Worksheet

Who Can Live in Heron Island's Meadow?

Use island meadow observations and a graph to argue why different animals would survive well, less well, or not at all.

Grade 3ScienceInteractive · Printable

Aligned to3-LS4-3

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Single worksheet
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1 NGSS standard
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13 questions
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Details

Format: Interactive · Printable
Grade: Grade 3
Subject: Science
Question types: Fill in the blank, Multiple choice, Circle the answer, Sorting, Short answer

About this worksheet

What students practice

Students use habitat evidence to explain why some animals survive well, some less well, and some cannot survive.
Students compare habitat conditions with animals' needs to predict changes in survival.

How to use

Read the passage and graph together. Have students connect each animal's needs to the meadow evidence before writing their final argument.

Curriculum

NGSS standard covered

3-LS4-3

Argue that in a habitat some living things survive well, some less well and some cannot survive.

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Who Can Live in Heron Island's Meadow?

Use habitat clues to support claims about survival.

1. Explore the Meadow

Read the passage and graph. Use the evidence to answer each question.

A Meadow Above the Lake

Heron Island sits in a freshwater lake. Its high meadow stays above the lake's water. A field team studied eight spots across this meadow during a warm week. They checked each spot for grass, moist soil, and standing water. Standing water means water collected in a pool or pond. One spot could have more than one feature.

Grass covered the meadow, giving small animals places to hide. Beneath two fallen logs, the soil felt damp. Away from those logs, the soil was dry. There were no puddles, pools, or streams in the meadow. The graph shows the team's records.

The team also watched animals without moving or handling them. Grasshoppers chewed grass and hid among the stems. Earthworms were found in the damp soil beneath the logs, but none were found in the dry soil nearby. Minnows swam in the lake below the meadow.

Grasshoppers breathe air and eat plants, including grass. Earthworms eat dead plant material in soil. Their skin must stay moist so they can breathe through it. Minnows are small fish. They take oxygen from water through their gills and eat tiny water-living things. Think about these needs as you decide which animals could make the meadow their home.

How many of the eight spots had moist soil? spots

Which claim about grasshoppers has the strongest support?

A. They would survive less well because most soil is dry.
B. They would survive well because grass provides food and cover.
C. They could not survive because the meadow has no pools.
D. They could not survive because lake water is below them.

Why would earthworms survive less well across this meadow than in a meadow with moist soil throughout?

A. The grass would keep them from reaching any soil.
B. They would need standing water covering every spot.
C. The fallen logs would stop them from breathing air.
D. Only a small part has the moist soil they need.

Select the TWO clues that work together to explain why minnows could not make the dry meadow their home.

The meadow has no pools, puddles, or streams.Grasshoppers hide among grass stems.Minnows take oxygen from water through their gills.Earthworms eat dead plant material in soil.

2. Check the Claims

Decide what the evidence supports. Keep each animal's needs in mind.

A student adds 8 grassy spots and 2 moist-soil spots and says the team studied 10 different spots. What is the mistake?

A. A spot with grass can also have moist soil.
B. The grass bar counts animals instead of spots.
C. The team checked only the two spots beneath logs.
D. Each mark on the graph stands for two spots.

Sort each claim by whether the meadow evidence supports it.

Nearby parts of one habitat can have different conditions.A habitat with plenty of grass meets every animal's needs.An animal may find a suitable place in only part of a habitat.Moist soil provides the same home for fish as lake water does.

Supported by the evidence	Not supported by the evidence

Imani says, "Not seeing an animal is enough to prove it cannot live there." Which reply best checks her reasoning?

A. Yes. If an animal lived in the meadow, the team would have seen it.
B. Yes. A team that watches for a week will see the animals living there.
C. No. An animal might be hidden; also check whether its needs are met.
D. No. Seeing grasshoppers there means minnows can live there too.

Suppose another dry week leaves no moist soil, even beneath the logs. Which prediction is best supported?

A. Minnows would gain more places to get oxygen.
B. Earthworms would have fewer suitable places to live.
C. Grasshoppers would lose their ability to breathe air.
D. Earthworms would no longer need moist skin.

A student says, "The grass bar reaches 8, so exactly 8 grasshoppers can survive here." Why does the graph NOT support that claim?

A. It counts habitat features, not how many animals the meadow can support.
B. It shows that every grassy spot can support only one animal.
C. It counts grasshoppers hiding beneath logs, not those in grass.
D. It shows that grasshoppers can survive only in moist-soil spots.

3. Use New Evidence

Read the team's new record. Then use evidence to make predictions and support an argument.

After several rainy days, the team checked the same eight meadow spots again. Their new record showed:
Spots with grass: 8
Spots with moist soil: 6
Spots with standing water: 0
The meadow was still above the lake's water.

10.

How many more spots had moist soil after the rain than during the first visit? more spots

11.

Which prediction about the meadow after the rain is best supported?

A. Minnows could live there because damp soil would cover their gills.
B. Grasshoppers would lose food because fewer spots would have grass.
C. All three animals would survive equally well because rain had fallen.
D. Earthworms would have more places where their skin could stay moist.

12.

Think about the meadow BEFORE the rain. Explain why grasshoppers could survive well, earthworms could survive less well across the meadow, and minnows could not make it their home. Give a habitat clue and an animal need for each claim.

13.

The team saw minnows feeding and swimming in the lake. What does this add to the meadow evidence?