Guide your students on a journey through the desert ecosystem! From the sweeping sands of the Namib and Kalahari in southern Africa, to the dry heart of Australia’s Outback, and the rocky cold of the Gobi, deserts come in many forms.
✨ Perfect for grades 3–8, here’s what you need to bring ecosystems to life:
- Iconic BBC Videos: Share the clips on this page to introduce the location, plants, animals, and climate of the desert. (Don't miss the lions and lizards!) Brought to you by world-class BBC programs like Planet Earth, Wilderness With Simon Reeve, Africa, and Seven Worlds, One Planet.
- Free Printable: Use the Desert Brochure Template to help students pull it all together in an ecosystem report with facts they’ve learned (and a little extra research).
It’s everything you need to make ecosystems easy to teach and truly memorable for your students.
Explore the fascinating world of deserts and discover how plants, animals, and people adapt to survive in some of the hottest and driest places on Earth. From towering cacti and clever nocturnal animals to sudden sandstorms and scarce water sources, students will learn how life continues to thrive in these extreme environments.
This Kahoot investigates the unique features of desert ecosystems, including climate, habitats, food chains, and the special adaptations that help living things conserve water and stay cool. Students will also explore how deserts change over time and why these harsh landscapes are an important part of our planet’s natural systems.
Watch the related BBC videos (below), then invite your Grade 3–8 students to test their knowledge and uncover the surprising diversity and resilience of life in the desert.
In A Crucial Resource in the Desert, narrator Sir David Attenborough explores the Saguaro cacti. Saguaros are cacti with very shallow roots. Learn how they expand after a rainstorm and flower during four weeks of the summer, supporting the wildlife around them. This video is excerpted from BBC's Planet Earth, a breathtaking documentary series that highlights the natural wonders of our planet.
Deserts aren't empty — they're some of the most extreme, most surprising ecosystems on Earth. From the towering dunes of the Namib and the sunbaked Kalahari to the rugged Australian Outback and the icy sands of the Gobi, life finds a way.
After watching desert video clips, have students dig deeper with their own research and build a brochure covering:
- Location of the ecosystem on a world map
- Adjectives that describe the ecosystem
- Three animals that live there
- Three plants that grow there
- The climate
- Why the ecosystem matters
- Their favorite fun facts
Students summarize in their own words, which means they're practicing a real skill: pulling information from multiple sources and deciding what's worth keeping. The brochure format gives them room to make it their own
Guide your students on a journey through the desert ecosystem! From the sweeping sands of the Namib and Kalahari in southern Africa, to the dry heart of Australia’s Outback, and the rocky cold of the Gobi, deserts come in many forms.
✨ Perfect for grades 3–8, here’s what you need to bring ecosystems to life:
- Iconic BBC Videos: Share the clips on this page to introduce the location, plants, animals, and climate of the desert. (Don't miss the lions and lizards!) Brought to you by world-class BBC programs like Planet Earth, Wilderness With Simon Reeve, Africa, and Seven Worlds, One Planet.
- Free Printable: Use the Desert Brochure Template to help students pull it all together in an ecosystem report with facts they’ve learned (and a little extra research).
It’s everything you need to make ecosystems easy to teach and truly memorable for your students.
Explore the fascinating world of deserts and discover how plants, animals, and people adapt to survive in some of the hottest and driest places on Earth. From towering cacti and clever nocturnal animals to sudden sandstorms and scarce water sources, students will learn how life continues to thrive in these extreme environments.
This Kahoot investigates the unique features of desert ecosystems, including climate, habitats, food chains, and the special adaptations that help living things conserve water and stay cool. Students will also explore how deserts change over time and why these harsh landscapes are an important part of our planet’s natural systems.
Watch the related BBC videos (below), then invite your Grade 3–8 students to test their knowledge and uncover the surprising diversity and resilience of life in the desert.
In A Crucial Resource in the Desert, narrator Sir David Attenborough explores the Saguaro cacti. Saguaros are cacti with very shallow roots. Learn how they expand after a rainstorm and flower during four weeks of the summer, supporting the wildlife around them. This video is excerpted from BBC's Planet Earth, a breathtaking documentary series that highlights the natural wonders of our planet.
Deserts aren't empty — they're some of the most extreme, most surprising ecosystems on Earth. From the towering dunes of the Namib and the sunbaked Kalahari to the rugged Australian Outback and the icy sands of the Gobi, life finds a way.
After watching desert video clips, have students dig deeper with their own research and build a brochure covering:
- Location of the ecosystem on a world map
- Adjectives that describe the ecosystem
- Three animals that live there
- Three plants that grow there
- The climate
- Why the ecosystem matters
- Their favorite fun facts
Students summarize in their own words, which means they're practicing a real skill: pulling information from multiple sources and deciding what's worth keeping. The brochure format gives them room to make it their own