growing up wild
Show Me The Energy!!!
Since today was our last class for this fall semester, we decided to have a little picnic snack all the while learning about where our food comes from and what food does for our body.
I was able to introduce food chains to them and read outloud to them Who Eats What by Patricia Lauber
I was able to introduce food chains to them and read outloud to them Who Eats What by Patricia Lauber
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When we finished the Read Aloud, I made a chart on the wall behind me with the items from our picnic. We had a bagel, cream cheese, apples, and orange juice. I asked the student where these foods came from and all of them said, "The store" This made me smile. But then I asked where did the store get them? And we continued this question and answer time until we were able to fill in our chart. Eventually we made it back to the sun being able to give the energy to plants to make food and grow and those plants giving energy to the animals.
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When they went back to their seats they had a delightful plate of food. They had a bagel with cream cheese on it, apple slices and a glass of orange juice. As they chowed down, we made food chains on the board. When they finished their snack, I gave them their own Food Chain Handout to fill in a food chain.
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Growing Up WILD
Everyone Needs Water. Water is AMAZING!
Our warm up this morning was asking the students what we do with water? I then asked what animals do with water. Finally, I asked them what plants do with water. I jotted all these things on the board.
I invited the students to come up to the front of the class to act out the different things people do with water, animals do with water and plants do with water. One student just stood with her arms up. She was a growing plant. So great! Others came up and acted out fishing and water skiing.
I invited the students to come up to the front of the class to act out the different things people do with water, animals do with water and plants do with water. One student just stood with her arms up. She was a growing plant. So great! Others came up and acted out fishing and water skiing.
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Water is amazing! It can do so many different things. We need it, animals need it, plants need it. We all need it to survive. God designed it to be something we use to clean with but also, He knew that water would get dirty so He designed a way, a cycle that helps clean the water. The Water Cycle!!!
Our Read Aloud today was Water is Water by Miranda Paul. This is a delightful book that rhymes and tells of each of the steps of the water cycle in a very creative way. My students were so enthralled with it, I actually read through it twice and they didn't even notice!!! |
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After we learned about the water cycle, I did a science demonstration for them to see the water cycle up close. I placed a small glass bowl inside a bigger glass baking dish. I boiled some water and poured it in the bigger baking dish without pouring any drops into the small glass bowl. I then covered the top with saran wrap and showed the kids the fog that occurred when we trapped the steam coming from the boiling water. I then placed ice on top of the saran wrap to create the condensation necessary in order for it to precipitate in the glass pan and in the small bowl inside the larger glass pan.
While we waited, I taught them The Water Cycle song sung to "She'll be Comin' Around the Mountain"
It goes like this:
'Water travels in a cycle, yes, it does. (Clap, clap, clap)
Water travels in a cycle yes it does (Clap, Clap, Clap)
It goes up as evaporation,
Then forms clouds as condensation
Then falls down as precipitation
Yes it does"
After we finished learning the song, we checked on our demonstration and sure enough there were water beadlets coming down from the saran wrap!!!
While we waited, I taught them The Water Cycle song sung to "She'll be Comin' Around the Mountain"
It goes like this:
'Water travels in a cycle, yes, it does. (Clap, clap, clap)
Water travels in a cycle yes it does (Clap, Clap, Clap)
It goes up as evaporation,
Then forms clouds as condensation
Then falls down as precipitation
Yes it does"
After we finished learning the song, we checked on our demonstration and sure enough there were water beadlets coming down from the saran wrap!!!
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After we finished the Water Cycle Demonstration, I had the students go back to their seats and we worked on a model to help them remember what happens in the water cycle. We made bracelets!!
The materials that you would need for this activity are:
The materials that you would need for this activity are:
- Brown Chenille stems (Run off)
- Yellow pony beads (The sun)
- Green pony beads (The sun warms the water on earth)
- Clear pony beads (Evaporation)
- White pony beads (Condensation)
- Blue pony beads (Precipitation)
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Finally, we practiced our new knowledge in an active game of Duck, Duck Goose! The student that is It would have to say and pat a head of another student and say the different stages of the Water cycle and when they got to Run off, that person would get up and chase the other student. So we repeated Evaporation, Condensation, Precipitation and Run off about 13 times because each student wanted to run! It was wonderful and SO much fun!!!
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Growing up WILD
Animals and Where They Live Week 12: Grasshoppers
As the students walked into the class, I gave them a picture of the life cycle of a grasshopper. You can find and download the same thing here.
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While they were coloring their life cycle, we talked about what we knew about grasshoppers and I taught them about the different stages within the life cycle of a grasshopper.
After we finished coloring, I read outloud to them Hop with the Grasshoppers by Karen Latchana Kenney
After we finished coloring, I read outloud to them Hop with the Grasshoppers by Karen Latchana Kenney
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We learned all that we could learn about the grasshoppers and then we were able to observe some grasshoppers. I brought in some grasshoppers in a terrarium for the students to observe. After we finished observing the grasshoppers, as a class, we filled in our observation sheet.
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When we finished our observation sheet, I told them that a grasshopper can jump 20 times its size. We measured out grasshoppers in the terrarium to be about 1 small paperclip long. I told them that those grasshoppers can jump as far as 20 paperclips. Likewise, if they were grasshoppers and the size that they are, they would be able to jump pretty far as well. I had one student lay down on the floor so that I could measure their length. My room wasn't long enough but I was able to get about 10 kids lengths in the room. This gave them a better idea of how far they could jump IF they were grasshoppers.
If you are interested in observing grasshoppers from your own backyard, here is some helpful information:
1. Time of year: You can typically find grasshoppers from spring through November depending on your climate.
2. Gather a container to hold the grasshoppers. I only wanted to keep my grasshoppers for a few days, so I used a rotisserie chicken container. I washed out the container well and poked holes all over the top.
3. I placed some dirt on the bottom of the container and then I gathered grass to place inside the terrarium. Grasshoppers do not need a lot of water so you don't need to put a water bowl in there. They get the water they need from the grass they eat.
4. Finally, ask your kids to go and catch some grasshoppers to place in the terrarium.
5. Make sure to put fresh grass into the terrarium each day.
1. Time of year: You can typically find grasshoppers from spring through November depending on your climate.
2. Gather a container to hold the grasshoppers. I only wanted to keep my grasshoppers for a few days, so I used a rotisserie chicken container. I washed out the container well and poked holes all over the top.
3. I placed some dirt on the bottom of the container and then I gathered grass to place inside the terrarium. Grasshoppers do not need a lot of water so you don't need to put a water bowl in there. They get the water they need from the grass they eat.
4. Finally, ask your kids to go and catch some grasshoppers to place in the terrarium.
5. Make sure to put fresh grass into the terrarium each day.
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Here are a few more encounters I have had with grasshoppers this year.
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This is a Katydid. It is of the same kind as the grasshopper. I love how it looks just like a green leaf. Amazing design!
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Here is a video that I took when walking to get the mail. I though it was very neat to watch the bird and the grasshopper.
growing up Wild
Animals and Where They Live Week 11: Terrific Turkeys
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As the students walked in, I had the students color a picture of an American Turkey. I liked this printable because it also had the anatomy of the turkey labeled. You can find this printable at
https://www.kidzone.ws/animals/turkey1.htm While they were coloring, we were able to have a great time of discussion about turkeys. One student has gone hunting for wild turkeys and so he has seen what a wild turkey looks like in person, while another student has just seen pictures. Bringing these experiences together with some learning is always fun. Some key facts about turkeys that I mentioned were
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Domestic Turkeys
Larger than wild turkeys as they are bred to have bigger breast muscles so they can't fly. White feathers so there are not dark spots on their skin. |
Similiarities
Only male turkeys gobble Hens click Excellent hearing Eyes on each side giving them the ability to see 2 things at once but they have awful depth perception |
Wild Turkeys
Can fly Dark feathers They are Fast, fly 55mph or run 20mph |
IInformation credit to thehomeschoolscientist.com/turkey-unit-study/
I After they were done coloring and we talked about what we knew about turkeys, I called them to the circle so that I could narrate to them the events from High Ridge Gobbler; A Story of the American Wild Turkey by David Stemple
This book was delightful to read but too long for my Kindergarteners and First Graders. Instead of reading it straight through, I used the drawings to tell the story to them in my own words. |
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Since the story went through the life cycle of the wild turkey, I printed these cards for the students to put in order.
https://simplelivingcreativelearning.com/free-printable-turkey-life-cycle-cards/
https://simplelivingcreativelearning.com/free-printable-turkey-life-cycle-cards/
Thanksgiving is this week so I couldn't help but read to them this sweet book called Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving by Dav Pilkey. This was a great rhyming book that references a class going on a field trip to a farm that has domestic turkeys. When the students learn that the turkeys will be killed that night when they leave, they start wailing and crying and while the farmer and teacher go to get water to try and calm them down, the students stuff the turkeys under their shirts and smuggle them home to eat a meatless Thanksgiving dinner at home.
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We needed some activity so we played Musical Turkey Roost. This is musical chairs but the students had to strut like a turkey and wave their arms like a turkey does their feathers. I played Turkey in the Straw while the students strutted along.
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Growing Up Wild
Animals and Where They Live Week 10: Owl Pellets
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As the students walked into class, I passed out food chain puzzles to everyone. You can find these food chain puzzles through the Growing Up WILD website.
When they started being able to put the puzzle together, we started talking about the food chain. I teach that the food chain is a flow of energy that begins with the sun. The energy from the sun is transferred to the plant. The plant uses that energy to make its own food so that it can grow. Animals eat that plant and gain energy from the plant and then another animal eats that animal and gains energy from eating that animal. And so the energy is passed from one organism to the next. At the end of the food chain are predators, animals that hunt other animals for food. This was our vocabulary word today for class. The predator we learned about today was the owl. The owl has some amazing characteristics for sure! We focused mainly on what they eat and how they eat it.
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I told them that we will be dissecting owl pellets. I, then, asked them what they thought an owl pellet was. Many people, not just kids, think that owl pellets are their feces but this is not true. Owl pellets are the remains that they cough up after they have eaten their prey. Owls eat their prey whole and so are equipped with an amazing digestive tract that is able to break down prey from whole and then sort it out between digestible and indigestible food. The indigestible food is then spit up from their gizzard and out their mouths. The indigestible food is the fur and bones in an animal that they ate. This is precisely what we are looking for in the owl pellets. We wanted to see what our particular owls had eaten.
I ordered my owl pellets from https://www.pelletsinc.com/
As we were dissecting our owl pellets to see what animals had been eaten, I passed out the great spreadsheet of pictures of bones and what animal they belong to. You can get this awesome spreadsheet for free on our Teachers Pay Teachers page. It was given to me and so I freely give it to you. This was a great reference for the students as well as for me. This activity is so exploratory based, I didn't need to ask many questions as they were intrigued by what they were finding and asking questions on their own.
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Finally, I can't go one day without reading a wonderful book to these students. Its one of my favorite things of all time to do. I read to them White Owl, Barn Owl by Nicola Davis. This is a sweet story of a grandpa making a nesting box for owls with his granddaughter and in so doing teaches her all about the barn owl. There are also several YouTube videos that have this book read out loud that you might want to check into if you are interested.
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I almost forgot! My oldest daughter made this cute Owl Cupcakes for the students after we finished studying about them. What a blessing!!!
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growing up wild
Animals and Where They Live Week 9: Wiggling Worms
They were wiggly and a little gooey but they were fun! The worms were also a little wiggly and gooey and made today's class so exciting. :)
I began class giving them a little bit of play doh and a toothpick so that they could make a wiggly worm. After they rolled their worm out of play doh, they used their toothpick to make the segments. I encouraged them to also make a space for the clitellum as well. While they were making their wiggly worms out of play doh, I was drawing on the board the parts of the worm.
I began class giving them a little bit of play doh and a toothpick so that they could make a wiggly worm. After they rolled their worm out of play doh, they used their toothpick to make the segments. I encouraged them to also make a space for the clitellum as well. While they were making their wiggly worms out of play doh, I was drawing on the board the parts of the worm.
We learned how to figure out where the mouth is on an earthworm (close to the clitellum), we learned that each segment on an earthworm has 8 setae (Everyone say 'setae'), or little hairlike projections which help them move through the soil, and we learned that worms do not have any eyes, ears, or nose.
Since we were now familiar with the parts of the worm and learned a little bit about them, I brought out the REAL worms. I placed them on paper towels for the students to observe. I did not want the enthusiastic observers to hurt the worms, so I requested that they use their probing pinkies and not try to pick them up.
The questions that I asked the students as we were observing the worms were:
Since we were now familiar with the parts of the worm and learned a little bit about them, I brought out the REAL worms. I placed them on paper towels for the students to observe. I did not want the enthusiastic observers to hurt the worms, so I requested that they use their probing pinkies and not try to pick them up.
The questions that I asked the students as we were observing the worms were:
- How does the earthworm move?
- What color is it?
- What does its skin look like?
- What does it feel like?
- Does a worm have a backbone?
- Do you see any eyes, nose and ears?
After we placed the worms back in their dirt, we sat down to read Wiggling Worms at Work by Wendy Pfeffer to learn about why in the world we need earthworms. We need them to help our plants and food grow.
- They loosen dirt so water can get to the plant roots.
- They break down dead leaves to recycle them
- Their castings make good food for the plants
Finally, we passed out gummy worms for the students to observe. I found the Growing Up Wild Gummy Worm Dissection page very helpful. Watch out for those kids that suck on their gummy worm without you knowing and when you go to help them count the segments, you get a little texture surprise.
The students had so much fun exploring Gods wonderful creation in class today. Worms might not be your favorite animal but I am so thankful for how God designed them to do a specific job and they do it well to glorify the Lord. If the worms can glorify the Lord, so will I.
Proclaiming God's Excellencies through Science. 1 Peter 2:9-11
Note: November is too late in the season to search for worms in your backyard in Texas. One of my dear friends helped me out and bought me some fat worms from the bait shop. I DO NOT suggest buying these worms and then allowing them to be placed in your backyard unless you know that they are a species native to your area. You do not want to introduce an invasive species of worms into your community. My sweet friend, thankfully, has chickens and they were a wonderful meal for them. You could also go fishing with them of course, but do not introduce them into your backyard unless you are knowledgeable about worm species.
Proclaiming God's Excellencies through Science. 1 Peter 2:9-11
Note: November is too late in the season to search for worms in your backyard in Texas. One of my dear friends helped me out and bought me some fat worms from the bait shop. I DO NOT suggest buying these worms and then allowing them to be placed in your backyard unless you know that they are a species native to your area. You do not want to introduce an invasive species of worms into your community. My sweet friend, thankfully, has chickens and they were a wonderful meal for them. You could also go fishing with them of course, but do not introduce them into your backyard unless you are knowledgeable about worm species.
Growing Up Wild
Animals and Where They Live Week 8: Spiders
As the students walked in, I handed them spider web lacing cards to get their minds working and thinking about spiders.
As they spun their webs, I read "What a Tangled Web We Weave," a devotional from Louie Giglio's Indescribable book of devotions about how spiders spin their webs and how we too can spin a web if we choose to lie. And if we choose to lie a lot, we might end up getting stuck in our own web of lies. Proverbs 12:22 says, “The Lord detest lying lips, but he delights in those who tell the truth.”
Afterward, I drew a spider on the board and we learned about the different parts of a spider. We sang this song to the tune of Mary Had a Little Lamb
Afterward, I drew a spider on the board and we learned about the different parts of a spider. We sang this song to the tune of Mary Had a Little Lamb
- Spider Bodies have two parts, have two parts, have two parts
- Spider Bodies have two parts, a head and abdomen
- Spiders have 4 pairs of legs, 4 pairs of legs, 4 pairs of legs
- Spiders have 4 pairs of legs and spinnerets for silk
Our Read Aloud today was so fun. We read Bethany Barton’s I’m Trying to Love Spiders. This comes from the assumption that most people do not like spiders but as I have taught since the first day of class spiders are part of God’s creation. And when God was done creating, He said it was good! Everything God made is good and so this book was just so perfect for my lesson in having someone truly trying to love something that they initially didn’t like. (NOTE: This book does mention the world being 165 million years old and that spiders have been around for millions of years. This is not a scientific fact it is an idea from scientists that have a different worldview than I have so therefore, I did not mention this in my lesson)
While in our circle on the floor, I gave them some spiders and webs to match together. Different spiders make different webs and some spiders don’t make webs at all.
Our craft for today was making a yarn spider web on black cardstock. The kids were to choose which spider web they wanted to make based on which webs we learned about today.
Our craft for today was making a yarn spider web on black cardstock. The kids were to choose which spider web they wanted to make based on which webs we learned about today.
Finally, I attempted to play a spider ambush game with a blanket, a spider and a fly. The fly would walk on the blanket and the spider underneath the blanket would ‘sense’ where the fly was and reach up and grab the fly like trap door spiders do in the wild.
Growing Up Wild
Animals and Where They Live Week 7: What Lives in a Tree?
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As the students came into class, I passed out some bare trees that I made out of brown paper sacks glued to a piece of cardstock. I was really pleased about using these brown paper sacks. I basically took the sack apart, folded it in half and cut out two brown trees with it. The brown sack gave me the freedom to crumple the sack as I glued it to the sheet creating a very tree-like effect.
Next, I handed out some torn pieces of red, orange, yellow and brown construction paper to be their fall leaves. They were to glue these leaves to their tree. While they were gluing their leaves on their trees, I talked to them about the parts of the tree. They had already learned about the parts of the tree so it was neat to have them tell me all they know about it. I was also able to read to them Psalm 1 about how a wise man who loves God’s word and law is like a tree planted by a stream of water. He thrives in every season of life. After they finished gluing all they wanted to their tree, I gathered the students together for storytime. We read Jennifer Ward's The Busy Tree. I really enjoyed this book because each page had a bright illustration with a sentence that rhymed which talked about the animals that live in a tree. To go with The Busy Tree book, I made animals that matched the animals in the book for them to cut out and glue to their tree that they created at the beginning of class. Each student cut out the animals and placed them where they wanted them to go. After all their hard work, I rewarded them with a fun game of Squirrel Tag. They were to play tag but on all fours like they were squirrels chasing each other around a park. |
Growing Up Wild
Animals and Where They Live Week 6: Hiding in Plain Sight
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Warm Up Activity: As the students entered the classroom, I gave them a Hide and Seek handout for them to look for all the hidden items in this picture. As they were seeking and finding, we were talking about how the items were blending into the picture so you actually had to focus on finding the items. The students did a marvelous job as most of them found every item.
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I then invited them to circle time to see if they could test their skills to find hidden animals. I really liked Hide and Seek Nature’s Best Vanishing Acts by Andrea Helman because the pictures and animals are real and so the kids were able to see what the camouflage actually looks like in real life. The kids did a stellar job at finding all the animals.
Before class I had hidden two animals in the classroom to see if they could find them. I hid a snake and a black rubber fly. They were able to find both of them without any problems. |
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Next, I had the kids color a butterfly to match anything that was around the room. One particular student was not in the mood to color and so he decided that his white butterfly would blend in nicely with the white board. Another student chose to color their butterfly blue to blend in with my shirt. It was so fun. We taped them around the room.
Finally, we played Hide and Seek together as a class for the remaining time. My classroom has limited hiding areas but below a big desk was a favorite and was always the first place a seeker would check to find the other students. |
Growing Up Wild
Animals and Where They Live Week 5: Following in their Footprints
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As the students came in, I had a poster of tracks on the dry erase board. I was curious about which tracks they were already familiar with. They had fun guessing and envisioning the animals that went with those tracks.
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Next, I sat them down in a circle to read Big Tracks Little Tracks. This was a really fun book because it involved the students being nature detectives themselves. The book laid out 3 or 4 scenarios that required them to look at the tracks and try to figure out what animal it was, where it was going and what it was doing. We revisited our poster to see if they could identify any more tracks and they were able to and were excited about it.
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Next, we made a book of animal tracks for them to take home and use to investigate what kinds of animals come into their backyards. We used the animal print molds that came in this Science on a Tracking Expedition set to stamp the tracks in the books but you could also make your own animal track stamps by checking out this website.
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After that, we played the Animal Track Matching game that came with the Science on a Tracking Expedition kit. This was wonderful. The kids would flip over a card and then go get their animal track book to refer to in order to remember what the track for that animal looked like. It was the best!
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Growing Up Wild
Animals and Where They Live Week 4: Is there a Bear In There?
A female bear will take care of her young longer than other mammals. She is teaching them how to look and find food and how to survive. It is nice that we have parents to teach us how to live and how to live in a way that glorifies the Lord.
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Passed out a handout from Growing Up Wild called Food for Black Bears for them to color as we named as many types of bears as they can think of. We also reviewed the last couple of weeks with some bear-related questions:
Most bears are omnivores, or have a diet of both plants and animals but polar bears are carnivores since that is all the food that is in the arctic for them to eat.
After we finished the book, I had them act like bears and bear crawl over to an open space where they gathered food during the spring and summer to get ready for hibernation in the winter. The food was different colors of small square pieces of tissue paper that matched each type of food they had colored in the beginning. When it came to fall, they kids hid under desks to get ready to hibernate for the winter.
I had the kids then do a bear craft using this bear. I added an open envelope to the back of the bear where they could place the food cards from the warm up activity into the bear's "stomach". They all colored their bears as we prepped the final activity.
Bears have really strong paws and sharp claws that help them eat meat but what about those berries and nuts? We finished this week's lesson by trying to eat nuts and berries the way that a bear would ... with their lips and mouth only.
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Growing Up Wild
Animals and Where They Live Week 3: Wild and Tame
Isaiah 11:6-10 The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the cobra’s den, and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea. In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his resting place will be glorious.
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Who doesn’t love to play with stuffed and plastic animals??? We played a little but mostly we sorted. We sorted the animals into domesticated animals and wild animals
We had a good discussion about animals that could be both like rabbits. We can have rabbits as pets but there are also wild rabbits too.
We read outloud the book Wild and Tame by Alison Auch that matched the domestic animal with its wild animal relative. At the end of the book it encouraged us to draw a domesticated giraffe, elephant or alligator. The kids did some wonderful drawings on the board. We found a pattern in the book we read in that domesticated animals in general, not always seem to weigh more than their wild animal counterpart. For instance, domesticated cattle can weigh up to 2,000 pounds where as a wild yak will only get up to 1200 pounds. Our hypothesis is that, domesticated animals are typically fed by a caregiver, they don’t work as hard for their food or wait as long between meals as animals in the wild.
I then gave them a pile of animal crackers to sort. Who knew! All the animal crackers that we sorted were Wild animals.
Finally, we played animal charades and the kids did wonderful. One student came to the front, I showed them a card of an animal and they had to act out and sound out what that animal does and sounds like.
This is what I gave the kids for homework. |
Growing Up Wild
Animals and Where They Live Week 2: Oh Deer, What to Eat and Where to Live
As students entered class this week, I gave them this handout that asked them to draw their ‘habitat’ at home. In the margin of this handout are the four things that are necessary for any good habitat. We applied these items to where they lived. Afterward, I had a few brave students come up and present their ‘habitats’ to the class. I loved how they described where they lived and who lived with them.
The next activity we played was Duck Duck Goose using the four components of a habitat instead of saying ‘duck duck’. We said ‘Food, Water, Shelter, Space, and then when we said "Habitat", they would run after each other. They all had a delightful time with this AND they learned the four components of a habitat.
Next, we read Judith E. Rinard's Deer Growing Up in the Wild together. This book had some wonderful pictures and good information to go along with them. We learned that:
My friends at Allen Palermo Taxidermy donated a pair of deer antlers for the young learners to touch and hold. They were strong and heavy.
Our last activity, we rolled a large dry-erase die that had the essential components of a habitat written and drawn on each of the six faces. We would roll the dice and record which components we had and discuss which components were still missing for a complete habitat.
Before they could leave, they had to name at least one of the four essential characteristics of a complete habitat.
The next activity we played was Duck Duck Goose using the four components of a habitat instead of saying ‘duck duck’. We said ‘Food, Water, Shelter, Space, and then when we said "Habitat", they would run after each other. They all had a delightful time with this AND they learned the four components of a habitat.
Next, we read Judith E. Rinard's Deer Growing Up in the Wild together. This book had some wonderful pictures and good information to go along with them. We learned that:
- Deer have antlers that are made of bone.
- Deer shed their antlers in the winter and then grow new ones in the spring.
- Male deer are called bucks and female deer are called does
- Deer eat leaves and grass
- Deer live where there is grass and forests
- Deer have great eyesight and hearing
- Deer have strong legs and can leap and run very fast
- Caribou, Elk and Moose are all part of the deer family
My friends at Allen Palermo Taxidermy donated a pair of deer antlers for the young learners to touch and hold. They were strong and heavy.
Our last activity, we rolled a large dry-erase die that had the essential components of a habitat written and drawn on each of the six faces. We would roll the dice and record which components we had and discuss which components were still missing for a complete habitat.
Before they could leave, they had to name at least one of the four essential characteristics of a complete habitat.
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Matthew 6:25-34
”Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body,, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”
”Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body,, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”
Growing Up Wild
Animals and Where They Live Week 1: If They Are All God's Creatures ...
God created the fish and birds on the 5th day and the land animals on the 6th day and it was good. But sometimes we make lists of animals that are our favorites and others that are not. This class is all about helping our youngest science learners see that every creature God has made has value and carries His fingerprint in their design. Just like God gave fish a home in the water and equipped birds to soar through the air, we are going to investigate different animals and their where they live each week this Fall.
Objectives:
As my kinder and first grade science learners entered the room, they found pictures of animals from around the world ready for them to color. These coloring pages became a tool for talking about what we notice about different animals, what might make an animal our favorite and to pre-assess how much each friend knew about the animal they picked and where they typically live. Some friends favored animals that they had touched before, or that they cared for as a family pet. Other animals were favored because of their appearance.
Our first game had students running to one of three corners of the room based on if their liked an animal, didn't like an animal, or didn't know much about an animal. Our list was long as we thought about beetles, bears, tigers, stick bugs, and opossums. Each time we found an animal that we didn't necessarily like, we talked about animals being scary or ugly.
We were surprised by an unexpected six-legged visitor that morning and we used it as a teachable moment about what sometimes can seem scary can actually be harmless after all. We helped our friend find a new home outside. When we returned to the classroom, we read Anni Axworthy's Guess What I Am book. Each page offered clues about a different animal. By the end of the class, I asked the students if it were possible to feel differently about the animals if they knew more about the animals. They said ‘Yes’. I then asked if they might change their feelings if they knew that God made all the animals and He called each one good. They all decided to give each animal a chance.
Objectives:
- For students to connect with nature so they will not lose the ethic to protect it.
- Open student’s minds to different animals in God’s creation even if they do not like them
As my kinder and first grade science learners entered the room, they found pictures of animals from around the world ready for them to color. These coloring pages became a tool for talking about what we notice about different animals, what might make an animal our favorite and to pre-assess how much each friend knew about the animal they picked and where they typically live. Some friends favored animals that they had touched before, or that they cared for as a family pet. Other animals were favored because of their appearance.
Our first game had students running to one of three corners of the room based on if their liked an animal, didn't like an animal, or didn't know much about an animal. Our list was long as we thought about beetles, bears, tigers, stick bugs, and opossums. Each time we found an animal that we didn't necessarily like, we talked about animals being scary or ugly.
We were surprised by an unexpected six-legged visitor that morning and we used it as a teachable moment about what sometimes can seem scary can actually be harmless after all. We helped our friend find a new home outside. When we returned to the classroom, we read Anni Axworthy's Guess What I Am book. Each page offered clues about a different animal. By the end of the class, I asked the students if it were possible to feel differently about the animals if they knew more about the animals. They said ‘Yes’. I then asked if they might change their feelings if they knew that God made all the animals and He called each one good. They all decided to give each animal a chance.
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Genesis 1:20-25
And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day. And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so. God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day. And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so. God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.