Habitats: where do animals live?: what children learn
A habitat is the place where a plant or animal lives. A good habitat gives it food, water and shelter, and conditions it is suited to. Polar bears are suited to the freezing Arctic, camels to hot, dry deserts and orangutans to tall rainforest trees. In Year 2, children learn to name a variety of plants and animals in their habitats, including tiny habitats called microhabitats, such as the damp space under a log where woodlice live.
This game names an animal and asks which habitat it lives in. Each wrong answer is a habitat the animal really does not live in, so children have to think about how the animal is suited to its home. Look out for the classic trap: polar bears live in the Arctic (the north) and penguins live in Antarctica (the south). They never meet in the wild.
This topic covers the Year 2 statutory requirement in the National Curriculum in England (Living things and their habitats): pupils should be taught to “identify and name a variety of plants and animals in their habitats, including microhabitats”. Year 2 pupils are usually aged 6–7.
There is no direct equivalent in the US Common Core State Standards.
How to play
Answer 10 questions before the clock runs out. Tap an answer, or press 1 to 4. Each game has 10 multiple-choice questions and a 120-second timer. A wrong answer shows the correct one before moving on. You earn up to three stars depending on your score.
Step by step
- Picture the animal. Think about its body: thick fur, big ears, gills, long arms for climbing.
- Ask what it needs. Every animal needs food, water, shelter and the right temperature.
- Match the body to the place. Thick fur suits cold places; big ears that lose heat suit hot deserts; gills suit water.
- Remember north and south. The Arctic is at the top of the world (polar bears, arctic foxes); Antarctica is at the bottom (emperor penguins).
- Think small too. Minibeasts often live in microhabitats: under logs, in soil, in leaf litter or in cracks in walls.
Worked examples
Example 1: Which habitat does a polar bear live in?
Working: Polar bears have thick fur and fat for the cold. They live near the North Pole.
Answer: The Arctic.
Example 2: Which habitat does a woodlouse live in?
Working: Woodlice dry out easily, so they hide in dark, damp places.
Answer: Under a log (a microhabitat).
Example 3: Which habitat does a camel live in?
Working: Camels can go a long time without water and have wide feet for walking on sand.
Answer: A desert.
Common mistakes and how to fix them
- Putting penguins and polar bears together. Use a globe: polar bears at the top (Arctic), emperor penguins at the bottom (Antarctica).
- Thinking a habitat must be huge. Lift a log or stone in the garden. The minibeasts underneath live in a microhabitat.
- Mixing up "desert" and "dessert". A desert is a dry place with little rain; a dessert is pudding. Desert has one s.
Activities to try at home
- Lift a log or flowerpot in the garden and see who lives underneath, then put it back gently.
- Watch a nature programme together and pause to ask, "What habitat is this?"
- Draw a habitat map of your local park: pond, trees, grass, hedge.
- Print the worksheet and ask your child to say one way each animal is suited to its home.
Ideas for the classroom
- Set up habitat corners (ocean, desert, rainforest, polar, woodland) and give pupils animal cards to place.
- Go on a microhabitat hunt in the school grounds and record what lives where.
- Compare the Arctic and Antarctica on a globe and list animals for each.
- Ask pupils to design an imaginary animal suited to one habitat and explain its features.
Free printable game and worksheet
The free printable starts with a game sheet, such as a colour-by-answer picture, an answer maze or a secret-code joke, followed by a worksheet. Both use the same checked questions as the online game, and the answers are on the last page. Print it, or save it as a PDF from your browser’s print menu.
Open the free printable game and worksheet
Frequently asked questions
What is a microhabitat?
A microhabitat is a very small habitat, such as under a log, inside a rotting tree stump or in a patch of leaf litter. Minibeasts such as woodlice, slugs and centipedes live there.
Can an animal live in more than one habitat?
Yes, some can. Foxes live in woodland, farmland and cities. The game only uses animals with one clear habitat, so there is a single right answer.
Do penguins live at the North Pole?
No. Wild penguins live in the southern half of the world, and emperor penguins live in Antarctica. Polar bears live in the Arctic in the north.