Good Morning!

Spring is a great time to get outside and explore with your students. I believe one of our “Mary’s” (there were at least three Mary’s) contributed a great idea about using toilet paper to wrap around kids so that they can be cocoons!  What a wonderful idea, and I can’t wait to see if it works.  I have had good success using larger scarves that the “eggs” (children) sit on, and then when they spin a cocoon, the children just use the scarf in the spinning motion and wrap it around themselves.  Then, when they become butterflies, the scarf becomes wings.  If you don’t have large scarves, use two small ones, or pieces of window sheers cut into squares.  But, I really love the toilet paper idea!

 

Tadpoles also go through metamorphosis to get to be frogs. Find a book that shows the children the different stages – egg, tadpole, first legs (I think they’re the back ones) all four legs but still a tail, and finally toad or frog.  This activity lends itself to many kinds of movement – swimming like a fish or using all four feet.  There are science supply catalogs where you can order tadpoles that can live in an aquarium and develop in the classroom.

 

If you don’t live in an area where you can go to a zoo, consider a “Field Trip in the Classroom” and invite experts in the field to come in and talk to the children.  The Colorado Department of Wildlife has (check – because with budget cuts, this may be gone) people who do just that – and they will bring a whole trunk load of props to show the children.  The Denver Zoo also has checkout boxes to share.

 

Have a great day, and I hope you can use these ideas!

Darlene Blackford

p.s. I would love to hear from you if:

• you used any of the ideas or adapted them in a way that worked for you
• thought the “pocket ideas” were helpful – or some other hand-out that would work for you
• would like me to come to your area and present a workshop (I have a list of those I could offer you)
• you would like me to present ideas in your classroom with the children

Tags: CO Department of Wildlife, cocoons, Denver Zoo, guest speakers, metamorphosis, scarves, spring, tadpoles, toilet paper