Kindergarten Thematic Unit: Animals

1. Writing

1.1. TS and the teacher will write a thank you letter as a class to the zoo thanking them for allowing the class to visit all of the animals. Included in the letter will be information on the graph constructed in the classroom as to what their favorite animals are. (Strand 3, Concept 3, PO 2b. ~ Participate in writing communications, with teracher as scribe, including: thank-you notes)

1.2. TSW write about their favorite animal, including a description of the animal and their habitat. (Strand 1, Concept 2, PO1 ~ Communicate by drawing, telling, or writing for a purpose).

1.3. TSW write a story about their observations at the zoo through drawing and writing. (Strand 3, Concept 2, PO1, ~ Participate in creating expository texts (ex: observations, summaries) through drawing or writing).

2. Science

2.1. After teacher reads book Rabbits, rabbits, & more rabbits!, by Gail Gibbons TSW orally state to a classmate what animals need to grow and survive. (Strand 4, Concept 3, PO 2 ~ Identify that animals need the following to grow and survive: Food, water, air and space)

2.2. TSW describe the changes in classroom aquarium that has many fish inside of it through drawing a sequence of pictures. (Strand 4, Concept 3, PO 3 ~ Describe changes in a small system (ex: aquarium) ).

3. Technology

3.1. TSW pair up with their 8th grade computer buddies to utilize a drawing program and create a picture story about an animal of their choice and what it looked like as a baby and what it grew up to look like. (Standard 3, PO1 ~ Using a drawing program, create a picture story with support from teacher, family members or student partners).

4. Zoo field trip

4.1. Workplace skills

4.1.1. TSW discuss the correct behavior when they are on the bus to the zoo, and how to behave at the zoo when near the animals. Standard 5, 5WP-R3 ~ (Describe appropriate behavior for different settings e.g. on a bus, on a field trip)

4.2. Science

4.2.1. During the zoo field trip the students will describe in their own words how the baby animals physically resemble their parents. (Strand 4, Concept 2, PO 1 ~ Describe that most plants and animals will grow to physically resemble their parents)

4.3. Listening and Speaking

4.3.1. During lunch break at zoo TTW read I Want To Be A Zookeeper, by Dan Liebman. TSW discuss in small groups how they would take care of their favorite animal if they were a zookeeper (Standard 3, PO 4 ~ (Participate in group discussions)

5. Social Studies

5.1. After and during the time that the teacher reads the book Way out in the Desert, by T.J. Marsh, TSW identify plants and animals in the local environment through a class discussion. (Strand 4, Concept 3 ~ Identify plants and animals in the local environment)

6. Math

6.1. Graphing: TSW graph their favorite animal on classroom graph. (Strand 2, Concept 1 ~ Construct simple displays of data using objects or pictures.)

6.2. Numerical Operations: Utilizing unifix cubes or pencil and paper TSW solve mathematical word problems that include animals. EX: There were 4 tigers. One tiger ran away. How many tigers are there now? (Strand 1, Conmcept 2, PO 1 ~ Solve contextual problems by developing, applying and recording strategies with sums and minuends to 10 using objects, pictures and symbols).

6.3. Sorting: TSW sort small plastic animals by the way they travel (flying, walking, swimming, hopping, slithering etc.). (Strand 2, Concept 3, PO 1 ~ Sort, classify, count and representup to 20 objects and justify the sorting rule)

7. Music

7.1. TSW move according to directions on (The animal hokey pokey) song. Each movement will be directed with the name of the animal and a sound that the animal makes. All movements will resemble the movement of the animal sound and name. (Strand 2, Concept 1, PO 1 ~ Exploring the relationship between music and dance by responding to sounds through movement)

8. Reading

8.1. Rabbits, Rabbits and more Rabbits, by Gail Gibbons

8.2. What do you do with a tail like this?, by Steve Jenkins

8.3. Science Kids :Animal Homes, by Angela Wilkes

8.4. Have you seen my cat? by Eric Carle

8.5. The foolish tortoise, by Richard Buckley

8.6. Does a Kangaroo have a mother too? by Eric Carle

8.7. Arizona State Standards addressed while reading these books: Strand 1, Concept 1, PO 2 ~ Hold a book right side up and turn pages in the correct direction) Strand 1, Concept 1, PO 3 ~ Start at the top left of the printed page, track words from left to right, using return sweep, and move from the top to the bottom of the page) Strand 1, Concept 6, PO 1 ~ (Make predictions based on title, cover, illustrations, and text) Strand 2, Concept 1, PO 4 ~ (Determine whether a literary selection, that is heard, is realistic or fantasy).