Frog and Toad Research Fun!

It has been a long time since I posted!  We had a crazy busy year end and I had a crazy summer!  I am trying to get back on track this week so that I can start the school year with a clean slate!  I finally finished up the Frog Fun package and posted it to Teachers Pay Teachers!

 I know it won't be useful now but keep it in mind for the spring!  My guys really enjoyed it!  

This package contains everything you need to complete a simple research project about frogs. 

I like to do mini research projects and then turn them into little booklets!  I have created a list of frog facts that we sort and categorize into four groups together.  

We read the facts together on the overhead and decide on the code that we will use.  I created four categories for the facts.  They were:  

What they Look Like, What they Eat, About the Enemies, and Cool Facts.  

I put the facts on the overhead and give each child their copy of the facts.  We go through them together one by one.  I love this because the students who are great readers get a chance to shine!  

We talk about key words to look for like  “baby” and “eat” for the  readers who need more support.  Even the challenged readers can take part, using just the code letters.   We decide which code letter to use together and write it down before moving on to the next fact.

We read them together and decide on the code for each one.  Cool Facts gets a C, About the Enemies is an Y for Yikes! , What They Look Like is an L, and What they Eat gets an E.  

Then I pass out the four category pages and the children cut out the facts and paste them to the correct category based on the codes we have decided on.  The category pages are in the shape of the lily pad.  I run off the lily pad cover and the frog shape in lots of different colors! I decided to go with lots of different colors because frogs are so many different colors!  We staple the completed category pages behind the cover lily pad, cut out a colorful frog to glue on the top and we have a funky frog report! 

I usually make a bulletin board that looks like a pond to display the finished projects on! I love this project because it allows everyone to plug in at their level of readiness.  

As part of our study we also sorted facts about frogs and toads.  

I create an overhead of the frog and toad facts or use our webcam to display the page.  I give each child a copy of the facts.  We read them together and code them accordingly.  F for Frog, T for Toad, and B for both. 

The students cut out the facts and glue them in the appropriate spot!  Depending on your group this could also be done independently.  

All the parts for this activity are included in the package! 

I like to create folders for my students to store all their completed projects related to the current theme we are working on at the time. 

For the  frog folder I take a large piece of construction paper (11 X 17) and fold up a three inch fold on the long side.  Then I fold the paper in half and staple each end on the sides to make a long pocket. 

I cut the top part of the folder into a shape that complements the subject.  Depending on the color of the paper, I cut it like a rock, or a lily pad, or some grass. 

The children choose the color of frog they like and cut it out.  They also cut out the dragonfly.  I give them two narrow pieces of red paper.  We fold the red paper to make a spring.  We glue the dragon fly to one end of the “tongue” and put the ends of the other end through a slit, cut by the frog’s mouth.  

We glue the ends to the back of the frog and now our frog has a tongue catching a dragonfly.  This is always a big hit! 

Then we store all our “frog projects” in our frog folder! Folder idea for storing student’s frog projects is also included in the package! 

There is also a math component to the package. 

I use these workspaces to help develop counting skills for a center.   The children put the cards in order and put the correct amounts on each card.  Very popular activity at center time. 

I have also included workspaces and printables to practise two and three addend addition questions.  This is a favorite activity in our classroom. 

We have a lot of fun with this unit!  Sorry it took me so long to post it!