Year 1 Science: Fish: animals that live in water
Part of the Year 1 Science animal groups chapter. Chapter overview · whole chapter on one page · Download worksheet (PDF) · Answers (PDF)
Fish: animals that live in water
A fish lives in water. Fish swim with their fins. They breathe with gills. Gills help a fish to breathe in water. Most fish have scales. Scales are small, thin plates that cover the skin, like tiny roof tiles.
A goldfish is a fish. A shark is a fish too. Let’s look at a goldfish and find its fins, its gills and its scales.
Key ideas
- A fish lives in water.
- Fish swim with their fins.
- Fish breathe with gills.
- Most fish have scales.
Key words. The five groups are fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. A clue is a feature we can see, like fins or feathers.
Method. Look for the clues, then match the animal to one group.
- Look at where it lives. Some animals live in water.It lives in water.
- Look at its covering. Most fish have scales.It has scales.
- Look at its body parts. Fins help a fish swim. Gills help it breathe.It has fins and gills.
- Match the clues to a group. Compare the clues with the five groups.This goldfish = fish
- Write the answer. Fish
Check. The clues fit the fish group. ✓
Watch out. Many animals live in water. Look at the fins, the gills and the scales, not only where the animal lives.
Method. Count the fins one at a time.
- Look at the picture. Find every one, including the ones at the back.Find the back fin, the side fin and the tail fin.
- Count each one once. Say one number for each one, in order.1, 2, 3
- Write the answer. 3
Check. Count again from the other side. You get 3 again. ✓
Watch out. Touch each one as you count it, so you do not miss one or count one twice.
Method. Think about how a fish breathes, and how we breathe.
- Think about how we breathe. We breathe air into our lungs.We breathe air with lungs.
- Think about how a fish breathes. A fish takes oxygen from the water through its gills.A fish breathes with gills, in water.
- Decide if Tom is right. Gills and lungs are not the same, so a fish does not breathe like us.No, Tom is not right.
Check. A fish has gills, and we have lungs. ✓
Watch out. Fish do not breathe air with lungs. They use gills in the water.
Watch out
Watch out: many animals live in water, but that does not make them fish. A whale lives in the sea too, but it breathes air with lungs, so it is not a fish. Look at all the clues.
Exam tip
Grown-up tip. Ask: “Where does a fish live? How does it move? How does it breathe?” Your child can answer with the words on this page.
Exercise 4A Fish
Method. Look at each animal, and find the one with the clues.
- Look at the animals. Find the animal with these clues.It has fins and scales, and it lives in water.
- Find its letter. Each animal has a letter under it.The goldfish is A
- Write the answer. A
Check. The clues fit the fish group. ✓
Watch out. Many animals live in water. Look at the fins, the gills and the scales, not only where the animal lives.
Method. Count the fins one at a time.
- Look at the picture. Find every one, including the ones at the back.Find each fin: the back fin, the side fin and the tail fin.
- Count each one once. Say one number for each one, in order.1, 2, 3
- Write the answer. 3
Check. Count again from the other side. You get 3 again. ✓
Watch out. Touch each one as you count it, so you do not miss one or count one twice.
Method. Think about what we know about animals.
- Read the question. Find the part that matters.Where does a fish live?
- Think of the fact. We found this fact on this page.A fish lives in water and breathes in water with its gills.
- Write the answer. water
Check. Say the fact out loud in your own words. ✓
Watch out. Look at the words of the question again, then think about the fact.
Method. Think about what we know about animals.
- Read the question. Find the part that matters.What does a fish breathe with?
- Think of the fact. We found this fact on this page.Fish breathe with gills. Lungs are for animals that breathe air.
- Write the answer. gills
Check. Say the fact out loud in your own words. ✓
Watch out. Look at the words of the question again, then think about the fact.
Method. Think about what we know about animals.
- Read the question. Find the part that matters.What covers the body of most fish?
- Think of the fact. We found this fact on this page.Most fish have scales. Birds have feathers instead.
- Write the answer. scales
Check. Say the fact out loud in your own words. ✓
Watch out. Look at the words of the question again, then think about the fact.
Method. Check the claim against a fact you know about animals.
- Read the claim. Decide what it says.A fish has feathers.
- Remember the fact. The facts on this page tell us the answer.Fish have fins, gills and usually scales. Feathers are for birds.
- Write the answer. False
Check. If the fact is right, the answer is right. ✓
Watch out. Feathers are for birds. Check the fish clues: fins, gills and scales.
Method. Check the claim against a fact you know about animals.
- Read the claim. Decide what it says.Most fish have scales.
- Remember the fact. The facts on this page tell us the answer.Most fish have scales on their skin.
- Write the answer. True
Check. If the fact is right, the answer is right. ✓
Watch out. Most fish have scales. A few fish do not look like that, so check the other clues too.
Method. Think about the clues for each animal, then pick the fish.
- Look at the whale. A whale breathes air through a blowhole, so it is a mammal.Whale: mammal
- Look at the bat. A bat has fur and feeds its babies on milk, so it is a mammal.Bat: mammal
- Look at the shark. A shark has fins and gills and lives in water, so it is a fish.Shark: fish
- Write the answer. shark
Check. Only the shark has fins and gills and lives in water. ✓
Watch out. A whale and a bat are not fish, even though a whale lives in water.
Method. Think about what gills do, and what happens when a fish is out of the water.
- Think about gills. Gills take oxygen from the water, so a fish can breathe.Gills work in water.
- Think about the fish. A fish needs its gills to breathe, so it needs water.A fish needs water.
- Write the answer. Put the two ideas together.Its gills need water to help it breathe.
Check. Gills need water. A fish cannot breathe air like us. ✓
Watch out. Do not say that a fish breathes with its fins.
Method. Think about what the fins do when a fish moves.
- Watch how the fish moves. A fish moves through the water with its fins and tail.It swims.
- Think about what the fins do. Fins help a fish to swim and to keep steady.Fins help it swim and steer.
- Write the answer. We can test our idea by watching.To swim and to keep steady.
Check. Watch a goldfish in a tank. Do its fins move when it swims? ✓
Watch out. We can test an idea by watching. We do not have to guess.