Bats Storytime Lesson and Scavenger Hunts

This Bat Storytime is full of facts about bats! It contains lots of facts about bats, different bat species, what they eat, and more. This elementary library lesson is perfect for librarians looking for an autumn Storytime or Halloween alternative.

Content Warning: This presentation is full of real, close-up bat photos (see the preview for slide samples). The underlying idea is that bats are beneficial in many ways, and they won’t hurt humans as long as we leave them alone. Still, some students and teachers truly fear bats and may be afraid of the photos. As always, know your audience!

This lesson has 95 total slides and pages, and it includes:

• 67-slide Lesson Presentation in Microsoft PowerPoint + Google Slides
  • All body text is editable; you choose which slides you want to use.
  • 22 slides are for the read-aloud and/or guided lesson that walks you through the storytime lesson.
  • 34 slides are “scrolling presentation” slides that are great for extending lessons or scrolling in the library during checkout and downtimes.
  • 7 slides are review slides at the end of the lesson to keep students engaged as they line up.
  • Please note that this presentation is designed to complement a read-aloud. The actual read-aloud story comes from you! Due to copyright laws, read-aloud videos of the books are NOT included.
• Two (2) editable, differentiated scavenger hunts (3 pages, PowerPoint and PDF)
  • Students “hunt” for images and information in the Part 2 scrolling slides part of the presentation. This gives students something to focus on during library checkout and downtime.
  • “Easier” version – Students color the objects as they find them.
  • “Harder” version – Students answer questions about the information in the slides, plus find smaller images.
  • Answer key is included.
• List of 32 recommended books to accompany this lesson (1 page, PowerPoint and PDF)
  • The list is editable and great to hand out to parents, teachers, and students looking for related books.
• Take-Home Extension Activities (2 pages, PowerPoint, Google Slides, and PDF)
  • Text is editable, and includes several ways for students to share what they learned during the lesson.
• Detailed, pre-filled Library Lesson Plan in editable PDF and PowerPoint formats (7 pages), aligned to:
  • AASL National School Library Standards for Learners,
  • National Common Core ELA Standards, and
  • Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS).
• Lesson tips and tricks for librarians on a “specials rotation” (9 pages, PDF)
• Google Classroom Basics (4 pages, PDF)
• Instructions on how to set up PowerPoint slide timings for scrolling slides (2 pages, PDF)

22 Storytime Slides:

Part 1 is a guided whole-class discussion and read-aloud. The slides walk you through the entire class discussion, from start to finish.

• Nursery rhyme: “Bat, Bat, Come Under My Hat”
• ASL sign language for “bat” — includes video links and step-by-step directions for making the signs
• “Fact or Fiction?” group discussion game
• Slide for your read-aloud (paste the book cover on the slide).
• Checkout reminders slide — Add your own reminders!
• “What Should We Do Now?” slide — This is very clear instructions on what students should be doing after the lesson.

34 Scrolling Slides:

Part 2 is the scrolling slides. Set them on a timer to scroll on a screen during library checkout. Students can use the scrolling slides to complete one of the two Scavenger Hunts.

• Vocabulary Words of the Week: guano, echolocation, roost
• Idiom and simile: “going batty” and “blind as a bat”
• Library skill: fiction versus nonfiction
• Fun facts about bats
• 10 species of bats with photos
• World’s largest and smallest bats
• Bats as seed spreaders
• Guano as fertilizer
• Where bats live
• Are bats blind?
• Are vampire bats real?
• what to do if you see a bat outside (leave it alone)
• Austin, Texas Congress Bridge bats
• 4 U.S. states that have an “official state bat”
• 1 “Would-You-Rather” and 1 “This or That” question slides
• 1 bat joke

7 Wrap Up Slides:

Part 3 is the review slides. There are 5 review questions that make great time-fillers to use while waiting for teachers to pick up students from library class. All the questions are answered in the presentation, but students can also make up additional answers for some questions.

Take Home Extension Activities:

Students love sharing their knowledge! With the editable 2-page take-home activities, students can:

• quiz siblings, friends, and family members about some of the bat facts they learned in the storytime,
• prepare a healthy bat-themed snack,
• read some recommended bat picture books,
• review bat vocabulary words from the lesson,
• learn to draw a cute bat using simple, step-by-step directions,
• remember how to sign “bat” in American Sign Language, and
• write words that rhyme with bat.

Standards Addressed:

AASL National School Library Standards –
See the AASL Standards Framework for Learners to view full text.

• Inquire –  C.1. – D.3.
• Collaborate – A.2. – D.1.
• Explore – A.1. – C.1.

Common Core English Language Arts Standards –
© Copyright 2010 National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved.

• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.K.10. – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.K.10. – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.K.1.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.10. – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.1.10. – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.1.1.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.10. – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.2.10. – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.2.1.
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.10. – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.10. – CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.3.1.

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