What is That?

The Aminal

written and illustrated by Lorna Balian

Play a variation of the "Telephone Game" before reading the story. Tell the group you are going to pass along an important message and ask them to make a picture in their mind of the information as it is being told to them. For example, quietly but distinctly tell the first participant a sentence such as "The tiny yellow bird flew noisily over the lush green forest". Have that child tell the next and so on until the sentence is passed back to the person who first told it. Compare the first sentence with the last to see how the message changed on the journey around the group.

After reading the story try this partner activity. Give Partner A a photo card or picture. "A" is allowed to give 3-5 clues to Partner B; these should be helpful but not specific enough to give the animal or object away. "B" may be allowed to ask 1-3 Yes-or-No questions before making a guess as to the identity of the pictured animal or object. Pointy ears, long tail, whiskers, yellow eyes, black fur might be clues for a picture of a witch's cat. There should be an opportunity for Partner B to give the clues and Partner A to guess.

This activity is great for practice in noting details, giving good descriptions or clues, and careful listening.