Page 2 - Kind News Teacher Guide, May/June 2023

COMMON CORE, NEXT GENERATION SCIENCE STANDARDS (NGSS), AND CASEL-ALIGNED ACTIVITIES

Third grade: NGSS Disciplinary Core Idea ESS2.D: Weather and Climate: Scientists record patterns of the weather
across different times and areas so that they can make predictions about what kind of weather might happen next.
(3-ESS2-1); Climate describes a range of an area's typical weather conditions and the extent to which those
conditions vary over years. (3-ESS2-2) CASEL Core Competencies: Responsible Decision-Making, Social Awareness
To go with “What Climate Change Means for Wildlife” and the Climate Crossword: After reading the article and doing
the crossword, ask students what climate is. How is it different from weather? How is the changing climate negatively
affecting animals? How can warmer weather sometimes mean more ticks for moose? Ask students if they know of any
other animals besides moose who are affected by climate change in your area or around the world. Some examples:
• Polar bears: loss of sea ice habitat • Sea turtles: nesting sites are vulnerable to rising
• Salmon: not able to reproduce in warmer waters sea levels and temperatures

Ask students to come up with tangible things they can do in their everyday lives to help combat climate change, using
the crossword tips as a jumping-off point. To extend the activity, students could choose an animal affected by climate
change and research ways to help that animal.

For more information, visit: worldwildlife.org/teaching-resources/toolkits or Climatekids.nasa.gov
Fourth and Fifth grade activity: Fourth grade standards: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.4.3: Write narratives to develop
real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences;
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.4.2: Paraphrase portions of a text read aloud or information presented in diverse media
and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
Fifth grade standard: NGSS Disciplinary Core Idea LS2.A: Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems: Organisms
can survive only in environments in which their particular needs are met. A healthy ecosystem is one in which
multiple species of different types are each able to meet their needs in a relatively stable web of life. Newly
introduced species can damage the balance of an ecosystem. (5-LS2-1). CASEL Core Competencies: Responsible
Decision-Making, Self-Awareness, Social Awareness
To go with Pet Corner, “Keeping Ticks Away,” and “What Climate Change Means for Wildlife”: After reading both of the
articles, ask students why ticks are a problem. What is allowing them to stay alive longer in some areas? What does
this mean for pets and wildlife like moose? What is a parasite? Discuss the connection between changing ecosystems
and changing welfare for animals. What other examples can they think of where climate change directly affects
animals’ well-being? (See third grade activity for examples if needed.) Ask students to research one wildlife species
and share how climate change is affecting them, as well as anything people are doing to help that animal. Some
creative ideas for how students can share their findings:
• Write a story from the point of view of the animal in trouble. (Students could also include what people are doing
to help the animal to give the story a positive ending.)
• Create a slideshow showing the effects of climate change on the animal with tips on what people can do to help.
• Make a video in which they discuss effects on the animal with tips on what people can do to help. (When done at
home, students can review home-based ideas from the climate crossword.)
Sixth grade: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.6.7: Conduct short research projects to answer a question, drawing on several
sources and refocusing the inquiry when appropriate. CASEL Core Competency: Social Awareness
To go with To the Rescue, “Meet Eggo the Pigeon”: After reading the article, ask students if they thought pigeons had
personalities. Were they surprised to learn this? Then ask them to think of other animals they have met and/or their pets.
How can they tell what these animals like, dislike, think, or feel? Allow students time to research pigeons or another
animal of their choice and learn more about their personalities. Other possibilities could include chickens, pigs, or fish.
Questions for them to look into:
• How does the animal communicate with the same species? With humans?
Emotion Crossword
• How can we tell what an animal is communicating? How does body language play a role in this? Puzzle Available at
• What are some differences in the ways individual animals or people communicate? KindNews.org/games!
• What might an animal do to show they like/dislike something?

For more on animal personalities, check out our Sept/Oct 2020 issue at KindNews.org/archive.