Reptiles!

Reptiles are a great subject for children of this age! This is a great time to learn to appreciate these ancient animals!

CIRCLE TIME

Reptiles are animals that lay eggs, have scales, and must use sunshine and water to help maintain their temperature. Some examples are turtles, lizards, snakes and crocodiles. You will often see these animals laying in the sun. They do this to make their bodies warm. When they get too hot, they will go under a rock or into some water to cool down.

Let's play a game! Print out these FLASHCARDS to get started:  Animal Classification Game

Make a box or a folder for the categories. Make a category for Reptiles, Fish, and Mammals. We have already discussed what a reptile is. A fish is an animal which lives its whole life in the water. They breathe through gills. Mammals are animals which have live babies and feed them milk produced from their bodies. They are also warm blooded, like people. This means they can keep themselves warm or cool and the outside temperature does not determine if they are cold or hot.

Cut out the flashcards and mix them up. Show the kids each animal and talk about which pile it should go into. Talk about why each animal has been classified the way it has.

READING

Name Recognition
In order to continue in learning how to recognize their own names, we will do this fun art activity. Prior to class, use wax crayons to write the children's names on a sheet of paper. Provide the kiddos with water color paints and allow them to paint over the picture however they wish! Their names in wax will resist the water color and show through no matter how much they paint. They will be amazed how their name cannot be covered up by their painting! Once dry, talk about their names and how they are spelled. Post these in the room!

SCIENCE

Cold Blooded

For this we are going to use thermometers to show how temperatures can differ from place to place and how reptiles use the different places to warm and cool their bodies!

If you need to purchase some thermometers for your class, this is a great deal and you can buy as many or as few as you need:  http://www.k12schoolsupplies.net/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=LER0380&click=2128&utm_source=Bing&utm_medium=Free&utm_campaign=Bing_Learning_Resources&gdftrk=gdfV2544_a_7c642_a_7c6518_a_7cLER0380

Humans (people) and other mammals are able to regulate their body temperature. That means that people stay at a constant 98.6 degrees all the time. It doesn't matter if it is really hot or really cold outside, we can keep out temperature the same. The air may feel cold or warm to us, but our body temperature will stay the same.

Reptiles are very different! They are "cold blooded". That means that their bodies will be the same temperature as the air around them. So if they are laying in some snow, they will be just as cold as the snow is. It is hard for these animals to be comfortable because they are always trying to find a place to lay where they can be just warm enough, but not too warm, and just cool enough, but not too cool.

In order to see just how different the temperature can be from place to place, we are going to test some areas with our thermometers. Lay the thermometers on the table and check the temperature. The room temperature will likely be in the 72º to 75º range. This is likely too cold for most reptiles! Take your thermometers outside and check the temperature in the shade. Then check in the sun. There is likely a difference of several degrees (especially here in Houston).  You can then place the thermometer in the freezer and find out how cold it is in there. The temperature changes from place to place and this is why all reptiles must actively find a place to hang out where they will be comfortable!

MATH

Alligator Teeth Math Mats

Print the mats. You can laminate them or place them in a sheet protector. Provide the kids with playdough and have them give the alligator the number of teeth listed on the page. This is a "counting in 2's" lesson!

Alligator Math Mats

Snake Pattern Matching

Print out the worksheet pages. The first pages have the patterns and the second pages have the pieces to use to complete the patterns. Patterning is a great skill to master. It can help children understand how things work together and how to solve problems.

Snake Patterning Worksheet



ART/CRAFT

Craft - Chameleon Paper Craft

From DLTK's website! A chameleon is a type of lizard. They are really amazing because the will change color to match whatever they are sitting on. Their eyes are also really neat because of how they move. Check out this short video chameleon and it's funny walk, and his eyes moving in their super cool way.

http://www.arkive.org/parsons-chameleon/calumma-parsonii/video-06a.html

Now that you know what a chameleon is, you can do a cool craft!

Materials Needed:

Paper plates (paper, not foam or plastic)
Markers, crayons or paint
Scissors
Glue sticks

Color or paint the bottom side of the paper plate. Choose any color, chameleons can change their color so be creative! Print the template below for each kid. Color the template pieces and cut out. If your kiddos are too young to cut them, help them out! Make an example for them to follow and allow them to glue their pieces to the plate.

http://www.dltk-kids.com/t.asp?b=m&t=http://www.dltk-kids.com/animals/image/bplatechameleon.gif

Art - Squishy Snake Painting

Materials Needed:
Rubber snakes from a dollar store
Paint
Paper

Pour some paint into bowls big enough for the snakes to fit into. Provide each child with a squishy snake and some paper. Allow them to place the snake into the paint and create a masterpiece! When children are able to use something unusual for an activity like this, it makes it much more interesting!



GROSS MOTOR

Act Like A Reptile

This is a super fun game! Totally unorganized and crazy and that is what makes it so great! Get the kids in a line or circle. Shout out the name of a reptile and the kids should act like it! SLITHERY SNAKE! CHAMELEON! ALLIGATOR! So much fun and so silly.


FINE MOTOR

Cutting Practice

You will need some child's scissors for this. Cutting a circle is pretty tough, so if they can't get it, don't worry. This is more about the practice than perfection! You may want to cut one out yourself to show them what is supposed to be the end result!

http://www.firstpalette.com/tool_box/printables/spiralsnake.html

Download and print the template from firstpallet.com.

BOOKS



http://www.amazon.com/Whos-Hiding-Inside-Reptiles-Pull/dp/1581173075/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1377110482&sr=1-2&keywords=who%27s+hiding+inside

This is a very cute book with interactive pull out pieces. Great for our lesson this week!



http://www.amazon.com/Mixed-Up-Chameleon-Eric-Carle/dp/0064431622/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1377110663&sr=1-1&keywords=the+mixed+up+chameleon

Great book which talks about characteristics of many animals and also has a lesson about loving who you are!


http://www.amazon.com/Look-Turtles-Lets-Read-Find-Out-Science/dp/0064451569/ref=cm_lmf_tit_5

A very informative book about turtles. Has great illustrations!



MUSIC

Reptiles They Have Many Scales

Reptiles they have many scales
Some reptiles have long, long tails
They lay eggs and like the sun
Some have legs, some have none
Reptiles they have many scales
Some reptiles have long, long tails




COOKING

Snake Sticks

Ingredients:
Bread stick Dough (the kind in a can that you can mold)
Parmesan Cheese, shredded
Butter, melted

Each child should make their own. Make sure they are making their creation on a piece of foil so you can move it! The idea is for the kids to make a snake out of their dough. They can keep it straight, make it curvy, curl it up, or whatever! When they have it the way they want it, use a pastry brush to spread melted butter on the top. Then allow the kids to sprinkle some Parmesan cheese on top. Bake them as instructed on the package. Once cooled, you can all enjoy eating your snakes!