Unit Study Prepared by Andrea Dean
Social Studies:
Geography- George comes from Africa- find
Africa on the map; you could place a story disk in Africa or you could
place a story disk on a big city (in the United States) with a zoo where
George could live.
Character Traits- Curiosity. Is curiosity a
good character trait to have? A Bad trait to have? What are the benefits
to being curious? What are the drawbacks?
Occupations- there are many occupations you
could explore with this book.
Zookeeper- talk about what are a zookeeper's
responsibilities
Cook in a Restaurant- plan a menu you would like if
you had a restaurant,
Elevator Man- are there any buildings near you with
Elevator men?
Window Washer- what kind of equipment would a window
washer use?
Painter- choose paint colors for various rooms of
your house what colors would you choose? Would you like a room painted
like a jungle?
Ambulance Driver, Nurse, Doctor and Other Health Care
Professionals- How do these people help us. You could talk about how
to call for an ambulance, and how important it is to be able to tell
them your address.
Actor, Director, camera man- various people on the
movie set- talk about how movies are made- next time you watch a movie-
look at the credits, see how many people it took to make that movie.
City Life- After George leaves the zoo, he
rides a bus into the center of town. What things do you see in town?
Compare City life to country life. Notice how the buildings are all
close together, with no grass. Look at the signs on the buildings,
which building would you like to go in? Public Transportation- Taxis
and City Buses- has your child ever ridden on these? It might be fun to
take a ride in one.
Printable page of a matching activity for road/traffic signs
(older kids):
Language Arts
Classic story- this story was published in
1947. Place this on a timeline- compare it to when your child
was born, when you were born, when your child's grandparents were born.
First person vs. 3rd person- discuss how the
story is written in 3rd person, write or narrate your own story in 3rd
person. For an older child, have them retell the Curious George story in
first person, pretending they are the character of their choice, George,
the Man with the Yellow Hat, the Elevator Man. It would be an
interesting story from the point of view of the woman whose apartment
George decorated.
Newspaper Reporting- The man with the yellow
hat reads about George's adventure in the newspaper. Read a newspaper
article with your child. Have them write a newspaper story about
George's fall. Remember to include who, what, when, where, why and
how. Write a good headline for your story- one that will grab the
reader's attention.
Art
Mural When the painters leave the room, George
climbs in and paints a mural- a big picture on the wall. Are there any
buildings with Murals on the walls? Go and visit them. Paint a mural
for your house.
Self Portrait- George is painting himself in
the tree in his picture. Do your own self portraits. Find self
Portraits that other artists have done.
Artist style- the pictures in this story are
done in red and black. Look at other books and find some that are also
in two colors. Does it bother you that the Man with the yellow Hat
doesn't have a "yellow" hat?
Math
Yards and measuring- George is found eating
"yards and yards" of spaghetti. How long is a yard? 36 inches Can you
find things that measure 1 yard? How about 2 yards?
Multiply and divide by 2's- The cook says
George is lucky to have 4 hands because he can do work twice as fast.
If it took the cook 10 minutes to do the dishes, and George does them
twice as fast- how fast does George get them done? If George can wash
1 window in 3 minutes how long would it take a person to do the same
window?
Counting- There are many things to count in
this book- cans of paint, buildings, cars, buses, how many zookeepers
are looking for George? How many people chase him down the fire
escape? Count the windows on the building on the page where George is
washing the windows. You could introduce early multiplying by counting
across the row, then count down the stories, and multiplying them
together.
Science
Bones- George breaks his leg.
Bones are tough - but even tough stuff can break.
Like a wooden pencil, bones will bend under strain. But if the pressure
is too much, or too sudden, bones can snap. When a bone breaks it is
called a fracture There's more than one way to break or
fracture a bone. A break can be anything from a hairline fracture to
the bone that's snapped in two pieces like a broken tree branch.
Your bones are natural healers. At the
location of the fracture, your bones will produce lots of new
cells and tiny blood vessels that rebuild the bone. These cells
cover both ends of the broken part of the bone and close up the
break until it's as good as new.
Bones in the body have at least six
functions:
- structural support
- locomotion
- protection of various organs
- storage of chemicals
- nourishments, and
- sound transmission (in the middle
ear).
