Lawns (Ground floor) as Habitats (ecosystems)
1. Place hula hoop on the ground
2. Use a piece of string to make 4 sections
3. Draw and label the living and non-living things the occupy one of the 4 sections OR
along the string
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What do you find growing on the ground? What plants are growing there?
What do you find if you dig towards the plants’ roots?
What evidence is there that animals are using the ground floor as habitat?
What role do the plants in this lawn habitat? (What is the function of the plants in
the ecosystem?)
Where do the plants get their energy to grow?
What do the plants need to grow?
What does the soil provide the plants? (What is the function of the soil?)
Are any of the plants flowering? What do flowers provide insects?
What do insects provide for flowering plants?
Lawns (Ground floor) as Habitats (ecosystems)
4. Place hula hoop on the ground
5. Use a piece of string to make 4 sections
6. Draw and label the living and non-living things the occupy one of the 4 sections OR
along the string









What do you find growing on the ground? What plants are growing there?
What do you find if you dig towards the plants’ roots?
What evidence is there that animals are using the ground floor as habitat?
What role do the plants in this lawn habitat? (What is the function of the plants in
the ecosystem?)
Where do the plants get their energy to grow?
What do the plants need to grow?
What does the soil provide the plants? What is the function of the soil?
Are any of the plants flowering? What do flowers provide insects?
What do insects provide for flowering plants?
Fallen Logs as Habitat
Draw and label the parts of the Fallen Log Habitat
 Is there bark on the log?
 What is the condition of the bark? How does the log feel?
 Are there plants growing on the log?
Draw one plant you found.
 Did you find any animals in or under the log?
Draw one animal you found
 What other evidence of animal activity do you see on and/or around the log?
 Has the tree been dead a long time or a fairly short time? What makes you
think so?
 What does the log give to the plants growing on it? (Mineral nutrients, space,
water)
 What does the log give the animals found on the log? (Food, shelter, water,
space)
Fallen Logs as Habitat
Draw and label the parts of the Fallen Log Habitat
 Is there bark on the log?
 What is the condition of the bark? How does the log feel?
 Are there plants growing on the log?
Draw one plant you found.
 Did you find any animals in or under the log?
Draw one animal you found
 What other evidence of animal activity do you see on and/or around the log?
 Has the tree been dead a long time or a fairly short time? What makes you
think so?
 What does the log give to the plants growing on it? (Mineral nutrients, space,
water)
 What does the log give the animals found on the log? (Food, shelter, water,
space)
Trees as Habitats
Observe a tree-Draw and Label the parts of the tree
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What do you find on the tree’s trunk?
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What do you see in the tree’s branches?
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What do you see on the tree’s leaves?
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What evidence do you see or hear that indicates animals use the tree?
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What evidence do you see that other plants are using the tree as a habitat?
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How might the tree be affected by the plants and animals that live on it?
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Do any of the plants and animals you observed seem to benefit the tree? In
what ways?
Draw and label one observation that indicates other plants and/or
animals use the tree
Trees as Habitats
Observe a tree-Draw and Label the parts of the tree
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What do you find on the tree’s trunk?
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What do you see in the tree’s branches?
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What do you see on the tree’s leaves?
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What evidence do you see or hear that indicates animals use the tree?
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What evidence do you see that other plants are using the tree as a habitat?
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How might the tree be affected by the plants and animals that live on it?
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Do any of the plants and animals you observed seem to benefit the tree? In
what ways?
Draw and label one observation that indicates other plants and/or
animals use the tree