LKS2 – Living Things
Activities
Year 3 and 4 Number
 In an open space have a ‘rainforest treasure hunt’ to practise counting in multiples:
- Label the area with different habitats found in the rainforest.
- Create rainforest-themed number cards and hide them in the different areas.
- Split the students into pairs and allocate them a rainforest animal.
- Set each pair the task of looking for a particular multiple, for example, sloths to find multiples of
three.
 Give multi-step problems a rainforest theme:
- Keep the rainforest labels in place from the previous activity.
- In each area write a multi-step problem themed around an animal or plant that lives in that habitat.
Include an interesting fact about that plant or animal.
- Create an interactive display of the questions, for example, hiding them under the leaves of a tree
or under a rock.
 Play a ‘check your number’ game:
- Ask students to choose a number with up to four digits and to stand up. Call out number
statements. For example, ‘Does your number have an odd number in the ones column?’ If the
answer is ‘yes’, they should sit down. If the answer is ‘no’ they should stay standing.
- After 10 statements all the students standing are the winners.
Year 3 Number
Captain Cod Activity – Describe and extend number sequences in 10s and 100s.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/300/5/2/1
Mrs Cow's Milk Activity – Extend number sequences counting on and back in tens and hundreds.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/367/5/2/1
Mrs Cow's Milk Activity – Describe and extend number sequences in steps of 2, 3, 4, 5, 10 or 100
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/368/5/2/1
Jack in the Box Activity – What comes next? Counting on from any number in steps of 2, 3, 4 and
5 up to 100 and beyond.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/404/5/2/1
Grid Topic Tool – Explore a number grid ranging from 1 to 100.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/2008/5/2/2
Number Line Topic Tool – Explore a 0 to 1000 number line.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1955/5/2/2
Sleepy Crawlies Activity – Fill in the missing number, counting on from any number in steps of 2,
3, 4 and 5s up to 100 and beyond.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/806/5/2/1
LKS2 – Living Things page 1
Activities
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Year 4 Number
Fish with Manu Activity – Round whole numbers to the nearest 10, 100 or 1000.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/426/6/2/1
Rabbit Roundup Activity – Round numbers less than 100 to the nearest 10.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1574/6/2/1
Number Line Topic Tool – Explore a 0 - 100 number line.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1954/6/2/2
Number Line Topic Tool – Explore a 1000 to 2000 number line.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1959/6/2/2
Moon Mission Activity – Rounding up or down after division in the context of a problem.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/366/6/2/1
Water Raider Activity – Recognise multiples of 6, 7, 8 and 9.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/447/6/2/1
Disco Robot Activity – Quick timed exercise on multiplication up to 10 x 10.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/453/6/2/1
7 x Table Song Activity – Listen to and/or sing the 7 x table song and then answer related mental
maths questions.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1821/6/2/1
9 x Table Song Activity – Listen to and/or sing the 9 x table song and then answer related mental
maths questions.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1822/6/2/1
6x Table Song Activity – Sing a multiplication song about 6s up to 6 x 10.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/12367/6/2/1
11x Table Song Activity – Listen to and/or sing the 11 x table song and then answer related
mental maths questions.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/19989/6/2/1
12x Table Song Activity – Listen to and/or sing the 12 x table song and then answer related
mental maths questions.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/19990/6/2/1
Year 3 Fractions and decimals
Up and Away Activity – Find the common denominator and then position the fraction on a number
line.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/855/5/2/1
Fraction Packed Activity – Identify a Fractional Area of a Shape.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/12377/5/2/1
Fraction Packed Activity – Understanding whole numbers as fractions.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/12383/5/2/1
LKS2 – Living Things page 2
Activities
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Fractions Topic Tool – Explore and compare fractions. Defaults to 3 bars set at eighths, twelfths
and sixteenths.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/2018/5/2/2
Fractions Topic Tool – Explore twentieths, simplifying the fraction when possible.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/2023/5/2/2
Year 4 Fractions and decimals
Snow Hope Activity – Round decimal fractions to the nearest whole number.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/440/6/2/1
Decimal Number Line Topic Tool – Explore two-place decimals on a number line.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1992/6/2/2
Year 3 and 4 Measure
 Plan a school vegetable garden or nature reserve:
- Split the class into small groups and give each group an A3 piece of centimetre squared paper.
- Explain that each square centimetre represents 1 square metre of the actual garden.
- Give students perimeter dimensions for the garden and the perimeter of different objects/areas that
must be included.
- Ask students to create a scale drawing of the garden.
- Extend this activity by giving students a budget and asking them to purchase seeds, garden
equipment, etc. for their garden.
Year 3 Measure
Kuko Run Activity – Vocabulary related to time.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/433/5/2/1
Time Topic Tool – Explore time on both a digital clock and analogue clock to the nearest minute
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1981/5/2/2
Year 4 Measure
Shop with Stig Activity – Solve 1 and 2 step subtraction problems involving money
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/968/6/2/1
Help Granny Activity – Multiplication using money. Click on coins to answer.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/716/6/2/1
Money Topic Tool – Use coins and notes to the value of £10 to make totals up to £50
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/2206/6/2/2
Stationery Store Activity – Use a calculator to carry out one step and two step calculations
involving all four operations.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1806/6/2/1
Stig and the Bus Learn Screen – An example of how to calculate the time differences between
different time zones in different countries.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/12608/6/2/6
LKS2 – Living Things page 3
Activities
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Year 3 and 4 statistics
 Look at statistics of wildlife in the local area. Use statistics from charity organisations protecting
wildlife such as birds, hedgehogs or frogs.
 Create a graph to compare the number of each species and look at their decline over the last ten years.
 Interpret similar statistics about the Amazon rainforest. Compare data from the two different areas
and draw conclusions about the effects of humans on both environments.
Year 3 statistics
Summer Fair Learn Screen – Reading bar graphs in divisions of two to a maximum frequency of
10.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/12710/5/2/6
Summer Fair Activity – Interpret data from bar charts to solve problems. Create a simple bar chart
using a frequency table.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1015/5/2/1
Speedy Pete's Activity – Read and use bar charts to solve problems.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/5749/5/2/1
Charts Topic Tool – Create a bar chart within the maximum frequency of 20.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/2072/5/2/2
Year 3 Plants
 With the students, grow a vegetable patch:
- Grow fast growing plants which can be sown in the spring and harvested in July, before the school
summer holidays start.
- Give the students a selection of plant labels and seed packets and ask them to analyse the different
requirements that each plant needs to grow.
- Group the plants together according to the requirements that they need to grow, for example, the
amount of sunlight, type of soil, amount of water, etc.
- Link to Maths and plan out the area for planting, using the information on the seed packets to
calculate how far apart plants should be planted to ensure adequate growth.
- Propagate seeds in the classroom first to ensure a better germination rate. Seeds such as radish,
rocket and oriental greens should grow within 4 – 6 weeks.
 Investigate the root system of a plant by suspending an avocado seed in water and observing how it
grows roots. Alternatively, cut off the top of a pineapple and lay it in a shallow tray of water.
 Investigate the way that water is transported within a plant by placing a flower, such as a carnation,
in water which contains food colouring.
 Take a visit to a local garden to discuss with the head gardener about the work they do. Find out
about how they maintain the gardens throughout the year and the plans they have set in place for the
next year’s planting etc.
 Look at the Latin names of some plants. Recognise the different characteristics of the plants and how
this can relate to their Latin names, for example, odarata meaning ‘perfumed’; armata meaning
‘prickly’; grandis meaning ‘big’; minima meaning ‘small’; pendula meaning ‘hanging’.
 Go for a walk in the local park and collect different types of leaves and seeds:
- Identify the type of tree or plant that the seed or leaf comes from,
LKS2 – Living Things page 4
Activities
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
Examine the seeds to determine the method of seed dispersal used by the plant (wind, animal
internal, animal external, explosive, water).
Research the different types of plants that grow in the rainforest. How are these plants similar or
different to the ones found in a British garden?
Flower Power Activity – Identify the different parts of a plant.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/543/5/3/1
Plant Parts Topic Tool – Identify the parts of a plant: roots, stem, leaves, fruit and flowers.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1908/5/3/2
Mind Map Science Topic Tool – Organise ideas and concepts, revise planning techniques and
illustrate life processes.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1921/5/3/2
Plant Processes Topic Tool – Build a plant diagram to explore and describe the processes it is able
to go through.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1930/5/3/2
Plant Functions Learn Screen – Explore the functions of the main parts of a plant.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/19958/5/3/6
Seeds of Knowledge Learn Screen – Explore key vocabulary used when discussing plants and their
life cycles.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/20713/5/3/6
Flower Power Learn Screen – An overview of different parts of plants and what they do to help
the plant grow.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/12625/5/3/6
Granny's Garden Learn Screen – Understanding what plants need to help them grow from seeds
into healthy plants.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/12670/5/3/6
Granny's Garden Activity – Decide what plants require to be able to grow properly.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/922/5/3/1
Seed Feed Learn Screen – Conditions a seed needs to germinate and grow into a healthy plant.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/12669/5/3/6
Seed Feed Activity – Consider conditions that might affect germination.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/916/5/3/1
Grow a Plant Topic Tool – Explore the effects of water, heat and light on the growth of a plant.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1911/5/3/2
Green Fingers Learn Screen – An explanation of the different parts of a flower and what part they
have to play in the reproductive cycle of the plant.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/12626/5/3/6
Parts of a Flower Learn Screen – Explore key vocabulary used when discussing parts of a flower
and their functions.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/20710/5/3/6
LKS2 – Living Things page 5
Activities
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Year 4 Living things and their habitats
 Introduce classification keys by playing a game of 20 questions:
- Split the students into pairs. Give one student a picture of an animal, which they should not show to
their partner. Their partner should then ask questions which can only be answered with a ‘yes’ or
‘no’, to try and identify the animal in the picture. Examples of questions could include: Has the
animal got legs? Has it got wings? Does it have fur? Repeat the process with different animals.
- Direct the students to make notes of questions that successfully led to the identity of the animals
being discovered.
- Organise these questions into different classifications, creating a display.
- Find a selection of animal images from around the world, both vertebrate (fish, amphibians, reptiles,
birds and mammals) and invertebrate (snails, slugs, worms, spiders and insects). Ask the students
to group them into categories of their own choosing.
- Discuss as a class the criteria that they have chosen for each group and create classification
questions that could be used to group the different categories of animals.
 Go on a walk to a local woodland or pond. Take digital photographs of the plants and animals and use
a classification key to help identify the animal or plant.
 Research how changes in the environment can pose a danger to living things in an area:
- In small groups, use the Internet and reference books to research the habitat of a selection of
animals which are currently listed as endangered within the local area, for example, the hedgehog in
Britain.
- Introduce the terms ‘endangered’ and ‘extinct’ and explain that the animals they have researched
today are all endangered.
- Display a selection of images containing things that have both positive and negative effects on the
environment. For example: power stations, wind turbines, deforestation, recycling.
- Working in small groups, direct the students to sort the images into two categories, positive and
negative effects.
- Discuss as a class the reasons behind their choices of category. Do all of the images fall completely
into one category? For example wind turbines produce carbon free energy however they have been
proven to affect the flight paths of migrating birds.
 Visit a local nature reserve:
- Look at the conservation work that is done there and the wildlife that it supports.
- Talk to any volunteers that help at the reserve about the types of jobs they do.
- Talk to the gardeners. If the area contains wild flowers, plants and trees, why does it need
gardeners to maintain it?
- Collect a selection of leaves and use classification keys to sort them into different categories of tree.
- Perform surveys of different wildlife in the park, for example: How many different types of tree,
birds, butterfly or insects can be found there?
- Make observations about the different insects that can be found on flowers and plants. What parts
of the plant are they found on and what are they doing?
- Lift up a rock or piece of wood and make observations of the animals that can be found
underneath. Use classification keys to sort the animals by asking questions, for example: Is the
animal a vertebrate or an invertebrate?
 Create a school nature reserve:
- Plant an area of the school with wildflower seeds.
- Create a habitat for amphibians by building a mini pond from a bucket of water immersed in the
ground.
- Create habitats for other wildlife such as hedgehogs, birds and butterflies.
 Learn about endangered species indigenous to the Amazon rainforest.
- Link to geography to learn about rainforests and the Amazon.
- Split the class into pairs and give each pair a different endangered Amazon animal to research. Use
reference books and the Internet to research animals such as the pink river dolphin, the spider
LKS2 – Living Things page 6
Activities
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monkey, the jaguar, the macaw, the Amazon spectacled bear, the blue morpho butterfly or the red
eyed tree frog.
Search Party Learn Screen – Observing, comparing and sorting plants and animals according to
their characteristics.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/12623/6/3/6
Search Party Activity – Identify characteristics that help to group plants and animals.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/564/6/3/1
Habitats Topic Tool – Create models of habitats with animals and animal relationships.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/2211/6/3/2
Sorting the Spider Learn Screen – Recognising that living things can be grouped in a variety of
ways.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/14801/6/3/6
Human Impact Activity – Understand how humans cause change in their environment.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/13310/6/3/1
Food Chain Topic Tool – Explore food chains within a range of habitats.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/2238/6/3/2
The Huntress Activity – Complete the food chain by identifying either the producer, the prey or the
predator.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/562/6/3/1
The Great Escape Activity – Use Venn diagrams to sort animals using more than one criterion,
where more than one criteria can apply to the same animal.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1606/6/3/1
Reading comprehension
 Read a selection of non-fiction books to obtain information about the environment, plants and
animals.
Text Features Topic Tool – Develop an understanding of how a range of fiction and non-fiction
texts are written and the features that are associated with each one, using text bank C.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/2128/5/1/2
Playing with Meaning Topic Tool – Change the language of a text through the use of substitute
words, the addition of detail or punctuation, and the removal of superfluous words and
punctuation, using text bank B.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/2259/5/1/2
Captain's Log Activity – Ask and answer questions about key details in a text. Identify the main
topic or subject and retell key details of a text.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1875/5/1/1
Shiver Me Timbers Learn Screen – Explore paragraphs and why we use them.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1542/5/1/1
LKS2 – Living Things page 7
Activities
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Valley of the Kings Activity – Interrogate and respond to a variety of themed non-fiction texts.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1617/5/1/1
Fact Finder Activity – Explore the issue of school expansion through reading a range of texts.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/12369/5/1/1
Fact Finder Activity – Explore the issue of a library closure through reading a range of texts.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/12372/5/1/1
Writing
Persuasive writing
 Hold a class debate about zoos and safari parks:
- Write a fictitious letter from the local council, to the school stating that a safari park is to be built
on a local park.
- Split the class into two groups, one in favour of the proposal and the other against.
- Each group should brainstorm facts to support their argument, using the Internet, articles from
magazines and reference books.
- Each group should produce a list of statements representing their argument.
- In an open space, create a conscience alley with the students for and against the safari park being
built. Stand the students that are for, in a line opposite those that are against. Students should
take it in turns to become the councillor and walk through the conscience alley, while the other
students take it in turn to read out a supporting statement.
- Each student could then compose a letter to the head of the council stating their own point of view
as to whether the safari park should be built, making their reasons clear.
 Split the class into groups of three to perform a role play about deforestation.
- One student should imagine that you are a conservationist arguing why the rainforest should be
preserved.
- The other should imagine that they are a woodsman who works for the wood cutting companies in
favour of cutting down the trees.
- The third student should act as an impartial television journalist, heading a debate on
deforestation.
 Write a week long diary entry as a conservationist, trying to save an endangered plant species from
extinction. Use the diary entry to demonstrate how the plants are integral to the rainforest survival.
Show how all of the creatures in the rainforest depend on the plants and each other to survive.
The Big City Activity – Compare formal and informal uses of English.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/7525/5/1/1
Poetry
 Write an acrostic poem for spring:
- Go on a nature walk, taking digital photographs of things that represent spring.
- Create a computer slideshow, with each line of the poem represented on a separate slide.
Non-fiction writing
 Make a “how to make your own nature reserve” book:
- Include information about the different plants suitable for growing in the reserve. The requirements
for their growth and their function within the reserve, for example, buddleia plants attract
butterflies.
- Include instructions on how to create habitats to attract particular animals to the reserve, for
example snails, frogs, butterflies, birds and hedgehogs.
- Include a scale drawing of the nature reserve showing each of the different areas for planting and
animal habitats.
LKS2 – Living Things page 8
Activities
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
Make a brief guide for visitors to the nature reserve. Give copies of the guide to children in another
class and act as tour guides around the reserve.

Write an algorithm and simple program to grow a plant:
- Split the class into pairs and give each pair a different seed packet or plant label.
- Students should read the labels, interpreting the best way to care for their plant (amount of
sunlight, water, soil type etc).
- As a pair, students should write a set of instructions / algorithm for planting the seed / plant,
through to its everyday care.
- Discuss as a class how a loop can be added to the algorithm, to repeat the daily care routine of the
growing plant.
- Students should swap algorithms to act out each other’s instructions.
Use the Flow Diagram Tool to write a classification key to identify different animals in both the
rainforest and the local area.

Programming for Beginners Learn Screen – Explore vocabulary associated with computer
programming.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/14853/5/8/6
Code Crunch Lesson Activity – Understand and use the REPEAT function within Code Crunch.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/19732/5/8/1
Flow Diagram Topic Tool – Design algorithms using a flow diagram.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/19737/5/8/2
Code Crunch for Beginners Learn Screen – An overview of the functions within Code Crunch, with
examples.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/20084/5/8/6
Do the Logomotion Activity – Identify the correct code to match the shape, using LOGO
programming.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/19729/5/8/1
RoboTask Activity – Detect and correct sequencing errors in an algorithm.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/19724/5/8/1
To Boldly Logo Activity – Identify the correct shape to match the code, using LOGO programming.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/19730/5/8/1
LKS2 – Living Things page 9
Activities
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French and Spanish
 Make a seasons poster, to include the weather and plants and animals that you would expect to see in
each season of the year.
 As a class play some traditional playground games:
- French: les oselettes (Jacks), le saut à la corde (skipping)
- Spanish: Piedra, Papel, Tijera (Rock, paper, scissors), Frío o Caliente (hot or cold)
French
Vive le Vent Activity – Sing along to "Vive Le Vent".
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1477/5/4/1
Les Choux Activity – Sing along to the traditional French song "Savez-vous planter les choux?"
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1498/5/4/1
Oeufs de Pâques Learn Screen – Explore and practise vocabulary related to Easter.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/12691/5/4/6
Oeufs de Pâques Activity – Create an Easter card within a French context.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/969/5/4/1
Mes jeux préférés Learn Screen – Express your favourite playground game in French.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/20083/5/4/6
Mes jeux Préférés Activity – Match playground games with characters' preferences.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/20076/5/4/1
Mon Agenda Learn Screen – Express daily routine activities in present tense using verbs like bois,
dessine, fais, joue, lis, mange, regarde.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/20080/5/4/6
Mon Agenda Activity – Complete Emma's agenda recognising leisure activities and building
sentences.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/20176/5/4/1
Spanish
Que llueva Activity – Sing along to one of the most widely-known traditional songs, Que llueva,
which celebrates the arrival of Spring.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/1507/5/6/1
Semana Santa Activity – Create an Easter card within a Spanish context.
https://ec1.educationcity.com/content/index/981/5/6/1
LKS2 – Living Things page 10
Activities
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GEOGRAPHY
 Investigate habitats in different parts of the world:
- Identify the equator, the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn and the poles on a globe.
- Explain to the students that the climate near the equator is hotter and that we call the climate here
tropical. Compare the temperature at the equator to that at the poles.
- Discuss the position of Britain in relation to the poles and the equator and analyse the climate here.
Look at weather forecasts and statistics about the weather for the local area.
- Give the students a selection of animal cards showing animals from all parts of the world. Ask the
students to identify where on the globe they believe the animals’ natural habitats can be found and
reasons for their choices.
- Use the Internet and reference books to research the animals shown on the cards. Were the
students’ original thoughts about the different habitats correct?
 Research the Amazon rainforest:
- Use globes, maps atlases and the Internet to identify the location of the Amazon rainforest. Note
how all the world’s rainforests lie between the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn.
- Compare the weather in the rainforest to the weather where you live. Is it similar or different?
Discuss how the rainforest climate effects the growth of plants – The Amazon rainforest is home to
the largest variety of plants and animals on the planet.
- Recognise the different layers of the rainforest (Emergent trees – layer at treetop height; canopy the leaves form a canopy which covers the forest; understory - a dark and humid shrub layer; forest
floor – the bottom layer).
- Look at the animals whose habitats can be found in the different layers of the rainforest. Think back
to the different habitats in a British woodland. Compare that to the different habitats and layers of
the rainforest. Are any of the plants and animals similar to the ones found in the local woodland?
 Make a model of a rainforest:
- Go on a nature walk and collect leaves, pebbles, twigs and soil and make a model of the different
layers of the rainforest.
- Create information cards for animals that can be found in each layer to annotate the model.
 Create an Amazon rainforest travel brochure containing information about the plants and animals that
can be found there.
 Link to maths to research and use statistical information from conservation charities to understand the
effects of deforestation on the rainforest and how this has made some animals endangered.
DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY
Healthy Body, Healthy Mind Topical Resources:
http://www.educationcity.com/uk/topicals/topical-printables/2014-dec/healthy-body-healthy-mind
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Make a nutritional salad
- Research different salad plants and their growing times and seasons. If possible grow some fast
growing plants in the school vegetable garden.
- Look at the traditional value and food category of salad vegetables and understand how food from
each category is required to create a healthy balanced diet.
- In pairs, design a salad, including dressings and any other ingredients that would create a healthy
balanced meal.
Make an exotic fruit salad with fruit that grows in the Amazon rainforest:
LKS2 – Living Things page 11
Activities
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-
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
Split the class into pairs and give each pair a different fruit to research (grapefruit, bananas,
guavas, pineapples and acai berries).
- As a pair, create an information booklet about the fruit, including information about how and
where it grows and its nutritional value.
- Discuss as a class which of these fruits can be bought in the local shops and in pairs design an
exotic fruit salad.
Discuss as a class the hygiene steps that should be taken before handling food. Create a class rule list
and put it on display.
Demonstrate how to make the salads safely, cutting, grating and peeling the different fruit and
vegetables, with care.
Under adult supervision, allow the students to prepare their salads.
Students could make both salads in the morning and eat at lunchtime, evaluating their own and each
other’s work (taking into account any allergy requirements of the students).
PE
 Take part in some Rainforest-themed team building activities:
- Split the class into small teams.
- Set students the task of crossing the Amazon River (the school hall) using only two gym mats.
- Build a rainforest obstacle course. Use gym equipment or outdoor play equipment to build an
obstacle course, labelling the different parts of the course as a separate area of the rainforest and
setting certain rules for crossing. As a team, students should discover the most efficient and safest
way to cross the course.
- Give each team a pile of newspapers and some glue or tape. With only the resources provided, make
the tallest Amazon tree possible.
- Cover the hall or playground with a selection of coloured hoops. Each hoop representing a leaf from
the giant Amazon water lily, floating on the Amazon River. Underneath some of the lily leaves, a
black caiman is hiding. Give one member of each team a map showing where the caiman are hiding.
The team leader must use the map to direct the rest of their team across the river without stepping
on a caiman. Only one team member can move at a time and team members can never be stood in
an adjacent hoop to one another. The team with all their members, including the team leader, to
cross the river first are the winners.
MUSIC
 Listen to music that portrays the natural world, for example “The Four Seasons” by Vivaldi. Listen to
and compare the different choice of instruments and pace of the music, for each season.
 Perform a rainforest soundscape:
- As a class, listen to recordings of the sounds of the Amazon rainforest.
- Give students access to a selection of different percussion instruments (claves, two-tone woodblock,
hand drum).
- Allow the students to investigate how to create sounds similar to those that can be heard in the
rainforest using their voices and the percussion instruments.
- As a class, vote for the most realistic sounds and allocate a different sound to small groups or
individual children.
- Start by making one or two quiet sounds, gradually building up, introducing sounds, until all of the
class are participating. Then, gradually bring the volume back down again until only one final
sound remains.
LKS2 – Living Things page 12
Activities
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