Category: Unit 1

Birds of a feather flock together.” Traditional saying Within the last century, we have made great advancements in science and technology, from rockets to smart phones, but one of the most groundbreaking discoveries is the unraveling of the genome – DNA. As we mentioned earlier, DNA holds the information that makes a creature what it… Continue reading Don’t Judge a Mammal by Its Stripes: Cladistics

Tyger, Tyger burning bright, In the forests of the night; What immortal hand or eye, Could frame they fearful symmetry?” The Tyger, William Blake Finally, we are on the last leg of our tour of the Kingdoms of Creation (who’s up for some ice cream when we’re done?). Our final group to visit is the… Continue reading Mammals: The Warm and Fluffy Icing on the Cake

She sells seashells down by the seashore.” Traditional tongue twister The grey waves wash over the rocky shores near Lyme Regis, England, as Mary Anning, clad in a warm, woolen dress and bonnet, picks her way slowly along the coast. The chilly December air sends a shiver through her bones, as she slowly, methodically looks… Continue reading Wings Do Not a Bird Make

[Jesus said,] ‘Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.’ “ Matthew 10:16, KJV As we continue our tour of the vertebrates in the Kingdom of Animals, we will catch a ride on a robin to visit the reptiles and the… Continue reading Reptile or Bird? Easy to Tell, Even in the Shell

[Toad asked,] “What did you write in the letter?” Frog said, “I wrote ‘Dear Toad, I am glad that you are my best friend. Your best friend, Frog.” “Oh,” said Toad, “that makes a very good letter.” Frog and Toad are Friends, Arnold Lobel Inside the phylum of vertebrates, there are number of classes or “states”… Continue reading Scales and Skin: The Making of Fish and Amphibians

Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.: Jonah 1:17, KJV Now that we have met some of the strangest members of the Kingdom of Animals, we are ready to move on to the last group of… Continue reading Animals of Water, Animals of Land: Fish and Amphibians

All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful, The Lord God made them all.” Cecil Frances Alexander Now that we have gotten to know some of the fantastic members of the Kingdom of Animals, let us now consider its atlas. There are a shocking 31 different regions or… Continue reading What is an Animal? Invertebrates Show Us the Way

Ooey Gooey was a worm, a wiggly worm was he He climbed upon the railroad tracks, the train he did not see. Ooey Gooey!” Edwin Larson Now we have come to the last of the kingdoms – the Kingdom of Animals – a kingdom filled with oceans and lakes, forests and mountains, every type of… Continue reading Wriggly and Wonderful

Praised be my Lord for our sister, mother earth, The which sustains and keeps us And brings forth diverse fruits with grass and flowers bright.” St. Francis of Assisi Looking at the very thick atlas of the Kingdom of Plants (scientists have identified nearly 300,000 species!), we would find the regions (the divisions) split into… Continue reading Growing Tall and Staying Small: A Map of the Kingdom of Plants

Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.” Luke 12:27, KJV If we climb aboard our bird once more (I think I’ll go with a peregrine falcon today), we will fly over… Continue reading Tiptoe Through the Tulips (and the Liverworts)