Grade 4 · Science · Unit 1 of 5
Habitats & Communities
Homes for living things and what limits them
What your child practises
Habitats as places that meet the needs of living things, communities of interacting species, why habitats have limits, how species depend on each other, and how human actions can help or harm.
Nova Scotia Curriculum learning outcome: Life Science: Habitat · local habitats and the living things in them
Sample questions
A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.
Question 1
Why can a forest support only so many deer?
🦌- forests are always empty
- food, water, shelter and space are limited
- deer don't eat anything
- the Moon decides
food, water, shelter and space are limited
Hint: A habitat has limits.
Question 2
A new invasive species takes over a lake. How might this change the community?
🐟- more native species will arrive
- native species may have less food and space
- the lake will get warmer
- the lake will disappear
native species may have less food and space
Hint: Invasive species compete with native species.
Question 3
Which action would best prevent a species from disappearing?
🛡️- polluting the water
- protecting its habitat
- cutting down more trees
- building over the habitat
protecting its habitat
Hint: Species need habitats to survive.
Question 4
Does it help a habitat or harm it? Tap an item, then tap its basket.
Sort into: 💚 helps habitats · ⚠️ harms habitats
- 🌿letting invasive plants spread
- 🅿️draining a wetland for a parking lot
- 🌳planting native trees
- 🦆restoring a wetland
- 🪺putting up bird nest boxes
- 🪓clearing a forest and leaving it bare
💚 helps habitats: planting native trees, restoring a wetland, putting up bird nest boxes · ⚠️ harms habitats: letting invasive plants spread, draining a wetland for a parking lot, clearing a forest and leaving it bare
Hint: Restoring wetlands and putting up nest boxes help. Pollution and clearing habitat harm.
Question 5
A community in nature is…
🦆- all the water in a lake
- a pile of rocks
- all the plants and animals living and interacting in one habitat
- a single animal
all the plants and animals living and interacting in one habitat
Hint: A pond community includes frogs, fish, cattails and dragonflies.
Question 6
A beaver dam floods a meadow and creates a pond. How does this affect the community?
🦫- every species gains
- no species are affected
- every species loses
- some species lose habitat and others gain a new one
some species lose habitat and others gain a new one
Hint: Changes can help some species and harm others.