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DinosaursAdventures in Reading: Family Literacy Bags from Reading Rockets

Contents: •Twobooks–onefiction,onenonfiction •Parentinformationsheet •Threeactivitysheets •Bookmark •Parentsurvey

ADVENTURESINREADING : DinosAuRs

forteachersandlibrarians

This Reading Rockets Activity Packet is designed to support reading activities at home. We’ve chosen a fiction and nonfiction book about dinosaurs, appropriate for a first grade listening level, and included related activities to encourage some hands-on fun and learning. Just assemble the packet in a two-gallon zip top bag, and send home with your students.

ReadingRocketscarefullychosebooksthatarewidelyavailableandappealingtoyoungreaders.Thetitlesselectedshouldbeavailableinyourschoollibrary.Ifthetwofeaturedtitlesarenotavailable,oryoupreferanothertitle,feelfreetosubstitutebooksrelatedtothetheme.You’llfindalistofalternativetitlesincludedinthebookmark.

ThefeaturedbooksfortheDinosaursActivityPacketareDinosaursbyGailGibbonsandDanny and the DinosaurbySydHoff.Duringavisittoamuseum,DannyencountersadinosaurthatturnsouttoberealandtheyleavethemuseumforadayofadventureinDanny and the Dinosaur.GailGibbons,aleadingauthorinnonfictionforchildren,offersanexcellentintroductiontodinosaursofmanyshapesandsizesinDinosaurs.

Theparentinformationsheetincludesanintroductorynotethatyoucanpersonalize,instructionsabouthowtousethepacket,andtipsforsharingfictionandnonfictionbookswithchildren.

Theactivitiesaredesignedtoencouragefurtherexplorationandlearningathome:>> TheCreativityActivityisahands-oncraftproject>> TheImaginationActivityencouragesimaginativeplay,writing,ordrawing>> TheGetRealActivityfocusesonreal-worldexperiencesforparentandchild>> Thebookmarklistsboththefeaturedtitlesandadditionaltitles

Thebookmarklistsboththefeaturedtitleandadditionaltitles.

Putting it all together Printoutcopiesoftheparentinformationsheet,theactivities,thesurvey,andamasterformakingbookmarks.Cutthebookmarkpageintostrips.Youmaywishtoprinttheactivitypagesandbookmarkoncardstockfordurability.

Intoatwo-gallonziptopbag,place:>> twobooks–onefictionandonenonfiction>> parentinformationsheet>> threethemedactivitypages>> bookmark>> surveyforparents

Sendthepackethomewithyourstudent.Encourageparentstokeeptheparentinformationsheet,theactivities,andbookmark,andreturnthebooksandsurveytoyoubythedateyouspecify.

LetReadingRocketsknowwhatyouthinkofthefamilyactivitypacketsbye-mailingusthroughourwebsite:www.readingrockets.org/sitecontact.Clickon“FamilyLiteracyBags.”

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Adventures in Reading: Family Literacy Bags from Reading Rockets

Dear

Exploringnewideasandenjoyingbookswithyousendsapowerfulmessagetoyourchild:Readingandlearningarefun,andhappeneverywhere–notjustatschool.ThisReadingRocketsActivityPacketaboutDinosaurswascreatedtohelpyouandyourchildenjoyreadingandlearningtogether.

Startyourlearningadventurebyreadingsomebookswithyourchildaboutthispopulartopic.Thenexplorethetopicwiththreeactivities.Enclosedyou’llfindwhatyouneed:

>> twobookstosharewithyourchild,>> threerelatedactivities,>> abookmarkwithalistofotherbookstoextendthefun,ifyouwish,and>> ashortsurveytotellmeifyouenjoyedusingthepacket.

Thesimplestepsonthebackexplainhowtousethepacket.

Thebookmark,thisparentinformationsheet,andtheactivitiesareyourstokeep.

Whenyou’vefinishedwiththematerials,pleasereturnthebooksandthecompletedsurveytoschoolinyourchild’sbackpack.PleasereturntheReadingRocketsActivityPacketby .

Ihopeyou’llenjoyreadingandlearningtogether!

To learn more about children’s books, reading with your child, and information about helping kids become confident readers, please visit www.ReadingRockets.org

ADVENTURES IN READ ING!

Welcome



Instructions

Tips for reading fiction books with kids:

>> Wonder out loud. As you are reading, or afterward, talk about facts you find interesting or questions you have.

>> Show your child how to use the table of contents, section headings, index, and word list (glossary) to find the answer to a specific question.

>> Don’t be afraid to jump around, reading pages that especially interest your child. You don’t have to read a nonfiction book straight through.

Tips for reading fiction books with kids:

>> Take your time and talk about the story with your child. Ask your child questions.

>> Explore the pictures with your child.

>> Read with expression. Change your voice or how fast you read to create excitement. Ham it up!

>> You don’t need to read every word. Keeping your child interested is the goal.

How to use your Reading Rockets Activity Packet

Getting ready

1. Beforeyoureadthebookstoyourchild,besuretoreadthemyourself.Onebookisfiction–a“make-believe”story.Theotherbookisnonfiction,orinformationalandtrue.Readingthebooksfirstwillgiveyouthe“insidescoop”tothetwistsandturnsofthestory,theinterestinginformationinside,andthepartsofthebooksthatwillappealmosttoyourchild.

2. Next,readthethreeactivitiestoseewhichofthemyouthinkyourchildwillenjoymost,andwhichoneyouhavethetimeandmaterialson-handtodorightaway.Chancesare,afteryoureadone(orboth)ofthebookswithyourchild,heorshemaywanttodoanactivityrightaway.Startthefun

Start the fun

3. Whenyouknowyou’llhaveatleastenoughtimetoreadandtalkaboutoneofthebooks,grabyourchildandabook,anddiverightin.Startwiththefictionselection.Talkaboutthecoverofthebookwithyourchild–canheguesswhatitisabout?Havetheyeverreadabookbythesameauthororillustratororaboutthesametopic?

Readthebooktoyourchild.Taketimetoaskandanswerquestions,explorethepictures,andwonderwhatwillhappennext.Readitagain,ifyourchildasksyouto.Then,trythenonfictionbookoroneoftheactivities.

4. Whenyoureadthenonfictionbook,takeamomenttoexplaintoyourchildthedifferencebetweenthetwotypesofbooks.Thefirstbooktoldamade-up,make-believestory,andanonfictionbookisaboutrealpeople,places,andthings.Theinformationinnonfictionbookscananswerlotsofquestions.

5. Feelfreetopickandchoosefromtheactivities,orchangethemtosuityourchild’sinterests.Readthebooksagainoverthenextfewdaysandtrydifferentactivities.Mostimportant:havefun!

When you’re done...

6. Keepthebookmark,theactivities,andthispage.Completethesurveyandreturnitwiththebookstoyourchild’sschool.

Makethemostoftheexcitementthebookscreate,andtrysomehands-onlearningormake-believefun.Exploringnewideasalongsideyouletsyourchildseeyoulearning–andreading–too,andgivesyourchildpersonalexperiencestosupporthergrowingknowledge.


CREATIVE ACTIVITY : DinosAuRs

makeapuzzleJustlikeapaleontologist(someonewhostudiesfossilsandprehistoriclife)hastofigureoutwhichbonesgowhereinordertoputtogetherhisdinosaurdiscovery,youandyourchildcanhaveasimilarexperiencebycreatingandputtingtogetheryourowndinosaurjigsawpuzzle.

supplies

>> Cardboardorposterboard(anemptycerealboxwouldworkwell)

>> Picturesofdinosaursdrawnbyyouoryourchild,imagesfrommagazines,orpicturesprintedfromacomputer(www.search4dinosaurs.comofferslinkstoillustrateddinosaurimages)

>> Markerorpencil

>> Glueorotheradhesive

>> Scissors

>> Ziplocbagforkeepingpuzzlepieces

instructions

1. First,choosethepictureyouwanttouseforyourpuzzle.(Makesureyourchildunderstandsthattheimagewillbecutintopuzzlepieces.)

2. Gluetheimagetoapieceofposterboardorcardboardthatisthesamesizeasyourpicture.

3. Showyourchildhowtodrawpuzzleshapes.Encourageyourchildnottomakepuzzlepiecesthataretoocomplexasthosewillbedifficulttocutout.Drawthepuzzlepieceswithmarkerorpencilonthebackofthecardboard,notontheimage.

4. Afterthegluehasdried,cutoutyourpuzzlepiecestogether.Itmaybedifficultforyourchildtocutthroughthickcardboardorposterboard,soexercisecautionandpayattentiontosmallchildrenwhenscissorsareused.

When you and your child put together the dinosaur puzzle, talk about:

>> Wherethisdinosaurmighthavelived>> Howscientistsdiscoverdinosaurbones>> Wherepeoplecangotoseedinosaurbones>> Howdoscientistsknowhowtoputdinosaurbonestogether?

Buildadinosauronline:http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/dinosaurs/buildadino/index.htm

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Draw picture of dinosaur glue to cardboard cut out puzzle shapes


GET REAL ACTIVITY : DinosAuRs

measuringupd

One thing about dinosaurs that fascinates many children is their size. But how big is big? You may read together that Brachiosaurus is about 80 feet long, 40 feet tall, and weighed 70-80 tons, but what does that mean?

Get out and about and use everyday measurements to help your child understand the size of dinosaurs:

>> Showyourchildatreethattops40feet(birchormapleoftenarethatheight)orafourstorybuildingtogetthesenseofhowtallBrachiosaurusstood.Astandardkids’soccerfieldisabout90feetwide,soaBrachiosauruscouldliedowncross-wiseonthefieldbuthistailwouldstillstickoutbyabout10feet!Orifabusisabout40feetlong,aBrachiosauruswouldbeabout2buseslong.Thereare2,000poundsinaton.Howmuchdoesyourchildweigh?HowmanyofyourchildwouldittaketoequaloneBrachiosaurus?

Findoutthemeasurementsofyourfavoritedinosaursandseehowtheymeasureup!

>> Someofthelargestdinosaurfootprintsfoundintheworldwouldbebigenoughtositin—aboutthreefeetbythreefeet.Makeacut-outpaperversionofafossilizeddinosaurprintandapaperversionofyourchild’sfootandyourfoot.Haveyouchildguesshowmanyofhisfootprintwouldbeneededtofillinthedinosaurprintandwritedownhisestimate.Thenlethimtracehispaperfootprintasmanytimesasnecessarytofillinthedinosaurprint.Havehimcounthisfootprintsandseehowclosehisestimatewas.

Turnthepaperdinosaurprintoverandhavehimtryagain—thistimewithyourfootprint.

>> Manydinosaurswereverylarge,butsomeweresmall.Thesmallest,thenon-aviandinosaurParvicursor,waslessthan15incheslong.Useatapemeasureorrulertomeasureyourchild’sheight.HowmuchtallerishethanParvicursor?Thanothersmalldinosaurs?Talkaboutthekindsofthingsthatyourchildcandothathecouldn’tdoifheweresmaller.Thenthinkaboutbigdinosaurs.Whatkindsofthingscouldyourchilddoifheweremuchbiggerorhadthehelpofaverylargedinosaur?

Encourageyourchildtowriteordrawpicturesaboutbeingbigorbeinglittle.

More great online resources about dinosaurs

ForhisCaldecott-Honor-winningillustrationsinThe Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins,illustratorBrianSelznicktraveledtoLondontosketch,photograph,andclimbinsidethefamousdinosaurreplicas.WatchthisReadingRocketsvideointerviewinwhichheshareshisdinosauradventure.http://www.readingrockets.org/books/interviews/selznick

Enteryourzipcodetofindoutwhatdinosaurslivedinyourbackyardmillionsofyearsago.TheDiscoveryChanneloffersaninteractivetourofprehistoricNorthAmerica.http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/dinos/dinos.html

DownloadadditionaltitlerecommendationsandactivityideasintheReadingIsFundamentalStorySamplerDino-StoriesforpreschoolersandchildreningradesK-2.http://www.rif.org/assets/Documents/StorySamplers/Dinosaurs.pdf

GowithNOVAonanexcitingArctictrekandwatchasateamofpaleontologistsattemptstotunnelintothepermafrostofNorthernAlaskainsearchoffossildinosaurbones.http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/arcticdino/program.html

JoininavirtualdinosaurdigandfindmoredinosaurlinksattheSmithsonianNationalMuseumofNaturalHistory.http://paleobiology.si.edu/dinosaurs/

ExplorePBS’sdinosaurfieldguide,acompanionresourceforthePBSshowDinosaurTrain,developedespeciallyforkids3-8yearsold.http://pbskids.org/dinosaurtrain/games/fieldguide.html


IMAGINATION ACTIVITY : DinosAuRs

Dinosaur: from the Greek “deinos” meaning “terrible or powerful” and “sauros” meaning “lizard”

Withtheirunusualandcomplicatednames,dinosaursofferarichopportunitytoexplorelettersandlanguage.Herearesomeideastotry:

>> FormalscientificnamesfordinosaurscomefromLatinandGreekwordsandarehardtopronounceusingEnglish.UsetheDinoDictionarytolistentothepronunciationofmorethan300dinosaurnames.www.dinodictionary.com

>> Dinosaursareusuallynamedforthewaytheylookorbehave,butthescientistwhodiscoversanewdinosaurcannameitforanythingheorshelikes—aspeciallocation,afamilymemberorfriend,oramythicalbeast.Spendsometimecomingupwithandwritingdownnewnamesfordinosaursthatyourchilddrawsorimagines.

>> Usethenameofarealdinosaurtocreateanacrosticpoem.Writethenameofthedinosaurlikethis:

M

A

I

A

S

A

U

R

A

Begineachlinewithawordthatstartswiththeletteronthatline.SinceMaiasaurameans“goodmotherlizard”thispoemmightdescribethedinosaurmother’srelationshipwithheryoungones.

>> Youcanalsoplaywithwordswiththenamesofrealdinosaurs.FollowthisexamplefromthePBSshowWordWorldtobuildaWordThingofyourchild’sfavoritedinosaur:

http://pbskids.org/wordworld/activities/103b.html

what’sinaname?d



Parent SurveyMychildandIreadbooksanddidactivitiestogetherabout:

animals

theenvironment

folktales

food

music

time

TheVeryHungryCaterpillar

dinosaurs

Tellusaboutyourexperiencewiththeactivities:

easyandfuntodo

thedirectionsweredifficulttounderstand

mychildenjoyedtheactivities

Didtalkingaboutwhatyouwerereading,andtheactivitieshelpyourchildtolearn?(on a scale of 1 to 5)

12345

(did not learn much)

(learned a lot)

Wouldyouliketotryanother“readandlearntogether”activitywithyourchild?yesno

Whatkindsofthingsisyourchildinterestedin?


Adventures in Reading: Family Literacy Bags from

Reading Rockets

Featured titlesFiction Danny and the Dinosaur by Syd Hoff

Nonfiction Dinosaurs by Gail Gibbons

Additional fiction titles Dinorella: A Prehistoric Fairy Tale by Pamela Duncan Edwards

Edwina, the Dinosaur Who Didn’t Know She Was Extinct by Mo Willems

How Do Dinosaurs Get Well Soon? by Jane Yolen

When Dinosaurs Came with Everything by Elise Broach

Additional nonfiction titles Digging Up Dinosaurs by Aliki

Dinosaurs, Dinosaurs by Byron Barton

Dinosaurs: The Biggest, Baddest, Strangest, Fastest by Harold Zimmerman & George Olshevsky

How Big Were the Dinosaurs? by Bernard Most

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