In The Secret of the Scuba Diving Spider, and More book, scuba diving spiders,
whistling caterpillars, jamming bats, zombie beetles, and speedy, squeezable cockroaches
each reveal a secret that makes them survivors in their natural world.
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| Click here to access your teacher guide |
Now, The Secret of the Scuba Diving Spider, and More
free teacher guide
connects the book to Common Core State Standards – Anchor Standards (reading, writing,
speaking, and listening), as well as Next Generation Science Standards.
Together,
book and guide empower teachers to communicate scientific concepts with simple
yet detailed language, while engaging students in reading and writing about the
wonders of nature. And the video, also available in the teacher guide, grabs your attention as you marvel at this one-of-a-kind spider.
No bigger that your thumbnail, the scuba diving spider
triggered the curiosity of scientist Roger Seymour since he was a young boy. At
10 years old, he read Erna Pinner’s book, Curious
Creatures. He told me, “One of the
chapters described the diving bell spider that lived in ponds in Europe. I
imagined what it would be like to live inside an underwater bubble.” That image
remained in Seymour’s mind until he became a scientist and studied the spider’s
secret.
Seymour teamed with scientist Stefan Hetz and together they
made a home for the spiders in aquariums in the lab, and observed and measured
their activities. They discovered how the spiders achieve this unique and quiet
lifestyle. It has worked well for the spiders; it allows them to remain out of
sight from predators, trap food, and create an underwater home for them to grow
and have a family.
The spider, too, has an amazing name, Argyroneta aquatica, which means “aquatic spinner of silver.”
If this book
appeals to you, may I entice you with more Animal Secrets? I invite you to
visit my website to
explore the other titles of this series.
The teacher guides for all the other Animal Secrets books are also available here!
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Twitter @RodriguezAMaria
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My website: Ana MariaRodriguez
Contact me! I am
available for school visits, conferences, and science talks at your event!
