Did you know that bats are the only flying mammal and over 300 species of fruit depend on pollination from bats? (US Department of the Interior)
This Bat Sensory Kit along with the interesting book All About Bats by Caryn Jenner is sure to have your and your little ones looking at bats in a whole new way!
Book Suggestions:
- This month’s book is an example of an informational text packed with facts and pictures. Informational books are great to share with your child(ren) as they provide many opportunities for discussion.
- Informational books also have text features, such as the table of contents, index, glossary, and labels that point out different elements of the illustrations/photographs. Engage your child with these features.
- As you look at the bat’s wings, ask your child to look at their own fingers/hands. How are they similar? Different?
- Engage your child in conversations about what bats eat. Some are herbivores and some are carnivores. Discuss those terms with your child and engage in conversation about what you eat, as well as what other animals eat.
- If your child would like to know more about bats, ask them what you could do to learn more. The library and a parent/family-supervised online search are great sources of information!
Kit Suggestions:
- There are a few different types of bats in your kit. Talk with your child about what makes them similar and how they are different.
- Engage your child in picking up the dried pasta using the tongs. This is great fine motor practice and harder than it seems!
- Sort the pasta into purple and black piles for an extra challenge with the tongs.
- Add pasta to the cauldron and take turns estimating how many pieces are in their. Then count them out together.
- Use the ball for a full moon, the stars, and the pipe cleaners to create a fall night sky.
- Extend the use of the cauldron to make pretend food for the bats. Which are herbivores and which are carnivores? What would they eat?
These Ways to Play are not meant to be an exhaustive list, after all the possibilities are literally endless, but more of a starting point. They also don’t need to be printed and checked off as you go, but certainly can be if that’s what works best for you and your family.
After experimenting with a few of these, I'd love to know which ideas worked best for you!