3rd Grade Science
Under the Sun
Unit 2
What 5 Regions Make up Georgia?
Coastal Plain
Piedmont
Appalachian Plateau
Ridge and Valley Region
Blue Ridge!
Take the Virtual Field Trip below to learn about what each region of Georgia looks like, which animals and plants inhabit each area, and how our region is similar and different from the rest of the state!
Using the maps below, in which region do you live (Dekalb County)?
We live in the Piedmont region!
Each of these regions creates a different environment for the organisms that live there.
Environment: the landscape, resources, and other organisms that inhabit an area.
Habitat: The natural and most suitable (best) environment for a certain animal or plant.
Organism: A living thing, like a tree, flower, bear, or dog
What kinds of organisms do you think inhabit each region? Take a look at the different regions below!
Ridge and Valley
Appalachian Plateau
Blue Ridge
Piedmont
Coastal Plains
Adaptations, Structure, and Function
Because each region of Georgia (and the world) is so different, organisms in each region have developed certain traits (adaptations) to help them survive in their habitat. Let's learn about them below!
In this picture, all the family members have some similar features, like their circular eyes, dark hair, and skin tone!
What is an "adaptation"?
Do you have any physical features similar to your parents? Do both of you have brown eyes, or round eyes, or curly hair? This is because your parent has passed down those traits to you! In the same way, other organisms inherit traits from their parents, allowig them to adapt and survive in their environment.
An "adaptation" is a helpful characteristic that is developed by an organism gradually over time. Organisms cannot change their appearance or traits whenever they want, but if a plant or animal has a helpful trait, it may pass it down to its offspring (children). After many generations, much of the population may have the trait.
Types of Adaptations
Physical features like these webbed feet, help frogs, ducks, and others animals live and swim in watery environments.
Camouflage allows some ansimals, like this chameleon, to blend in to their surroundings and hide in plain sight.
Mimicry is when animals, like this octopus, look or act like another, more threatening, organism, and protects the animal.
Some animals, like these butterflies, migrate (move) during the colder months, while others hibernate (sleep during winter).
Play the game below to learn more about adaptations!
Each adaptation that a species develops helps the organisms survive (live and produce offspring) in their environments. The functions (purpose or use) of these adaptations enables animals and plants to live longer, have more kids, and pass on helpful traits. In the list below, can guess what the function of each of these adaptations is?
Guess the Function!
A duck has webbed feet.
Webbed feet allow the duck to swim more quickly in water, escape predators, and raise little ducklings!
A polar bear has thick white fur.
White fur allows polar bears to blend in with the Arctic snow while also keeping them warm in the cold!
Some birds have short beaks.
Shorter beaks help birds eat more easily in regions where only small items are available for food (small seeds, bugs, etc.)
All About Energy
Have you ever had a sugar rush after eating a lot of candy? Have you ever felt refreshed after a good night's sleep? Both of these things provide you with energy, the compound that allows you to live and thrive!
Energy is present wherever there are moving objects, sound, light, or heat!
Moving Objects
Sound
Light
Heat
Energy can be transferred or absorbed by different objects (including humans like you and me!) by touching things, heating things, eating, or even just being in the same place. For example, when we sit by a fire, we absorb heat energy from the fire! Also, when we eat a cookie, energy from the meal is tranferred to our bodies!
All types of energy are important but we will be focusing on heat! Have you ever curled up by a fire to get warm or make s'mores in the Fall or used a stove to cook food? Those are examples of the functions of heat energy: the type of energy that changes temperature
Temperature: How hot or cold something is, the average amount of energy in an area.
Heat energy is measured using a thermometer in degrees. For example, on a hot summer day, the thermometer might read "95 degrees".
Look closely at the picture for a "hot day" above. Do you see how there are two letters at the top? C and F? These letters stand for Celsius and Fahrenheit, the two different metrics that are used around the world to measure temperature.
Fahrenheit: Used iIn the United States to measure temperature.
Celsius: Used in almost every other country to measure temperature.
Use the interactive thermometer to the right to see how Celsius and Fahrenheit compare!