Surviving Winter by Hibernating

Lab Brief #3

🎯 Your mission

Learn the rule. Then catch nature using it.

⚡ The twist

Every species solves the same problem differently.

What you'll learn

Hibernation is a deep sleep that helps animals survive winter when food is scarce. During hibernation, an animal's heart rate and breathing slow down to save energy.

Key words

food web
How plants and animals are linked by what they eat.

Make a hypothesis first

Before you watch: what do you think it'll do?

Say your guess out loud — then find out if you were right.

Step 1 of 4 · Read

Look at the vocabulary words and write a definition for each in your own words.

Step 2 of 4 · Do

Create a detailed food web for a local ecosystem. Include at least 8 organisms and use arrows to show energy flow from producers to top predators.

Step 3 of 4 · Observe

Note any unexpected results and think about why they happened.

Step 4 of 4 · Record

Share your findings with the class or a partner and discuss what you learned.

Question 1 of 3

What do hibernating animals do?

How sure are you?😐 maybe

Question 2 of 3

What is the main source of energy for most food chains?

How sure are you?😐 maybe

Question 3 of 3

What happens to energy as it moves up a food chain?

How sure are you?😐 maybe

Mind = blown

🌳 Trees can talk to each other through underground fungus networks.

Nice work!

You got 0 of 3 right.

Next: Predator and Prey Balance All lessons

🎯

Next Smart Experiment

We'll pick an experiment that matches exactly how you're thinking right now.

✨ More to explore

🌍 Where you see this in real life: Your own body is doing this thousands of times every second.

🏆 Stretch challenge (try it this week): Find one thing about your body that's different from a friend's. Wonder why.

👨‍👩‍👧 For the dinner table: “Tell me something you noticed about your own body today.”

🌿Share card

Share this experiment

Send it to a parent who's looking for a 10-minute kitchen science win.

Surviving Winter by Hibernating

Next Smart Experiment

Share this experiment

Surviving Winter by Hibernating

Done with science? Try something else

Your Cart (0)