The Underneath

Appelt,K. (2008). The underneath. New York: Simon and Schuster. A calico cat, who is ready to have kittens, befriends an old hound dog named Ranger, who is mistreated by his owner, Gar-Face. Ranger protects Mama and the kittens until Puck gets caught by Gar-Face and he and Mama end up in the creek. Puck makes his way back to his sister and Ranger. It is a cute tale about the power of love and hate. Lesson plans: TEKS: 6.(12) Organisms and environments. The student knows all organisms are classified into Domains and Kingdoms. Organisms within these taxonomic groups share similar characteristics which allow them to interact with the living and nonliving parts of their ecosystem(E) describe biotic and abiotic parts of an ecosystem in which organisms interact; and (F) diagram the levels of organization within an ecosystem, including organism, population, community, and ecosystem. The students will research bayous and ecosystems and write a report answering specific questions about bayous and ecosystems in the report before reading the novel.