Emu

       The emu is a three-toed Australian bird, related to the ostrich, cassowary and rhea. It is large, sometimes weighing 130 pounds, and is distinguished by the absence of a casque, or helmet. Its feathers, which are double, are of a dull, sooty brown; those about the neck and head are hairlike in texture. There are two plumes to each quill and the bird has small, useless wings, but it can run with great speed and uses this method of escape from enemies on the plains. If brought to bay it lights viciously, kicking backward with much force. It is very easily tamed and may be kept out of doors in temperate climates. 

More About Emus From The Web:

• Baby Emu is 100% Perfect
• The hardest part about having emus in your yard
• How dangerous are emus, really?

Dragonfly:

Superstitions: In the United States, the dragon
 fly was once known as the devil's darning needle,
 but the dragon flies are harmless insects, and
 not even the butterflies are more beautiful and
 graceful.

The dragonfly are a family of beautiful insects, with large, gauzelike wings, that give it powerful and rapid flight. The dragon fly lays its eggs in the water, where the larvae and pupae live on aquatic insects. The larval stage lasts for a year. The pupae are always hungry. They propel themselves through water by drawing it into their bodies and throwing it out again. 

More About Dragon Flies From The Web:

• Beneficials In The Garden: Dragonflies
• Dragonflies: Dainty But Deadly
• Introduction to the Odonata: Dragonflies and Damselflies

More About Dragon Flies From Our Blogs:

• "Bless The Lord" coloring page with a dragonfly...
• "The Butterfly's Ball" sheet music and lyrics
• How to paint a laser cut dragon fly...

Electrical Fish

       Electric catfish. The electric catfish of the Nile was

 well known to the ancient Egyptians. The Egyptians

 reputedly used the electric shock from them when

 treating arthritis pain. They would use only smaller fish,

 as a large fish may generate an electric shock from 

300 to 400 volts. The Egyptians depicted the fish in

 their mural paintings and elsewhere; the first known

 depiction of an electric catfish is on a slate palette

 of the predynastic Egyptian ruler Narmer about

 3100 BC. It was suitably called "angry catfish" in 

ancient Egyptian.

       An electrical fish is any fish that gives an electric shock. One of the best known is the electric eel, a native of South America. It is of nearly equal thickness throughout and grows to the length of six feet. 

       A species of catfish about four feet long that lives in the Nile, and also species of torpediniformes (rays), one of which is sometimes found on the eastern coast of the United States, are also electric. 

       The seat of several organs that give the shock are located in different parts of these fish's bodies. After a few discharges, the current is weakened, and an interval of rest is required for a new storage of force.

• Electric eel needs to stun prey
• How rays and sharks use electricity
• Introduction to Electricity - video for kids
• Electrical catfish turns on light bulb!
• Here's What Will Happen if Your Touch an Electrical Eel

How do fish make electricity? by Eleanor Nelsen.

Circus Elephants Paper Cuts

The circus clown and tight rope walker balance on an elephant with monkey.

       Vintage paper cuts of an era ended, these circus elephants are now only found in books. I've restored these for your scrapbooks only. Enjoy.

• Read 33 facts about elephants and then visit the links to retired circus elephants as well.
• Search tags for more circus themed posts
• Listen to a story about a special little brave elephant...

Circus elephants walk behind each other into the arena.

Bear: 13 Furry Facts

Find all kinds of bears to color at
The Crayon Palace.

      A bear is a large shaggy beast of prey closely allied to the dog in structure and having many features in common with the badgers, weasels and skunks.

13 Furry Bear Facts:

1. Bears have massive heads, extended narrow jaws and large teeth.
2. The body appears more bulky than it really is, because of the looseness of the skin, the length of the coarse fur, the stumpy tail and the comparative shortness of the legs.
3. The limbs are furnished with long and powerful claws for use in digging, fighting and climbing trees. The senses of hearing and smell are very well developed.
4. Bears are clumsy in their movements; yet they can run rapidly, and most of them climb trees or scramble over rocks with remarkable speed.
5. They usually make their home in some cave or crevice among rocks, or in hollow trees. 
6. There, in the early spring, the young ones, usually two in number, are born.
7. Each bear family usually keeps pretty well to itself, instead of hunting in packs as the wolves do.
8. Bears will eat nearly all kinds of food.
9. They are fond of fruits, berries, herbs, roots, eggs, ants and honey. They capture and devour small animals in the woods and often raid human settlements in search of young pigs, calves, colts and sheep.
10. Almost all bears eat fish and reptiles, and some species live almost entirely on fish.
11. The pelt of bears were much valued for furs, overcoats and rugs at one time
12. The flesh was used for food in many parts of the world.
13. Bear fat and claws are not only valuable but illegal due to the threat of extinction.

Learn More About Bears from The Web:

• All the Different Types of Bears
• Differences Between Grizzly, Brown, and Kodiak Bears
• California wants its grizzly bears back
• Nora's second chance, study polar bear data

Craft Bears:

• The Three Bears Silhouettes (template)
• Fairy Friends Paper Cuts (templates)
• Rigmarole and illustrated bear poem page for your scrapbooks

St. Patrick's Day Silhouettes

       I will collect for this post, those few St. Patrick's Day paper cuts that I happen across in the archives. So far there are: angelic harps, a vintage pipe with shamrocks and a rabbit nibbling on a piece of clover.

St. Patrick Silhouettes for the classroom and child paper crafts.

Halloween Mask Silhouettes

Samples of how the masks will look once these are cut from black construction paper.

        Teachers or guardians will need to enlarge the patterns to fit their student's head. I've included a picture above to show what these paper Halloween masks will look like once they have been cut from black construction paper. Students may wish to include more details on their masks drawn with a white crayon. Attach a string to hold the masks in place with a stapler on either side of these scary little faces.

       The angry cat seems like a Halloween classic to me, but, the angry bunny rabbit? Oh, well these are very old patterns folks. Sometimes cultural norms slip through the cracks of time...

The angry black cat, I understand.

The angry bunny? Not so much.