Animal Habitats: Exploring the Desert
Download a one-page 2nd grade science worksheet in which students study a desert scene featuring a roadrunner, a rattlesnake and a saguaro cactus, then answer four questions about the habitat and its animals.
- Subject
- Science
- Year group
- 2nd Grade · Elementary
- Curriculum topic
- Desert habitats and animal adaptations
- Download
About this resource
Ready to print, adapt and use.
This one-page worksheet centers on a detailed illustration of a Southwestern desert with a roadrunner, a coiled rattlesnake and a saguaro cactus. Students identify the animals and plant, circle a clue that shows the scene is a desert, describe the land and weather in their own words, and explain how the roadrunner’s long legs and the rattlesnake’s features help each animal survive.
Teaching notes
Give students a minute to study the image before writing so they notice details such as the dry, cracked ground, sparse plants and clear sky.
Model the word “suited” with a familiar example, such as a duck’s webbed feet, before students tackle questions 3 and 4.
Share answers aloud to build a class list of desert features and adaptations.
Learning objectives
- Identify plants and animals that live in a desert habitat
- Describe the land and weather of a desert using evidence from a picture
- Explain how an animal’s features help it survive in its habitat
What’s included
- One printable worksheet page
- Illustrated desert scene with a roadrunner, rattlesnake and cactus
- Four short-answer questions moving from observation to explanation
Example PDF
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