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Supplies:

  1. Magic Tree House Book Sunset of the Sabertooth and MTH Fact Tracker: Sabertooths and the Ice Age – A Nonfiction Companion to Sunset of the Sabertooth (I try to get books from the library whenever possible, but they don’t always have everything)
  2. Backpack Journals for Book 7 (Click on the book and download the Backpack Study-Books 5-8. Print 1 Story Mapping with Annie page, and 1 Jack’s Facts page).  You can fill in facts you want to write down on Jack’s Facts page as you come across them in the reading.
  3. Optional: Magic Tree House Games and Puzzles from the Treehouse book [This gets used a lot, but I will try to find alternatives online when possible. I make copies of the pages for easy gluing into the notebook]
  4.  The spiral or composition notebook started with book 1
  5. Free account at Magic Tree House
  6. The usual: paper, printer, ink, pencils, crayons or colored pencils
  7. Other supplies will depend on what additional projects you choose to do: Soap Carving– A large bar of Ivory soap, a butter or plastic knife, Pencil and paper for sketching, Large tray to hold soap chips from carving

[If using both Magic Tree House and Story of the World curricula, there may be overlapping activities. See SOTW Introduction for more activities about pre-history time period]

Day 1

  • Read prologue and chapters 1-2 of Sunset of the Sabertooth
  • After each chapter, use the story map to summarize the main event in the chapter
  • On story map, draw the setting of where they said they wanted to go (picture in book Jack and Annie were looking at) and the Mission Key
  • Read What is an Ice Age? and How Do Scientists Know About Ice Ages? sections

Day 2

  • Read chapters 3-5
  • Story map after each chapter
  • Caveman Creations (Page 31- MTH Games and Puzzles)– Match the material with the object it is used to make
    1. Materials: reindeer skins, plant fibers, stones, mammoth bones, animal fat and moss
    2. Objects Made: axes and knives, lamps, clothing, rope, flutes
  • Illustrate It! (Page 32- MTH Games and Puzzles); Make your own drawing of Ice Age animals using Jack and Annie’s descriptions
  • Read Are We Living in an Ice Age? and Glacial and Interglacial Periods sections

Day 3

  • Read chapters 6-8
  • Story map after each chapter
  • Rebus Fun (Page 35-MTH Games and Puzzles)– Use the letter and picture combinations to spell the names of animals from the Ice Age
  • Read Five Major Ice Ages section

Day 4

  • Read chapters 9-10
  • Story map after each chapter
  • Musical Notes (Page 33- MTH Games and Puzzles): Can you decode the message in the musical notes?
  • Fill in clue #3 on the Travel Journals Page.
  • Take the Sunset of the Sabertooth Passport Quiz (Don’t forget to log in!)

Day 5

  • Read chapter 1 Fact Tracker: Sabertooths and the Ice Age-The Ice Age (Note: There are multiple references throughout the book to “…millions of years…” I know there are varying beliefs in how old the earth is, so if your family believes millions of years read it as is, if you believe it is thousands of years, read it as, “Many years ago…” or “Thousands of years ago…” Based on your family beliefs, adjust to what works for you.)
  • Write chapter one vocabulary words and definitions in notebook:
    1. orbit- the path one object takes around another
    2. climate- the weather in a place over a long period of time
    3. ancestors- relatives who lived a long time ago
    4. glacier- massive sheet of ice
  • Read What Can Cause an Ice Age? section

Day 6

  • Read chapter 2 Fact Tracker: Sabertooths and the Ice Age-Early People of the Ice Age
  • Write chapter two vocabulary words and definitions in notebook:
    1. neanderthals- earliest Ice Age people
    2. fossils- remains or traces of life from long ago
    3. Homo sapiens- our early relatives or ancestors
  • Watch Magic School Bus- Shows and Tells [Archaeology] (available on Netflix at time of posting)

Day 7

  • Read chapter 3 Fact Tracker: Life in the Ice Age
  • The Cro-Magnon People were gatherers as well as hunters. If the season allows, get outside and see what edible plants you can find in your yard or neighborhood.  Look for berries, dandelions, seeds, nuts, etc. (Check your library for a book of edible plants such as Edible Wild Plants: A North American Field Guide to Over 200 Natural Foods) If not, look in your own kitchen and pantry. What foods and snacks do you have that come from plants?
  • Read Interesting Facts About Ice Ages and take the quiz
  • If you are planning to do the soap carving, unwrap the soap and let it dry for a day

Day 8

  • Read chapter 4 Fact Tracker: Cave Art
  • Take a virtual field trip to The Cave of Lascaux
  • Try your hand at Ivory Carving (If you do not want to do the soap whittling project, an alternative could be to mold figures from clay or Play-Doh; make a cave painting on a rock. If you can, use things found in nature for your paint colors- berries, flowers, leaves, mud, etc.)

Day 9

  • Read chapter 5 Fact Tracker: Saber-toothed Cats in the Pits
  • Write chapter five vocabulary words and definitions in notebook:
    1. extinct- no longer exists today
    2. predators- animals that hunt and eat other animals
    3. archaeologist- scientist who studies ancient people
    4. paleontologist- scientist who studies early plant and animal life
  • Get up and move! Get some exercise with the Sid Shuffle**

  • Using the Ice Age Animals Notebook page (Ice Age Activity #6), choose an Ice Age animal from the chapter to research (Just choose an animal, you will work on this tomorrow)

Day 10

  • Read chapter 6 Fact Tracker: Mammoths in the Ice
  • Work on your Ice Age Animal research
  • Watch 5 Giant Ice Age Animals**

Day 11

  • Read chapter 7 Fact Tracker: After the Ice Age
  • Write chapter seven vocabulary and definitions in notebook:
    1. theory- idea that has not been proven
    2. population- the number of people that live in one place
  • Take the Fact Tracker:  Passport Quiz (Don’t forget to log in!)
  • Watch a movie such as Ice Age
Pictograph Cave, Billings, MT

Extras:

(Updated 2/15/22)

**YouTube occasionally has inappropriate content. Make sure to set the safety filter at the bottom of page to on or watch with children to be able to reload page, if something objectionable comes up.

(Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see Disclosure Policy.)

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