Whales Whales Whales

We had so much fun this week studying different types of whales! We read Amazing Whales by Sarah Thomson. My students LOVED it!  It was the week before spring break so my kiddos were all really squirrely. Reading about whales kept them engaged and on task. I chunked this text into three different sections to help my students take in all the information. We spent a day or two on each section looking at vocabulary and analyzing the text.

We started off by picking out some vocabulary words to concentrate on for the week. We did this whole group as we were reading our text. 

Next, with the vocabulary we filled out some graphic organizers to help strengthen understanding. Students used context clues from the text, glossaries, and dictionaries to help them define words. 

You can find these vocabulary graphic organizers for Amazing Whales in my store or by clicking here.

Then, we analyzed the text by labeling a whale, comparing and contrasting different whales, writing about how a whale breathes, and writing a whale report. All of these activities can be found in my store. You can click this link or any of the pictures to check it out! 

Label a Whale

Compare and Contrast Whales

How a Blowhole Works

Students loved choosing a whale to research and write a report on it.  They used Amazing Whales along with other texts to help them gather information about their chosen whale. Then, they wrote an informational essay on their chosen whale. I had my kiddos work in groups to do their research.  You can find these whale reports in my store here or by clicking on any of the pictures. 

Happy Whales!!