Why Animals Hibernate
Hibernation is a deep, energy-saving sleep that some animals fall into to survive winter, when the weather turns cold and food becomes hard to find. It is very different from a normal night's sleep: the animal's body switches to a kind of 'low power mode' — its heartbeat slows right down, its breathing becomes shallow, and its body temperature drops so it burns as little energy as possible.
Animals prepare for hibernation in autumn by eating a lot of food to build up a store of body fat. Because they cannot hunt or forage through winter, that stored fat becomes the fuel their slowed-down body slowly burns over the cold months. When spring returns and the air warms up, the animal's heartbeat speeds up, its body warms, and it wakes — usually very hungry.
Key ideas young learners will grasp include why winter is the hard season, how slowing the body saves energy, which animals actually hibernate (such as bears, hedgehogs, frogs and bats), and why fat is stored as winter fuel.
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Meet the Sleepy BearScience • Animals 🐻💤 Why Do Animals Hibernate? When winter comes to cold countries, some animals do something amazing — they fall into a deep, special sleep called hibernation. 💤 Tap Next to find out why they do it — and try some fun activities along the way!
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Which Season Is the Problem?🍂 When does trouble come? Animals hibernate to survive one tricky season. Tap the season you think is hardest for them to find food. 🌸Spring ☀️Summer 🍁Autumn ❄️Winter Yes — Winter! ❄️ In winter it gets very cold, plants stop growing, and insects hide away. There is almost no food and it is hard to stay warm. Hibernating helps animals get through this tough time.
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What Hibernation Really Is😴 A super-deep sleep Hibernation is not the same as a night's sleep. The animal's body almost switches to "low power mode" to save energy. Normal sleep 🛏️ Hibernation 🐻 Wakes up easily Very hard to wake Lasts one night Can last weeks or months Heartbeat normal Heartbeat very slow Let's see that slow heartbeat for ourselves on the next slide… 💓
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Slow the Heartbeat💓 Save energy, slow down To use less energy, a hibernating animal slows its heartbeat right down. Tap the button to help the bear go into hibernation. ❤️ 80 beats / minute Slow it down ⬇️ Wake up ☀️ The bear is wide awake and active. See how the heart barely moves when it is very slow? That saves lots of energy!
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Store Fuel for Winter🫐 Eat now, sleep later Before hibernating, animals eat lots of food in autumn to build up fat. That stored fat is the fuel their body slowly burns all winter. Drag the berries onto the bear to fill its fat store. Fill it up to get ready! 🫐 🍓 🍯 🐟 🌰 🍎 🐻 Fat store: 0 / 5 Drag food onto the bear. On a touch screen, tap a berry then tap the bear.
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Who Hibernates?🔎 Spot the hibernators Not every animal hibernates. Tap the animals that really do hibernate. Find all 0 of them! 🐻Bear 🦔Hedgehog 🦁Lion 🐸Frog 🐘Elephant 🦇Bat 🐕Dog 🐿️Ground squirrel Tip: think about which small animals hide away in cold winters.
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Waking Up in Spring🌸 Rise and shine! When spring returns, the air warms up and food appears again. The animal's heartbeat speeds up, its body warms, and it slowly wakes up — hungry and ready to explore! 😊 🌷 🌼 Hibernation isn't lazy — it's a clever survival trick! 🧠
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You Did It!🏆 Great work, hibernation expert! Here is everything you discovered: ❄️Animals hibernate to survive winter, when it's cold and food is scarce. 😴Hibernation is a deep sleep — much deeper and longer than a normal nap. 💓Their heartbeat and body slow right down to save energy. 🫐They eat lots in autumn to store fat as winter fuel. 🐻🦔🐸🦇🐿️Bears, hedgehogs, frogs, bats and ground squirrels are hibernators. 🌸In spring they wake up warm, hungry and ready to go! Now you can explain why animals hibernate to your family. Well done! 🎉
Frequently asked questions
- Why do animals hibernate?
- Animals hibernate to survive winter, when it is very cold and food such as plants, insects and small prey becomes scarce. By going into a deep sleep, they use far less energy and can live off stored body fat until food returns in spring.
- Is hibernation the same as normal sleep?
- No. In normal sleep the body still works fairly normally, but during hibernation the animal's body drops into a 'low power mode' — the heartbeat slows dramatically, breathing becomes shallow, and body temperature falls to save as much energy as possible.
- Which animals actually hibernate?
- Animals that hibernate or enter a similar deep winter dormancy include bears, hedgehogs, frogs and bats. Animals like lions, elephants and dogs do not hibernate.
- How do animals survive without eating all winter?
- In autumn they eat a lot of food to build up a thick layer of body fat. Their slowed-down body slowly burns this stored fat as fuel throughout winter, so they do not need to find food while hibernating.
- When do hibernating animals wake up?
- They wake in spring, when the air warms up and food becomes available again. Their heartbeat speeds up, their body temperature rises, and they slowly become active — usually very hungry after the long sleep.
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