"I think I'm pretty sweet!"
My wings make me the only mammal in the world that can fly!
I use my mouth to make high-pitched sounds. Listening to their echoes helps me find food.
My fur carries pollen from flower to flower. This helps them grow!
Joe McDonald/Getty Images
Bats: Spooky or Sweet?
These nighttime creatures might seem scary, but they help us and the environment in some surprising ways!
From the October/November 2023 Issue
Complexity Factors
Standards
Joe McDonald/Getty Images (Bat); Shutterstock.com (All Other Images)
Bats Need Our Help!
More than 100 bat species are endangered because they don’t have safe places to live. You can help by planting a garden or building a bat house!
Heroes of the Night
Bats eat thousands of insects each night. This protects us from diseases spread by pests like mosquitoes!
Without bats, we wouldn’t have mangoes, avocados, vanilla, or chocolate! The plants they come from rely on bats to spread their seeds.
Fact or Fiction?
Bats Are Blind
Fiction! Bats have excellent eyesight that they use to see in the dark.
Bats Drink Blood
Fact! Out of 1,400+ bat species around the world, three of them feed on animal blood. But don’t worry! The animals they bite are rarely hurt.
Bats Are Dirty
Fiction! Bats lick themselves clean for several hours each day.
Write to Win
Imagine you’re the leader of a nature club in your neighborhood. Write a letter to your neighbors explaining why they should build bat houses. Send it to “Bat Contest” by December 15, 2023. Five winners will each receive a Storyworks prize. Visit the Storyworks Contests page for more information.
This infographic was originally published in the October/November 2023 issue.
video
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Activities
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Skills Activities
Answer Key
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Step-by-Step Lesson Plan
1. Reading and Discussing
Project the infographic as students follow along in their magazines.
Prompt students to use the headline, subhead, and central image to identify the topic of the infographic.
Ask: Is the purpose of the infographic to
- explain something to you?
- convince you of something?
- tell you how to do something?
Have students look over the labels and images surrounding the central image. Ask:
- How are they related to the central image? (They provide details about the main idea.)
Break students into groups to read each section of the infographic and discuss what they find interesting, surprising, or convincing.
Come back together as a class and ask volunteers to summarize the main idea and supporting details from the infographic.
2. Writing
Preview the writing prompt in the “Write to Win” box.
Download and distribute the guided-writing activity that goes along with the infographic.
Have students respond to the writing prompt. If you wish, send their responses to our infographic contest.
3. Ideas to Engage and Inspire
Have students create their own infographics! Download our “Make Your Own Infographic” activity from Storyworks Digital.
Text-to-Speech