Bats & Owls:

Today we finished our bat/owl unit! The students learned all about bat senses, what bats eat, where bats live and what bats can do! We also explored bat myths...the students were sad to find out that bats do NOT turn into vampires! After that we learned the difference between facts and opinions. Most of the students thought bats were cute...but some thought they were scary! We then read Stellaluna and created a story map on the Smart Board. After that we compared bats to birds by using a Venn Diagram. We had lots of fun learning about bats! 

Did you know a bat can eat 600 mosquitoes in one hour?

Each student was blindfolded and given a candle. They had to remember the scent that they had. After everyone had their scent memorized we mixed all the candles together. Students had to use their sense of smell to find their correct candle! This is how bats identify their babies...at the end of Stellaluna, Mother Bat identified Stellaluna by smelling her fur! 

Students explored sound vibrations through the use of a rubber band! 

Exploring how echolocation works! One student was the bat (blindfolded) and the rest of the students were moths. The moths would call out MOTH... and the bat would have to try and tag the moths by using his/her sense of sound. 

The students enjoyed learning about owls! The students learned all about what owls can do, what owls eat, where owls live, and the different sounds owls can make. Students then found owl facts and as a class we brainstormed everyone's opinions on owls. To end our owl unit we dissected owl pellets! At first the students were grossed out...but once they started exploring  I couldn't get them to stop! 

Owl Pellet Dissection: Each pair was given an owl pellet, bone chart, tweezers and a magnify glass. They had to dissect their pellet and guess what animal bones it contained! They found mouse skulls, bird claws, feathers and talons!