Grasslands

Lesson Plan - Get It!

Audio:

Grasslands can be found all over the planet on every continent except Antarctica.

They are called grasslands because of the lack of trees and abundance of grasses and small plants.

The two most common types of grasslands are temperate grasslands and tropical grasslands.

Temperate grasslands are found in South Africa, South America, and the plains of North America.

Temperate grasslands do not have any trees or large shrubs. This type of grassland has hot summers and cold winters.

Temperate grasslands get around 20-35 inches of rain annually. The rain that falls each year affects how tall the grass grows here.

The temperate grasslands that get the most rain are often called grass prairies, and the grasslands that get less rain are called short grass steppes. They get their different names from the height of the grass!

The top image below is a grass prairie, and the image beneath it is a short grass steppe.

Tropical Grasslands are also called savannas.

Savannas cover over half of Africa. They can also be found in Australia, India, and South America.

Unlike temperate grasslands, savannas never get cold! The two seasons in the savanna are summer and winter. The summer season is stormy, and the winter season is very long and dry.

During the long dry winter, the savanna gets less than five inches of rain! This causes severe droughts and even causes wildfires to occur.

Most of the rainfall occurs during the summer season. During the summer, the savanna gets about 20-60 inches of rain annually.

Fantastic! You learned about the two types of grasslands.

Before you move on to the next section, answer the questions below.

• What are the two types of grasslands?
• Which type of grassland gets more rain, temperate or tropical grasslands?
• What is another name for tropical grasslands?

If you need help, go back and re-read the first part of the lesson. Once you have answered all three questions correctly, move on to the Got It? section.