6Th Annual Ag Literacy Program

Maryland Agricultural Education Foundation’s

6th Annual Ag Literacy program

Hatching Chicks in Room 6by Caroline Arnold

Overview of the Book

Follow a classroom of kindergartners as they participate in a popular activity - hatching chicks in an incubator in the classroom. Students learn about the life cycle of a chicken, incubating eggs, watching them hatch, and raising the chicks until they are old enough to liveon the farm.

1. Sharing the Book

This lesson plan consists of a basic outline for using the book as well as follow-up activities. Pick and choose what works for you in the time available. The lesson materials provided are:

Sharing the book
Acting out the Incubation Process
How fresh is an egg? – a science experiment to test for freshness
Parts of an Egg – seeingthe parts of a real egg and naming the part and its function
Eggciting Eggs AG News (a reading piece)

Vocabulary

Air sac – the air space at the large end of the egg
Albumen – the clear white part of an egg
Brood box – a container that keeps hatched chicks warm
Candling – shining a light through an egg shell
Comb – the flap of skin at the top of a chicken’s head. Like the wattle, it helps keep the chicken warm or cool.
Egg tooth – the hard knob at the end of a chick’s beak
Embryo – an animal in the earliest stages of development
Incubator – a device that keeps eggs warm and moist for hatching
Membrane – the thin skin that lines an egg shell
Pip – the first hole a chick makes in its shell
Wattle – the flap of skin under a chicken’s chin. Like the comb, it helps keep the chicken warm or cool.
Yolk – the yellow part of the egg

Some suggested materials to enhance the lesson

Carton of eggs (some brown and some white if possible)
Colored pictures of chickens of different breeds
Incubator if possible (not essential to the lesson)
Plastic Easter eggs with questions inside for final evaluation

Engage the Students

Ask students, “What is agriculture?” Agriculture comes from two words – agri which means land and culture which means to grow. So what doesagriculture mean?(Raising crops or animals on the land)
What are some crops farmers raise on a farm? (corn and soybeans, fruits and vegetables)
What are some animals farmers raise on a farm?
Today we will be reading a book about chickens.

Explore

1. Show the book and ask if it will be a fiction or non-fiction book? Why? Today we are going to read a book about hatching chicks in a classroom. Here are some questions to think about before we read the book. You will know the answers to all of these questions after the story. (Accept all answers)

How are baby chickens or "chicks" born?
How long do you think it takes for an egg to hatch?
What kinds of things do eggs need to hatch?
What happens to an egg if it doesn't get these things?
Once a chick is born, what kinds of things does it need to grow up healthy?

2. Read the book. Decide if you want to focus on the EGG shape information while reading or return to the book and elaborate on those facts after reading.

3. After reading, ask students what they found most interesting.

4. Show pictures of brown and white chickens. Just like dogs come in different breeds with a different purpose (lap dog, hunting dog) so do chickens. Usually white chickens are raised by farmers for their meat and are called broilers or meat chickens. Usually brown chickens are raised by farmers as layers to produce eggs.

5. Review the original questions

How are baby chickens or "chicks" born?
How long does it takes for an egg to hatch?
What kinds of things do eggs need to hatch?
What happens to an egg if it doesn't get these things?
Once a chick is born, what kinds of things does it need to grow up healthy?

Evaluation

Let’s review what we learned about chickens. I will ask you a few questions and you give me a thumbs up if the statement is true and a thumbs down if the statement is false.

Let’s try this out: Chickens are animals that are raised on a farm. (True should get a thumbs up)

a)Roosters and hens are both chickens. True

b)A chicken lays an egg once a week. (False once every 24-26 hours)

c)White eggs are better for you than brown eggs. (False both have same nutritional value; color depends on breed of chicken laying them)

d)The flap of skin on a chicken’s head is called a wattle. (False it is called a comb – remember it by thinking you comb your hair on the top of your head; wattle hangs under the chin)

e)Chicken feathers are either white or brown. (False they can also be other colors)

Here are some additional questions to ask the students. They could be placed in plastic eggs and passed out for students to open and answer.

What can you tell me about chickens?
What do they look like?
What kinds of sounds do they make?
Where do they (usually) live?
What kinds of things do they do?
What do they eat?
What do they need to survive?

Where are two places hatching can take place? (under a chicken or in an incubator)
How does an incubator work? (moves on a turning rack, water keeps air moist, heater keeps air warm, rack turns the eggs keeping chicks from getting stuck on one side)
How many days does it take a chick to hatch? (21)
What is the difference between a hen and a rooster? (female/male)
What is candling? (a way to see the inside of the egg)
How do the chicks get out of the shell? (small hole with egg tooth called a pip, taps and rests, finally pops open the shell)
How do new born chicks look? (yellow, white, tan, wet feathers, wobbly legs)
How do chicks look the day following their hatching? (hopping around, feathers fluffy)
What is a brood box? (light to keep them warm, room to move around, water and food)
How old are chicks when they can go outside in a pen? (three weeks)
Where did these chicks finally go to live?

Lesson can be extended by using these other lessons:

2. Acting out the Incubation Process

3. How fresh is an egg? – a science experiment to test for freshness

4. Parts of an Egg – seeing the parts of a real egg and naming the part and its function

5. Eggciting Eggs AG News (a reading piece)