Desert
Compare day and night in the Sonoran and
Sahara deserts with this back-to-back mini-book.
Habitat Hallmarks
D
eserts cover about one-fifth of the earth’s land surface and can be found on all the
continents, except Europe. Deserts receive less than 10 inches (25 cm) of rain each
year. The entire amount may fall over just a few days, a few weeks, or not at all.
Parts of the Sahara Desert in northern Africa have received no rain for 20 years.
Stretching from the Red Sea to the Atlantic Ocean, the Sahara is the largest desert in the
world. It covers more than 3.5 million square miles (9 million sq km). Much of the desert
consists of stony plains swept free of sand by desert winds, but large areas are also covered
by sand dunes. Summer temperatures typically reach up to 110°F (43°C). The highest
temperature on Earth—136°F (58°C)—was recorded in the Sahara in 1922. During winter
nights, however, temperatures can plunge to below freezing. With such intense conditions,
few kinds of animals can survive here—jackals, jerboas, lizards, cobras, oryx, aoudads, and
the world’s deadliest scorpion. About 3 million people also call the Sahara home, and many
still use camels to travel around the desert. Palms and a few plants grow at oases, nourished
by underground water.
The Sonoran Desert in the southwestern United States, on the other hand, contains
the greatest diversity of desert plants found anywhere. This desert is only about 120,000
square miles (311,000 sq km), but it is home to saguaro cacti that grow up to 50 feet (15
m) tall; yuccas that store water in their stems; shrubs that grow leaves only when it rains;
and American mesquite trees with roots that reach deep underground for water. Daytime
temperatures can reach above 115°F (46°C), and so most animals here hide under rocks, in
plant holes, or in underground burrows. When the desert cools off at night, these animals
come out to hunt for food. But they would do well to watch out for other night predators,
such as tarantulas, rattlesnakes, and Gila monsters, which use poison to kill their prey.
Materials
❉ Reproducible pages
22–24
❉ Scissors
❉ Tape
❉ Stapler
❉ Crayons, colored
pencils, or markers
(optional)
20
Making the Mini-book
1 Photocopy pages 22–24.
2 Cut out the mini-book pages along the
thick, solid lines.
Easy Make & Learn Projects: Animal Habitats © 2010 by Donald M. Silver and Patricia J. Wynne, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Desert
3 Cut out the center of each cover
along the thick, solid lines. Then
cut out the text block from the
center of each piece. Tape each
text block to the back of its
respective cover, as shown.
4Cut the windows on the interior
page so they fold open, as shown.
5 Place the page with spot art
behind the interior page so that
the illustrations match behind
their respective windows.
6 Fold the pages in half along the
dashed lines. Place the Sonoran
Desert cover on top of the cactus
illustration.
7 Turn the mini-book over and
place the Sahara Desert cover on
top of the sand dune illustration.
Staple the mini-book at left, as
shown.
More to Do
Desert World
Invite students to research
other deserts, such as the
Gobi in east-central Asia,
Death Valley in the United
States, the Kalahari in
southern Africa, the Arabian
on the Arabian Peninsula,
and the Atacama in Chile
and Peru. Describe the
plants and animals in each
desert and how they are
adapted to survive. You
may also want to encourage
students to find out
about the dinosaur fossils
discovered in the Gobi
Desert.
Resources
One Small Square: Cactus
Desert by Donald M. Silver
and Patricia J. Wynne
(McGraw-Hill, 1998).
Teaching With the Mini-book
Students explore the
wonders of the Sonoran
Desert by day, by night, and
after it rains.
Invite students to color, assemble, and read their mini-books. Have them
read the Sonoran Desert side first, then turn over the book to read about
the Sahara Desert. Check students’ understanding by asking them these
questions:
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.
edu/exhibits/biomes/
deserts.php
1 How are the Sonoran and Sahara deserts alike? (Both are very hot
and dry, but cool down at night.)
Photographs and simple text
offer a glimpse of different
types of deserts around the
world.
2 How are the two deserts different? (Different plants and animals live
in each desert. The Sahara has sand dunes and oases, and the Sonoran
Desert doesn’t.)
3 Where do cactuses get water? (They store water when it rains.)
4When do animals come out in the desert? (Most come out in the
morning before it gets too hot and at night when the desert cools.)
Easy Make & Learn Projects: Animal Habitats © 2010 by Donald M. Silver and Patricia J. Wynne, Scholastic Teaching Resources
21
Desert 5 Cover
Sahara Desert
Most of the Sahara is stony and flat.
In some parts, winds blow sand into
hills, called dunes. Some sand dunes
are more than a hundred feet high.
Cut out.
Sonoran Desert
Hedgehog
Cactus
wren
Some animals hunt for food in the
morning. To escape the afternoon
heat, they hide in holes, under
rocks, or underground.
Desert tortoise
Cut out.
Horned
lizard
The Sonoran desert is very hot and dry.
It does not rain here very often. When it rains,
cactuses store water inside them. Without
water, they cannot stay alive.
22
Gambel’s quail
Easy Make & Learn Projects: Animal Habitats © 2010 by Donald M. Silver and Patricia J. Wynne, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Sandgrouse and chicks
The Sahara Desert is very hot and dry.
Palms and other plants grow in the desert’s oases.
Water comes from deep underground.
Desert 5 Interior pages
Lanner falcon
Dromedary camels
Scimitar-horned
oryx
Horned
viper
Easy Make & Learn Projects: Animal Habitats © 2010 by Donald M. Silver and Patricia J. Wynne, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Spiny
mouse
Desert
wheatear
Aoudad
These animals come out in the morning before the
Sahara heats up. Open the flaps to see creatures
that come out in the cool Sahara night.
Turkey vulture
Harris’s
hawk
Spiny-tailed
lizard
Vermillion
flycatcher
Gila
woodpecker
Hummingbird
Roadrunner
Saguaro
cactus
Pronghorn
Antelope
squirrel
Whiptail
lizard
Lift the flaps. These animals come out at night
when it is cool. Watch out! Both rattlesnakes
and Gila monsters are poisonous.
Jackrabbit
23
Desert 5 Insert
Scorpion
Jerboa
Fennec
fox
Sphinx
moth
24
Bobcat
Javelina
Diamondback
rattlesnake
Gila monster
Easy Make & Learn Projects: Animal Habitats © 2010 by Donald M. Silver and Patricia J. Wynne, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Bat
Elf
owl