Activity:
Habitat Card Game
 

Concepts:	Salmonids must find habitats which meet all of their needs. If even one need is not met the salmonids will not be able to exist in that habitat.
Objectives:	This activity will help the students recognize the importance of the habitat concept, and the need for a habitat to supply all of the organism' requirements.
Materials:	white posterboard or heavy paper cards, approximately 4"x6" (7 cards per student plus 2 extra sets of seven each) colored markers, crayons, or pencils
Subjects:	Science, Art

 

Preparation and Procedure:

1. Give each student seven cards and colored markers, crayons, or pencils.
2. The teacher gives a brief description of one of the habitat factors (cold water, dissolved oxygen, clear water, food, protection from predators, shelter from current, nesting sites) described above and discusses with the students why it is important to the salmonids.
3. The students label a card with the name of the habitat factor and draw a creative depiction of the factor.
4. The process is repeated for all seven of the habitat factors. The teacher draws two sets of cards while the students draw theirs.
5. When everyone is finished the students show the group their cards and explain how their drawing represents the habitat factor.
6. To play the game collect all of the cards, shuffle and deal 7 to each student; the remainder of the cards are placed face down in the center with one card face up in the discard pile. To complete his/her hand the student must have one of each of the 7 types of cards. In turn, the students draw one card from either the deck or the top of the discard pile and then discard one card. The first student to have a hand containing one of each of the 7 habitat factors helps the salmonids inhabit the stream.
7. If multiple hands are appropriate an imaginary map of a river with several tributaries can be drawn. Each tributary can represent the outcome of an individual game.

 

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