After reading the popular folktale Tops & Bottoms, we dance the Cha Cha Slide (always a hit). The atlases are pulled out for the first time. I allow students some time to take a picture walk and see what they can find in their atlas. We use the atlas' endpapers to sing The Continents Song again.

Give Up, Gecko! serves as our African folktale. Since this shares many similarities with Why Koala has a Stumpy Tail we make a quick venn diagram on the whiteboard and talk through the stories as we fill it out. We try an African dance called Fula Fare taught by some generous members of the San Francisco Ballet and practice finding the pages for different continents in our atlases. We talk about physical maps vs. political maps and why you might use each one. 

This week we read The Beckoning Cat and discover the origin of all the waving cats we sometimes see in businesses. We try some Bhangra dance moves and then draw a lucky cat with the folks at Art Hub for Kids. 

Our final folktale is Jabuti, the Tortoise. We talk about how this is our last week because Antarctica doesn't have folks living there besides scientists at research stations. We watch three different types of South American Dance - salsa, paso doble, and tango - then try some salsa ourselves! Students then select a type of block to use to make a pattern for a tortoise shell.