“My daughter loved the videos that were integrated into the story. They really brought the animal visitors to life.”

“The embedded videos were awesome, and the story of the Grandma was heartfelt.”

“Prompted lots of discussion. I would need to pair this with a hands on investigation such as pillbugs or a garden/nature walk.”

“The kids loved the short videos of the animals, and they enjoyed the story!”

“My class loved this and I was able to relate role of predators such as cats as a threat to our native Australian animals emphasising why we should keep cats locked up at night. Video close ups a big hit! Thank you Mystery Science for making my job more fun!”

“My kids loved watching the live feed of the log while they did the activity that went along with the lesson”

“Fun! To supplement, we made an old log craft. We used a paper plate for the ground and colored it green and brown, and a half of a toilet paper tube for a log. We colored that brown and black. Then we taped down one side to the plate to make a hinge, so that the log could be lifted up. Then, I had printed out pictures of bugs, mice, lizards, plants, and mushrooms. The students cut those and put them on top of, next to, or below the log (practicing position words). We also had moss to glue. Tons of fun! ”

“The videos were really nice - the class loved watching them. They enjoyed acting out the lizard and were hoping to act out more animals! The live feeds in the Extras sections were nice, too. There wasn't much going on with the chipmunk log, so we watched the bears in Alaska and discussed their needs instead. This lesson encouraged questioning and thinking about what we were reading - loved it!”

“We liked this story. I also appreciate how the stories frequently feature people/families of color. It is important to me to normalize different kinds of people; some who look like us, some who don't.”

“I am going to follow up by placing a log outside the classroom and having the children observe it throughout the school year. ”