Animal Classification

Today we learnt about how animals are classified into groups. Animals are either vertebrates (which means they have a spine) or invertebrates (which don't have a spine).

Invertebrates are animals like jellyfish, crabs, insects and octopus.


Vertebrates are put into five groups. They are mammals, birds, reptiles, fish and amphibians. Mammals have fur or hair and give birth to live young. Birds have feathers and lay hard eggs. Reptiles are cold blooded and lay soft eggs. Amphibians breathe through their skin and need to keep their skin moist. Fish breathe through gills and have fins.

5 examples of each type:

Mammals: dog, cat, human, seal, walrus

Birds: peacock, sparrow, raven, pigeon, kiwi

Fish: gold fish, tuna, snapper, shark, sea horse

Reptiles: chameleon, crocodile, alligator, snake, turtle

Amphibians: newt, frog, toad, salamander, caecilian