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Meerkat Mail
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Author: Emily Gravett |
Unit Prepared by Eloise
Note: Make sure to give your student ample opportunity to observe the
wonderfully creative and funny (and even educational) details scattered
throughout this book! Even the cover includes a little blurb in the
postmark, "Meerkat Mail. Part of the Mongoose Group."
Did your student know that scientists classify meerkats with mongooses?
There are tons of fun details hidden throughout! See how many your
student can find. More information regarding this topic is in
the Art lessons.
Bible
Contentment
Sunny started off
being very discontent with his situation, to the extent that he decided to leave
home. Paul talks about learning to be content with what we have. (Philippians
4:11-12) Discuss with your child what that means.
Other
references:
1 Timothy 6:8
Hebrews 3:5
Being
Afraid
Sunny was afraid of
the dark. He also felt a bit lonely. Discuss those feelings with your child.
You may want to memorize Psalm 4:8.
The
Prodigal Son
Luke 15:11-31
The welcome home by his family at the end reminds us of the Prodigal Son coming
home. Share the story with your child of the Prodigal Son and how that speaks of
God’s love for us.
Social Studies
Geography- Kalahari Desert
After reading the story once, what does your student already know about the
Kalahari Desert? (It is VERY dry and VERY hot.) Can your student
guess where this desert is found?
Place a story disc on the Kalahari Desert in South Africa.
The Kalahari Desert is a large arid to semi-arid
sandy area in the Southern part of Africa. It covers much of Botswana, and parts
of Namibia and South Africa. It is not considered a true desert because it
does receive some rainfall each year (usually 3-10 inches; you may want to
compare this rainfall with the amount you get each year).
Geography- Landform: Dunes
Sunny's first postcard home is addressed to
The Big Meerkat Mob
Sandy Burrow
The Dunes
Kalahari Desert
Under the Big Blue Sky
What are dunes? A dune is a hill or a ridge made of sand. They are shaped
by the wind, and change all the time.
Geography- Marsh
Great Aunt-Flo lives in a marsh. Would your student like to live in a
marsh?
A marsh is a type of freshwater or saltwater wetland that is found along rivers,
pond, lakes and coasts. Many scientists believe freshwater marshes are the
most productive ecosystems on Earth; they provide food, water, and shelter, and
act as nurseries for young fish, birds, insects, amphibians, and so on.
Freshwater Marsh Printout
Map Making (Creative Project)
If you would like to, make a map of
Sonny’s journey as he visited all his relatives.
My
Family
Look
at all those family photos (on the inside flap of the book)! Gather
up as many family pictures as you can find and let your student make a photo
album of his family (this could be in a small book, in his notebook, or for his
lapbook). Let him label each picture with the right name(s), dates,
and eve captions, if desired. Discuss why it is important to label your
photos.
You could also make a
family tree with your child. Include extended family (aunts, uncles,
cousins). Add photos if possible.
Language Arts
Postcards
Activity Ideas
1. Design a postcard
depictive of your area and send it to a family or friend.
2. Look at
postcards depicting your area where you live and discuss things that make your
area unique. Send a postcard to a friend or family member telling them something
about where you live.
3. Learn more about another area or country that your student is
interested in and design a postcard from that country.
4. Ask friends and family members to mail postcards to your student.
Listmaking
If you look
closely at the first note Sunny writes his family, you will see that he has a
list of things to pack and has crossed off each one. What was on Sunny's
list? (toothbrush, bucket, toothpaste, stamps) Make a list
of things you think would be important if you were going to make a trip.
Vocabulary
Solitary-
living habitually alone or in pairs
Nocturnal- active at night
Diurnal-
active by day
Nomadic-like a nomad, with no fixed residence, roams
Vigilant-
keenly watchful to detect danger
Family
motto
What was the family
motto? (Stay safe, stay together) What is a motto? A short
expression of a guiding rule of conduct.
Think of a motto that would best describe your family. Design a poster or
minit book for your lapbook that includes and illustrates your family motto.
Humor in Writing
Read the newspaper article on the front inside flap. What's funny
about it? Does your student realize the reporter's name, Liz Ard, is
really a play on the word lizard? What about Uncle Bob's family
motto? And, did you notice the way Sunny signed the postcard from Mildred
and Frank's? Be sure to read the story each day, it's important that
your student has a chance to pick up on the fun details that this author has
given to us. (Also see Art - Humor in Art)
Creative Writing
Your older student may want to try something new-- write a story using
letters or postcards! He could have just one character writing home (like
Sunny) or he could choose two characters to correspond.
Art
Details
In many children's books, the illustrations tell more than the story.
From the time Sunny goes against the family motto and leaves home, he is
stalked by a jackal. But the story doesn't mention that--it's only in the
illustrations. Sometimes you really have to look closely to see him--kids will
love looking for him!
Humor in Art
Again, by looking for the details in these illustrations, you will not only
find more to the story, you will find something funny! Did your student
notice the egg on the postcard from the farm? The termite bites out of the
postcard from Scratch and Mitch's? Humor can even be found on the back
inside cover (Mildred...or Frank?). Spend some time looking for the funny
details and have fun laughing together.
Math
Calendar
Skills: Days of the Week
Teach the days of the week to your student. Make a list of where Sunny
was on each day of the week.
Science
Meerkats
Please see Homeschool Share's Meerkat Animal Study & Lapbook
Other
African Animals
Many other animals are
mentioned or illustrated throughout the story. Let your student choose an
animal to learn more about. You could also spend time learning about
African animals that weren't mentioned in the book.
~Jackal
Based on the pictures in the story, can your student identify what group of
animals the jackal belongs to? The jackal is a mammal in the dog family.
Jackals can be found in Africa and southwestern Asia. There are
three different species of jackal: Golden jackal, Side-striped jackal, and
Black-backed jackal. The jackal in our story is probably a
Black-backed jackal.
The Black-backed jackal has silver-black fur running from the back of its neck
to the base of its tail. The underside is white, and the rest of the body
varies from reddish brown to ginger. It has very large pointed ears and is
more slender than the other species. Black-backed jackals usually live in
pairs. In order to catch larger prey, they hunt in packs. They are
nocturnal predators who hunt for hares, rodents, gazelles, snakes, lizards, and
many other small animals. Black-backed jackals are omnivorous (plant and
meat eating); they also eat fruits and berries.
~Red-billed Hornbill
Hornbills are characterized by their long, down-curved bills. As you
probably guessed, the Red Hornbill's bill is red and other hornbills often have
brightly colored bills. Hornbills live throughout Africa and are
omnivorous meaning they eat meat (insects and small animals) as well as
vegetables (fruit). They can't swallow food, so they toss it back in their
throats with a jerk of their heads.
The Red-billed Hornbill is white on it's head and underside and grey on it's
upperparts. It has a long tail and long bill. It specifically eats fruit
and insects. It has a unique tok-tok-tok-toktoktok call.
The Red-billed Hornbills live in holes in trees; they block the holes with a
mud, dropping, and fruit pulp mix. The female lays three to six white eggs
in the nest; she stays in the tree while the father brings her food.
The hole in the tree is just large enough for the father to get food to the
mother. When the chicks are too large to fit in the nest, the mother
breaks out and rebuilds.
~Termites
Termites are social insects who build nests in large trees, in soil, and even
underground to house their colonies. Using their saw-toothed jaws,
termite eat 24 hours a day, seven days a week! They feast on lumber, wallpaper,
plastics, and fabric. They are known as pests because they cause a lot of
damage each year to homes and other buildings.
There are four types of termites: dampwood, drywood, underground, and
mound builders. Your student may want to investigate the different types
or check out some books on termites to learn even more.
Melting
Sunny’s ice-cream is melting because it is so hot.
Discuss the concept of melting
with your student-- to change from a solid to a liquid state usually through
heat. Introduce the terms solid and liquid and give examples of both. Give your
young student a block of chocolate or some ice cubes and ask them to put it in a bowl in
the sun. Ask them what they think will happen. Will they change
forms? Which one will melt first?
For an older student, you may want to try the following science activity:
Supplies Needed
ice cubes
a pot of boiling water
a facet of running water
Instructions
Ask your student which one will melt first--
1. An ice cube in a boiling pot of water
or
2. An ice cube under running cold water
Heat the water on the stove to boiling. Turn on the cold water facet in
your sink. Select two same-sized ice cubes. Put one in the pot and
hold the other in your hand under the running water. Observe which
one melts first. Is your student surprised? How could cold water
melt an ice cube faster than boiling water? Ice melts as heat moves inward
from the surrounding area. The greater the difference between the temperatures
of the ice and its surroundings, the faster the heat will move inwards. So why
didn't the ice in the boiling water melt first?
When you first put the ice into the hot water, heat moved quickly in from the
surrounding water, causing the ice to melt. That left it surrounded by a layer
of cold water from the freshly melted ice and water that had given up a lot of
its heat as the ice melted. This layer of cool water insulated the ice, slowing
the melting process.
Even though the running water was cool, it was still quite a bit warmer than the
ice. It was flowing, so any melted ice was quickly carried away, and the
insulating layer of cold water did not form. The flowing water provided a
constant supply of heat to continue the melting process, so it melted the ice
much faster.
Experiment Source
Sun
safety
When it
is hot, what are some things we need to remember? Drink
liquids, put on sunscreen, stay in the shade if possible, and wear a hat. Can your
student
think of some ways to keep cool?
Just for fun
Make fruit popsicles with fruit juice
(or yogurt) to enjoy on a hot day.
Go out for ice cream at the end of the unit.
Art
activity
Mix a few
drops of food coloring with water and freeze them in ice-cube trays, adding
craft sticks for handles. Paint a picture with the melting cubes.
Library
List
The Jolly Postman by Allan Ahlberg
Meerkat's Safari by Claudia Graziano
Meet the Meerkat by Darrin Lunde
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