Kali’s Story: An Orphaned Polar Bear Rescue by Jennifer Keats Curtis and John Gomes is one of the newest spring titles from Arbordale Publishing (formerly Sylvan Dell). This cute photo journal style book follows the rescue of an orphaned polar bear named Kali from the Inupiat village of Kali to the Alaska Zoo in Anchorage to his new home at the Buffalo Zoo in New York.
The photographs of this adorable polar bear cub take readers inside the initial rescue of the cub from his den after his mother died. Kali’s journey is documented fully, with details like how and what he ate, ways he played, and the reasons behind moving him to the different zoos. There are even important things to consider like getting him used to the scent of his future roommate before his arrival.
Kali’s Story is a fun picture book to read aloud, and it is written simply, with easy vocabulary, so that young readers can read it independently as well. But, the cool thing about this book is how you can extend it beyond the page and turn it into a cross-curricular unit study.
Several enrichment activities are included in the “For Creative Minds” section in the book, and there are free downloadable activities on the Arbordale website. This book has an obvious tie in to science, but the extra activities cover math, langage arts, and geography, too. The pre-reading and animal classification activities are my favorites.
Kali’s Story is a compelling rescue story, and with the resources the publisher provides, it is a wonderful addition to our Charlotte Mason style classroom.
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