"When Sophia dreams that howling winds whisk the fur and feathers right off her animal friends, she shares some of her clothes with them. But her clothing doesn't work well for the animals. Seeing their disappointment, she offers to sew each one the right coat. Animals line up to explain what they need and why. Polar Bear needs white fur to stay warm and hide in the snow. Fish needs scales, but with slime. Snake needs scales too, but dry ones. And how will Sophia make a prickly coat for Porcupine? The award-winning team of Halfmann and Klein (Little Skinks Tail) reunite to bring animal coverings (and classification) to life in an imaginative way. Sophias friends include Duck, Fish, Frog, Ladybug, Polar Bear, Porcupine, Snail, and Snake. The For Creative Minds educational section includes: Scientific Classification, Skin Coverings, and Animal Classification. Additional Teaching Activities and Interactive Quizzes are available on the Sylvan Dell Publishing website." ~Amazon Product Description
I usually give a list of related classroom activities related to my BOOK OF THE DAY, but Sylvan Dell Publishing provides teachers with a list of learning activities in the For Creative Minds and Teaching Activities sections.
Here are a few additional activities to try:
Give children animal patterns and collage materials and let them decorate the animal using their imagination (the way that Sophia did in the book).
As a journal activity, have children draw (or write about) their dreams.
Visit the related links on fur and feathers.
View/listen to the e-book version which allows children to listen to and read the story in English and Spanish.
Other Books by Janet Halfmann:
Thanks so much for spotlighting my book and for the suggestions on how to extend the book. Happy Reading to All!
ReplyDeleteI think I'll check that one out. What a great book for helping kids think about why some animals have fur and some have feathers, etc. My 2 year old went fishing for the first time and he is SO intrigued about how the fish felt (he describes it as "messy") and he's already noticed that his stuffed animals don't feel that way. The activities look fun and like they engage children's thinking too.
ReplyDeleteJanet - Thanks for writing such an awesome story! I wish you much success!
ReplyDeleteJackie - I just recently found out about this story. I hope your son likes it!
ReplyDelete