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Build An Animal





Title – Build An Animal
By – Sandra C. Haiku
Primary Subject – Science
Grade Level – 10

What characteristics does an animal need to be well suited to its environment?

The diversity of organisms on Earth is staggering. However, all organisms have an important characteristic, the ability to survive in a particular environment. In order to survive, each must have certain adaptations in terms of anatomy and behavior that are suited to the environment.

Biological Evolution, Interdependence of organisms, Behavior of organisms

General Goal:
The students should gain understanding of how individual organisms adapt and relate to an environment. By picking a real biome and environment, the “animal” that the students create needs to match all of its life systems to a particular area.

Specific objectives:

  1. DESIGN a hypothetical animal that could live in a particular environment and CONSTRUCT a model of it.
  2. CLASSIFY your animal into a phylum of animals.
  3. INFER which anatomical structures and features would help the animal to survive in the environment.


  • colored paper
  • string
  • colored clay
  • pins
  • straw
  • buttons
  • ??????

Be creative in assembling your animal but DO NOT use materials that will spoil or bring ants.

Anticipatory Set:
What is the strangest looking animal you have ever seen? How do you think it got that way? This project will give you a chance to go mother nature one better. Using the information you know about ecology and evolutionary adaptations you are to create the strangest looking animal that ever “could” be on earth. Be creative, let your imagination flow and have fun.


  1. Review information on biomes (land & water), classification of animals, and adaptations needed to survive in each environment.
  2. Select an environment for your animal and decide what adaptations the animal would have and record it on a data record.
  3. Decide what the animal would look like and sketch a picture of the animal.
  4. Name the animal using proper Genus and species format and classify it in a REAL(appropriate)phylum.
  5. Describe the animal’s behavior, including the way it obtains food, the kind of dwelling it lives in, reproduction, its defensive behavior, and how it moves and gets oxygen. Record all this information.
  6. Use any materials to create a model of your animal. This is where you need to be creative!! The stranger the animal the better as long as it lives in a real biome and has adaptations suited to that area.
  7. Answer the analysis questions and write a conclusion. The model of the animal as well as the report is due in __ weeks.
  8. On the day you bring your animal to class be prepared to write about another students model and where it might live. (see analysis #4)

Independent Practice:
You are to create your animal and describe your biome on your own time. Remember no materials that will rot(fresh food) or draw ants. Do not copy another students animal, each one must be unique.

Analysis Questions and Conclusion:

  1. DESCRIBE the specific physical conditions that exist in your animal’s environment including climate and land forms. (temp, wind, rain, soil & sunshine)
  2. For Each of the conditions mentioned above, describe a characteristic of your animal that makes it well suited to the environment.
  3. State the characteristics that enable you to CLASSIFY the animal in the phylum you selected.
  4. On the basis of what you saw when you looked at another students animal model, formulate a HYPOTHESIS about the environment to which the animal is adapted. EXPLAIN your answer.

Remember to summarize what environment your animal lives in and adaptations your animal has to help it exist.

Assessment Based on Objectives:

  1. Points assigned to grading rubric may be as the teacher desires. Partial points for the construction of the animal and partial points for the report.
  2. Design, construct, classify and infer are the main objectives.
  3. Adaptations for students should be on a case by case basis. The important focus should be creating a hypothetical animal that could live in a real environment and be named in a real phylum.
  4. Extensions for gifted students could include creating a story about the life of this animal and the future it may face.

E-Mail Sandra C. Haiku!

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