Earth’s Biomes: Match the Climate to the Place

SubstitutePlans.com
Science · Environmental Science / Earth Science
SP-ENVS-002 · Free to print and use in your classroom · substituteplans.com
Page 2
Earth’s Biomes: Match the Climate to the Place
Science · Environmental Science / Earth Science · Grades 9-10 · 45 minutes
Time needed
45 minutes (one class period)
Prep
Copy the 2-page worksheet (one per student).
Technology
None.
Student
independence
High. Students use a reference table and work alone.
Copies to make
One 2-page worksheet per student
Materials
Pencils, Worksheet
Goal for today: Students will identify six major land biomes from descriptions of their climate and vegetation and
explain how plants and animals are adapted to them.
Before the bell
☐ Copy the worksheet, one per student (2 pages).
☐ Optional: write the six biome names on the board: tundra, taiga, temperate deciduous forest, tropical
rainforest, desert, temperate grassland.
☐ Keep the answer key on your desk. Everything students need is in the reference table.
Say this to start
Good morning! Today’s science lesson is about biomes. A biome is a large region with a typical climate and typical
plants and animals. Your worksheet has a reference table that tells you about six biomes. Use the table to answer
every question, so you do not have to know the answers ahead of time. Work quietly on your own first.
Run of show
Minutes
What you do
What students do
0–5
Take attendance. Hand out the worksheet. Read the title
and directions aloud.
Look over the worksheet.
5–12
Tell students to read the reference table carefully. Ask
them to circle one key word in each row.
Read the table and circle one key word per
biome.
12–22
Tell students to complete the matching section (questions
1–6) using the table.
Match each description to a biome.
22–35
Tell students to answer the multiple-choice and true/false
questions (7–13) and the short answer (14).
Answer questions using the table and their
own thinking.
35–41
Tell students to complete the Name the Biome table at the
end.
Write the biome where each organism lives.
41–45
Collect all worksheets. Read the matching answers aloud if
time allows.
Hand in the worksheet.

SubstitutePlans.com
Science · Environmental Science / Earth Science
SP-ENVS-002 · Free to print and use in your classroom · substituteplans.com
Page 3
If things go wrong
• If students say they never studied biomes, point out that the reference table has the answers. They only need
to match and reason.
• If a student asks about a biome not in the table (such as the ocean), say the lesson is about six land biomes
and they can mention it in the early finisher task.
• If students disagree about an answer, ask them to point to the line in the table that supports their choice.
• If many students finish within 20 minutes, check that question 14 is written in full sentences and use the early
finisher list.
Early finishers
• Choose a biome and draw a quick sketch of one plant and one animal adapted to it. Label one adaptation.
• Pick a biome where you would not want to live and write two sentences explaining why, using facts from the
table.
Support and challenge
• Support: Let students work with a partner and complete only the matching section and the Name the Biome
table.
• Challenge: Ask students to write one paragraph comparing the taiga and the tundra, including at least two
differences.
Notes for the teacher (you fill this in)
Jot a few lines before you leave. A full Daily Sub Report is in the free Sub Survival Kit at SubstitutePlans.com.
How far the class got / what to pick up next:
Students who were especially helpful:
Anything the teacher should know: