...Tetrapods - Reptilia - Archosauromorpha - Dinosauria - Maniraptora - Aves

(prehistoric birds)
The Simon and Schuster Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs & Prehistoric Creatures by Cox, Savage, Gardiner, Harrison, and Palmer
Dinosaurs: a visual encyclopedia by DK Publishing

Vocabulary Added:
manuraptor: hand-snatcher
aves: birds

Activity:
Draw and label parts of any two prehistoric birds (gastornis)
Add aves to Animal Kingdom tree

Ancient China - Writing and Art

Tongues of Jade by Lawrence Yep

Discussion:
Remember the bone oracles?  The First Emperor's standardization?

Activity:
Picture Study: trip to the Smithosonian's Freer and Sackler Galleries
Learn to write some Chinese characters

Chordates - Vertebrata - Sarcopterygii - Tetrapods - Reptilia - Archosauromorpha - Carnosaurs and Dromaeosaurs

Velociraptor by Elaine Landau
Tyrannosaurus Rex by Elaine Landau
Bizarre Dinosaurs by Christopher Sloan
The Simon and Schuster Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs & Prehistoric Creatures by Cox, Savage, Gardiner, Harrison, and Palmer
Dinosaurs: a visual encyclopedia by DK Publishing
Amazing Dinosaurs by Dougal Dixon
Ultimate Dinopedia by Don Lessem and Franco Tempesta

Vocabulary Added:
carnosaur: meat-lizard
dromeosaur: runner-lizard

Activity:
Field trip to the National Museum of Natural History
Draw and label a carnosaur and dromeosaur
Add carnosaur and dromeosaur to Animal Kingdom tree

Ancient China - Science and Medicine

The Gods and Goddesses of Ancient China by Leonard Everett Fisher
Read-aloud: Tongues of Jade by Lawrence Yep

Ancient China by Jane Shuter
Ancient China by Brian Williams
Made in China by Suzanne Williams

Discussion:
What is acupuncture?
What does a seismograph do?
Telling time - water clock

Activity:
Picture Study from Science in Ancient China by George Beshore
Make a seismograph and/or water clock (Great Ancient China Projects You Can Build Yourself by Lance Kramer and Steven Weinberg)

Chordates - Vertebrata - Sarcopterygii - Tetrapods - Reptilia - Archosauromorpha - Pterosauria and Ornithschia

Beyond the Dinosaurs: Monsters of the Air and Sea by Charlotte Lewis Brown and Phil Wilson
Dactyls! Dragons of the Air by Robert T. Bakker and Luis V. Rey
Pterosaurs by Elaine Landau

The Simon and Schuster Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs & Prehistoric Creatures by Cox, Savage, Gardiner, Harrison, and Palmer

Dinosaurs: a visual encyclopedia by DK Publishing

Amazing Dinosaurs by Dougal Dixon
Ultimate Dinopedia by Don Lessem and Franco Tempesta

Vocabulary Added:
pterosaura: wing-lizard
dinosauria: terror-lizard
ornithischia: bird-hip 

Activity:
Draw and label a pterosaur and ornithischian
Add pterosaurs, dinosaurs, and ornithiscians to Animal Kingdom tree

Ancient China - Trade and Travel

The Gods and Goddesses of Ancient China by Leonard Everett Fisher
Read-aloud: Tongues of Jade by Laurence Yep

Ancient China by Jane Shuter
Ancient China by Brian Williams
Made in China by Suzanne Williams

Discussion:
The Silk Road
Ships and sailing

Activity:
Make a compass (Great Ancient China Projects You Can Build Yourself by Lance Kramer and Steven Weinberg)

Chordates - Vertebrata - Sarcopterygii - Tetrapods - Reptilia - Archosauromorpha - Crocodylotarsi

GIANT Croc Captured - Man-eating Super Croc
Adult and baby Gharials - Ganges - BBC
Otters fighting with a Crocodile


Who lives in an Alligator Hole? by Anne and Lizzy Rockwell
Starting Life Crocodile by Clare Llewelyn and Simon Mendez
The Simon and Schuster Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs & Prehistoric Creatures by Cox, Savage, Gardiner, Harrison, and Palmer

Vocabulary Added:
reptilia: creeping
archosauromorpha: ruler-lizard-form
crocodylotarsi: crocodile-ankle

Activity:
Draw and label two kinds of crocodiles
Add crocodylotarsi to Animal Kingdom tree

Ancient China - Society

Growing Up in Ancient China by Ken Teague
The Gods and Goddesses of Ancient China by Leonard Everett Fisher
Read-aloud: Tongues of Jade by Lawrence Yep

Ancient China by Jane Shuter
Ancient China by Brian Williams
Made in China by Suzanne Williams

Discussion:
Rich and poor in China
How did the Emperor live?  How did a merchant live?  How did a farmer live?

Activity:
Cooking time - tea, noodles, mooncakes
Picture Study in Ancient Chinese Art by Jane Shuter

Ancient China - Religious Beliefs

Chen Ping and His Magic Axe by Demi
The Dragon's Tale and Other Animal Fables of the Chinese Zodiac by Demi (Rooster, Monkey, Boar)
Read-aloud: The Painted Wall and Other Strange Tales by Michael Bedard

Ancient China by Jane Shuter
Ancient China by Brian Williams
Made in China by Suzanne Williams

Discussion:
Lao Zi and Confucius
The Chinese Zodiac

Activity:
Figure out which animal of the Zodiac you are
Learn some Tai Chi moves

Chordates - Vertebrata - Sarcopterygii - Lissamphibians - Gynophiona

The Caecilian

Amphibians by Melissa Stewart
World of Animals: Amphibians and Reptiles: Salamanders, Newts, and Caecilians by Chris Mattison

Vocabulary Added:
gymnophiona: naked-serpentine

Activity:
Draw and label a caecilian
Add gymnophiona to Animal Kingdom tree

Ancient China - Unification

The Terracotta Warriors

The Dragon's Tale and Other Animal Fables of the Chinese Zodiac by Demi (Horse, Goat, Monkey)
Read-aloud: The Painted Wall and Other Strange Tales by Michael Bedard

Ancient China by Jane Shuter
Ancient China by Brian Williams
Made in China by Suzanne Williams
The Great Wall of China by Lesley A. Dutemple

Discussion:
The First Emperor
The origin of the word "China" (from "Qin")
The Great Wall of China

Activity:
Build a great wall of China out of blocks.  Use Playmobil people as builders/invaders.
Build a suspension bridge (Great Ancient China Projects You Can Build Yourself by Lance Kramer and Steven Weinberg)
Picture Study in Ancient Chinese Art by Jane Shuter

Chordates - Vertebrata - Sarcopterygii - Lissamphibians - Urodela

axolotl - little monster
Japanese Giant Salamander

Frogs Toads, Lizards, and Salamanders by Nancy Winslow Parker and Joan Richards Wright
World of Animals: Amphibians and Reptiles: Salamanders, Newts, and Caecilians by Chris Mattison

Vocabulary Added:
urodela: tailed

Activity:
Draw and label a favorite newt and salamander
Add urodela to Animal Kingdom tree

Chordates - Vertebrata - Sarcopterygii - Lissamphibia - Anura

Bullfrog Hunts....Anything!
Golden River: The Unusual Peepa Toad

Frogs by Nic Bishop
Poison Dart Frogs by Jennifer Owings Dewey
Frogs, Toads, Lizards, and Salamanders by Nancy Winslow Parker and Joan Richards Wright

Vocabulary Added:
tetrapod: four-foot
amphibian: both-lives
anura: no-tail

Activity:
Draw and label a frog
Add tetrapod, and amphibian and anura to Animal Kingdom tree

Ancient China - War and Weaponry

The Art of War by Sun Tzu:

• Waging War 6
• Attack by Strategm 3
• Attack by Strategm 17
• Maneuvering 12
• Maneuvering 7
• The Attack by Fire 22

The Song of Mu Lan by Jeanne M. Lee
The Dragon's Tale and Other Animal Fables of the Chinese Zodiac by Demi (Rabbit, Dragon, Snake)
Read-aloud: The Painted Wall and Other Strange Tales by Michael Bedard

Ancient China by Jane Shuter
Ancient China by Brian Williams
Made in China by Suzanne Williams

Discussion:
The Zhou
Warring states

Activity:
Build a yurt in the backyard
Study how a crossbow works
Make a kite.  See if you can drop "gunpowder" with it.

Chordates - Vertebrata - Sarcopterygii - Dipnoi and Actinistia

Fooled by Nature - Lungfish
Finding the Coelacanth

Dinosaurs: A Visual Encyclopedia by DK Publishing, pp. 78-85

Vocabulary Added:
sarcopterygii: flesh-wing (fin)
dipnoi: double-breathing
actinistia: ray

Activity:
Draw and label a lungfish and a coelacanth
Add sarcopterygii and dipnoi and actinistia to Animal Kingdom tree

Ancient China - Geography

All the Way to Lhasa: A Tale from Tibet by Barbara Helen Berger
The Dragon's Tale and Other Animal Fables of the Chinese Zodiac by Demi (Rat, Ox, Tiger)

Ancient China by Jane Shuter
Ancient China by Brian Williams

Discussion:
The Xia Rulers and Erlitou
The Shang Rulers and Anyang
Oracle bones

Activity:
Locate ancient China on a world map
Color Map of ancient China - cities and major geographical features (mountains, rivers)

Choradates - Vertebrata - Actinopterygii - Neopterygii - Teleostei - Euteleostei

Life - Flying Fish Fly | Fish
Swimming Ocean Sunfish
Endangered Sea Horses - Oceans - BBC
River Monsters - Lassoing an electric eel

Eyewitness Fish by Steve Parker
World of Animals: Fish: Spiny-Finned Fish 2 by John Dawes
Flying Fish by Kris Hirschmann
Barracudas by Colleen Sexton
Sea Horses by Elaine Landau

Activity:
Field Trip to the National Aquarium
Draw any euteleosteiian fish (mola mola, sea horse, flying fish)

Choradates - Vertebrata - Actinopterygii - Neopterygii - Teleostei - Euteleostei

Piranhas Attack - BBC
Oarfish - Sea serpent
Anglerfish of the abyss

Fabulous Fishes by Susan Stockdale
Fishes by Melissa Stewart
About Fish by Cathryn Sill and John Sill
World of Animals: Fish: Piranhas, Guppies, and Allies by John Dawes

Vocabulary Added:
euteleosteii: good-complete-bone

Activity:
Fish dissection.  Go fishing or buy a whole fish.  Take it apart and examine it.  Cook and eat.
Draw any euteleosteian fish (piranha, oarfish)
Add euteleosteii to Animal Kingdom tree

Ancient India - Final Review

Narration: The Ramayana

Locate the following on a map:

• Indus Valley
• Indus River
• Ganges River
• Himalaya Mountains
• Mahenjo-daro
• Harrapa
• Sri Lanka

Know some things about the Hindu religion:

• dharma
• karma
• reincarnation
• Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva
• avatar
• Krishna, Nandi
• Parvati/Kali
• Lakshmi, Ganesh
• Diwali

Know some things about Buddhism:

• Who was the Buddha?
• The Eightfold Path
• nirvana

Name the periods of Ancient India's history in order, and describe what happened in each.

Chordates - Vertebrata - Actinopterygii - Neopterygii - Teleosteii - Elopomorpha

Gulper eel
Moray Eels -Reel Life of the Andaman - Part 7

World of Animals: Fish: Rays, Chimaeras, and Eels by David Alderton

Vocabulary Added:
elopomorpha: snake-form
leptocephalus: thin-head

Activity:
Draw and label parts of a favorite eel (moray eel)
Add elopomorpha to Animal Kingdom tree

Chordates - Vertebrata - Actinopterygii - Neopterygii - Teleosteii

(elephant-trunk fish, arowana, butterfly fish, aba aba)

World of Animals: Fish: Primitive Fish by John Dawes
World of Animals: Fish: Rays, Chimaeras, and Eels by David Alderton

Vocabulary Added:
neopterygii: new-wing
teleosteii: total-bone

Activity:
Draw and label 2 favorite fish (aba aba, butterfly fish, arowana)
Add neopterygii and teleosteii to Animal Kingdom tree

Ancient India - Buddha

Story Time:
The Prince Who Ran Away by Anne Rockwell and Fahimeh Amiri

Ancient India by Virgina Schomp

Discussion:
What is the Eightfold Noble Path?

Activity:
Picture study - Buddha in Anicent India

Ancient India - Diwali

Diwali - Festival of Lights

Story Time:
Seasons of Splendor by Madhur Jaffrey, "V The Siege of Lanka"

Hinduism by Dilip Kadodwala
Festivals of the World: India

Discussion:
What is Diwali?

Activity:
Activities from Festivals of the World: India

Chordates - Vertebrata - Actinopterygii - Acipenseriformes

Paddlefish (2)
Lake Sturgeon

World of Animals: Fish: Primitive Fish by John Dawes

Vocabulary Added:
actinopterygii: ray-fin
acipenseriformes: sturgeon-forms

Activity:
Draw and label parts of a paddlefish and sturgeon
I suppose if you're rich you could buy caviar for your kids to try...
Add actinopterygii and acipenseriforms to Animal Kingdom tree

Chordates - Vertebrata - Chondrichthyes - Elasmobranchii - Rajiformes

How the sawfish uses its saw 
Wild Kingdom - Manta Ray Secrets Revealed
Stingray

Rays by Martha E.H. Rustad
Rays: Animals with an Electric Charge by Andreu Llamas and Gabriel Casadevall/Ali Garousi
World of Animals: Fish: Rays, Chimaeras, and Eels by David Alderton

Vocabulary Added:
rajiformes: ray-form
pristiformes: saw-form
torpedo: sting ray

Activity:
Draw and label parts of a ray, sawfish
Skate dissection.  Buy a skate wing.  Cook it.  Learn about cartilage.
Add rajiforms, pristiforms to Animal Kingdom tree

Ancient India - War and Empire

Story Time:
Seasons of Splendor by Madhur Jaffrey, "IV The Search for Sita"

Ancient India by Virgina Schomp
Hinduism by Dilip Kadodwala

Discussion:
Chandragupta, Asoka, Gupta Empire

Activity:
Picture study - war and being a soldier in Anicent India
Narration to part IV

Ancient India - Society

Story Time:
Seasons of Splendor by Madhur Jaffrey, "III The Kidnapping of Sita"

Ancient India by Virgina Schomp
Hinduism by Dilip Kadodwala

Discussion:
What does "caste" mean?
The four main castes: Brahmans, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, Sudras
Untouchables

Activity:
Introduction to yoga: meditation, breathing, postures
Narration of part IV

Chordates - Vertebrata - Chondrichthyes - Elasmobranchii - Squaliformes, Squatiformes, Pristiophoriformes

BBC: Perfect Shark - Cookie Cutter Shark
Angel Shark Birth - Deep Sea World

Sharks and Rays: Underwater Predators by Sharon Sharth
World of Animals: Fish: Rays, Chimaeras, and Eels by David Alderton

Vocabulary Added:
squaliform: pale-form
squatiniform: flat shark-form
pristiophoriform: saw-form

Activity:
Draw and label parts of two favorite sharks
Add squaliforms, squatiniforms, and pristiophoriforms to Animal Kingdom tree

Ancient India - Gods and Goddesses

Story Time:
Seasons of Splendor by Madhur Jaffrey, "II Ram is Banished"

Ancient India by Virgina Schomp
Hinduism by Dilip Kadodwala

Discussion:
Vishnu, Brahma, and Shiva (with Nandi)
Kali, Parvati, Lakshmi

Activity:
Picture study - images of deities in Anicent India and Hinduism
Narration of Part II, "Ram is Banished"

Chordates - Vertebrata - Chondrichthyes - Elasmobranchii - Orectolobiformes, Carchariniformes, Lamniformes

Whale Shark
Shark Weekend: Great Hammerhead
BBC Planet Earth Series - Shark Attack Segment HD

Great White Sharks by John F. Prevost
Hungry, Hungry Sharks by Joanna Cole
Little Shark by Anna Rockwell and Megan Halsey
Sharks and Rays: Underwater Predators by Sharon Sharth

Vocabulary Added:
chondrichthyes: cartilage-fish
elasmobranch: thin plate-throat
orectolobus: stretched-lobe 
carchariniform: sharp-form
lamniform: monster-form

Activity:
Draw and label parts of 2 sharks of choice
Add chondrichthyes, elasmobranchs, and orectolobus, carchariniforms, and lamniforms to Animal Kingdom tree

Ancient India - Cities

Story Time:
Seasons of Splendor by Madhur Jaffrey, "How Ram Defeated the Demon King Ravan: I King Dashrat's Special Heir"

Settlements of the Indus River  by Rob Bowden
Ancient India by Virgina Schomp

Discussion:
What is a veda?  How old are the vedas?
What is an epic poem?

Activity:
Picture study of Mohenjo-daro and Harappa in Ancient India
Narration: Part I How Ram Defeated Ravan

Chordates - Vertebrata - Myxinoidea and Petromyzontiformes

Discovery Channel features Eddie Kisfaludy and Hagfish
Dirty Jobs - Spit Take | Sea Lamprey Exterminator

World of Animals: Fish: Primitive Fish by John Dawes

Vocabulary Added:
vertebra: joint
myxinoidea: mucus-like
petromyzontiform: stone-sucking-shape

Activity:
Draw and label parts of a lamprey, hagfish
Add vertebrates, myxinoidea, petromyzontiforms to the Animal Kingdom tree

Ancient India - Geography

Story Time:
Seasons of Splendor by Madhur Jaffrey, "The Moon and the Heavenly Nectar"

Settlements of the Indus River  by Rob Bowden
Ancient India by Virgina Schomp

Discussion:
Origins of the words "India", "Indus", "Hindu"
What is dharma?  karma?

Activity:
Locate India on a world map
Color a map of India, noting geography and major ancient cities - Map of India

Chordates - Urochordata

Giant Pyrasome and Salps - pelagic sea squirts
Mark Sharman: The One Show, Sea Squirts

World of Animals: Fish: Primitive Fish by John Dawes

Vocabulary Added:
chordate: chord
urochordate: tail-chord

Activity:
Draw and label parts of a sea squirt
Add chordates, urochordates to the Animal Kingdom tree

Mesopotamia - Final Review

The student should be able to answer the following oral questions and perform the following activities:


Identify the Fertile Crescent and its two major rivers.  Identify the two major seas in Israel and its river.

Identify the following places:

• Uruk
• Babylon
• Byblos
• Jerusalem
• Mt. Sinai

Point out the general location on a map of where the following groups lived, and something about their cultures

• Phoenicians
• Babylonians
• Sumerians
• Hittites
• Assyrians
• Israelites

Retell the epic of Gilgamesh.  Retell the major points of the flood of Utnapishtim.

Relate the sequence of major events and figures of Israelite history from Adam through Ezra with particular attention to interactions between cultures, including:

1. Adam/Eve
2. Noah and Flood :: Utnapishtim
3. Abraham
4. Jacob and his twelve sons
5. Joseph :: Egypt
6. Exodus 
7. Mt. Sinai and the 10 Commandments
8. Fall of Jericho
9. David and Goliath
10. Solomon
11. Ahab, Jezebel, and Elijah :: Phoenicians
12. Isaiah, Jeremiah, and the Assyrian Conquest :: Assyria
13. The Babylonian Captivity; Daniel and Esther :: Babylon
14. Return to Jerusalem, Ezra
15. Maccabees and Greece :: Greece
16. Roman conquest; Essenes, Pharisees, Scribes, and Sadducees :: Rome
17. Birth of Jesus Christ

Mesopotamia - Israel - Final Review

The Maccabeats - Candlelight

The Ancient World of the Bible by Malcolm Daly, Return to Jerusalem

Discussion:
Who were the Maccabees?  Why were they fighting?
What were the major groups of Israelite thinkers during Roman times? (Scribes, Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes)  What was daily life like for most other Israelites?
Who was Jesus Christ?

Activity:
List the sequence of events according to the Hebrew Bible, including major figures and places, from Adam to Jesus Christ

Invertebrates - Review Week

Watch any films the student particularly enjoyed during the invertebrates unit.
Re-read any books the student particularly enjoyed during the unit.

Activities:
(over the course of five days)

1. What is a mollusk? List the kinds of mollusks learned and give an example of each.
2. What is a cnidarian? List the kinds of cnidarians learned and give an example of each.
3. What is an echinoderm? List the kinds of echinoderms learned and give an example of each. 
4. What is a poriferan?  How do they help the ocean? What is an annelid?  Name three kinds of annelids. 
5. [On a piece of paper, recreate the arthropod tree with the meanings of the scientific names.] Student pastes the correct scientific designations over the meanings, gives examples of each kind of animal.

Mesopotamia - Israel - Subjugation and Exile

The Ancient World of the Bible by Malcolm Daly
Esther's Story by Diane Wolkstein and Juan Wihngaard

Discussion:
Talk about Israel's relationship with the Assyrians, Egyptians, Phoenicians, and Babylonians.  Positive/negative consequences?

Activity:
Summary of Hebrew stories from Adam and Eve through Esther