Plants & Animals & Unexpected Lesson: Quiet in the Garden

Several weeks ago I was reading a book to the first grade classes, Quiet in the Garden by Aliki.  At that time the students were studying what is a plant, what is an animal, the relationship between the two groups, etc.  After I chose the title I realized it was about what each animal ate, so after we read the book the students helped me create a list of all of the animals mentioned in the book.  This was good recall practice for them.  I listed the animals on a white board and then they helped me list what each animal ate.  We then went back and noted whether that food was a plant or an animal.

It just came to me as I saw "plant" and "animal" listed over and over. I  realized I had the opportunity to introduce some new concepts and vocabulary words: herbivore, carnivore and omnivore.