🌍 Chapter 4 – Earth and Its Habitats
Learner’s Book 4 (2nd Edition, 2021), Unit 4
🎯 Learning Objectives
By the end of this chapter, learners will be able to:
Describe the internal structure of the Earth.
Understand how volcanoes and earthquakes form and affect environments.
Observe and interpret how animals are adapted to different habitats.
Gather and present observational data reliably.
📘 Section 4.1 – The Structure of the Earth
Explores Earth's four main layers: crust, mantle, outer core, inner core.
o The crust is a thin outer layer of solid rock.
o Beneath is the mantle, made of hot magma/semi-molten rock.
o The outer core is liquid metal; the inner core is solid metal.
Temperature increases with depth; the inner core is extremely hot.
Students label diagrams showing each layer, identify materials, and indicate whether
they are solid or liquid.
🧠 Key idea: Earth’s internal heat drives geological events like volcanoes and earthquakes.
🗻 Section 4.2 – Volcanoes
Describes how magma rises through cracks in the crust and erupts as lava or ash,
forming volcanoes.
Composite volcanoes form from alternating layers of ash and lava.
Students sequence the eruption process and locate volcano hotspots, especially along
the Pacific Ring of Fire.
Real-life relevance: island formation (e.g. in Hawaii), geothermal energy, tourism.
🌐 Section 4.3 – Earthquakes
Earthquakes occur when stress in the crust causes sudden movement in tectonic
plates, releasing seismic energy.
Defines key terms:
o Focus: the origin point beneath the surface.
o Epicentre: the surface location directly above the focus.
Highlights secondary effects like tsunamis, which can devastate coastal regions.
Students study earthquake patterns, understand cause and consequence, and interpret
real-world impacts.
🐾 Section 4.4 – Different Habitats
Learners observe how animal features are adapted to habitat conditions. For
example:
o Fish – gills for breathing underwater, fins for swimming.
o Pigeon – short pointed beak for cracking seeds.
o Starling – longer beak to dig for worms.
o Kingfisher – long pointed beak to catch fish.
o Flamingo – flat, sieve-like beak to strain food from water.
Activities include observing local or provided bird images, recording observations,
and compiling a dot plot of beak types vs habitat / diet.
Extends to adaptability in non-native environments:
o Urban survival examples (e.g. seagulls inland, plants grown in gardens
outside their natural habitats).
o Discussion of how humans help plants (orchids, bamboo) survive in new
environments by providing water and suitable conditions.
🧠 Key idea: Traits such as beak shape, body covering, respiratory structures help organisms
thrive in specific habitats.
📊 Chapter Summary Table
Section Key Focus Learning Outcomes
Identify and explain crust, mantle, outer core, inner
4.1 Earth’s internal layers
core
Volcano formation and
4.2 Sequence eruption events, map volcano distribution
effects
4.3 Earthquakes and tsunamis Understand causes, locate epicentre, recognise impacts
Investigate and interpret how animals are suited to
4.4 Habitat adaptation
habitats
🧠 Key Vocabulary
Crust, Mantle, Outer Core, Inner Core, Magma
Volcano, Lava, Ash, Ring of Fire
Earthquake, Focus, Epicentre, Tsunami
Habitat, Adaptation, Gills, Beak, Fins, Dot Plot
🧪 Suggested Classroom Activities
Earth layer model: Use colored clay or play-dough to model and label each layer.
Volcano drama: Enact steps of eruption or build a physical volcano model.
Shake-table simulation: Demonstrate earthquake effects using simple materials.
Bird adaptation survey: Use photos or visit a park, record traits, and plot habitat-diet
relationships.
Habitat adaptation poster: Students choose an animal or plant adapted to an
unfamiliar habitat and explain how human care helps it survive.
