About the Book

     This book of poetry was written and illustrated by 7th grade students at New-Albany Middle School.  The poems are called acrostic poems.  They are created by taking each letter of the animals name and using it as the beginning of a line that tells about the animal. 

     The illustrations are a combination of watercolor paintings and pen and ink drawings.  Students drew their animals and then used different watercolor techniques to paint them.  Then, they created textures in the painted areas to show different areas of value.  A stamped border was added at the end.

     This book uses Universal Design for Learning (UDL) support.  Be sure to click on the coaches to see how they support the content on each page.  Pedro help's students think about the text.  Halli gives hints about Pedro's questions.  Finally, Monty shares model responses.

     We hope you enjoy reading the book as much as we did making it.    It is dedicated to all who hold animals near and dear to their hearts!


Oriole

Orange face and belly

Really small and bright

Insects are its favorite food

Orioles are many sports teams

Lays up to six eggs

Eats fruit, too.


Dodo

Dark colors all over the body

On the land it works

Driven to extinction long ago

Over in Africa it used to be


Shark

Sharp and hard teeth allow them to eat prey

Hard body that allows them to get food

Awsome head that is very hard

Really big teeth in that mouth

Knock around other fish because they are dominant


leopard

Leaping from tree to tree

Eating its hunted prey

Observing the ground below

Predator to many things

Are very stealthy when hunting

Reaching out to grab it's prey

Dragging its meal into the treetops


snake

Slithers silently across the field

Not a very peaceful reptile

Alert, even while sleeping

King Cobra is among their type

Eats those poor little rodents!


giraffe

Giraffe's have small "horns" or knobs on top of their heads

Interesting spotted patterns

Really long neck

Are one of the world's tallest mammals

Females weigh between 1,600-2,600 pounds; males weigh between 2,400-3,000 pounds

Females grow to be 16 ft. tall; males grow to be 19 ft. tall

Eats leaves off of tall trees


zebra

Zebra's aren't colorful

Enemy of the lion is the Zebra

Brownish shadow stripes are what some Zebras have

Rounded ears are what the Grevy's Zebra has

A close relative to the Zebra is a horse


tiger

The largest living cat in the world

It lives in Siberia, China and Korea

Great runners and leapers

Eats various deer and wild boar

Roar can be heard over a mile away


 

 

bushbaby

Big eyes are always watching you

Unlucky to be only three feet high

Swinging over the forest floor

Hiding from the poachers

By finding food I will survive

Always come out at night

Blue is nowhere on its fur

Yellow and brown fur is all over me


Parrot

Parrots are found in pet shops

Across the world parrots are illegally kept as pets

Rainforrests are home to many parrots

Rescuing parrots is necessary

Often parrots are killed for their feathers

Today some parrots are endangered


pandab

Predator to some animals

Always carries bright colors

Never evil

Dislikes bears and foxes

Afraid of jaguars


pandaj

Pandas eat bamboo leaves

Among the outline of Asia

Not very colorful

Don't live older than 35

Always are black and white


frog

Frantically hopping around

Really jumpy alot of the time

Opens it's mouth and sticks out it's tongue

Goes all around the treetops jumping


raccoon

Raccoons are nocturnal

Are active at night because they are nocturnal

Colors are dark on a raccoon

Clean their food before they eat

Obtain their quickness for climbing trees

Only eat plants because they are herbivores

Nightly hunting for food is what they do


ladybug

Longing for a mate

About one year it lives

Distributed almost world-wide

Yellow is sometimes its color

Bright colors warn intruders

Usually bright shades of orange or red

Grazing away on aphids


leopard2

Leaping out of trees

Exciting all who witness his grace

Observing the scenes below the canopy

Pouncing on anything in motion

Always chasing his next meal

Rival to human hunters

Dashing back to his jungle palace