This week's theme is Amazing Animals! Below are the activities for the week. You can do these activities at your own pace.
Our Animal Ambassador this week is Archie the Western Screech Owl. If you haven't received your packet, you can
download Archie here.
For details each day, click on the day of the week below. You can also
download a PDF of the week's activities. If you are looking for more information or details about the animal groups or some of the scientific terms used during camp, see the
Additional Resources section.
Monday - Birds
Tuesday - Mammals
Wednesday - Reptiles
Thursday - Amphibians
Friday - Arthropods
Kindness to Animals is our kindness topic for the week. Each day we challenge you to do something kind for an animal.
Download ideas here or come up with your own!
Google Drive - Videos from Check-in Calls (recorded without campers)
NSI Backyard Missions - This page has all the missions, including versions in different languages.
Additional Resources
Monday - Birds
Nature Journal Topics and Kindness
OWL - Observe, Wonder, Learn is a way to help collect your ideas. In your Nature Journal, make notes of your observations of birds in your neighborhood, what you wonder about birds, and something that you learned about birds. You can print an
OWL worksheet for your journal if you prefer. Pick a way you will be kind to animals today. You can use the
list provided or come up with your own! Write or draw what you did in your Nature Journal.
Get Moving
Can you move like a bird? Have a race with someone in your family or time how long it takes you to move like different birds. You can soar like a hawk, swim like a penguin, flutter like a hummingbird, or come up with your own ideas.
Craft/Experiment
Bird Masks
Materials:
- Paper plate
- Items to decorate (paint, yarn, ribbon, feathers, etc.)
- String or yarn (about 2 feet)
- Hole punch or scissors
Directions:
- Use a paper plate to make a mask- cutting out eye holes, and a mouth hole so you can see and breathe.
- Cut out a paper beak- the shape depends on what kind of food your bird eats. Example: Make a short thick beak for cracking seeds or a long thin beak for pulling insects out of the ground.
- Cut feathers out of paper, glue to top of the mask - decorate your mask however you want.
Using a hole punch or scissors, make holes at each side of your mask and attach string so you can wear it. - Take pictures of your mask and share with other campers. You can bring your mask to the morning call too.
Bird Beak Game
Materials:
- Four different types of “food” - paperclips, beads, beans, pasta, marbles, toothpicks, or something similar (it is best to have at least 20 of each type of food)
- Four different “beaks” - spoon, fork, chopsticks, tweezers, clothes pin or something similar
- Cups (one for each participant)
- Timer
Birds eat many different things! Scientists can tell what birds eat based on looking at the shape of their beaks! You can play this game on your own or with others in your family!
Download the directions here.
Family Engagement Activity
Go bird watching! With your Nature Scene Investigator (NSI) Missions, there is a
bird guide. This can help you identify some of the birds in your neighborhood. There is also a Bird Mission that will help you as well. The
NSI Backyard Bird Mission can be viewed electronically.
Tuesday - Mammals
Nature Journal Topics and Kindness
Draw or write about different mammal adaptations and characteristics. Think about the mammals you have living in your house or backyard, mammals you have seen on TV or in the movies, or ones you may have seen in a zoo. You can use OWL (Observe, Wonder, Learn) as a way to help collect your ideas. Pick your kindness activity for the day and note it in your journal.
Get Moving
How many different mammals can you “walk” like? Walk across the room like a bear with straight arms and legs. Try to hop like a bunny. What other mammals can you pretend to be? After you practice, have a race with someone in your family or time how long it takes you to move like different mammals. Record the results of your race in your Nature Journal.
Craft/Experiment
Create a Mammal
Materials:
- Paper/Cardboard
- Pen/Pencil
- Legos, building blocks, Play-Doh or clay, if you would like
- Rocks and sticks, if you have them
- Crayons/Markers/Paint (optional)
Using your science knowledge and your imagination, you are going to create your own mammal! You can draw the mammal, build it out of blocks, Legos or clay, or even create it on the computer. For your mammal, make sure you can explain why you chose those characteristics. Take pictures of your mammals and share with other campers! Don’t forget, all mammals have hair or fur, and most of them don’t lay eggs.
Family Engagement Activity
Mammal Charades
- Make a list of animals
- Cut the animal list into pieces and put the pieces of paper into a bowl or a hat
- Take turns picking mammal names and acting out the animal while the rest of the family guesses which mammal you are.
Wednesday - Reptiles
Nature Journal Topics and Kindness
Write a short story, poem, or cartoon about reptiles. Include details about their characteristics and adaptations. Add pictures and drawings if you would like. Share your work with a family member and others at camp. How are you going to be kind to animals today?
Get Moving
Can you slither like a snake? Walk like a Komodo dragon? Do push ups like a lizard? Sunbathe like a sea turtle? What are some other ways you can move like a reptile?
Craft/Experiment
Paper Snakes
Materials:
- Construction paper (two colors if possible)
- Tape or glue stick
Markers - Googly eyes (optional)
Directions:
- Cut two or four strips of construction paper about 1 or 2 inches wide and 11 inches long (it doesn’t have to be exact).
- Tape them together to make one long piece (20 to 40 inches long).
- Repeat the first two steps to make a second very long strip of paper.
- Tape the two long pieces of paper together in an L shape.
- Fold each strip over each other.
- Continue to fold until you are almost at the end of your paper.
- Trim one color off and tape it so your accordion won’t unravel.
- Now it is time to decide what kind of snake you want to make. A constrictor (non-venomous) or venomous! Venomous snakes have triangle shaped heads, fangs and cat-like eyes! Constrictor snakes have round pupils, no fangs and more oval shaped heads. Cut a snake head from construction paper and glue it to the end of your snake.
- Cut a snake tongue out of paper and glue it under the snake head where the mouth would be. Remember snakes have forked tongues!
- Add googly eyes or draw in some snake eyes. Don’t forget to give it a name!
Video of the Craft
Reptile Camouflage
Materials:
- Some small items from around your house
Directions:
- Let’s see how well some of your favorite things can hide in their environment!
- Gather some items from your house like favorite toys, clothing, your favorite water bottle, or the snake you just created.
- Take your items and place in an area where you can see them all at the same time (try spaces inside and outside if possible).
- Are any of them harder to see than others? Are they camouflaged because their color matches their environment?
- Move your items around and see if you can put them in places where they are the most camouflaged.
- Have someone in your family or a friend see if they can find the items without walking around.
- You can take turns trying to hide different items for each other and see who can find the best camouflage.
Family Engagement Activity
Have a family discussion about reptiles. Which reptiles are your favorite? Why? Are there reptiles that scare you? Are reptiles important to the environment?
Thursday - Amphibians
Nature Journal Topics and Kindness
Draw or write about an amphibian and the adaptations they would have. Use OWL (Observe, Wonder, Learn) to help guide your work. Share your work with your family and other campers. Don’t forget to add how you are going to be kind to animals today.
Get Moving
Let’s move like an amphibian! Can you stick to a surface like a red-eyed tree frog, jump like a bullfrog, walk like a salamander? What other amphibians can you move like?
Craft/Experiment
Origami Jumpy Frog
Materials:
Today you are going to make an origami frog! When selecting your paper, use a color that you would like your frog to be or you can color your paper before or after you make your frog.
Step-by-Step Directions
How to Video
Create a Habitat
Materials:
- Cardboard box from crackers, cereal, shoebox, or other box from around your house
- Items for your habitat (food, water, shelter, space) - toys, Legos, cardboard, rocks from your yard, other items from around your house
- Glue
- Crayons/Markers/Paint
Directions:
- Find a box in the recycling bin and cut open the box along one of the longer sides the box.
- Use the box along with paper, crayons, tape and glue to create a habitat for your frog.
- Make sure you include all of the parts of a habitat your animal needs to survive (food, water, shelter, space).
- Share pictures of your frog’s habitat!
Family Engagement Activity
Download the app iNaturalist or Seek and be Citizen Scientists by recording what living things you see in the habitats around your neighborhood. There are many other Citizen Science projects that your family can be a part of as well.
Here are some suggestions from our website.
Friday - Arthropods
Nature Journal Topics and Kindness
Draw or write about an arthropod and the type of habitats that they live in. Some examples of arthropods are spiders, insects, millipedes, and crabs. Remember, a habitat provides food, water, shelter, and space for an animal. Write in your journal how you are going to be kind to animals today.
Get Moving
How do arthropods move? Can you pollinate like a bee? Roll up like a rollie pollie? Walk like a crab? Arthropods are the largest group of animals on Earth. Can you think of other arthropods that you can move like?
Craft/Experiment
Outdoor Bug Observatory
Materials:
- Small scraps of food (you may want two different types of food)
- Small tray, plate, or plastic lid
- Rocks, leaves and sticks (if available)
Directions:
You are going to set up an experiment to see what arthropods are in your yard.
- Survey part of your yard for arthropods. Note in your Nature Journal how many different arthropods you see.
- Now set up an arthropod observatory using your tray/plate and a piece of food. You can add rocks and sticks if you would like to give them some hiding places.
- Leave your observatory in a place where you think you many see some arthropods.
- Throughout the day, check your observatory to see if there are any visitors.
- You can set up more than one observatory with different food scraps to see which ones your arthropods like the best.
- If possible, leave your observatory up overnight and check it again in the morning.
Family Engagement Activity
Head outside and go on an arthropod safari. Look in all the places you think arthropods would be found. Count how many different arthropods you find. Go out again later when the temperature has changed and see if you can find different bugs. You can record what you find in your Nature Journal.
Feeling really excited about arthropods? You and your family could watch a movie about arthropods like
It’s a Bug’s Life or
Ants.
Additional Resources
Glossary
| Vocabulary Word |
Definition |
| Adaptation | A behavior or characteristic that helps a plant or animal survive in its environment. |
| Amphibian | A cold-blooded, scaleless animal that has a backbone. It usually begins life in the water, breathing with gills. It later develops lungs and can live both on land and in water. Some examples of amphibians are frogs, toads, salamanders, and newts. |
| Arthropod | An invertebrate animal with an exoskeleton, jointed legs, and segmented body. Some examples of arthropods are insects, spiders, millipedes, and crabs. |
| Bird | A warm-blooded, two-legged, egg-laying animal. It has a backbone, wings, and a body covered with feathers. Some examples of birds are hawks, sparrows, doves, and eagles. |
| Ecosystem | All the living and nonliving things that interact in a particular area. |
| Habitat | The place where a plant or animal lives that has food, water, shelter, and space. |
| Mammal | A warm-blooded animal that has hair and a backbone; the young feed on mother’s milk. Some examples of mammals are rabbits, bears, deer, bobcats, and humans. |
| Reptile | A cold-blooded animal that has a backbone and a body covered with scales or horny plates. Some examples of reptiles are lizards, snakes, turtles, and tortoises. |
Videos
These additional videos can help further your learning about Amazing Animals!
