Lesson #6: Animal Babies
Now that students know about the life cycle and function of seeds for plants, it’s time to apply this knowledge to farm animals. In this lesson, students will learn about how animals grow from babies to adults, then identify the names and changes associated with various developmental stages. Students will then compare the function of eggs for animals to the function of seeds for plants and prepare an egg salad together.
Main Idea:
Parents have offspring that resemble them in specific ways.
Objectives:
SWBAT identify parents and offspring of farm animals.
TEKS:
10 The student knows that organisms resemble their parents
Materials:
- Farm Babies book by H. A. Rey
- Farm Animals Babies Puzzle, 1 per pair of students
- A dozen hard boiled eggs
- ½ cup Mayonnaise
- 1 tsp Mustard
- ¼ cup Green Onion
- Salt
- Pepper
- Paprika
- Bowls
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Cutting board
- Knife
- Crackers or slices of bread
Prep:
Print a copy of the Farm Animals Babies Puzzle for each pair of students. Laminate these for more durability.
Boil eggs for class
Timeline (1 hour total):
10 min Farm Babies book
15 min Farm Animal Babies Puzzle
15 min Make It – Egg salad
10 min Taste It – Egg salad
10 min Clean-up
Procedure:
- Farm Babies Book. Read the book Farm Babies by H. A. Rey aloud to the class and answer any questions that students have about the babies in the book.
- Farm Animal Babies Puzzle. Explain that on the farm in the spring many babies are born. Babies on the farm look like their parents in many ways, but babies are called a different name than their parents. Each parent knows their baby either by using sound or the way that they smell. Distribute one copy of the farm animal babies puzzles to each pair of students. Have students work together to match the parents to the offspring. When students are done, read through the names of the parents and the offspring, and describe ways they are similar (feathers, ears, hair, etc) and ways they might be different (babies don’t have horns, combs, etc).
- With students, compare the function of eggs for animals to the function of seeds for plants before preparing the egg salad. How are they similar? How are they different?
- Make it – Egg Salad. Before class, hard boil eggs. Heat a pot of water (about 8 cups) on high until water begins to boil. Slowly lower the eggs into the pot with a slotted spoon. Cover the pot. When water returns to a boil, turn the heat to low, and cook for 11 minutes. Remove eggs from the pot with a slotted spoon, and put them into a bowl with ice water. Let them cool completely before removing. This should make the shells easy to peel. Have each student peel an egg and chop into pieces. Give students various jobs to make the recipe. Place the chopped eggs in a bowl, and stir in ½ cup mayonnaise, 1 tsp mustard, and ¼ cup green onion. Season with salt, pepper and paprika. Stir and serve on bread or crackers.
- Taste-It. Distribute a small serving of egg salad to each student on a plate with a fork. Ask students – did these eggs look different at all from the eggs you normally get at the grocery store?
- Clean-Up – Students will return the classroom to its previous state, including washing cutting boards and knives, and wiping down tables and floors as necessary.
Supplementary Materials: