Ice Age Learning Resources Grades K-3

LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
KINDERGARTEN - GRADE 3
LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
INTRODUCTION
In Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, woolly mammoths Manny and Ellie are anxiously awaiting
the birth of their baby when their friend, Sid the sloth, stumbles across three abandoned eggs
and keeps them to raise as his own. When the eggs hatch, dinosaurs are born and Sid returns
to the Lost World of the Dinosaurs to help Mama T-Rex raise her babies. Manny, Ellie, Diego,
Crash, and Eddie go after Sid and, along with the help of a wacky weasel named Buck, brave
the lost Dinosaur World to try and bring him back to his Ice Age home.
TEACHER BACKGROUND
What would happen if a woolly mammoth met a Tyrannosaurus Rex? That is the basic premise
of Ice Age: Return of the Dinosaurs. While it makes for a fun movie, in reality the Mammoth and
the Dinosaurs never shared the planet at the same time – the Mammoth came along many
millions of years after the Dinosaurs went extinct. Still, the film does help illustrate several
important concepts.
The Earth Changes
The Earth did not always look like it does today. The kinds of animals and plants, the climate,
the positions of the continents, and the Earth’s path around the Sun have changed. Some changes
happened suddenly, others very slowly over millions of years. Scientists often use a timeline to trace
the changes of prehistoric life.
500 Million Years Ago (MYA)
Early life
250 MYA
Dinosaurs arise
65 MYA
Dinosaurs die out
2.5 MYA
Ice age
Today
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
The Ice Age
Over time, the Earth has had several ice ages followed by warming periods. When people talk
about the ice age, they are usually referring to the most recent glacial period which reached
its peak about 18,000 years ago and ended about 10,000 years ago. Huge sheets of ice covered
much of North America. As more land became exposed, many animals and even humans crossed
from continent to continent on “land bridges”. The Bering Land Bridge connected Asia and
North America. The bridge was thousands of miles wide and allowed animals, plants and humans
to cross.
Adaptations to the Cold
The most recent ice age is interesting because it was the last time when really gigantic
animals walked the Earth. In order to thrive in cold temperatures these animals had many
interesting adaptations.
• Animals had short limps and small ears compared to the size of their bodies. This reduced
the amount of skin exposed to the cold.
• Animals had shaggy hair with thick fur underneath to keep them warm.
• Some animals had a layer of blubber under their skin, like Seals or Whales.
• Mammoths had huge tusks that they could use like a snowplow to clear snow and find
grass to eat.
As the last ice age loosened its grip and the climate warmed, forests replaced the grasslands
upon which many of these animals depended. Food became in short supply. Hunting by early
humans also contributed to their decline. For example, the v mammoth was one of the last
survivors. It eventually became extinct 4,000 years ago.
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
WORD WALL
Here are some vocabulary words related to the film.
Adaptation
A characteristic or behavior that helps an animal survive and
reproduce in its environment.
Camouflage
The ability of an animal to hide by blending into its environment.
Carnivore
An animal that eats mostly meat.
Climate
The average weather for a specific area over a long period of time.
Climate is affected by geography, oceans, and large changes to the earth.
Extinct
When the last one of a particular kind of animal dies.
Glacier
A large body of ice that forms when more snow falls than melts over
many hundreds of years. Glaciers are found in the polar regions and in
high mountains.
Herbivore
An animal that eats plants.
Ice Age
A period of time when the earth’s temperature cools and large sheets
of ice form on the planet. There have been at least five major ice ages
in the earth’s history.
Mammals
Animals with backbones, breath air with lungs, have hair, and feed milk
to their young.
Polar Region
The regions of the globe surrounding the North and South Poles.
Ice caps cover each pole.
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
WORD SEARCH
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Adaptation
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
MEET THE CAST OF THE SHOW
Drawing the connection between the cartoon characters and the actual animals is important
for students to understand. (How fact differs from fiction might be an extension writing
activity for older students.) Meet a few of the characters from the movie, and learn about
their real-life counterparts including a fun fact.
Character
Animal
Fun Fact
Size
They ranged from the
size of a black bear to
that of a large elephant
and were covered with
short fur.
Sid
Ground Sloth
Long shaggy hair more
than three feet long, and
a 3-inch layer of fat kept
the mammoths warm.
Manny
Woolly Mammoth
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
MEET THE CAST OF THE SHOW
Scientists believe the
saber-toothed cat hunted
by ambushing its prey.
Its jaw opened very wide,
allowing use of its 7-inch
teeth to sever the
arteries and windpipe
of its victim.
Diego
Saber-toothed Cat
The legs of a T-Rex were
huge, but the arms were
so short they couldn’t
reach its mouth. No one
knows how T-Rex used
those tiny arms.
Momma
T-Rex
Baryonyx is one of the
few known fish-eating
dinosaurs. It had a long,
narrow mouth with tiny
serrated teeth. Curved
sharp claws helped it
catch slippery fish.
Rudy
Baryonyx
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
EDUCATION STANDARDS
Common Core Standards
• Reading Informational Text
• Understand key ideas and details
• Integrate knowledge and ideas
• Reading Foundational Skills
• Phonics and Word Recognition
•Language
• Vocabulary acquisition and use
Next Generation Science Standards
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Life Science Core Ideas
Ecosystems: Interactions, energy, and dynamics
Biological evolution: Unity and diversity
Earth Science Core Ideas
Earth’s systems
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
PRE-SHOW ACTIVITIES
ACTIVITY #1: What Does Not Belong in this Picture?
Directions to Teachers
The purpose of this activity is to show that the earth has changed over time. This activity can
be done as a group with younger students or individually by older students. In this activity,
students are given a picture of The Ice Age period. Students will read the descriptions and
examine the pictures. Students will circle what does not belong in the pictures. After the
activity, discuss why those items do not belong in the pictures.
Directions to Students
Read the description of the Ice Age period. Circle what does not belong in the pictures.
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
ACTIVITY #1: What Does Not Belong in this Picture?
Name: _______________________________________ Date: _______________________
Ice Age Period
The most recent ice age began about 2.5 million years ago. During this time, the world got colder.
Ice began to cover parts of the earth. There were large animals like saber-toothed cats and
woolly mammoths.
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
ACTIVITY #2: Write a Story
Name: _______________________________________ Date: _______________________
Directions to Students
Write a story about one of your favorite characters from the film. What adventure does he or
she go on in the Ice Age? Add your own picture to support your story.
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
POST-SHOW ACTIVITIES
ACTIVITY #1: The Big Time: Mammoth Adaptations
Directions to Teachers
Elephants are large plant-eating mammals found in Africa and Asia. During the last ice age,
huge animals known as mammoths once lived across North America, Russia, Asia, and
northern Europe.Understanding the adaptations of modern-day elephants helps us to
understand mammoth adaptations. The Columbian mammoth was larger than any elephant that
has ever lived.Like modern elephants, it had large legs and feet and a long trunk, but it also had
smaller ears when compared to its body size. The Columbian mammoth also had much larger
tusks. They could be up to 14 feet long.
Ask your students to name the adaptations elephants have for survival and list them on the board.
Discuss how these adaptations help elephants.
Elephant Adaptations
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Large legs and feet to support body weight.
Long trunk for pushing over trees, picking things up, and holding water.
Tusks (long front teeth) for lifting things, digging up water, and defense.
Large ears for cooling off on a hot day.
Make copies of the pages entitled Build An Elephant. Have students cut out the body puzzle parts.
Ask them to glue the body puzzle parts of the Columbian mammoth and the Asian elephant onto
separate pieces of paper. Have the students review the body parts of Asian elephants and the
Columbian mammoths. How are they alike? How are they different? How are they adapted for
living in forest and grassland habitats? Have the students draw habitats around the mammoth
and the elephant.
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
ACTIVITY #1: Build an Elephant
Directions to Students
Cut out the body parts of each elephant and glue the body puzzle parts of the Columbian
mammoth and the Asian elephant onto separate pieces of paper.
Columbian Mammoth
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
Asian Elephant
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
ACTIVITY #2: Cool Advice
Directions to Teachers
PART A: While there are still large glaciers at the North and South poles, these glaciers
are melting due to increasing global temperatures. This is referred to as global warming.
Although global warming may be a natural phenomenon, human actions are having an effect.
There are many simple actions that everyone can do to help. Younger children may need help
understanding the relationship between some of these activities, like energy conservation,
with climate change. Start with actions the students can relate to such as recycling.
PART B: (Optional for 2nd or 3rd grade) Ask students to select one of their “cool” or
“uncool” activities. Then write a paragraph defending their position.
Directions to Students
PART A: In this activity, students will identify actions as “cool” or “uncool”. “Cool” activities
are ones that would help the polar ice caps. “Uncool” ones hurt the polar ice caps. After the
activity, discuss with the students why these activities are “cool” or “uncool”.
PART B: Write Cool (good for the polar ice caps) or Uncool (bad for the polar ice caps) for
each of these sentences.
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
ACTIVITY #2: Cool Advice (PART A)
Name: _______________________________________ Date: _______________________
1. Put on a sweater instead of turning up the heat
during winter. _________________________
2. Warm up the car on frosty mornings.
_________________________
3. Always use cold water when washing dirty laundry.
_________________________
4. Use packaged juices and milk cartons in your
school lunch.
_________________________
5. Buy wrapping paper at the store for holiday gift-giving.
_________________________
6. Use energy-saving light bulbs to light your home in the
dark winter nights.
_________________________
7. Turn off your computer and other electronic devices
when you are not using them.
_________________________
8. Plant trees and bushes in your yard.
_________________________
ACTIVITY #2: Cool Advice (PART B)
Select one of your “cool” or “uncool” activities. Write a paragraph defending your position.
Our Family’s Cool Tips
1.___________________________________________________________________
2. ___________________________________________________________________
3.___________________________________________________________________
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
ACTIVITY #3: Connect the Dots
Directions to Students
Connect the dots to discover this Arctic animal.
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LEARNING RESOURCE GUIDE
Grade K to 3
ANSWER SHEET
RESOURCES
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ICE AGE: Meet early humans and amazing animals sharing a
frozen planet. Barron’s Educational Series. ISBN-10:0-76416251-9
Dinosaur. DK Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7566-5810-6
X H N
M A M M A
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BOOKS
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PRE-SHOW ACTIVITIES
ACTIVITY #1:
What Does Not Belong in this Picture?
WEB
Frozen Planet. http://dsc.discovery.com/tv/frozen-planet/
Climate Change. U.S. EPA., http://www.epa.gov/
climatechange/
Woolly Mammoth. http://http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Woolly_mammoth/
Elephant Odyssey. http://www.elephantodyssey.com/
Ice Age Period
WHERE TO VISIT
La Brea Tar Pits, Los Angeles, California,
www.tarpits.org
The Mammoth Site, Hot Springs, South Dakota,
www.mammothsite.com
POST-SHOW ACTIVITIES
National Museum of Natural History, Washington, DC,
www.gosmithsonian.com
ACTIVITY #2: Cool Advice
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Cool
Uncool
Cool
Uncool
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Uncool
Cool
Cool
Cool
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Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs™& © 2016 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved.