This Thematic Penguin Unit includes descriptions of activities that are fun and engaging, and provides a more detailed lesson plan. This unit meets state and federal standards in science, literacy, social studies, math and art.
Before Penguin Unit
Collect a collection of high quality picture books about Penguins. (see recommended book list) Include nonfiction titles and fictional titles that will fit your individual lesson plans.
Display the books in a prominent area in your room. A cute sign on display such as “Penguins are Cool” is sure to draw attention to the student’s topic.
Prepare a bulletin board with a blue plane. Cut large blue blocks to represent the ice at Antarctica and arrange them on bulletin board. The students will make notes for this bulletin board in the unit. Coloring the ice with white chalk is a great way to create an Antarctic look and feel.
Preview and read (if possible) the books you have chosen to include your Lesson Plans . Use sticky notes to jot down ideas and concepts you want to note down in your lesson plans.
Introductory Lesson Plan. Assess students’ background knowledge about penguins. Make a classroom KWL chart for students to share their knowledge about penguins. If time permits, you can learn both and the section of the paper you want to learn, or you want to do it in two consecutive days. For older children, everyone can complete their own KWL book.
Language arts Lessons:
Preview the showing the children’s book cover, reading the title, and showing one or two selected pages of the book. . On flipcharts or with a board, write predictions of what the students think the book will be in the budget. Students are encouraged to think about what they already know about penguins.
As you read, stop wondering what will happen next. Let them review the predictions at the end of the lesson to see how well they predicted the events.
Add new information to the “What I Learned” section of the paper or give older students time to add this information to their own section of the book.
Beginner readers can read coloring and the Itsy Bitsy Penguin Book.
Using recommended books, you can design your language skills around each book. You will want to include comprehension, sequencing, recall and interpretation. The specific activities you choose will depend on the age and developmental level of the students you are working on. For little children, telling a story, acting out of history, and following great things. Older children can fill out a penguin report book on both books.
These Penguin Poems can be used with older children to introduce penguins to writing poems. For younger children, write poems about the sentence naked and display them on pocket cards. Once the students have learned the words of the poem, mix the lines and challenge them in the correct order.
Students want to learn words from light sight and vocabulary. Highlighting the word Penguin is a surefire way to teach this word.
This Penguin Connect The Dots teaches alphabetical order. Young children will be delighted to join the dots and then paint the picture. Make sure to provide crayons and markers in bright colors.
After reading about the life cycle of a penguin, supplement ideas with Penguin Life Cycle to color and read. Older children will enjoy drawing their own racing life. Older students would also reading-food-labels”>read about prey and predators reading and food pulling a chain of penguins .
After reading the book Antarctica, visit Inch in a Pinch to explore Antarctica and its animal and plant life. This is a great resource for information about the habitat and environmental challenges of the area.
Math Lessons
For early elementary students, this Penguin Counting Book is a great way to strengthen counting skills.
This Penguin Color by Number printout is a great number identification.
For students at the end of Kindergarten or starting first grade, this Penguin Color by Sum workshop provides practice with addition.
By creating penguins involving word problems, it will provide practice in solving problems for older students.
For Fun
These Penguin Coloring Pages are sure to be a hit with your students.
For those students who are always running out and looking for something more, this Penguin Maze is fun to do.
The Great Penguin Template is perfect for our bulletin board display. You can reduce or expand the model to create Penguin families.
This cute template provides a unique pattern using students’ hand prints for wings.
Fingerprint Penguins make a great home craft for little ones. Faithful parents worship forever.
VIDEOS:
Ancient Antarctica (available from River United)
A cute 19 minute video in 13 segments chronicles the life cycle, behavior, play, predators, and food of a penguin. It includes songs and animated videos.
Why not wrap up the unit with a special look at Happy Feet. For meals, they serve fresh (golden chips, of course) and ice blue Jello cubes. Top with yes blue glass Hi C with iceberg (ice cube) floating on top.
When students are engaged in a topic, they learn more and retain information longer. Providing them with opportunities to learn about Penguins while playing is a great way to boost their confidence and instill a love of learning.
Recommended Books
