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Why do frogs say "ribbit"?

Why do frogs say "ribbit"?

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DISCUSS (1 of 2):

What do you think that sound was?

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DISCUSS (2 of 2):

Do you ever hear any sounds at night where you live? What are they?

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DISCUSS:

Why do you think the frogs were making so much noise at night?

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DISCUSS (1 of 2):

How could you figure out which kinds of frogs there were in a pond, without catching them?

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DISCUSS (2 of 2):

If you wanted to compare the frogs in two different ponds to find out which pond had more frogs, what could you do?

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Extensions

Below are ideas for extending this topic beyond the Exploration & Activity you just completed.

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Readings

These readings are free with registration at Newsela. Readings are available in English or Spanish and can be adjusted for reading level. Writing prompts and quiz questions are available for each reading.

  • Meet a scientist in Mexico who found a new kind of parrot by following a bird call he had never heard before. (Grade 2)

  • Read about a tree frog in India that was found, then lost, and then found again, 137 years later. (Grade 2)

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Videos: Froggy Facts—and Froggy Fun!

Frogs go through amazing changes, beginning as tiny eggs that hatch into tadpoles, growing into swimming froglets, and finally hopping out of the water and onto the land.

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Art Project: What Does the Frog Say?

Decorate your room with frogs that have a lot to say.

  • Print out these frog coloring pages.
  • Fill in the word balloon with a real or made-up word to help you remember each frog’s call.
  • Get out your crayons or colored pencils—and create some frogtastic art!
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Community: Become a Citizen Scientist!

Learning frog calls is fun—and it’s also a scientific tool. Scientists can tell how healthy a lake or pond is by finding out which frogs live there. And they often do this with the help of “citizen scientists”…like you!

  • Watch this video to find out about citizen scientists.
  • Read about a citizen science project in this article. (Grade 2 reading level)
  • Would you like to help? Use this website to find a project near you, and you can become a citizen scientist, too.
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Online Resource: Nature Sound Map

Spin an Earth globe or look on a map to pick any spot on the planet where animals live. Then use the Nature Sound Map to hear the sounds of nature there.

Talk about what you hear:

  • What do you think is making the sound? Many animals or one?
  • Do nearby areas sound the same? If not, how are they different?
  • Listen to the sounds around you. Do you hear those kinds of nature sounds where you live?
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Activity: Sound Maps

This activity comes from Project Learning Tree (PLT), an environmental education program of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, Inc. Discussion questions are suggested.

Listen carefully. What do you hear around you? Create a Sound Map using this activity, or think about how animals hear.

“Sounds Around” is written with open spaces in mind, but you can make a Sound Map for wherever you live.

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Activity Prep

Print Prep

This lesson is a case study in biodiversity using the frogs of North America. In the activity, Who's Calling?, students learn to identify frogs by their unique calls and investigate which of two locations has a greater variety of frogs. After listening to recordings of frog calls, students create words that will remind them of the sounds, and then use those words to identify frog sounds in different environments.

Preview activity

Exploration

21 mins

Wrap-Up

4 mins

Extend this lesson

Download this Lesson to your device so you can play it offline: