read aloud kindergarten, readability grade 3

Nicholas is at the beach and is digging a great big hole. A man looks over his newspaper and warns him; “If you keep digging like that,” he said, “You’ll go right through to Australia.” The warning is ignored, and Nicholas keeps digging and digging. Suddenly, dozens of Australian animals jump through the hole reek havoc on the beach. This is an exciting and imaginative story that has very colourful and bold illustrations. At the end of the back, there is also a helpful, illustrated glossary consisting of a few animals that call Australia home.

• Many interesting animals jump out of Nicholas’s hole.
• Pick one and do a mini research display on it.
• Find pictures and characteristics of it from magazines, pamphlets, and/or the internet.

Answer the questions:

• Where does it live in Australia?
• What does it eat?
• List three interesting things that you found out about it.
• Collect all the information and paste them on a large piece of tagboard. Display.