Grades 3-5
Third Grade Programs
Animal Encounter | 30 minutes | Indoors
Meet one of our animal ambassadors up close and personal in this private, 30-minute encounter led by an expert naturalist. Age-appropriate and engagingly delivered, the program includes time for Q&A and hands-on exploration of biofacts such as pelts, skulls, and wings. Connect to your curriculum by selecting one of the following themes: Adaptations or Habitats.
Available: Year-round at SLNSC or your site
Next Generation Science Standards Connections
- 3-LS4-3 Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity – Construct an argument with evidence that in a particular habitat some organisms can survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all.
- LS4.C: Adaptation – For any particular environment, some kinds of organisms survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all. (3-LS4-3)
- LS4.D: Biodiversity and Humans – Populations live in a variety of habitats, and change in those habitats affects the organisms living there. (3-LS4-4)
Animals in Winter | 45 minutes | Indoors
Winter means cold, ice, snow, and shorter days. How do New Hampshire animals survive these conditions? See two live animals up close and find out about various successful adaptations they use to cope with the stresses of winter.
Available: Year-round at SLNSC or your site
Next Generation Science Standards Connections
- 3-LS4-3 Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity – Construct an argument with evidence that in a particular habitat some organisms can survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all.
- LS4.C: Adaptation – For any particular environment, some kinds of organisms survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all. (3-LS4-3)
- LS4.D: Biodiversity and Humans – Populations live in a variety of habitats, and change in those habitats affects the organisms living there. (3-LS4-4)
Living Wild: Plant and Animal Adaptations | 1 hour 15 minutes | Outdoors
Students learn how animals survive in the wild with a variety of learn-by-doing activities. Students role-play and investigate plant and animal adaptations in outdoor natural communities.
Available: Fall, Spring, Summer at SLNSC
Next Generation Science Standards Connections
- 3-LS4-3 Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity – Construct an argument with evidence that in a particular habitat some organisms can survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all.
- LS4.C: Adaptation – For any particular environment, some kinds of organisms survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all. (3-LS4-3)
- LS4.D: Biodiversity and Humans – Populations live in a variety of habitats, and change in those habitats affects the organisms living there. (3-LS4-4)
Fourth Grade Programs
Animal Encounter | 30 minutes | Indoors
Meet one of our animal ambassadors up close and personal in this private, 30-minute encounter led by an expert naturalist. Age-appropriate and engagingly delivered, the program includes time for Q&A and hands-on exploration of biofacts such as pelts, skulls, and wings. Connect to your curriculum by selecting one of the following themes: Adaptations or Habitats.
Available: Year-round at SLNSC or your site
Next Generation Science Standards Connections
- 4-LS1-1 From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes – Construct an argument that plants and animals have internal and external structures that function to support survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction.
- 4-LS1-2 From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes – Use a model to describe that animals receive different types of information through their senses, process the information in their brain, and respond to the information in different ways.
- LS1.A: Structure and Function – Plants and animals have both internal and external structures that serve various functions in growth, survival, behavior, and reproduction. (4-LS1-1)
- LS1.D: Information Processing – Different sense receptors are specialized for particular kinds of information, which may be then processed by the animal’s brain. Animals are able to use their perceptions and memories to guide their actions. (4-LS1-2)
Creatures of the Night | 45 minutes | Indoors
You don’t have to stay up late to learn about elusive nocturnal animals. Students meet two creatures of the night and learn about specific adaptations that make these animals so well-suited for life at night.
Available: Year-round at SLNSC or your site
Next Generation Science Standards Connections
- 4-LS1-1 From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes – Construct an argument that plants and animals have internal and external structures that function to support survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction.
- 4-LS1-2 From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes – Use a model to describe that animals receive different types of information through their senses, process the information in their brain, and respond to the information in different ways.
- LS1.A: Structure and Function – Plants and animals have both internal and external structures that serve various functions in growth, survival, behavior, and reproduction. (4-LS1-1)
- LS1.D: Information Processing – Different sense receptors are specialized for particular kinds of information, which may be then processed by the animal’s brain. Animals are able to use their perceptions and memories to guide their actions. (4-LS1-2)
Predator Survival | 1 hour 15 minutes | Outdoors
Predators are a crucial part of any ecosystem. Explore the role predators play through active outdoor simulations of the interrelationships between predator and prey. Meet a live predator to observe its adaptations up close.
Available: Fall, Spring, Summer, at SLNSC
Next Generation Science Standards Connections
- 4-LS1-1 From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes – Construct an argument that plants and animals have internal and external structures that function to support survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction.
- 4-LS1-2 From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes – Use a model to describe that animals receive different types of information through their senses, process the information in their brain, and respond to the information in different ways.
- LS1.A: Structure and Function – Plants and animals have both internal and external structures that serve various functions in growth, survival, behavior, and reproduction. (4-LS1-1)
- LS1.D: Information Processing – Different sense receptors are specialized for particular kinds of information, which may be then processed by the animal’s brain. Animals are able to use their perceptions and memories to guide their actions. (4-LS1-2)
Fifth Grade Programs
Animal Encounter | 30 minutes | Indoors
Meet one of our animal ambassadors up close and personal in this private, 30-minute encounter led by an expert naturalist. Age-appropriate and engagingly delivered, the program includes time for Q&A and hands-on exploration of biofacts such as pelts, skulls, and wings. Connect to your curriculum by selecting one of the following themes: Adaptations or Habitats.
Available: Year-round at SLNSC or your site
Next Generation Science Standards Connections
- 5-PS3-1. Use models to describe that energy in animals’ food (used for body repair, growth, and motion and to maintain body warmth) was once energy from the sun.
- 5-LS1-1. Support an argument that plants get the materials they need for growth chiefly from air and water.
- 5-LS2-1. Develop a model to describe the movement of matter among plants, animals, decomposers, and the environment.
- 5-ESS2-1 Earth's Systems – Develop a model using an example to describe ways the geosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and/or atmosphere interact. \
- 5-ESS2-2 Earth's Systems – Describe and graph the amounts and percentages of water and fresh water in various reservoirs to provide evidence about the distribution of water on Earth.
- 5-ESS3-1 Earth and Human Activity – Obtain and combine information about ways individual communities use science ideas to protect the Earth’s resources and environment.
Animals and Food Webs | 45 minutes | Indoors
The interrelationships between animals living in a given place form a complex web of connections. With live animals and mounted specimens, we will model the role of predators and prey in the food web and discuss the adaptations that make them successful at finding food and avoiding becoming food.
Available: Year-round at SLNSC or your site
Next Generation Science Standards Connections
- 5-PS3-1. Use models to describe that energy in animals’ food (used for body repair, growth, and motion and to maintain body warmth) was once energy from the sun.
- 5-LS1-1. Support an argument that plants get the materials they need for growth chiefly from air and water.
- 5-LS2-1. Develop a model to describe the movement of matter among plants, animals, decomposers, and the environment.
- 5-ESS2-1 Earth's Systems – Develop a model using an example to describe ways the geosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and/or atmosphere interact. \
- 5-ESS2-2 Earth's Systems – Describe and graph the amounts and percentages of water and fresh water in various reservoirs to provide evidence about the distribution of water on Earth.
- 5-ESS3-1 Earth and Human Activity – Obtain and combine information about ways individual communities use science ideas to protect the Earth’s resources and environment.
Wet and Wild: Water and Wetlands | 1 hour 15 minutes | Outdoors
Water is vital to life. Wetlands perform essential functions, from controlling floods, to purifying water, to providing wildlife habitat. They are also amazing places to explore nature. Through outdoor activities and meeting a live animal, students learn why water and wetlands are important to both humans and wildlife.
Available: Fall, Spring, Summer, at SLNSC
Next Generation Science Standards Connections
- 5-PS3-1. Use models to describe that energy in animals’ food (used for body repair, growth, and motion and to maintain body warmth) was once energy from the sun.
- 5-LS1-1. Support an argument that plants get the materials they need for growth chiefly from air and water.
- 5-LS2-1. Develop a model to describe the movement of matter among plants, animals, decomposers, and the environment.
- 5-ESS2-1 Earth's Systems – Develop a model using an example to describe ways the geosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and/or atmosphere interact. \
- 5-ESS2-2 Earth's Systems – Describe and graph the amounts and percentages of water and fresh water in various reservoirs to provide evidence about the distribution of water on Earth.
- 5-ESS3-1 Earth and Human Activity – Obtain and combine information about ways individual communities use science ideas to protect the Earth’s resources and environment.
Microscopic Mysteries | 2 hours | Outdoors
Rotifers, copepods, and phantom midges share our lakes. Take a trip on a 28-foot pontoon boat to study these and other zooplankton and discover their place in the lake’s food web. Student teams collect plankton samples and look at them under magnification back on land with a high definition projection microscope. All data are posted on the Science Center’s website for teachers to compare with results from past years.
Available: Fall, Spring, Summer at SLNSC
Next Generation Science Standards Connections
- 5-PS3-1. Use models to describe that energy in animals’ food (used for body repair, growth, and motion and to maintain body warmth) was once energy from the sun.
- 5-LS1-1. Support an argument that plants get the materials they need for growth chiefly from air and water.
- 5-LS2-1. Develop a model to describe the movement of matter among plants, animals, decomposers, and the environment.
- 5-ESS2-1 Earth's Systems – Develop a model using an example to describe ways the geosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and/or atmosphere interact. \
- 5-ESS2-2 Earth's Systems – Describe and graph the amounts and percentages of water and fresh water in various reservoirs to provide evidence about the distribution of water on Earth.
- 5-ESS3-1 Earth and Human Activity – Obtain and combine information about ways individual communities use science ideas to protect the Earth’s resources and environment.
