The Magic School Bus Cracks a Yolk

Field Trip Notes
When the principal, Mr. Ruhle, has to go away for a few days, he leaves his beloved chicken, Giblets, in Dorothy Ann’s care. Unfortunately, the minute Mr. Ruhle is out the door, Giblets flies away. How will D.A. ever find another prize Rhode Island Red to replace Giblets? Where do you get chickens, anyway? And which came first, the chicken or the egg? Next thing D.A. knows, she and her class are seeing how an egg is made - from the inside out! But will this egg have everything it needs to turn into Giblets the Second?
The Inside "Egg-Pose"

Going Hands-On

Time: 30 minutes
Group Size: 2
The Magic School Bus kids go inside a chicken to find out how eggs and baby chicks are made. Your kids examine the life-support system inside an egg.

What You Need

Talk About It

Ask children:
What is an egg? (a life-support package for a developing chick)

What To Do
  1. Hold up an egg. Ask: What is the purpose of the eggshell? (protection) What is inside an egg? Let kids draw their idea on the activity page.
  2. Help students break the eggs onto plates.
  3. Compare the eggs to the drawings. Help identify the parts of the egg and purpose of each part. Look inside the eggshell for the membrane and air space.
  4. Display students’ egg drawings. Ask: How do the egg parts make up a life-support package for the developing chick?

Next Stop
Incubate and hatch a fertile hen’s egg. Contact local 4-H Clubs or the USDA Cooperative Extension Service for information. Follow the embryo’s development by candling and weighing the egg and using picture books to show day-by-day progress.
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