TEACHERS NOTES - Affirm Press · 2021. 1. 25. · in this book? • Rhyme: Rhyme is important in...

TEACHERS NOTES

Written and illustrated by Sarah Allen

Suitable for Ages 3+

Themes Australian birdsDaily routinesComparing and contrasting

Contents of this pack• Overview of Busy Beaks

• ‘Before we begin reading’ discussion points

• Key themes

• Discussion points

• Activities

Description Spend a day with Australia’s most vibrant and unique feathered friends.Full of splashing shorebirds, clattering cockatoos, parading penguins and greedy galahs, Busy Beaks is the perfect introduction to birds of all shapes and sizes.

About the author-illustratorSarah Allen is an illustrator and designer based in Victoria, Australia. The natural world is her biggest inspiration. Through her art, she hopes to share her love of this beautiful planet, with a special focus on Australian flora and fauna.

Find this book at our website: https://affirmpress.com.au/publishing/busy-beaks/

2

Questions to ask before we begin reading• Have a look at the front cover, what do you think this book will be about?

• How many birds are on the cover? Do you the know the names of any?

• Where do you think these birds live?

• What noises do birds make? Ask the class to perform a kookaburra noise. Who can be the best Laughing Kookaburra?

Key themes• Australian birds

• Daily routines

• Comparing and contrasting

Questions to ask while we are readingComprehension • Busy Beaks opens with the ‘craaaa’ of Sulphur-crested Cockatoos. Which other birds are up early in the morning? What are they doing?

• This book starts in the morning and ends at night-time. Flick through the book and see if you can spot the sun. Is it changing in position throughout the day? How so? What happens to the sky as the sun starts to go down?

• What happens to the lorikeets, galahs and pelicans when the sun is setting? (See pages 21 and 22!)

• Which birds are out at night rather than in the daytime? Why do you think that is? What do you think they do during the daytime? (Here’s a hint: look at the tawny frogmouths on page 14!)

• On pages 5 and 6, the pelicans and the swans are both on water. What is the same and what is different about these birds?

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• Which birds are dancing in Busy Beaks?

• There are two types of cockatoo in this book. Can you find them? Do these birds look alike in any way? How are they different?

• On page 15, we see five galahs in a ‘gang’. They’re all doing something different! Describe what you see.

• What are the Palm Cockatoos doing on page 21? Is it ununsual to see a bird drumming? Watch this video to see a real Palm Cockatoo in action! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6eazyHa33M

• Have a look at the Facts & Feathers pages at the end of this book. Can you find some facts about these birds that aren’t shown in the book? Call some out to the class!

Literacy• Verbs: This book shows us that birds do lots of different things, like calling out to other birds. What other actions can you see?

• Collective nouns: On page 25 we see a ‘flock’ of budgies. A ‘flock’ is the word that describes the group of budgies all together. Can you find other examples of group words in this book?

• Rhyme: Rhyme is important in this book. Can you find some rhyming words?

• Alliteration: Some of the sentences in this book use words which have the same first sounds, like ‘lorikeets live’ and ‘tired tawny’. Can you find other examples of this? (See Activity 1 for an alliteration activity!)

• Language: The scientific names of the birds are written on each page. These words are in a different language: Latin! Why do you think birds (and other animals) have scientific names? What might these names be used for?

• Pronunciation: Have a discussion around pronouncing scientific names. Do any of the scientific names sound like the general bird name?

• Syllables: Go through the book and clap the syllables for each bird. Which has the most syllables? Which has the least?

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Numeracy• There are many birds in this book, how many birds can you count altogether?

• How many of each type of bird are there? Teachers, keep a tally on the board!

• How many of these birds are shown with their babies (chicks)? Which bird has the most chicks?

Knowledge and understanding of the world• Birds might all have feathers and beaks, but they can live very different lives from each other! From this book, can you:

• name the different places (habitats) that birds can live? Why might some birds live near the sea and others in the desert?

• name the different foods that birds can eat?

• describe what makes the birds look different from each other?

• Do you hear screeching and warbling outside of your house in the morning? (Teachers, use this as a discussion about the types of birds we hear in the mornings and how this might be different in urban areas compared to regional areas.)

• What is the robin sitting on in page 7? Why do birds sit on their eggs? (See Activity 3 for an egg-related visual game!)

• On page 19, we see an emu dad taking care of his chicks. Once an emu mother has laid her eggs, the emu father will take over the care of the eggs until they hatch, and will stay with his chicks for their first two years. Can you think of another male bird who looks after their eggs? (Emperor Penguin!)

• On page 17, we see four fairy-wrens. Why are three blue while one is brown?

Questions to ask when we’ve finished reading• Which birds do you like best in this book? Why?

• Have you discovered new birds from reading Busy Beaks?

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Activity one: Learn about alliteration!Alliteration occurs when two or more words start with the same sound. Using the words below, ask the students to compile creative phrases that use alliteration.

redcleverpettyshy

carefulfantasticmajesticreliable

cleansfallsracescooksruns

marchespacesshoots

shorebirdwren

cockatoofinch

penguinkookaburra

robinmagpie

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Activity two: Draw a new Australian bird!Can you create a new bird for Busy Beaks? Use the image below to draw your special bird on its own perch!

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Activity three: Compare and contrast!Ask students to choose a bird from Busy Beaks (or assign birds so that you don’t

end up with a classroom of penguins!). Give everyone a sticky note so that they

can write their bird name on it. The students should then find someone in the class

with a different bird nametag. In pairs, they should talk about what makes them

the same and different. This will require them to look at Busy Beaks and use the

text, illustrations and endmatter for clues. They can use the worksheet below to

capture their conversation! After ten minutes, the pairs can be asked to share their

experience with the class. Bird name:

_____________________________

I like to eat

_____________________________

I live

_____________________________

My feathers are coloured

___________________________

Bird name:

__________________________

I like to eat

_____________________________

I live

_____________________________

My feathers are coloured

___________________________

8

©SarahAllen

Fairy-wren colouring sheet

Journey through the day with these vibrant feathered friends! Full of splashing shorebirds, clattering cockatoos, parading penguins and greedy galahs, Busy Beaks is

the perfect introduction to Australian birds of all shapes and sizes.

affirmpress.com.au

ISBN: 978-1-925972-94-8

Published by Affirm Press, 2020©Sarah Allen 2020 For personal use only.



affirmpress.com.au

ISBN: 978-1-925972-94-8

Dot to dotJoin the dots to see who

is soaring high.Then, draw on some

wings and tail feathers, and colour your bird in.



affirmpress.com.au

ISBN: 978-1-925972-94-8

Published by Affirm Press, 2020©Sarah Allen 2020



affirmpress.com.au

ISBN: 978-1-925972-94-8

Find the bird words

Build your own custom worksheet at education.com/worksheet-generator

© 2007 - 2020 Education.com

Word Search

C H I C K S A K P H S I I C ZF R O B I N E B B E P Q K T EH G V L F D N F I F K R C T KQ P K W F I N C H N E C T A RW E U T F V S T N M P K F N PF L D B N B A B D A N C I N GL I C M O G M Q Z H T U S R UY C O A P R S S E E D V H G YI A C G A A C A L L I N G W RN N K P R S W A N X E B I N EG J A I R S N E S T K Y B W GV W T E O N Q B Z T N A C U GZ H O V T T K A M L D O V E SB V O K Y I E T K A I X Z D KZ J K C N A J H D H O L L O W

COCKATOO DANCING PELICAN CALLINGCHICKS MAGPIE HOLLOW FLYINGPARROT NECTAR GRASS ROBINSEED FINCH SWAN DOVEBATH NEST FISH EGGS

®

All of these words appear in Busy Beaks. Can you find them in the word search?



affirmpress.com.au

ISBN: 978-1-925972-94-8




affirmpress.com.au

ISBN: 978-1-925972-94-8

Cross word



Crossword Puzzle

1

2 3

4 5

6

7

8

9

Down: Across:1. A bird's body is covered in these 1. A group of birds2. Birds flap these to fly3. Small animals including bugs and beetles

4. A sweet liquid from plants, especiallyflowers

5. Feathers on top of a cockatoo's head 6. A place where eggs are laid and hatch7. An empty space inside of an old tree8. Sharp nails on ends of birds toes9. Animals that live in the soil with soft, long

bodies

®



affirmpress.com.au

ISBN: 978-1-925972-94-8




affirmpress.com.au

ISBN: 978-1-925972-94-8

©SarahAllen



affirmpress.com.au

ISBN: 978-1-925972-94-8

Published by Affirm Press, 2020©Sarah Allen 2020 For personal use only.

Parrot party colouring sheet



affirmpress.com.au

ISBN: 978-1-925972-94-8

Find the bird wordsANSWER KEY



affirmpress.com.au

ISBN: 978-1-925972-94-8



Word Search

C H I C K S A K P H S I I C ZF R O B I N E B B E P Q K T EH G V L F D N F I F K R C T KQ P K W F I N C H N E C T A RW E U T F V S T N M P K F N PF L D B N B A B D A N C I N GL I C M O G M Q Z H T U S R UY C O A P R S S E E D V H G YI A C G A A C A L L I N G W RN N K P R S W A N X E B I N EG J A I R S N E S T K Y B W GV W T E O N Q B Z T N A C U GZ H O V T T K A M L D O V E SB V O K Y I E T K A I X Z D KZ J K C N A J H D H O L L O W

COCKATOO DANCING PELICAN CALLINGCHICKS MAGPIE HOLLOW FLYINGPARROT NECTAR GRASS ROBINSEED FINCH SWAN DOVEBATH NEST FISH EGGS

®


Cross WordANSWER KEY



affirmpress.com.au

ISBN: 978-1-925972-94-8



Crossword Puzzle

F1 L O C KW2 I3 EI N N4 E C5 T A RN6 E S T R TG E E H7 O L L O WS C8 L A W S E

T T RW9 O R M S S

Down: Across:1. A bird's body is covered in these 1. A group of birds2. Birds flap these to fly3. Small animals including bugs and beetles

4. A sweet liquid from plants, especiallyflowers

5. Feathers on top of a cockatoo's head 6. A place where eggs are laid and hatch7. An empty space inside of an old tree8. Sharp nails on ends of birds toes9. Animals that live in the soil with soft, long

bodies

®




affirmpress.com.au

ISBN: 978-1-925972-94-8



affirmpress.com.au

ISBN: 978-1-925972-94-8

We’d love to see what you make and draw!

Share you Busy Beaks activities and drawings on social mediawith the hashtag #busybeaksbook

and tag Sarah @sarahallenillustration

Affirm Press affirmpress.com.au

Sarah Allen

sarahallen.com.au

©Sarah Allen 2020This PDF is for personal use only. Thank you for your honesty.

TEACHERS NOTES - Affirm Press · 2021. 1. 25. · in this book? • Rhyme: Rhyme is important in...

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