studied for general education that may not be exhibited at Plumpton Park Zoo. Use the zoo animal pages when selecting species students expect to see during a visit.
1. Before
Research
Find an animal's habitat, diet and two adaptations on its zoo webpage. Record the page title and one fact to investigate in person.
2. During
Observe
Watch quietly and describe visible behavior or physical features. Write down observations without guessing why they happened.
3. After
Explain
Compare website research with field notes. Use evidence to explain an adaptation, habitat need or animal-care question.
06 / STUDENT RESEARCH
Start with better questions.
Students should answer these questions by visiting the linked animal page, not simply from memory. Encourage them to cite the page they used.
What is the animal’s common name, and where does it live in the wild?
What does it eat? Is it a herbivore, carnivore or omnivore?
Identify one physical adaptation and explain how it helps the animal survive.
Identify one behavior described on the page. What might students look for during a zoo visit?
What challenges does this species face in the wild, and what conservation action could help?
What new question would you ask a zookeeper after reading the page?
Yes. Teachers may copy and share them freely as long as they credit Plumpton Park Zoo.
Do you have fact sheets for kindergarten, first and second grade?
Yes. Every animal has a grades K–2 sheet written to be read aloud, next to the regular sheet written for grades 3–5. See how the K–2 sheets work.
Do you have lesson plans for the fact sheets?
Yes. There are eleven free, ready-to-teach lessons on habitats, world regions, adaptations, animal groups, food chains, life cycles, group living, senses, endangered animals, domestic animals and Maryland wildlife. Each one lists the animals that fit, with their fact sheets, and can be printed.
Which science standards do the fact sheets support?
Every sheet lists the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) it supports, mostly grades K–4 life science, such as 4-LS1-1 on how animals’ body parts help them survive. Maryland and Delaware both use NGSS. Pennsylvania’s STEELS standards include the same expectations under their own codes; 4-LS1-1, for example, is 3.1.4.A in Pennsylvania.
Do the fact sheets cover animals that are not at the zoo?
Nine of them do: the African elephant, African penguin, cheetah, Galápagos giant tortoise, giant panda, pixie frog, platypus, polar bear and silver fox. They are part of our online Animal Learning Center, and each of those sheets says so at the top.
Do students need to visit the zoo to use these resources?
No. Teachers can use the animal pages for classroom research even without scheduling a trip.
Where do we book a school field trip?
Visit the school visits page for reservation details and current rates. Plumpton Park Zoo is in Rising Sun, Maryland, close to schools in Cecil and Harford counties in Maryland, Lancaster and Chester counties in Pennsylvania and New Castle County in Delaware.
Then come see them.
Most of these animals live at Plumpton Park Zoo. Groups of 15 or more save $2 on every ticket, and up to four teachers come in free.
