grade 5

Alaska Quilt

Summary: Students will create their own 12″ x 12″ Alaskan quilt.

Toothpick Experiment

Summary: Students will look for red, yellow, blue and green toothpicks distributed in a grassy area and discover that the green toothpicks are more difficult to find because they are the color of their surroundings.

Willow Ptarmigan — Master of Disguise

Summary: After conducting the toothpick experiment and reading Gone Again Ptarmigan students will see in this art activity how important camouflage is to Alaska’s state bird, the willow ptarmigan and other Arctic animals. (Other Arctic animals that change their coats or feathers with the season are the Arctic fox, the short-tailed weasel (known as ermine in their winter coats), the snowy owl, and the snowshoe hare. Polar bears keep their camouflage all year long!)

Mush! Art Lesson

Summary: Students will observe Jon Van Zyle’s Iditarod art as well as some of his other work showing the beauty of Alaska. They will learn a song about Jon and then draw their own Mush! Art following a step-by-step format.

Where on the Globe is Alaska?

Summary:

  • Students will learn the location of Alaska on the globe and on a map
  • Students will name bodies of water and countries to the north, south, east, and west of Alaska
  • Students will learn one or two facts about the Arctic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, Canada, and Russia

Memory Map

Summary: At the end of a three-week study students will draw and label a map of Alaska from memory.

RACE Necklace — Character Education

Summary: Students will string beads in the order demonstrated by the teacher.

Respect and Responsibility — Character Education

Summary: This lesson(s) will focus on the first tenet of the acronym RACE, respect and responsibility. Through song, reading, video, discussion, and drama students will identify and demonstrate respect and responsibility.