T E
A C H E R ’ S
N O T E S
Focus:
Students explore how animals grow
and change. They will also learn how animals
are the same and different, how baby animals
live, change, and grow, how animals take care
of themselves and their babies, and how human
actions can both help and harm animals.
Learning Goals:
Students will have opportunities to learn
• how to correctly use the terms adult,
egg, hatch, amphibian, insect, larva, life
cycle, nest, pouch, reptile, adaptation,
pet, rescue, dog, endangered, reproduce,
stranded
• how animals are the same and different
• how baby animals live and grow
• that not all baby animals look like their parents
• which animals go through changes as they grow
• which animals hatch from eggs
• which animals make nests
• how humans take care of animals
• how animals help people
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Discussion Prompts:
• How are animals alike, and how are they different?
• What do babies need in order to grow?
• Why do some animals lay eggs?
• Why do some animals make a nest?
• Why do some babies look like their parents and
others go through changes as they grow up?
• Why do humans take care of some animals? Why
do some animals make good pets but some do not?
• What animals help people?
• How do humans affect the growth and healthy life
of animals?
• How can humans help animals to survive?
Assessment Prompts:
• Do students demonstrate, in their discussions and
answers to questions, understanding of the science
vocabulary used in the cards for this unit?
• Are students able to carry out the skills of scientific
inquiry, following activity procedure steps safely
and accurately, making observations when
appropriate?
• Assess students’ responses during discussions.
- Do students understand that not all babies look
like their parents?
- Do students understand that some animals go
through physical changes as they grow?
- Do they understand that animal babies are born,
kept safe, and raised in a variety of ways?
- Do they understand how human actions can both
help and hurt animals?
- Do they know why some animals are in danger
and how humans can help them survive?
- Can students suggest ways that humans might be
able to help animals survive?
Links to PCSP Student Book Animals Grow:
Card 1: see lessons 1-3, 7, and 8
Card 2: see lessons 2, 4, 5, and 9
Card 3: see lessons 2-5, and 9
Card 4: see lessons 10 and 12-14
Card 5: see lessons 13 and 14
Focus:
Students discover why living things
need air and water to survive.
Activity Description: The Think question is answered by a timed drag-anddrop activity where students sort animals into “born from eggs” and “born from
mother.” Students can then click on “continue” to drop name labels onto the
animals from the previous screen. This activity is timed and self-checking.
Learning Goal: Students learn the difference between animals that hatch from
eggs and animals that are born from their mothers.
Introduce students
to the topic with
the video of the two
elephants. Discuss
the video and
any comments or
questions students
may have.
Ask Students: What are the two ways animals are born?
Assessment: Are students able to give examples of each?
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Activity Description: The next screen answers the
Think question when students click through the screens. Students
click the orange icon to get more information about each type of
animal.
Learning Goal: Students learn about how some animal babies
are cared for by their mothers.
Activity Description: The next screen
answers the Think question with text and
illustrations.
Learning Goal: Students learn about how
humans grow and change into an adult.
Ask Students: Why do some animals need their moms?
Ask Students: How do we change as we
grow?
Assessment: Are students able to describe what some animal
moms do to help their babies? Can they give examples of why an
animal might need its mom?
Assessment: Are students able to describe
some of the physical changes that happen to
humans as they grow?
PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
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Activity Description: Students highlight baby names on the word search. Students can then click on the
orange icon to match animal babies to their mothers.
Learning Goal: Students review their knowledge of what happens to both humans and animals as they grow
from baby to adult.
Ask Students: How do humans and animals change and grow?
Assessment: Are students able to describe how humans and animals change as they grow?
PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
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Focus:
Students explore why some
animals look like their parents when they are
born, and why some go through changes.
Activity Description: Students complete a timed activity to answer the
Think question. Students continue to a new screen to learn more about each
baby animal from the activity.
Learning Goal: Students explore how each animal changes as it grows.
Ask Students: What happens to each animal as it changes and grows?
Assessment: Can students describe how several of these animals change
and grow?
Introduce students to the
topic with the video of
different baby animals.
Discuss the video and any
comments or questions
students may have.
Activity Description: In the next screen, the text answers the Think question. Students click on the orange
icon to begin an activity where they drag and drop life-cycle pictures into a life-cycle chart. Students can then
click on “continue” to get to the next screen to learn about the life cycle of the dragonfly and bee.
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Learning Goal: Students review the life cycle of several insects.
Ask Students: What happens in the life cycle of these insects as they change and grow?
Assessment: Are students able to describe, draw, or label one or more insect life cycles accurately?
PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
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Activity Description: Students put a life cycle in the correct order to answer the Think question. Students then
click the orange icon to drag and drop the appropriate number of spots onto the back of the ladybug.
Learning Goal: Students will consolidate their understanding of growing and changing in the life cycles of insects.
Ask Students: Can you describe how some animals grow and describe their unique life cycles?
Assessment: Can students explain several life cycles (mammals, insects) using proper vocabulary?
PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
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Focus:
Students discover which
animals hatch from eggs and why some
animals make nests.
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Introduce
students to the
topic with the video
of Canada geese.
Discuss the video
and any comments
or questions
students may have.
Activity Description: A new screen titled
“On the Ground” appears and answers the
Think question. Students then click on the
orange icon to click and drag a baby turtle
along a path to get to the sea. After clicking
“continue”, students explore how frogs grow
and change by clicking the blue dots on each
section of the diagram. By clicking “continue”
again, the students can explore the life cycle
of the alligator.
Activity Description: On
the next screen, “The Inside
Story” answers the Think
question. By “continue”,
students learn about each
stage of a growing chick in
an egg.
Learning Goal: Students explore how
several animals lay their eggs.
Ask Students: How do some animals lay
their eggs?
Ask Students: What are
the different things that
happen to the chick as it
grows?
Assessment: Can students describe how
the turtle, frog, or alligator lay their eggs?
How are they the same? How are they
different?
Assessment: Are students
able to describe/draw how
the chick changes inside the
egg as it grows?
PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
Learning Goal: Students
discover how a chick grows
inside an egg.
Activity Description:
The Think question on the
next screen is answered as
students click the blue dots
to learn how an alligator baby
grows.
Learning Goal: Students
discover how a mother
alligator keeps her babies safe.
Ask Students: what are
some ways alligators keep
their babies safe?
Assessment: Can students
describe how alligators keep
their babies safe?
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Activity Description: The students drag and drop
each bird onto the correct egg.
Learning Goal: Students learn that different animals
have different-size eggs.
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Ask Students: How are animal eggs different?
Assessment: Can students describe several animals
that have eggs and describe how the eggs are cared for
by their mothers?
PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
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Focus:
Students explore why we take care of
some animals and how animals help people.
Activity Description: A new screen appears, and the timed activity “What
Pet Am I?” answers the Think question. Students are to use the pictures
provided to unscramble the pet names.
Learning Goal: Students will explore the different types of pets.
Ask Students: Can they name several animals that make good pets?
Assessment: Are students able to describe/draw several animals that would
make a good pet?
Introduce students to the topic
with the video that shows a dog
helping a human searching for
something. Discuss the video
and any comments or questions
students may have.
Activity Description: The first three screens answer the Think question. Students click “continue” to
learn about rescue dogs and click the arrow icon to learn more about an avalanche. Students then click the
orange icon to sort the caption into what is good and bad about animals and humans together.
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Learning Goal: Students will explore which animals make good pets and why.
Ask Students: Do you know why some animals make good pets and others do not?
Assessment: Are students able to describe and explain why some animals make good pets and others
do not?
PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
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Activity Description: Students click on each section of the spinner to learn about food
appropriate for each kind of animal.
Learning Goal: Students will review the foods that pet animals need in order to live.
Ask Students: What foods do pets need?
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Assessment: Are students able to give several examples of what some pets might need
to live?
PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
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Focus:
Students learn about how people
affect animals and how people help animals.
Activity Description: Students click through several
information screens to answer the Think question.
Learning Goal: Students will learn about several places
that provide help to animals.
Ask Students: How do humans help animals?
Assessment: Are students able to describe how humans
can help animals?
Activity Description: Students click to view the
screen “Stranded” and can click on the blue dots to
find out how to help a whale stranded on a beach.
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Learning Goal: Students learn how humans can
help whales in trouble.
Ask Students: What can humans do to help
whales in trouble?
Assessment: Are students able to describe
several things they could do if they discovered this
situation?
PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
Introduce students to the topic with
the video that shows the orangutan
and human. Discuss the video
and any comments or questions
students may have.
Activity Description: The text answers the Think
question. Students can click through the “continue” buttons
to learn more about why some animals are in danger.
Learning Goal: Students will discover that many
animals are in danger of dying out.
Ask Students: What animals are in trouble or are dying
out? Why is this happening?
Assessment: Are students able to give several examples
of these animals and why this is happening?
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Activity Description: Students play a timed activity, where they drag the name of the countries to the
appropriate animal that is endangered. Students then click on the orange icon to play a timed matching game
that includes the same endangered animals.
Learning Goal: Students discover some animals that are endangered.
Ask Students: Can you name some endangered animals?
Assessment: Are students able to describe some animals that are endangered and explain why they are in
trouble?
PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
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