Animal Books

Purpose: Children love to find out facts about things that interest them.  This project helps them to pursue their interests and have a finished project that will reflect some of their learning.  Most importantly, it empowers them to think of themselves as writers.  When children feel empowered as readers and writers, they are more successful at learning how to read.

 

Materials/Advance Preparation:

Directions:

  1. Read several books about animals to the children (fiction and non-fiction).  By reading a variety of books about a variety of animals the children will begin to compare the animals to each other and develop their own interests.
  2. Ask each child to choose an animal that they have found in one of the books.
  3. Help them to research their animals.  They should find out a fact or two about their animals.  For example, they might find out what their animal eats and where it lives or something unusual about their animal (like the giraffe's long neck).  It's more important that they develop a sense for the animal than that they have lots of facts. 
  4. Have the child draw a picture of their animal.  For the children who are interested they might draw them in their natural surrounding or habitat. Children will need assistance drawing their animal.  You might also consider finding pictures in magazines that they can cut out and glue to a page.
  5. Punch holes in each page and bind the book with rings or yarn.  Make a cover and give the book a title. Words could be written for the children, but the important thing is that the children have ownership of their ideas and their creation. 
  6. Explain to the children that they are the authors of this book. This is cause for celebration.  The process that the children have used is just like what adult authors do.  It doesn't matter how "fancy" the final book looks.  The process of book making is what empowers the children as future readers and writers.

Notes:  This project will take several days (longer if the interest is there).  There are several other ways to extend this project.  One is to have the children "tell" about their animal.  Another way is to write the children's words on the bottom of their pictures. 

 

Eric Gidseg

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