Keeping Them Curious: Spider Edition
(This spider facts email was sent on October 16, 2023.)
October is just zooming along, bringing us closer and closer to Halloween! Do you celebrate Halloween at school? I know many do not, but it can be fun to incorporate some “spooky” themes that are also academic to harness the holiday excitement that many kids are feeling.
🕷️🕸️ This week, I’m covering spiders! I’ll give you spider facts, ideas, and freebies to help you weave your spider theme into a cross-curricular web that’s crawling with engaging content!
Keeping Them Curious is an email series for teachers who are passionate about actively engaging students in thematic learning. I’m posting the email content here for those who might like to have a place to revisit each theme. If you would like to receive this content by email, please let me know below!
Did You Know? Spider Facts for Your Class!
I’ll start with some spellbinding spider facts you can inject into your lessons this week!
🕸️ The South American Goliath birdeater, the world’s largest spider, has feet with hardened tips and claws that cause it to make a sound like tiny hoofbeats when it walks. Read a fascinating description of these huge arachnids in this post! (Allow yourself a few minutes to really read this one—it’s worth it!)
🕸️ Scientists are exploring ways that spider venom can be used in pain relief medications for people. This is because some venom contains protein molecules that block nerve activity.
🕸️ The Darwin’s bark spider of Madagascar spins the world’s largest webs. One was found that was 82 feet across, spanning an entire river! Watch a video of the web-building process here!
🕸️ Scientists have identified over 50,000 species of spiders worldwide! You and your students can explore various types of spiders here.
🕸️ Spider silk is such a strong and unique material that scientists have devoted much time to trying to replicate it in a laboratory. And, though it is challenging and time-consuming, people have actually made articles of clothing out of the actual silk of spiders!
Find 30 Splendid Spider Videos for Kindergarten in this new post! These videos will captivate your students and give visual context for the spider facts they learn.
Teaching about spiders this week? I have a blog post here with fun ideas for integrating your spider theme across your curriculum! Find math and literacy activities along with arts and crafts and a fun spider snack!
And, I’ve added a new fine motor activity to the My Happy Place Free Resource Library! You can read about it in this post. This little set can be used along with the other My Happy Place Fine Motor Skills Task Boxes or can be used as a stand-alone center.
Looking to save time? I have a few ready-to-go spider resources in my TPT store!
This Spider Unit, with an informational PowerPoint and a whole bunch of printable activities, will make teaching your spider theme a breeze! Find this set on TPT or in the My Happy Place Shop.
These Digital Spider Activities are pre-loaded into three platforms: Boom, Google Slides, and Seesaw! Find this set on TPT or in the My Happy Place Shop.
And this fun Spiders Fiction vs. Nonfiction set includes a short video and printable student readers. Find this set on TPT or in the My Happy Place Shop.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this “Keeping Them Curious” post! I’m looking forward to continuing this series with some other fun fall themes. 🍂 What themes do you have coming up? As always, please feel free to comment below or send me an email—I’d love to hear from you!
Find more “Keeping Them Curious” posts here!
