Science Fenns K-5Grades K to 5
A Texas pond edge showing a heron with long legs, a duck with webbed feet, a turtle with a shell and a dragonfly with wings.

Science / All lessons / Structures and Behaviors

Different Bodies, Same Place

Structure and function across species.

Lesson 39 of 41

Try this first

Before we start

Today’s story

Different Bodies, Same Place

Picture a Texas pond at dawn. A heron stands in the shallows and a duck paddles past. A turtle rests on a log. A dragonfly zips over the water. They share one place, yet their bodies are very different.

A structure is a body part and a function is the job it does. Webbed feet help a duck swim and long legs let a heron wade. A hard shell protects a turtle. Wings let a dragonfly fly and catch food. Each body fits the animal's way of living.

Different structures can solve the same problem in different ways. Both heron and duck find food in water, but with different tools. Here are the steps.

See it

Five steps. Every time.

    Hands on

    Beak Challenge

    25 minutes · Do this with a grown-up nearby

    You need

    • spoon
    • tweezers
    • clothespin
    • straw
    • dry beans
    • small cup
    • a timer

    Do this

    1. Spread beans on a tray. They are food.
    2. Use the spoon as a beak and move beans to a cup for 30 seconds.
    3. Repeat with tweezers.
    4. Repeat with the clothespin and then the straw.
    5. Count beans each time.
    6. Predict which tool would be best for other foods.
    Write or draw: A table with each tool and the number of beans moved.

    Watch for: Different tools win with different foods. Real beaks match what each bird eats.

    Safety: Do not eat the beans. Wash your hands after the activity.

    Same every time

    Three rules

    Rule 1Every structure has a job.

    Ask what a part does.

    Rule 2Structures fit the habitat.

    A body suits where the animal lives.

    Rule 3Different tools can solve one problem.

    There is more than one way to live in a place.

    Grandpa Fenn’s notebook

    Say it like a scientist

    structure
    A part of a living thing's body.
    function
    The job a body part does.
    adaptation
    A body part or behavior that helps an organism survive.
    habitat
    The place where an organism lives.

    Poppy’s quiz

    Six questions

    Tap an answer. Green means right. You will see why.

    Talk about it

    Say it out loud

    • What evidence from an animal's body shows how it lives?
    • Which animals in your yard or school share a place? How do their bodies differ?
    Did you know

    A woodpecker's tongue is so long that it wraps around the back of the skull inside the head.

    Someone who does this

    A zoologist studies animals and how their bodies fit their lives.

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