Book Discussion Guide
Bats by Elizabeth Carney
Have you ever wondered why bats hang upside down? In Bats, Elizabeth Carney answers this question and many more about this fascinating creature. You and your child will learn all about bats: what they eat, how they move and why their faces are so strange looking! Your child will linger over detailed, sometimes
even gruesome, photos of live bats! You’ll be excited to find all of the bat riddles throughout the book and use your growing knowledge of bats to solve each one. After reading this book, your family will develop a deeper understanding and respect for this unique mammal.
Questions To Talk About
While Reading
Vocabulary
It's important to make sure that your child has an understanding of key words in the book. Talking about words while reading is a great way for your child to learn new words.
In this book, you might talk about these words:
- ability (pg. 4)
- advantages (pg. 10)
- sensitive (pg. 12)
- features (pg. 17)
- multiply (pg. 27)
- obstacles (pg. 29)
- constant (pg. 31)
You might use a question like:
In the book, what does the word advantages mean? What clues in the book help you know that it is a positive word?
Key Ideas and Themes
In addition to words, it's important to talk about key ideas and themes and how they develop over the course of the book.
Here are some examples to get you started:
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1
On page 4, the author introduces a riddle. Talk about what a riddle means and what you have to do to solve it. Then, ask why your child thinks the author uses a riddle. How does it impact the reader?
-
2
The author talks about two main types of bats: bats that eat fruit and bats that eat insects. What are the differences between fruit bats and insect-eating bats? Be sure to ask your child to use some details from the book to explain.
-
3
One amazing aspect of bats is that they can fly perfectly in the dark, without seeing
(with their eyes anyway). Talk with your child about why bats might fly at night rather
than during the day. Use the details on pages 10-11 to help out. Then, talk about what
echolocation means and how bats use it to navigate and hunt. Talk about this process together, encouraging your child to use sequence words (for example, first, next, then, etc.) to explain. -
4
Imagine you are talking to a friend about bats and he asks, “What do their bodies look like?” What page do you think he should read?
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5
Talk to your child about the author’s point of view. What is it? How do you know? As
your child responds, encourage the use of specific vocabulary. For example, instead of saying, “The author thinks they are interesting,” we might say, “The author thinks they are unique mammals.”
Extra Activities
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1
One feature the author uses throughout this book is a small sidebar that gives the definition of scientific words related to bats. The author calls these: “Bat Words.” As a family, flip through the book, reading each of these definitions and talking about them. After reviewing these words together, cover up the definitions with “post it” notes. Reread the book and ask your child to be a “Bat Expert.” As you come across these words, ask the “Bat Expert” to explain the meaning of these terms in his or her own words.