Survival At 40 Below

By: Debbie S. Miller
Illustrated by: Jon Van Zyle
Walker Publishing Company, 2010
Reading Level: 5.8 (Accelerated Reader)
Independent Read


Book Description: Non-Fiction, Picture Book, Teachers' Choice Award

Autumn is coming to an end in Gates of the Arctic National Park and the animals are preparing for the harsh winter ahead.  While some animals hurry to gather food, others begin to slow down and enter into hibernation.  While each animal will face individual challenges in the months ahead, they all have unique ways of surviving the difficult winter season.  Debbie S. Miller and Jon Van Zyle describe a winter in the Arctic tundra in this Techers' Choice Award winning book.

*Teaching Resources for Survival At 40 Below

Supporting Electronic Sources:
Debbie Miller Alaska
This website contains further information on animals from the book and also lists related books and articles.  Use this source after reading for extension activities and materials.

Vocabulary:
 regal, tundra, cache, carrion, duff, torpor, pigment, metabolism, agile, dormant

Teaching Suggestions:
-Use this book to discuss certain types of conflicts in literature (character vs. nature, character vs. character)
-This book can be used in conjunction with a science lesson on animal adaptations
-Instruct students on how to use a glossary to look up unfamiliar terms

Comprehension Strategies:
Before Reading- Have students fill out an entrance slip that asks "How do animals survive in the winter?"  This will promote a connection to prior knowledge and will set the stage for the book.
After Reading- Have students select an animal from the story and summarize how the animal survives during the winter.

Writing Prompt:
Research an animal from an opposite climate such as a desert and summarize how this animal survives in its climate.  Compare this to how animals survive in the Arctic tundra.