Lesson Plan - Which Animal Would You Bring Back?

Watch a Video
Watch the video “Animals of the Ice Age” to learn more about woolly mammoths and other creatures of that era.

Preview Words to Know
Project the online vocabulary slideshow and introduce the Words to Know.

• adapt
• extreme

Set a Purpose for Reading
As students read, have them think about the benefits and drawbacks of bringing back each species.

1. What are two traits the woolly mammoth used to survive during the Ice Age? 
To survive during the Ice Age, the woolly mammoth used its long tusks to dig for food under the ice. It also had thick fur to stay warm in cold temperatures.
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2. Why might it be helpful to scientists to bring back a Giganotosaurus?
Bringing back a Giganotosaurus could give scientists a chance to learn more about how these dinosaurs looked and acted.
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3. What is the purpose of the sidebar, “How to Bring Back a Woolly Mammoth”?
The purpose of the sidebar is to explain the steps scientists would take to try to bring back an extinct animal like a woolly mammoth.
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FEATURED SKILL: Adjectives
This article is full of adjectives! Share the skill builder “Identifying Adjectives” to have students identify them and the nouns they describe. The activity also invites students to come up with their own adjectives to describe an animal of their own choosing.
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