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Teacher’s Guide to
Night Life – Nature at Night
KNOW #16, July/August 2008
Name That Baby (page 5)
Reading Cheetah Cubs and Beetle Grubs (Diane Swanson,
Annick Press) would be a great follow-up to this activity.
Activity
Have students make up their own names of baby
animals before they discover the names used by scientists.
Classroom Links: Language Arts, Science
Skills and Learning Outcomes:
• generating ideas
• creative writing
Great Garter Snakes (page 8)
Are Snakes Really Cold-Blooded?
Resources for children often refer to snakes and other reptiles
as being “cold-blooded.” In fact, on a warm day
snakes’ blood can become so hot that they need to move
out of the Sun. (Or, as one scientist put it, “The typical
desert lizard…runs around with a body temperature that
would cause your brain to fry.”)
Reptiles are more correctly referred to as ectotherms. This
means their body temperature changes with that of their environment.
(Ecto means outside, so the source of reptiles’
heat is outside their body.) Ectotherms adjust their body
temperature by their behaviour (e.g., basking in the Sun,
or moving out of the Sun into the shade). In contrast, a mammal’s
body temperature is controlled by its metabolism. (Mammals
are endothermic, meaning the source of their body heat
is internal.)
Activity
On a warm day, set two or more thermometers
in a variety of outdoor locations, including shady spots and
under soil or sand. After 30 minutes, record the temperatures.
Discuss how snakes and other reptiles can use their surroundings
to adjust their internal body temperature. Contrast this to
the constant body temperature (37°C) of mammals.
Classroom Links: Science, Math
Skills and Learning Outcomes:
• describe interactions between living things and their
environment
• observe similarities and differences in the needs
of living things
• describe ways to measure changes in the environment
Activity
There are several species of garter snakes
in North America. Have children use field guides to determine
the species of garter snake that live in their area. Using
words and pictures have students create a food chain or food
web showing the predators and prey of their local species.
Classroom Links: Science, Social Studies (geography), Art
Skills and Learning Outcomes:
• describe interactions between living things and their
environment
• describe simple food chains
• map reading
• research skills (using print or on-line field guides)
Helpful websites on garter snakes:
Garter snakes in general: BioKids
– Critter Catalog
Manitoba’s Narcisse Snake Dens: Brochure
from Government of Manitoba (PDF)
Helpful books on snakes:
Welcome to the World of Snakes by Diane Swanson (Whitecap
Books)
Snakes by Adrienne Mason (Kids Can Press)
Theme Section: Nature at Night (pages 9 – 16)
The City At Night (pages 10-11)
Activity
As a class, brainstorm a list of nighttime
occupations and activities in your community. Have students
create a list of what they think would be positive and negative
aspects of working at night.
Classroom Links: Social Studies, Language Arts
Skills and Learning Outcomes:
• generating ideas
• making connections to community
Under the Cover of Darkness and Night
Life (pages 12-15)
Activity
Ask students to give their ideas about how
nocturnal animals use their senses. Read (or have students
read) Spidey-Senses (page 13). Discuss with students
the types of night senses and the animals that use each particular
sense (e.g., bats use echolocation, hares have excellent hearing).
Activity
Collect a number of items with strong smells
(e.g., mint leaves, banana peel, orange slices, cotton balls
dipped in food extracts, etc.). Put each item in a small,
lidded box, with a small hole cut in the top. Have children
smell the item through the hole. Can they identify the smell?
How do they use smells to learn about the world around them?
Activity
Gather a number of small, clean containers,
such as baby food jars, film canisters, or vitamin bottles.
If possible, have one jar per student. Gather a variety of
food extracts (e.g., vanilla, orange, lemon, etc.) and daub
each extract on two cotton balls. Put one cotton ball in each
jar. There should be only two jars with the same scent. Randomly
distribute the jars to the students. Using smell only, the
students should try to find their partner. After the activity,
describe how some insects, such as moths, use smell to find
a mate of their own species. Also, smell is a way that night-blooming
flowers attract pollinators, such as insects and bats.
Classroom Links: Science
Skills and Learning Outcomes:
• listening skills
• generating ideas
• making connections to the environment
Science in Action: A Shining Star (page 21)
Visit the National Dark-Sky
Week website.
The author who wrote Who Stole the Stars (page 18-19)
was inspired by Jennifer Barlow’s work.
Activity
Your class could perform this story as a reader’s
theatre, a play, or even a puppet show. (A shadow puppet show
would be apropos!)
Classroom Links: Drama, Science, Language Arts
Skills and Learning Outcomes:
• speaking and listening skills
• making and sharing connections
• describe changes in daily cycles
Feedback
We are interested in making this guide as useful as possible.
Please let us know if we've provided enough, too much, or
not enough information. Any other thoughts or comments are
appreciated.
Email: teacher@yesmag.ca
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