Fun Facts About Mountain Lions and P22

Earlier this year I wrote a blog post about the children's book The Cat That Changed America by Tony Lee Moral.  The Cat That Changed America tells a fictionalized account of the mountain lion P22 that lives in Griffith Park in downtown Los Angeles.  Even though P22 is a bit of a celebrity in the Los Angeles area, people outside of Los Angeles were surprised to learn there really is a mountain lion living in the middle of the city!  They wanted to learn more about P22 and mountain lions in general.  In this blog post, I'll be sharing five fun facts about mountain lions and relating them to P22.  Keep reading to learn more!

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Fun Facts About Sloths

Last week, I wrote a blog post about Slothee Wants Coffee, a children's book by Nikki Pezzopane and Cameron Fica.  In Slothee Wants Coffee, a sloth named Slothee traveled the world in search of the perfect cup of coffee.  Today's blog post is full of fun facts about sloths like Slothee.  Keep reading to learn more about these fascinating... and absolutely adorable... animals!

Fun Facts About Reindeer

There are 22 days until Christmas!  Children all over the world are getting excited about Santa loading up his sleigh with toys and goodies.  They sing songs about his reindeer and imagine them flying through the night sky as they pull Santa's sleigh.  Do Santa's reindeer really fly?  Are the reindeer who pull his sleigh male or female?  Can reindeer really have a red glowing nose?  What do they eat?  Read on to learn the answer to all of these questions and more!

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Fun Facts About Cicadas

It's summer 2021... the year of the Brood X (Brood Ten) cicada!  At the time of this posting, billions of cicadas have already emerged from the ground in Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and Washington DC and are singing their mating songs, hoping to find a mate.  Do you live in an area that has been inundated with cicadas?  Have you ever wondered what the life of a cicada is like?  Read on to learn some interesting facts about these noisy insects!

Fun Facts About Sled Dogs

A few months ago, I wrote a blog post about Run Like a Sled Dog and Black Bear Goes to Washington by Denise Lawson.  (Run Like a Sled Dog and Black Bear Goes to Washington are two children's books inspired by a retired sled dog that Denise Lawson adopted.)  That particular post generated some interest in my readers to learn more about the lives of sled dogs.  What are sled dogs like?  What do sled dogs eat?  How do sled dogs manage in the Arctic cold?  Keep reading to learn the answers to these questions and to learn more about these magnificent creatures!

Fun Facts About Axolotls

In the game Minecraft, there are cute little axolotls that children love to collect. They come in a variety of colors... gold, brown, pink (leucistic), cyan, and blue... and can be found swimming in the clay pools found in lush caves. Many children are surprised when they find out that axolotls are animals that exist in real life and not just in the Minecraft realm. What are axolotls like in real life? Keep reading to find out!

Fun Facts About Rhinoceroses

September 22 is World Rhino Day. World Rhino Day was started in 2010 by the World Wildlife Fund as a way to celebrate the rhinoceros and to teach people around the world about them.  Several species of rhinoceros are critically endangered and need our help.  Read on to learn some fun facts about these amazing gentle giants and how we can help them.

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Fun Facts About the Platypus

The duck-billed platypus is an unusual-looking animal that has captured the interests of people from all over the world. It has feet like an otter, a tail like a beaver, and a bill like a duck. It lays eggs like a bird and can be venomous like a snake! Read on to find out more about these fascinating creatures.

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

Fun Facts About Camels

Happy Wednesday!  It's Wednesday-Hump-Day... the halfway point of the workweek.  The phrase 'Hump Day' became popular during the 1960s and since then the camel has been the unofficial Hump Day mascot.  How much do you know about camels?  Why is the camel the Hump Day mascot?  Keep reading to learn more about these fascinating animals!

Incredible Animals by Dunia Rahwan

If you're a frequent visitor to Kelly's Classroom Online, then you know I enjoy writing posts about animals.  So far, I've written about bees, groundhogs, reindeer, and rhinoceros.  I even compiled a list of children's books about animal poop!  If you enjoyed those posts, you will enjoy today's post about Incredible Animals by Dunia Rahwan.  Incredible Animals is a fact-packed, nonfiction book about animals from all over the world.  If you've enjoyed reading my Fun Facts About Animals series, you will definitely enjoy reading this book.  Keep reading to learn more about Incredible Animals and for a FREE animal research printable you can use it with.

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Five Fun Facts About Dandelions

Dandelions are plants that people often take for granted.  Children love them and call them flowers.  Some grown-ups despise them and call them weeds. Regardless of how we feel about dandelions, they play an important role in our ecosystem. Here are five fun facts about dandelions you can share with the children you work with.

Asha Loves Science: Over in the Meadow by Najla Ahmad

When I was a child, I loved listening to the original Over in the Meadow poem. My kindergarten teacher had a felt storyboard set for the poem and I remember feeling giddy whenever she brought it out. In today's guest post, Najla Ahmad talks about her children's book Asha Loves Science: Over in the Meadow... a fun, multicultural twist of that old poem. In Najla Ahmad's version of Over in the Meadow, children learn fun facts about animals and a little bit of Urdu... the national language of Pakistan and 22 states in India. Keep reading to learn more!

This is a guest post by Najla Ahmad that first appeared on my blog in 2016.

To learn more about guest posts, please visit the Authors, Publishers, and Sponsors page.

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Fun Facts About Valentine's Day

I'm a little Valentine

all red and white.

With ribbons and lace,

I'm a beautiful sight!

I can say I love you

on Valentine's Day.

Just put me in an envelope

and give me away!

Happy Valentine's Day, friends!  Here is a quick blog post about the history of Valentine's Day.  I've also included a fun valentine for you!  💓💓💓💓💓

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What is Labor Day?

Labor Day in the United States is a public holiday celebrated on the first Monday in September.  It honors American workers who contribute to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.  It is also a federal holiday that marks the unofficial end of summer.  Here are five fun facts about Labor Day for you.

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Yuka's Way Home by Abigail Roscoe

Several months ago, I wrote a blog post about reindeer and some interesting and fun facts about them.  Today's blog post is about a children's book about reindeer that I recently learned about... Yuka's Way Home by Abigail Roscoe.  Yuka's Way Home is a fictional animal story about a caribou named Yuka who gets separated from his herd, joins a herd of reindeer, and makes his home with them.  Who is Yuka?  How did he get separated from his herd?  How was able to make his home with the reindeer?  Keep reading to learn more about Yuka's Way Home and for ways you can use it in the classroom!

  

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15+ Easy Spring Crafts for Kids

Hooray! Spring is on its way! This is a terrific time for some bright and cheerful arts and crafts for kids. Spring flowers, types of weather, rainbows, insects, and animals are popular themes during this time of year. The spring crafts featured in this round-up were created by moms and teachers from all over the internet. If you see a craft in this post that you'd like to try, click on its link and head to its original website for material lists, directions, photos, etc. There are lots of spring craft ideas in this post, so let's dive right in!

Six Fun Facts about Groundhogs

Groundhog Day is an American tradition that takes place every February 2nd. Large crowds of people gather in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania to watch a groundhog named Punxsutawney Phil come out of hibernation. If Punxsutawney Phil comes out of his den and sees his shadow, legend has it there will be six more weeks of winter.  If he doesn't see his shadow, then we can expect an early spring.  What do we know about groundhogs?  Are groundhogs magical creatures who can predict the weather?  Or... are they just regular critters who go about doing normal critter things?  Keep reading to find out!

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What is Memorial Day?

Memorial Day in the United States is a public holiday celebrated on the last Monday in May. On this day, we honor the men and women who died while serving in the military. Memorial Day also marks the unofficial beginning of summer. Here are six fun facts about Memorial Day for you.

Over and Under the Snow by Kate Messner

Winter is almost here in the northern hemisphere and many children are learning about animals and animal adaptations such as migration and hibernation. I recently discovered a book that works really well for an integrated science + art + language arts lesson. It’s called Over and Under the Snow and is written by Kate Messner. It’s an excellent book for teaching about hibernation, which animals hibernate, and which ones don't. Keep reading to learn more!

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Six Children's Books About Egyptian Mummies

Several weeks ago I wrote a blog post about How to Make a Mummy and included the step-by-step directions on how to recreate the mummification process to mummify an apple.  This week, I pulled together a list of six popular children's books about Egyptian mummies to help you extend your students' learning in the classroom.  These are nonfiction books that students in second grade and above would enjoy.

Disclosure: Affiliate links are included in this post.