Early Learning Project
Tip Sheet
You don’t have to go to exotic places to find interesting plants and animals to study at home or in the classroom! Illinois wildlife is as close as your local park or schoolyard. Look closely at a pond or damp spot under a bush or tree or listen for their calls, and you are likely to find a frog or toad. Explore the world of frogs and toads with children and at the same time meet Illinois Early Learning Benchmarks 12.A.ECa, 12.A.ECb, and 12.B.EC.
Collect classroom resources.
- Ask a librarian to help you find children’s nonfiction books and nature magazines with colorful illustrations.
- The Illinois Department of Natural Resources offers beautiful posters, including Illinois Frogs and Toads. Find details and an order form online at http://dnr.state.il.us/teachkids/.
Observe a frog or toad.
- Consider observing frogs or toads outdoors, at a pet store, or in a zoo or nature center. The laws related to keeping wild animals and releasing them into the wild, plus meeting the animals’ needs, can make it complicated to have a live tadpole, frog, or toad in the classroom.
- Ask the children, “Can you find a tail or neck? How many legs does it have?”
- Help the children to discover that most frogs have smooth or slimy skin, long hind legs, webbed hind feet, and bulging eyes. Many toads have bumpy dry skin and stubby bodies.
- Encourage the children to sketch a frog or toad they observe.
Discuss the life cycle of a frog.
- Ask the children what they know about tadpoles.
- Use a book illustration or the drawings on the back of the Illinois Frogs and Toads poster to show the stages of development.
- Introduce the word metamorphosis. You might ask, “What changes do you see when a tadpole becomes a frog?”
- Help the children make a mural showing the sequence of the changes they observe.
Listen to different frog and toad calls.
- If your classroom has access to a computer, search the Web using the phrase “Frogs and Toads of Illinois Enhanced Pages”.
- Ask your local library for a CD with frog calls. Listen together and ask the children, “Have you heard any of these calls near where you live?”
Encourage children to use books for further research.
- Introduce the term amphibian.
- Help them find answers to questions such as, “What do frogs and toads eat? Where do they go during the winter? Why is it sometimes hard to see a frog outside?”
- Help the children share this information by making a wall chart or a book.
For more information on frogs, please visit these Web sites:
- Frogs and Toads
http://dnr.state.il.us/education/reptiles/frogs.htm - Wildlife in the Classroom
http://dnr.state.il.us/education/CLASSRM/wildlifeintheclassrm041409.pdf - Illinois Frogs and Toads: Pictures and Calls (Requires Macromedia Flash Plugin)
http://dnr.state.il.us/education/CLASSRM/aquatic/frogs_toads.htm - Frogs/ Toads Poster
https://dnr.state.il.us/teachkids/DNRtitles.asp - Illinois Amphibians and Reptiles: Search by County
http://www.inhs.illinois.edu/cbd/collections/amprep/county.html - Some Strange but True Facts about Frogs and Toads
http://allaboutfrogs.org/weird/weird.html - Life Cycle of a Frog
http://allaboutfrogs.org/weird/general/cycle.html - Life of Frogs and Toads
http://cgee.hamline.edu/frogs/science/faq1.html#life - How to Raise Tadpoles
http://allaboutfrogs.org/info/tadpoles/index.html
Disclaimer
The opinions, resources, and referrals provided on the IEL Web site are intended for informational purposes only and are not intended to take the place of medical or legal advice, or of other appropriate services. We encourage you to seek direct local assistance from a qualified professional if necessary before taking action.
The content of the IEL Web site does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Illinois Early Learning Project, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, or the Illinois State Board of Education; nor does the mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the Illinois Early Learning Project, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, or the Illinois State Board of Education.