Description: From polar bears to macaws, where do animals really call home? A grandfather's tale of chasing a fox on the way to school and arriving late has long since become the stuff of legend. Where are today's children most likely to encounter live animals? Aside from kids on farms with livestock or those with pets at home, it's probably the zoo. At the zoo, children can see a huge variety of animals, and among them, elephants, monkeys, polar bears, and camels are perennial favorites. But how many children realize that these animals actually live in completely different environments from one another? For animals, habitat means far more than just a place to stay. Everything from an animal's appearance to its diet and reproduction is connected to its habitat. Without understanding habitat, it's impossible to truly understand an animal. This book introduces children to animals living in the polar regions, deserts, and rainforests within the context of their natural habitats. Children will meet polar bears leaping powerfully into the sea after prey across the vast Arctic ice, and emperor penguins waddling across the icy ground of Antarctica. They'll encounter camels trudging silently across dry, waterless desert sand, rattlesnakes making a warning rattle to scare off enemies, and bald-headed monkeys swinging from tree to tree high in the canopy like circus performers. After seeing animals living and moving within their natural habitats, a trip to the zoo will never feel quite the same. A child who has read this book might look at a macaw in a zoo cage and imagine that same magnificent bird soaring through the green skies of the rainforest. Animals That Thrive Year-Round in Cold or Hot Climates For children living in a place with four distinct seasons, the very idea of a place that's cold all year round, or hot all year round, sparks curiosity. Stories of animals enduring extreme cold, thirst, and heat in these places are sure to fuel children's interest and curiosity even further. This book is indeed full of exciting and surprising facts about how animals look and live. Polar bears have white fur, but underneath that white fur, their skin is black. The white fur provides excellent camouflage in the snowy Arctic, while the black skin helps absorb heat to maintain body temperature. Camels have nostrils they can open and close, so when sandstorms blow fiercely, they can close their nostrils to keep sand out. Camels can also go without drinking water for up to a month. Desert-dwelling rattlesnakes and scorpions are inactive during the day and come out to hunt around sunset, since deserts have huge temperature swings between day and night — daytime heat and scorching sand make daytime activity impractical. Since rattlesnakes are mainly active at night, they have heat-sensing organs beneath their eyes that let them pinpoint prey by body heat, even when they can't see well. Meanwhile, animals living in rainforest trees often have long, human-like big toes or toes that point in different directions, allowing them to grip branches firmly and avoid falling. Stories of animals so remarkably adapted to their environments go beyond simple fascination — they help children understand the mystery and dignity of life, and enrich their emotional development. Educator Craig identified two key concepts to cover when teaching young children about animals: the concept of 'interdependence,' meaning living things depend on one another, and the concept of 'adaptation,' meaning living things adapt to their environment. The appearance and ecology of wild animals adapting to extreme environments make for an ideal subject to instill these concepts. What Is the Relationship Between People, Animals, and Nature? Long ago, people living in the Arctic regions actively relied on animals to survive in a harsh environment. They used the hides of bears, walruses, and reindeer to build tents, make boats, and craft clothing...