Prairie Activity: Classification of Animals: Twenty Questions Game
Purpose
: to help students in grades 3-7 understand the classification of animals
and to use higher level
skills
in questioning.
Objective
: students will, after viewing the online unit
of animals
of the prairie and playing this game, be
better
able to identify classifications of animals, under-
stand categories
and classifications of things, and ask
higher
level questions.Time period: used as a skills-
and-content-practice
game after the introduction of the
classification
system. 10-20 minutes per session.
Grade Levels:
3-6
Time
Required : 15-30 minutes
Can be
used as a warm-up, break activity, too
Materials
:
list of
prairie animals, although this can be played with any study of animals.
classification
chart* see link below
person
to keep track of questions and verify question form
Chart content:
Classification
often used in elementary texts: with partial example
Kingdom
Kingdom
= Animal
Phylum
Subphylum
= Vertebrates or Invertebrates
Class
Class
= Mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians
Order
Order
= rodents, carnivores,
Family
Family
= squirrels, beavers, mice
Genus
Genus
= gray squirrel, prairie dog,
Species
Species
= black-tailed prairie dog
Motivation
:
Help
the students read the printed chart on animal classification, pointing out the
names of the divisions
that
you are studying in class. Practice with a few animals, finding them on the
chart and tracing their
classification
up the chart.
Prairie
Animal Activity: Classification: Twenty Questions Game,
page
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