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Share a fun poem with children about animals and their babies.
Then play a name game in which children come up with other animals
whose babies have the same names.
Materials
- chart paper or poster board
- marker
Teaching the Lesson
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In advance, copy the poem onto chart paper or
poster board.
The Guppy
by Ogden Nash
Whales have calves,
Cats have kittens,
Bears have cubs,
Bats have bittens,
Swans have cygnets,
Seals have puppies,
But guppies just have little guppies.
From VERSES FROM 1929 ON by Ogden Nash Copyright
© 1944 by Ogden Nash. Reprinted by permission of Little, Brown,
and Company.
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Draw two columns on the board. In the left column, write
the following words: kangaroo, rabbit, sheep, horse, goat,
frog, deer, and pigeon. In the right column, write
joey, bunny, lamb, foal, kid, tadpole, fawn, squab.
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Have children read the words in the left column. Ask: "What
do these words have in common?" (They're all animal names.)
Then have students read the words in the right column. Ask:
"What do these words have in common?" (They're all names
of animal babies.)
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Display the poem in front of the class. Read the poem together.
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Ask: "Which of these animal baby names do you think is real?"
Guide students in a mini-research project to find the name
that is not real. (bitten) Ask: "What are baby bats
really called?" (pups) Challenge students to think
of other animals that share the same baby names as those in
the poster. For example, babies of cows, elephants, hippos,
and rhinos are all called calves.
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 Invite
students to write and illustrate their own poems using other
animal and baby names. Remind them that the lines don't have
to rhyme. Let students share their poems if they wish, then
use them to create a display. Students will have fun drawing
and cutting out pictures of baby animals to make a border. Tack
up blank chart paper and a box of markers so that children can
write more poems as they are inspired. |
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Adapted from Early
Themes: Life Cycles
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