Caveat Academy course · Grades 7 to 12

Zoology: how animals are built and why they behave as they do

Learn to read an animal the way a zoologist does: classify a gray wolf from kingdom to species, tell a spider from a pill bug by counting legs and antennae, follow blood through a fish and a bird, work out why a shrew must eat all day, decode a honeybee waggle dance and trace energy up a meadow food chain. Six modules at your own pace, with a field study you design yourself.

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$19one-time · every device you sign in on
Buy · $19

Included with the Caveat Academy pass and Whole-school licenses. Or get it in the High school electives library, $119 for 66 items.

6 modules · 18 lessonsabout 13 hours$19

Six modules, eighteen lessons

Each module ends with a practice set that tracks mastery, an explain-it-back prompt, a short written response and a module exam. The final opens when every module is proficient; passing it earns a certificate with a verification code.

  1. Module 1: What makes an animal

    Explain the features that define animals, classify an animal through the Linnaean ranks and analyze body plans by symmetry, tissue layers and body cavity.

    • Animals and their shared features
    • Classifying and naming animals
    • Body plans: symmetry, layers and cavities
    about 2.1 h

  2. Module 2: Invertebrates

    Compare the invertebrate phyla and identify arthropods from their body regions, legs and antennae.

    • Sponges, cnidarians and worms
    • Mollusks and echinoderms
    • Arthropods: the largest phylum
    about 2.1 h

  3. Module 3: Vertebrates

    Compare the vertebrate classes by skeleton, skin, eggs, breathing and body heat.

    • Chordates and fishes
    • Amphibians and reptiles
    • Birds and mammals
    about 2.1 h

  4. Module 4: How animal bodies work

    Explain how animals feed, exchange gases and circulate blood, and compute surface-to-volume ratios to explain heat loss.

    • Feeding and digestion
    • Breathing and circulation
    • Body heat and body size
    about 2.1 h

  5. Module 5: Animal behavior

    Classify behaviors as innate or learned, interpret animal signals and design a simple behavior study with an ethogram and a time budget.

    • Innate and learned behavior
    • Communication and living in groups
    • How zoologists study behavior
    about 2.1 h

  6. Module 6: Adaptation, ecosystems and conservation

    Explain natural selection, compute energy flow through trophic levels and evaluate threats and conservation actions for animal species.

    • Adaptation and natural selection
    • Animals in ecosystems
    • Conservation and careers in zoology
    about 2.1 h

Try it before you start

This is how every lesson works: step through a worked example at your own pace, then answer a check and get the reason right away. Nothing here is saved; the course keeps your progress.

Module 5 · How zoologists study behavior

Worked example: a time budget from scan samples

  1. A student watches a backyard feeder and records one sparrow's behavior every 30 seconds for 10 minutes, giving 20 scans.

A lesson check from each module

The checks need JavaScript turned on. The course itself works the same way.

What you get

Academics · High SchoolAlso for Enrichment · STEM Explorations$19 · included with the Academy pass and Whole-school licenses

What you finish with
A finished first course in zoology: you can say what makes an animal, classify one through the Linnaean ranks and write its scientific name, read body plans by symmetry, tissue layers and body cavity, sort the invertebrate phyla and identify arthropods in the field, compare the vertebrate classes, explain how animals feed, breathe, circulate blood and manage heat, compute surface-to-volume ratios, classify behaviors as innate or learned, design a behavior study with an ethogram and a time budget, explain natural selection, compute energy flow up a food chain and weigh conservation threats and tools. Passing the final earns a Caveat certificate of completion.
Who it is for
Students in grades 7 to 12 who love animals or are thinking about careers in biology, veterinary medicine, conservation or zoo work, students taking or about to take a zoology or life science elective, and homeschool families who want a life science course built on observation. Younger students can take it as the Zoology and Animal Behavior enrichment course.
Format
An online self-paced course: 6 modules and 18 lessons with worked examples you reveal step by step, 144 practice and exam items (multiple choice, numeric, fill-in and ordering), an explain-it-back prompt and a rubric-checked short response in every module, module exams with one retake, a 24-question final and a certificate with a verification code. About 13 hours in all; works on a phone or a computer.
Access
$19 one-time, yours on every device you sign in on; the course opens once you are signed in with it. Included with the Caveat Academy pass and Whole-school licenses. Also in the High school electives library ($119) and the Academics Suite pass ($149), and 1 more bundle. Progress is saved in this browser on this device, and the certificate page lets you download your record.
Where it lives
The High School space in Caveat Academics; also listed for the STEM Explorations space in Caveat Enrichment (the same course serves the Zoology & Animal Behavior enrichment title).
Support
Access, a receipt, a refund or a correction to the course: team@caveatacademic.com.

How it works

  1. Open the course and start Module 1. Each lesson takes about 25 to 35 minutes; two or three a week finishes the course in about a semester.
  2. Answer the checks as you read. Every answer shows the reason, and a miss links you back to the lesson that covers it.
  3. Finish each module with its practice set and exam. Proficient on every module opens the final; 70 percent passes it.
  4. Print or download your certificate and record from the certificate page.

Start the course

Sources and accuracy

The lessons are original writing by Caveat Academic Services. Facts were checked against these free, open references, which are also good places to read further.

  1. OpenStax, Biology 2e, chapters on animal diversity, the invertebrates, the vertebrates, animal body plans and ecology, a free textbook: openstax.org
  2. University of California Museum of Paleontology, Understanding Evolution, on natural selection, the peppered moth and phylogenetic trees: evolution.berkeley.edu
  3. The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1973, awarded to Karl von Frisch, Konrad Lorenz and Nikolaas Tinbergen: nobelprize.org
  4. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, categories and criteria: iucnredlist.org
  5. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the California condor recovery program: fws.gov

Zoology is a self-paced course from Caveat Academic Services. It follows the sequence of a typical middle or high school zoology elective but does not replace a school course or supervised lab work, and awards no credit. All activities are observation only: never touch, feed or collect wild animals, keep a respectful distance from wildlife and wash your hands after handling pets or soil. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.