GRADE FIVE SCIENCE

Hello Boys and Girls, Was your past week a good one? Have you been doing your best? Have you been having fun finding out about fishes? Were you able to catch any fish and make your own aquarium? Let’s see what you remember about fishes before going on.

A. True / False 1. Fishes are invertebrates. 2. All fishes are covered with scales. 3. The pectoral fins are paired fins. 4. Some fishes can be classified as fish.

B. Which one is correct in each? 5. Fishes usually breathe by

a. lungs.

6. The scales of fish point a. backwards.

7. Which fins help to propel the fish? a. Pelvic b. Caudal

8. The operculum covers the a. ears.

C. b. gills.

b. forwards. b. nose. c. gills.

Draw a fish and name its parts. State the function of these parts. This week let us turn our attention to another class of animals - Amphibians.

Can you name some amphibians? Yes, frogs, toads, newts and salamanders are amphibians. The word amphibia means both lives. This refers to the fact that although these animals mainly spend their adult life on land they begin life in water.

Amphibians can live in fresh water and on land but not in salt water. They can also be found hiding in shady places.

Let’s look at the frog in the picture above. Look at the parts that are labelled.

Amphibians have four limbs. They are used to make several movements such as hopping, jumping and crawling. Look at the feet of most amphibians. What type of feet do they have? Yes, they have feet with webbed toes. (Do you remember which other animal(s) has webbed feet/ toes?) The webbed feet help them to swim well. Look again at the frog’s body. Do you see a neck or a tail? Are all amphibians like this? No, newts and salamanders have tails.

On what do frogs and toads feed? They feed on insects such as flies. Have you ever seen its long tongue? The tongue is attached to the front of its mouth. This helps it to quickly and freely flick it out to catch the insects.

Amphibians lay their eggs in water. When hatched the young ones do not resemble the adult amphibian. As they grow they develop and change their forms several times before they become adults. These changes are referred to as metamorphosis.

Amphibians are

lay their eggs in water are cold blooded (most) are covered with moist, smooth skins breathe through gills when young and through lungs when they adults

Stop for a moment and read as much as you can on amphibians. Find a diagram of the metamorphosis of a frog.

We will have a look at the life cycle of a frog next week. Goodbye boys and girls.