1. Animal Ring-O Science/Math and Language Arts activities for the Primary Grades By Kimberly Tucker

2. The Little Fish who cried Shark! By Trish Phillips Read the story to the class Have the students identify the rhyming words in the story. Have the students tell you facts about sharks and list them on the board. Sing the finger play song “Ten Little Fishies” Science1.4.3 Observe and explain that animals eat plants or other animals for food. Language Arts1.1.7 Create and state a series of rhyming words. Music, Bodily-Kinesthetic (sing the finger play song), Linguistic (identifying rhyming words)

3. The Little Fish who cried Shark! By Trish Phillips Read the book to the class. Visit the Shedds Aquarium website. Explore the site and discuss the different animals. Or visit an aquarium if you can! Identify the animals at the aquarium and the animals in the book. Language Arts K.7.3 Describe people, places, things (including their size, color, and shape), locations, and actions. Science K.1.1 Raise questions about the natural world. Naturalistic (aquarium exploration)

4. Five Little Monkeys sitting in a tree By Eileen Christelow Pass out 5 small monkey manipulatives to each student. Read the book to the class. While reading, have the students hide or take away one monkey every time one monkey disappears in the text. Have the students predict if another monkey will get “eaten” by Mr. Crocodile each time one disappears. How many monkeys are left before they all reappear at the end of the story. Language Arts1.3.3 Confirm predictions about what will happen next in a story. Mathematics1.2.2 Show the meaning of subtraction (taking away, comparing, finding the difference) using objects. Logical/Mathematical, Visual/Spatial(use of manipulatives)

5. Five Little Monkeys sitting in a tree By Eileen Christelow Instead of reading the text, sing it with the class to the tune of Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the bed. Have the students clap when Mr. Crocodile snaps at the monkeys. Discuss whether monkeys really do sit in trees. Could they really fall out and get eaten by a crocodile? Take a field trip to the zoo. Visit the monkeys and discuss whether they like to climb trees. Science 1.1.2 Investigate and make observations to seek answers to questions about the world, such as "In what ways do animals move?" Language Arts1.3.4 Distinguish fantasy from reality. Naturalistic (zoo trip), Music and Bodily/Kinesthetic (song)

6. Quiet Bunny By Lisa McCue Read the book to the class List the different animals and their noises on the board. Have the students match the animal with the noise and then make the noises. Have the students write in their journals about why Quiet Bunny had to find his own sound. Science 2.4.4 Recognize and explain that living things are found almost everywhere in the world and that there are somewhat different kinds in different places. Language Arts 2.3.7 Identify the meaning or lesson of a story. Intrapersonal and Linguistic (journal writing), Musical (make the animal noises)

7. The Kissing HandBy Audrey Penn Read the book to the class. Have the students act out the book in Reader’s Theater. Discuss that raccoons are nocturnal. Have the students list other animals in the book and that they are also nocturnal. Science 2.4.1 Observe and identify different external features of plants and animals and describe how these features help them live in different environments. Language Arts2.1.6 Read aloud fluently and accurately with appropriate changes in voice and expression. Interpersonal (reader’s theater)

8. Stranger in the WoodsBy Carl R. Samms & Jean Stoick Begin with a field trip to Wesselman Woods Nature Center. Read the book to the class Have the students tell some things that are pictured in the book that they also experienced on the field trip. Have the students draw one thing that they saw in the book and on the field trip. Science K.2.2 Draw pictures and write words to describe objects and experiences. Language Arts K.1.22 Listen to stories read aloud and use the vocabulary in those stories in oral language. Naturalistic (field trip), Interpersonal (class discussion), Intrapersonal & Visual/Spatial(drawing)

9. The Rainforest Grew All Around By Susan K. Mitchell Read the book using Choral Reading. List the classifications of vertabrate animals on the board. Have the students classify each animal in the book as mammal, reptile, etc. Science 3.4.2 Explain that features used for grouping depend on the purpose of the grouping. Language Arts 3.1.3 Read aloud grade-level-appropriate literary and informational texts fluently and accurately and with appropriate timing, change in voice, and expression. Linguistic (read aloud)

10. The Rainforest Grew All Around By Susan K. Mitchell Read the book to the class Put the book on the overhead to make sure the students can see the pictures. List the facts of the animals in the book on the board. Students draw an animal found in the Rainforest and describe how it’s special features help it to survive. Science 2.4.1 Observe and identify different external features of plants and animals and describe how these features help them live in different environments. Language Arts 2.2.4 Ask and respond to questions (when, who, where, why, what if, how) to aid comprehension about important elements of informational texts. Intrapersonal (drawing), Visual/Spatial (pictures in the book)

11. Owl MoonBy Jane Yolen Read the book to the class Take the class outside and try to spot different birds. List the different birds on the board along with how they were alike and how they were different. Have the students draw a picture of one of the birds that they spotted. Science K.4.2 Observe plants and animals, describing how they are alike and how they are different in the way they look and in the things they do. Language Arts K.7.2 Share information and ideas, speaking in complete, coherent sentences. Naturalistic (bird spotting), Visual/Spatial & Intrapersonal (drawing)