Submitted by Elise Farmer and Caroline Seguin
Grades: 4th – 6th
Summary
This workshop gives the students the opportunity to discover the extent of the diversity of life on our planet.
We demonstrate many vertebrate and non-vertebrate specimens, as well as animal skeletons borrowed from
the Biology department at the university. This session also includes an animal or an owl pellet dissection.
Materials
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Workshop
Living kingdoms game
Food chain
Ecosystems game
Containers with specimens to show
Skeletons
Dissection
 Dissection specimens
 Dissection instruments : for one kit (2
students)
 1 pair of scissors
 1 pair of tweezers
 1 dropper
 1 poking stick
 Dissection plates
 Bag to bring waste back
 Gloves
 Labcoat
Materials to replace
 Dissection specimen
 New waste bags
Plan and Activities
1- Definition of biodiversity
2- Association of the 5 living kingdoms : animals, plants, bacteria, fungi, protists
a) The animal kingdom
Invertebrates (explanation of the skeletons and dissection animals)
Vertebrates (explanation of skeletons and dissection animals)
3- Food chain : producers, consumenrs, decomposers. Autotroph and heterotroph animals.
4- Ecosystems game : there are 5 ecosystems and 5 organisms living in each ecosystem. The students
must try to find their ecosystem as well as the other organisms living in their ecosystem and place
themselves in the order of the food chain.
5- Owl pellet or other animal dissection.
Safety and Tips
Workshop :
- Do not let the students touch the specimens in the formaldehyde during the presentation.
- Wear gloves to handle these specimens.
- Be careful with the skeletons, they are very fragile.
Dissection :
- The dissection is done in groups of 2.
- Be careful with the dissection tools, they are very sharp.
- Make sure there are NO SCALPELS in the dissection kits given to students.
- During the dissection, the students must remain seated in their spots.
- Before the dissection, make sure to ask if there is student who is not comfortable doing a dissection.
- At the end of the dissection, bring all animal remains back to the staffroom. These cannot just be thrown
into the garbage.
Workshop
1-Definition of biodiversity
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What is biodiversity? (Ask the class)
Def : Biodiversity is anything that is living, from grass to human beings. It groups 3 main
categories, each of with are in constant interaction :
1- Specific diversity, which refers to all living species.
2- Ecologic diversity, which includes all ecosystems or environments.
3- Genetic diversity, the information in the organisms which is transmitted from the parents
and that determines the physical and functionnal aspects of the organism.
2- The 5 kingdoms of living organisms
Kingdoms are classifications of living organisms based on their common characteristics. Biologists call the
classification of living organisms taxonomy.
Can you guess the five kingdoms of living organisms?
Explain the kingdoms (using an organization chart):
1- Kingdom Monera: Bacteria (prokaryotes) are living unicellular organisms without a nucleus,
which would protect their DNA, or organelles, which are little compartments within the cell, like
little organs. This is the kingdom with the most diversity (different organisms).
2- Kingdom Protista (eukaryotes): Can be unicellular or multicellular, but as they are
eukaryotes, they have a nucleus and organelles. This Kingdom includes algae.
3- Kingdom Plantae (eukaryotes): Includes all trees, plants, and flowers. They have cell walls
and chloroplasts (with chlorophyll for photosynthesis), which give them their green colour.
4- Kingdom Animalia (eukaryotes): Do not contain cell walls, and only get energy from food.
Includes invertebrate and vertebrate classes (which will be explained later).
5- Kingdom Fungi (eukaryotes): Do not have stems, leaves, or roots. They feed on dead matter
(necrophagous), which allows decomposition of the soil. Cannot do photosynthesis.
Additional Facts (optional) :
Eukaryotes: Have a nucleus and organelles. Includes animals, plants, mushrooms and protists.
Photosynthesis: Process by which plants transform the sun`s energy into energy they can use themselves.
Why do animals not have cell walls? The cell wall allows the cell to maintain a certain rigidity, which is very
important in plants which are immobile and therefore have to resist harsh environmental conditions, like the
wind. However, animals can move and have to have greater flexibility, so a cell wall would be a nuisance.
If animals are the only ones that get their food (energy) from ingesting, what do the other organisms do?
Plants and fungi use a process called absorption, certain protists and bacteria use phagocytosis (surrounding
and enveloping their food).
Game : Give the images of living creatures to the students and get them to place the organism in the proper
kingdom in the organization chart. The answers are:
1= bacteria
2= plants
3= animals
4= fungi
5= protists
a) Kingdom Animalia: (organization chart to explain)
a. There is a great variety of animals in this kingdom. We divide this kingdom into two big
classes; the invertebrates and the vertebrates.
i. Invertebrates: The animals that do not have a spinal cord or internal bones.
ii. Vertebrates: The animals that have a spinal cord and an internal skeleton that
protects their organs and maintains posture.
When explaining the sub-classes, explain the organization chart and show the animals, either the skeleton or
the animal dissection. Get the students to guess the animals and explain the concept of predators and prey,
as well as carnivore (eats meat), herbivore (plants) and omnivore (both).
*The information on animals is at the end of the write-up.
Info to explain the type of animal
Carnivores/predators
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Eat meat
Teeth are pointy and slicing
When eats its food, jaw goes up and down
Jaw in the shape of scissors: The hinge of the jaw is at the same level as the teeth, not higher or
lower
Eyes: In front of the head (not on the sides) so that the animal can see its prey and analyze its
movements
Have claws (allows them to hunt)
Herbivores/prey
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Eat plants
Teeth allow them to graze and chew
Chew with their jaw moving right to left (not up and down)
The hinge of their jaw is above the level of the teeth
Eyes on the side of the head. Since they are susceptible to being eaten by carnivores, they have to
be able to eat and still pay attention to their surroundings (peripheral vision)
Often hoof
Omnivore/ prey or predators
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Eat plants and animals
Mammals, reptiles and birds
i) Invertebrates: There are 4 subclasses;
1. Sponges: Sponges are animals without heads nor mouths. They are composed of numerous cells,
and their colours vary from species to species. They can be up to 50 cm long! They live in the ground
of streams, lakes and oceans. They feed on organic substances that are suspended in the water
(there is no animal prototype for this, use the image).
2. Worms: Have a soft, flexible, long body with no bones. They live in the soil or in water.
3. Molluscs: Molluscs are invertebrate animals with a soft body, like an octopus or a slug. Many
molluscs are protected by a shell, like snails and oysters. All molluscs originally had a shell, and,
through evolution, some lost it. For example, squid lost their shell and all that is left of it is the ink.
They can use this ink to defend themselves. Squid move around by propelling themselves in a similar
way as a helicopter. The squid uses a siphon to expel both the ink when it is defending itself and the
water for locomotion. Squid are part of the cephalopods (a sub-category of molluscs), because
cephalo = head and pode=feet, and their body is made up of a head and a foot. Their eyes are welldeveloped.
4. Arthropods: Insects. This is the most diverse group of animals. Invertebrates that have an
exoskeleton made of chitin, and have articulated segments.
 For example, a grasshopper. The female grasshopper is actually bigger than the male. She
has an ovipositor so she can direct her eggs where she wants them to go. The male has
three segments, the head (sensory organs), the thorax (the organs), and abdomen (the
reproductive organs). The thorax has a hole on each side, which allows the grasshopper to
sense vibrations (i.e. hear).
 Another example is a crayfish. In females, the first swim leg is thin and small, whereas the
male`s is hard and larger (which allows them to hold onto the female). Crayfish have two
types of appendages; swim legs, for swimming and locomotive, for walking at the bottom of
the water.
ii) Vertebrates: There 5 sub-classes of invertebrates:
1. Fish: Have a swim bladder (sac full of air that allows them to float). They have gills that allow them to
breathe under water. For example, a perch.
2. Amphibians: Amphi= double. Bia=life. We say that amphibians have a double life because they are
born in the water (tadpoles) and live on land as adults. So, their bodies undergo transformations to
allow them to make this transition (for example, gills to lungs).
Activity: Frog skeleton and dissected specimen to observe. The skull has two big holes for the eyes.
When frogs eat, they close their eyes. Their eyes enter the skull, which helps them push the food
down and swallow.
3. Reptiles: Reptiles were the first to lay eggs with a shell. They have scales. The temperature of the
egg determines the sex of reptiles; males are born if the shell is exposed to warmer temperatures.
For example, turtles can either live on land or water. However, all turtles lay their eggs on land and
abandon them. Once they are born, the new baby turtles have to fend for themselves.
4. Birds: Can fly, so they had to develop characteristics that allow them to fly. They have a beak with no
teeth, and instead have a gizzard, which allows them to break down their food without chewing. Birds
eat rocks which go into the gizzard. These rocks bump together, which helps digestion and keeps
their center of gravity in the abdomen. Some birds lose their feathers, and all produce oil that helps
them moisturize their feathers.
5. Mammals: Endotherms (warm-blooded). Usually, they don`t lay egg (viviparous). They are
characterized by the presence of fur/hair and glands in their skin, as well as a well developed brain.
For example, cows, pigs, horses, cats, beavers, rabbits, bears and deer.
3 – Food Chain
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Def: A food chain is a series of living organisms in which each organism eats the previous one.
We can show the food chain as represented as several links, where each link represents one type of
organism.
There is a trophic level for each organism
We distinguish three categories of organisms:
o Producers: Mostly plants, which have chlorophyll that allows them to use photosynthesis to
make organic matter from carbon dioxide and sunlight. There are also other autotrophic
organisms, some at the base of the food chains that are completely independent of sunlight
(get energy from other sources).
o Consumers (animals): There are three types of consumers:
 Herbivores: Feed on producers, so they are primary consumers.
 Primary carnivores: Also called secondary consumers, since they feed on
herbivores.
 Secondary carnivores: Also called tertiary consumers since they feed on primary
carnivores.
 Decomposers (bacteria, fungi): Degrade organic matter and break it back down to
simple minerals.
Autotroph: Living organism (plants or microorganisms) that are able to create their own organic matter from
elemental minerals (using photosynthesis).
Heterotroph: Living organism that cannot make its own organic matter, so has to get it from other sources
(from other organisms).
44-Ecosystems
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Def: An ecological habitat is shared by two species when they live in the same place and have the
same diet. So, if two species have the same habitat, they are in competition.
Biota: The flaura (plants) and fauna (animals) of a region
A ratio between preys and predators exists, it is a natural equilibrium
Living organisms are in competition for the resources (food, habitat, mating partners...) the size of the
population determines the availability of these resources.
Ex. In an ecosystem where rabbits and wolves are living in interaction, the number of rabbits depends
on the number of plants available for them to eat, but also of the number of wolves that can eat them.
If the population of wolves is too large, the number of rabbits will decrease but if the number of
wolves is very small, the number of rabbits will increase.
It is important to maintain the natural equilibrium, or else many organisms in the chain will be
affected, it is the overall of the ecosystem that will be affected.
Therefore, humans have to be very careful when they hunt animal to prevent extinction.
Game: There are 5 ecosystems: arctic, tropical forest, oceans, boreal forest (Canada) and African plain. Give
a living organism to each student. Each student has to find their ecosystem and the other living organisms
that share this same habitat. There are 5 organisms per ecosystem; students have to place themselves in the
right order according to the food chain.
Answers:
Ecosystem
Arctic
tropical forest
African plain
oceans
boreal forest (Canada)
Role in the food chain
Producer
Primary consumer
Secondary consumer
Tertiary consumer
Decomposer
Producer
Primary consumer
Secondary consumer
Tertiary consumer
Decomposer
Producer
Primary consumer
Secondary consumer
Tertiary consumer
Decomposer
Producer
Primary consumer
Secondary consumer
Tertiary consumer
Decomposer
Producer
Primary consumer
Secondary consumer
Tertiary consumer
Decomposer
Organism
Tundra
White rabbit
Arctic Wolve
Human
Bacteria that lives in the cold
Banana Tree
Monkey
Python
Tigre
Tropical Bacteria
grass
Zebra
hyena
Lion
Bacteria
plankton
Clown fish
Piranha
Shark
Water bacteria
Oak
Squirrels
Lynx
Cougar
Fungi