Subject Area: Science, Language Arts

Book Summary
This book from the Hello Reader! Science series uses simple, informative, and rhyming text along with vivid illustrations to provide children with important facts about starfish while reinforcing beginning-reading skills. Includes a note from an education specialist on ways families can support their children's reading skills.

Objective
Using the book, children will learn about the characteristics of a starfish that enable it to survive in the sea and they will work together to create charts and diagrams.

Before Reading
Show the class the book Starfish: The Stars of the Sea. Ask them to share what they already know about starfish. Then invite them to look at the cover illustration. Ask them to notice the different starfish. Have they ever seen any of these types of starfish before? Ask them to describe their differences and similarities. How many different types of starfish do they think there are in the sea?

Teaching Plan

Starfish Facts
Materials

• Chart paper
• Lined story paper
• Markers, crayons, and pencils

1. Reread the book to the children. Engage the children in a discussion, focusing on each page of the book and the information presented. Encourage them to summarize what was depicted on each page.
2. Focus their attention on each illustration. Discuss the characteristics of each starfish such as size, color, and texture. Have them describe the activity the starfish is engaged in. Have them notice how the starfish blends into the underwater environment.
3. After they have read through the entire book, invite them to count how many different types of starfish were represented in the book.
4. Now develop a language-experience chart to record all of the information that they learned about starfish. Encourage them to recall the knowledge without referring to the book. Then compare the book with their list to see what additional facts may be missing. Add those to the list.
5. Provide the children with writing and drawing materials. Ask them to make a drawing about something that they found particularly interesting about starfish. They can refer to the chart or book for ideas.
6. Create a bulletin board display in the science area about starfish. Include the language-experience chart and the children's writings.

Additional display ideas:

1. Provide children with colored construction paper, crayons, and markers to make starfish. Encourage them to make starfish that represent the ones depicted in the book. They can look at the book to notice colors, shapes, designs, and textures. Have them cut out the starfish and include them in the classroom display.
2. Put the book in a basket along with lined story paper and pencils and place it in the science area. Encourage children to use the materials to continue reading and writing about starfish.
3. Plan a class trip to a local aquarium to learn more about starfish.
4. Reread the story with the children and have them identify all rhyming-word sets. Have the children write the rhyming words on lined paper to include in the display.

Other Books About Starfish
Starfish
by Edith Thacher Hurd
Cut-paper collage illustrations and simple text introduce young children to scientific concepts about starfish.

Starfish
by Rebecca Stefoff
This nonfiction book introduces children to a variety of starfish through vivid full-color photographs and simple text.

Other Books by Connie and Peter Roop
Octopus Under the Sea (Hello Reader! Science series)
If You Lived With the Cherokee
Let's Celebrate Earth Day

Teaching plan written by Risa Young