Why
Migrate North in the Spring?
Teaching Suggestions
(Back
to Overview)
Background
Warm weather and lots of insects help to make hummingbirds' winter home south of the US border a welcome habitat. But every year in late-winter and spring, hummingbirds
take to the skies and head north.
Class Discussion Before
Viewing Slideshow
Hummingbirds have basic survival needs; food, water, shelter, and space. How do you think hummingbirds benefit by coming north in the spring? Invite students to explore this question by viewing the slideshow together. Use your
Hummingbird Journals to write about what they think.
After Viewing Slideshow: Main Concepts to Discuss
- Identify the basic needs hummingbirds have in order to survive and raise young.
- Recognize the role of increased sunlight in rebuilding the foodchain, and the large landmass of the United States and Canada in the ruby-throated hummingbird's spring migration.
- Understand that the hummingbird's northern breeding range is much larger than its winter range. (The actual sizes: breeding range = 25 million square miles, winter range = 4 million square miles.)
- Understand that migration evolved many years ago as an adaptation. Now hummingbirds are born knowing by instinct that they must migrate.
Journal
Use the Journal Page as an assessment for what your students have learned about hummingbird migration.
Activity
Exploring
Land Mass (Game): Does
Earth Have More Land or Water?
In this activity, students "toss" or spin a globe to
compare the land mass in the Northern vs. Southern Hemisphere. This helps
them grasp why so many birds migrate north in the spring.
Extensions
Life
Cycle Sleuth: Students
Develop Hypotheses About Migration
Why do animals migrate? By studying an animal's life cycle and everyday
behavior closely, students can form hypotheses about the reasons for migration,
and predict when migration will occur.
Seeing
The Light: Recognizing the Sun's Role in Living Systems
Students create webs that illustrate their thinking about how sunlight
affects living systems, such as food chains and webs.
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| Grades: 3+ Standards |
Print:
Student Journal Page
Activity
