The Emperor s Kingdom Penguins on Ice By Dr Roger Kirkwood Genre Written and visual information Reading level Lower and upper primary Interest level Lower and upper primary About the book The Emperor s Kingdom is an excellent class resource that can be used across a range of age groups in primary school. The text is accessible and engaging. The photographs will capture student attention. The DVD is a great way to introduce the topics of Antarctica and Emperor Penguins. It s also a great way to start discussions on the impacts of climate change. Information is provided on Emperor Penguin breeding patterns, life cycle, habitat, food, relatives, predators and special features. The Fact Files located at the back of the book provide older students with more information, while the main text is caters for younger students. The listed websites are fantastic resources. On these sites students are able to do things such as check the current temperatures of Antarctica, use webcams to observe, and click links to hear recorded wildlife. *Notes may be downloaded and printed for regular classroom use only. Walker Books Australia Ph +61 2 9517 9577 Locked Bag 22 Fax +61 2 9517 9997 Newtown, N.S.W., 2042 These notes were created by Leonie Jordan. For enquiries please contact Leonie Jordan: leonie.jordan@walkerbooks.com.au Notes Black Dog Books Topics Antarctica Emperor Penguins Mating Breeding The Life Cycle Feeding Penguin calls Moulting Fasting Features Prey Predators Relatives These notes may be reproduced free of charge for use and study within schools but they may not be reproduced (either in whole or in part) and offered for commercial sale. 1
Pre-reading Activities The Emperor s Kingdom DVD Watch the DVD and complete the questions/activities below. Seascapes List some words to describe the climate in Antarctica. Travelling on Ice How do the penguins move across the ice? Curious Penguins How do the penguins look curious? Thirsty Penguins How do the penguins cure their thirst? Walking on Eggs List some words to describe how the penguins move. Surviving the Cold How do the penguins survive the cold? New Babies List some words to describe the new babies. List some words to describe the parent penguins. Growing Babies How is a new baby different to a growing baby? These notes may be reproduced free of charge for use and study within schools but they may not be reproduced (either in whole or in part) and offered for commercial sale. 2
Caring Parents How do the parents care for their babies? How are the babies similar to their parents? Life in the Colony What is one thing that you have learnt about life in a penguin colony? Student Questions As a class, make a list of some things that you would like to learn about Emperor Penguins. Teacher note: If students need help thinking of questions, they could use a question dice. For a template of this dice visit: http://vels.vcaa.vic.edu.au/support/tla/question.html# Book Features and Format The Emperor s Kingdom has many features that are important in factual texts: A title and sub-title Table of contents (note how the chapters are linked to photographs) Clear headings Photographs Page numbers A place to find more information about the topic A place to find more information about the author A blurb 1. Locate each of the above features in the book. 2. What is the book s full title? These notes may be reproduced free of charge for use and study within schools but they may not be reproduced (either in whole or in part) and offered for commercial sale. 3
3. What is the book s sub-title? 4. Not all books have a sub-title. What do you like about this sub-title? 5. What is one thing that you have learnt about the author? 6. Read the blurb and study the photographs on the back of the book. List three things that you learn about Emperor Penguins. Science Breeding Draw a timeline to show the stages of the Emperor Penguin breeding period. You might like to use illustrations to represent the stages. Place a tick in the appropriate column to show how the male and female Emperor Penguins divide the tasks related to breeding. The first one has been completed as an example. Task Male Female Lays the egg Caring for the egg Feeding first meal Caring for the chick Does anything surprise you about the breeding patterns of the Emperor Penguin? Life cycle Use the book and one other resource to draw the life cycle of the Emperor Penguin. These notes may be reproduced free of charge for use and study within schools but they may not be reproduced (either in whole or in part) and offered for commercial sale. 4
Communication Why does each Emperor Penguin have a unique call? You have already listened to the Emperor Penguins on the DVD. To hear some more sounds of the Emperor Penguin visit: http://www.aad.gov.au/default.asp?casid=229 Features Choose three features of the male, female and chick Emperor Penguins and complete the table below on features and functions. Be sure to look in the Fact Files for added information. Adult Male Emperor Penguin Feature Function Adult Female Emperor Penguin Feature Function Chick Emperor Penguin Feature Function These notes may be reproduced free of charge for use and study within schools but they may not be reproduced (either in whole or in part) and offered for commercial sale. 5
Chicks In what ways are the chicks like their parents? In what ways are they different? Food Look in the Fact Files to find information on prey and predators. Draw a poster to illustrate what you have learned. Create an Emperor Penguin quiz to test your classmates knowledge. Conservation In pairs, use a range of other resources to find answers to the questions listed below. What is global warming? How is it affecting Antarctica? What things can you do to protect the wildlife of Antarctica? Display your information on a poster. Penguin Game To play a save the penguin egg visit: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/marchofthepenguins/game/ Geography Antarctica Climate Use information from this book and at least one other source to find some facts about Antarctica. You might like to organise your notes under the headings listed below. Location Terrain Temperature Wildlife These notes may be reproduced free of charge for use and study within schools but they may not be reproduced (either in whole or in part) and offered for commercial sale. 6
Plants Threats to the area To find out the current temperature on Antarctica visit: http://www.aad.gov.au/default.asp?casid=27 On a map of the world label the continents. Draw symbols on Antarctica to represent what you know about the terrain and climate of the land. History Independent research Exploration Humans only discovered Antarctica 200 years ago. In the early days most came to hunt but some came to explore. Draw an exploration time line, showing the people who have sighted or landed on Antarctica. Research one of these early explorers. Present your timeline and findings in the form of a PowerPoint. English Reading and Writing Imagine that you are a scientist working in Antarctica. Write a journal entry describing what this place is like. Include in your description what you see, hear, taste, touch and smell. Remember, your aim is to bring the scene alive for the reader, so make your descriptions as real as you can. Use your knowledge about Emperor Penguins to write and illustrate a picture book that has an Emperor Penguin as the lead character. You might like to write a story about the adventures of an Emperor Penguin chick. These notes may be reproduced free of charge for use and study within schools but they may not be reproduced (either in whole or in part) and offered for commercial sale. 7
Watch the DVD again. The Emperor Penguins live in a harsh but beautiful place. Make a list of words to describe this place. Be sure to describe it using the five senses. Use the words from the activity above to write some poetry about the Emperor Penguins and their home. Some types of poems that you might write are listed below. Haiku Acrostic (or name poem) Cinquain Free verse Rhyming poem Couplet Watch the DVD The March of the Penguins, National Geographic Society, 2006. After you have watched the DVD, write a review for the film section of a major newspaper. Teacher note: for a full list of film resources for this topic visit: http://www.classroom.antarctica.gov.au/introduction/references-andresources#music Speaking and Listening Perform one of your poems for the class. Listen to the Penguin calls and noises again. In pairs, make a list of five things you think they might be saying. Share your list with the class. In pairs, give a PowerPoint presentation on one aspect of Antarctica to the class. Follow the steps below to help with the organisation of this task. These notes may be reproduced free of charge for use and study within schools but they may not be reproduced (either in whole or in part) and offered for commercial sale. 8
Step 1 Choose a research topic from the list below. You might like to choose your own topic. If this is the case, check with your teacher before you start to research. Whales King Penguins Adelie Penguins Antarctic Seals Plants in Antarctica Southern Ocean Sea Birds Human impact on Antarctica A day in the life of a scientist living in Antarctica Step 2 Use a question matrix or another graphic organiser to help you form your research questions. Start by brainstorming. Write down any questions that come into your head. After you have finished brainstorming, choose five questions to answer. Make sure that you choose the five that are the most interesting! Step 3 Complete a gantt chart to help you organise your time for this task. Teacher note: to view a template of this chart visit: http://vels.vcaa. vic.edu.au/support/graphic/other.html# Step 4 Begin your research. Make sure that you use at least four sources to find your information. You must include a bibliography in your presentation. The Arts Create a model of Antarctica. This could be done on cardboard. Cotton wool could be used for the ice and blue paint or paper for These notes may be reproduced free of charge for use and study within schools but they may not be reproduced (either in whole or in part) and offered for commercial sale. 9
the ocean. Red glitter could represent the krill swarms. Cut out pictures of the animals and glue them on. Listen to music that has been composed with Antarctica in mind. You will find some on the website below. Do these songs remind you of the climate, terrain, animals or plants in any way? Why or why not? Find one song that you think sounds cold. Explain your choice. http://classroomantarctica.aad.gov.au/textversion/resources_txt. html#music Visual Literacy Photographs Choose one photograph and list three things you have learnt from it. Choose the photograph that you felt gave the most information. Explain your choice. What is your favourite photograph? Explain your choice. The front cover heading uses a clever technique to draw the reader s attention to the subject of the book. What is it? Does the cover make you want to read the book? Why or why not? These notes may be reproduced free of charge for use and study within schools but they may not be reproduced (either in whole or in part) and offered for commercial sale. 10
About the author Roger Kirkwood spent a year living with Emperor Penguins on the Mawson Coast of Antarctica. He has participated in numerous research trips to study penguins and seals. When not venturing south, Roger works as a marine biologist for the Philip Island Penguin Parade in Victoria, Australia. These notes may be reproduced free of charge for use and study within schools but they may not be reproduced (either in whole or in part) and offered for commercial sale. 11