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!
- Plus Plan
Reindeer Research Guide - Mini Workbook
Research all about reindeer and use this guided research template to organize student learning.
- Plus Plan
Insects for Kids - Bingo Game
Learn about creepy crawly insects with a Bug Bingo Game for preschoolers.
- Plus Plan
How Living Things Survive – Teaching Presentation
Use this 13-slide teaching presentation to teach your students about the physical characteristics of animals and plants, which help them meet their basic needs.
- Free Plan
Life Cycles – Worksheet
Give your students an opportunity to compare, observe, and draw different life cycles with this worksheet.
- Free Plan
Endangered Animals Classification Poster
Explore endangered animal classifications with this informative classroom poster.
- Free Plan
Butterfly Life Cycle Poster and Worksheet
An educational poster and worksheet about the stages of a butterfly's life cycle.
- Plus Plan
Shelter Building STEM Challenge (1-2)
Discove rhow shelters protect living things by challenging your students to build an animal shelter in this Shelter Building Stem Activity.
- Plus Plan
Endangered Species Research Flipbook
Get your students to research an endangered species using this easy-to-compile flipbook scaffold.
- Plus Plan
Monster Mashup - Inherited Traits Activity
Introduce your students to inherited traits and learned behaviors through an exciting Monster Mashup Inherited Traits Activity!
- Plus Plan
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.
- Plus Plan
Human Inherited Traits Activity - Science Experiment
Engage your students in learning about the traits inherited from their parents with a fun Human Inherited Traits Lab activity.
- Plus Plan
Is It Living or Nonliving? Worksheet
Complete the table to identify living and nonliving things with a printable animal classification worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Identify Nonliving and Living Things - Printables
Download a pack of Living or Nonliving? Printables to help your students differentiate between living and nonliving organisms.
- Plus Plan
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.
- Plus Plan
Animals Around the World - Word Mats
Discover the amazing animals on each continent and encourage global thinking with a pack of printable Animals Around the World Word Mats.
- Plus Plan
Kangaroo Adaptations – Reading Comprehension PDF Worksheets
Discover amazing kangaroo adaptations with a printable Reading comprehension worksheet pack.
- Plus Plan
Sloth Adaptations – Comprehension Skills Worksheet
Read and comprehend nonfiction text about the adaptations of a sloth with a printable pack of reading skills worksheets.
- Plus Plan
Animal Adaptations Digital Learning Activity Slides
Discover a variety of structural, behavioral, and physiological adaptations with an Animal Adaptations Digital Learning activity.
- Plus Plan
Inherited and Acquired Characteristics - Worksheet Pack
Determine if animal features and characteristics are inherited or acquired traits with an engaging Animal Traits Cut and Paste Worksheet Pack.
- Plus Plan
Fennec Fox Adaptations - Close Reading Worksheets
Read and learn about Fennec Fox adaptations with a set of printable Reading Comprehension Worksheets for 5th grade.
- Plus Plan
Polar Bear Craft Template
Pair a polar bear craft and informational writing to create a fun winter animals bulletin board.
- Free Plan
Animal Flash Cards & Word Wall
Read, write and identify animals around the world with a printable animal word wall with pictures.
- Plus Plan
Giant Squid Reading Comprehension Worksheets - 5th Grade
Read and learn about the features and adaptations of the giant squid with reading comprehension worksheets for 5th grade.
- Plus Plan
Penguin Craft & Writing Template
Research and write about penguins and their adaptations, then create a fun penguin craft to display student work.
- Plus Plan
Animal Adaptations Vocabulary Display
Introduce animal adaptation and behavior vocabulary with a word wall featuring photographs and definitions of adaptation-related words.
- Plus Plan
Animals in Winter - Kindergarten Science Worksheet
Cut and sort animals that hibernate, migrate, and adapt with an ‘Animals in Winter’ sorting activity.
- Plus Plan
Parts of an Animal Body - Labeling Worksheets
Examine and identify animal body parts with printable ‘Label the Animal’ activities for preschoolers and kindergarteners.
- Plus Plan
Tropical Rainforest Animal Adaptations Fact Template
Discover amazing rainforest animals’ adaptations and display your learning with miniature printable rainforest animal report templates.
- Plus Plan
Animals in Winter - Hibernation Mini Book
Read and learn about animals that hibernate with a printable hibernation book for kids.
- Plus Plan
Animals in Winter - Adaptations Mini Book
Discover the amazing adaptations of animals in winter with a printable mini-book.
- Plus Plan
Animal Classification Worksheets for Kindergarten
Identify and sort animals according to their characteristics with a printable pack of kindergarten science worksheets.
- Plus Plan
Koala Adaptations Comprehension Worksheets for 4th Grade
Learn about the physical and behavioral adaptations of the koala with a set of printable reading comprehension worksheets for 4th grade.