LESSONS AND ACTIVITIES

LESSONS AND ACTIVITIES

EDUCATING TO INSPIRE COMPASSION.
INSPIRING COMPASSION TO DRIVE CONSERVATION.

Because education is the heart of wildlife protection and conservation!

Our Primates and the Living Earth: Lessons and Activities in Biodiversity and Conservation offer a wide variety of project-based lessons and activities that make learning engaging and hands-on. All educational content is provided at no cost—no memberships, no paywalls, no logins. We strive to make conservation education easy to access and use for the broadest possible audience.

The lessons highlight the interconnectedness and interdependence of animals, ecosystems, and conservation, and are designed to be flexible enough for educators to integrate into their existing curricula.

Interactive and engaging activities feature games, graphics, videos, and more. Students can work individually or in teams on meaningful, real-world activities that foster critical thinking, problem-solving, communication, self-management, project management, and collaboration—skills that span multiple academic disciplines.

All of our educational content shares the same goal: promoting responsible stewardship of our planet and its creatures. Education lies at the heart of animal protection and conservation, and each of us can be part of the solution. Knowledge is the key.

You asked for more ways to bring NEPC into your classroom, and we delivered! Explore our on-demand video series—Our Cousins in the Canopy and Discovering Primates. Click the graphics below to learn more.

Learning Through Discovery

Modeled after classic flashcards, these digital cards offer quick and easy access to insights into various primate species. This fun and educational activity encourages exploration, revealing interesting facts—such as why each species can have multiple common names but only one scientific name, where they are found around the world, and much more.
The study of conservation comes with its own language of acronyms. From organizations assessing species’ risks to the scientific teams supplying the data behind each Conservation Status, it can feel like an alphabet soup of abbreviations. This lesson untangles these codes and explains why they matter.
Primates live in some of the most biologically rich ecosystems on Earth. This engaging lesson and activity explore where primates are found around the world, how habitats shape their lives, and why healthy ecosystems are essential to biodiversity and conservation. A captivating video introduces key concepts.
Step into the shoes of a detective and uncover the hidden ways your favorite sweet treats can impact rainforests and their wildlife. Enjoy engaging videos that guide you through five mission steps to solve each challenge, complete with clever Detective Strategies, Action Items, and Handy Hints along the way!

You're the Scientist!

Prepare for an exciting journey into the science of species identification! Discover how to classify nonhuman primates as you put on your scientist hat, decode clues, and create dichotomous keys to tell feisty tamarins apart from lively lemurs. Let the scientific sleuthing begin!
Use the 7-Step Scientific Method to investigate the shared evolutionary history of primates, including humans. This engaging lesson highlights our interconnected journey through evolution and underscores the important role each species plays in the intricate web of Earth’s biodiversity.
Looking for a lesson that builds critical thinking without adding prep time? Educated Guesses helps students practice evidence-based reasoning using primate diversity as a case study. The focus is on how students think—not on getting the “right” answer. Strong alignment with scientific thinking skills.
Animals are built for survival. Every animal has features—like teeth, claws, fur, hands, wings, or tails—that do important jobs to help them live in the wild. Scientists call the relationship between a body part and what it does structure and function. This lesson explores two very different primates—a tiny marmoset and a giant gorilla—and reveals how their body features help them survive where they live.

What Is Nature?

Explore the hidden connections that make life on Earth possible. Through engaging videos, lessons, and activities, discover how food chains, energy flow, pollination, and biodiversity work together to support healthy ecosystems—and why understanding nature is the first step toward protecting it.
Concepts essential for protecting the natural world. This lesson covers food chains and energy flow, with a dedicated section for educators. Key learning points highlight the intricate connections within ecosystems and how nutrients and energy cycle through them.
Dive into the fascinating world of pollinators, highlighting the essential resources they need to thrive. The lesson emphasizes how cross-pollination supports ecosystem recovery and resilience. Explore the remarkable adaptations plants use to attract pollinators and the factors that influence which flowers pollinators prefer.
Biodiversity is the cornerstone of life and one of Nature’s greatest strategies for survival! Learn about Earth’s living organisms, including Genetic, Species, and Ecosystem Diversity, discover Biodiversity Hotspots, and find out how we can help protect it. This lesson features engaging videos, informative graphics, and interactive activities.

Learn Through Exploration

Join a virtual scavenger hunt across NEPC’s website and explore the world of primate conservation. Guided steps help you gather clues that reveal a mystery quote, making learning both fun and interactive. Covering a variety of topics on conservation and primate protection, this activity is especially popular in high school programs but can also engage younger students with teacher support.
Discover the world of primates with this printable card deck—featuring four exciting games that bring learning to life! Explore the amazing diversity of nonhuman primates and their natural habitats, then dive deeper with the “Who’s in the Cards?” quick-access guide to detailed Primate Species Profiles. Play, explore, and learn! Aligned with educational standards.
Rainforests—the lungs of our planet—are being lost at alarming rates worldwide. This engaging lesson and activity explore what makes rainforests unique, their extraordinary biodiversity, and their vital role in keeping Earth healthy. A captivating video introduces the key concepts, complemented by a downloadable rainforest layers activity and interactive lesson modules. Aligned with educational standards.
Welcome to Primate Jeopardy! Based on the classic TV game show, test your knowledge of primates or explore the NEPC website for answers. Learn fascinating facts about the world's nonhuman primates—their habitats, behaviors, and ways you can help protect them. And remember: always answer in the form of a question!
Chimpanzees, like humans, use facial expressions to show emotions and communicate. Sometimes their expressions look like ours—and can even mean the same thing. Other times, they mean something entirely different! Dive into the lesson, color, and explore this interactive learning experience.
Crested black macaques are famous for their expressive faces! Like all primates, they use these expressions to communicate emotions. This activity includes a BBC Earth video, fascinating facts, and four coloring pages for you to enjoy. Lots to learn! Educational standards are provided as well.

Curiosity-Driven Learning

Working on a school project about primates or primate conservation? Planning an informational or fundraising booth for your school fair? Curious about how you can help raise awareness for primate protection but unsure where to start? Many students ask us the same question, so we’ve put together these helpful suggestions.
The choices you make every day affect habitats and the animals that live there. From the products you buy to the way you use social media, enjoy entertainment, or select animal companions, even small actions can make a difference. When thousands of people make small changes, the impact becomes huge—and that’s great news!
In this engaging video series, discover the remarkable diversity of primates, their varied adaptations, and the extraordinary ways they navigate their environments. You’ll also find that, despite the title of this series, many of our nonhuman primate relatives do not reside in the treetops.
Explore the world of primates, from their habitats and behaviors to their daily lives, in this engaging video series. These youth-friendly videos offer insights into primates, conservation efforts, and ways that anyone can make a difference.