Teeth Identification in Omnivores, Herbivores and Carnivores

Allen Nelson                   John P. Altgeld
11445 S. Washtenaw             1340 W. 71st. Street
Chicago IL 60655               Chicago IL 60636
(312)233-9456                  (312)535-3250

Objectives:

  LEVELS:  ALL GRADES
      
   The main objective of this lesson is to demonstrate the differences in teeth 
structure and how it determines what a specific animal eats.  This will be 
accomplished by constructing a raccoon puppet.

Materials Needed: 

          pictures of various animals (focusing on their mouth)
          paper bags (4" X 8")
          red modeling clay
          corn kernels
          black and brown crayons
          glue

Strategy:

 1.  Display pictures of various animals, discussing their teeth structure.
 2.  Lay the paper bag flat with the flap facing you.
 3.  Draw a raccoon face above the flap.  Allow the students to get creative 
     with their puppets faces.
 4.  Turn the bag over to, allow some space at the top, then draw the raccoon's
     tail.
 5.  Lift up the flap and glue two strips of clay (one on top and one on bottom)
     to the bag.  These should represent the gums of the raccoon.
 6.  Place individual corn kernels in the clay to represent the different kinds 
     of teeth.  Instruct the students to position the kernels so that the front 
     teeth are sharp and the back teeth are smooth and round.
 7.  Allow the students to demonstrate the functioning of their puppets to one 
     another.

Performance Assessment:

     At the completion of these activities the students will be able to answer 
the following questions: 
 1.  What do omnivores eat?  
 2.  What do carnivores eat?
 3.  What do herbivores eat?
 4.  How do the structure of an animals determine what they eat?
 5.  Describe the different shapes of animal teeth.
 6.  Can the learner apply this information to the identification of dinosaurs?

Conclusion:

    At the conclusion of this activity the students will understand the 
differences in teeth shapes and how this dictates the diet of an animal.