Animals, including humans
Year 1 · Science
Look closely, sort your discoveries and ask why things happen.
Choose a game
Take your time, try a game and collect stars.
Animal groups: fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals
Is a whale a fish or a mammal? A free Year 1 science game about the five animal groups, with a printable game and worksheet and answers.
Play Animal groups: fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals
Learning about animals, including humans
In this Year 1 science collection, you can practise Animal groups: fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. Choose a game above for a short activity, or explore the examples below before you play. The full guide for each game explains its controls, gives more examples and includes a free printable for practice away from the screen.
Talk it through
Start with something you can observe. Ask your child to describe the evidence for a choice, then compare a second example. A game practises vocabulary and reasoning; practical observation and investigation matter too.
Ask: “What clue helped you decide?” Give your child time to explain. Return to an example after playing and ask whether they would approach it differently.
Animal groups: fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals
Scientists sort animals with a backbone into five big groups: fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. In Year 1, children learn to name common animals and say which group each one belongs to. In the game, children sort animals into their groups (mammals, birds, fish, reptiles and amphibians). The Quick quiz shows an animal and asks for its group, or names a group and asks which animal belongs in it.
Try an example: What kind of animal is a whale?
A whale lives in the sea, which makes it look like a fish. But it breathes air and feeds its baby milk.
Show the answer
A mammal.
What to look out for
Thinking every animal that swims is a fish. Talk about breathing. Fish use gills; whales, dolphins and seals come up for air, and they are mammals.
Read the full Animal groups: fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals guide
Practise away from the screen
- On a walk or at the park, count the birds, mammals and minibeasts you see. Which group wins?
Curriculum connections
These games support selected practice connected to Animals, including humans in the National Curriculum in England. Use your school’s sequence to decide when to introduce and revisit each skill. A game covers selected examples, rather than assessing every requirement.
Questions families ask
Where should we start with animals, including humans?
Start with Animal groups: fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. Look at the worked example together, then try a round. If the task feels unfamiliar, use the full game guide or its free printable before trying again.
Does this cover everything taught at this level?
No. This collection brings together the games currently available for this learning area. It supports selected skills and does not replace the full programme of study or practical teaching.