Image of a variety of animals and in the middle is a dog wearing a cape
SHUTTERSTOCK.COM (BACKGROUND, DOG); SCHMIDT OCEAN INSTITUTE (OCTOPUS); BUITEN-BEELD/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO (BIRD); MARCO ULIANA/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO (BEETLE); NATURE PICTURE LIBRARY/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO (TARSIER)
Infographic,

Pick Your (Animal) Superpower

Wouldn’t it be amazing to fly or see in the dark? Some animals can actually do these things—and more!

By Alessandra Potenza
From the February 2025 Issue
Complexity Factors
  • Purpose
    The infographic presents five animals possessing impressive abilities. Context for why they need and how they use these abilities is provided.
  • Structure
    Information is presented with text and images in five sections arranged around a central image.
  • Language
    The language is familiar and straightforward.
  • Knowledge Demands
    No prior knowledge is required. Hulk, Superman, Europe, and Africa are mentioned.
Topics: Animals,
Standards
  • Common Core
    Anchor Standards: R.1, R.2, R.7, W.2, SL.1, SL.2 Grade 4: RL.4.1, RL.4.2, RL.4.7, W.4.2, SL.4.1, SL.4.2 Grade 5: RL.5.1, RL.5.2, RL.5.7, W.5.2, SL.5.1, SL.5.2 Grade 6: RL.6.1, RL.6.2, RL.6.7, W.6.2, SL.6.1, SL.6.2
  • TEKS
    Grade 4: 4.6; 4.7; 4.9d, f; 4.12a Grade 5: 5.6; 5.7; 5.9d, f; 5.12a Grade 6: 6.5; 6.6; 6.8d, f; 6.11a
  • NGSS
    LS1.A: Structure and Function LS1.D: Information Processing

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SHUTTERSTOCK.COM (BACKGROUND, DOG); SCHMIDT OCEAN INSTITUTE (OCTOPUS); BUITEN-BEELD/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO (BIRD); MARCO ULIANA/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO (BEETLE); NATURE PICTURE LIBRARY/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO (TARSIER)

Invisibility

This octopus has no need to hide from hungry whales and sharks. Its body is almost completely see-through. That makes the animal nearly impossible to find. Its name? The glass octopus.

Long-Distance Flight

Most birds can fly. But the common swift can stay in the air longer than any other—10 months without ever landing. (Take that, Superman!) The bird flies that long to move from northern Europe to central Africa—and back!—to escape the winter cold.

 Super Sense of Smell

Dogs have very sensitive noses. Their sense of smell is up to 100,000 times better than that of humans. That means if you added half a teaspoon of sugar to enough water to fill a big swimming pool, a dog could smell that! 

Extra Strength

Move over, Hulk! Some beetles can pull objects that are 1,141 times their own weight. That’s like a human moving six school buses all at once! This incredible strength helps the insects battle other beetles when trying to win over mates. 

Night Vision

This small monkey-like animal, known as a tarsier, is active at night. So how does it find tiny bugs to eat in the dark? Its huge eyes can capture any bit of light to allow the animal to see through darkness. 

Write to Win

Which animal’s superpower would you like to have, and how would you use it? Write your answer in a well-organized paragraph using details from the infographic. Entries must be submitted to “Superpower Contest” by a teacher, parent, or legal guardian.* Three winners will each receive a $25 gift card for the Scholastic Store Online. Visit the Storyworks Contests page for more information.

Contest Deadline: April 1, 2025

*Entries must be written by a student in grades 2-8 and submitted by their teacher, parent, or legal guardian, who will be the entrant and must be a legal resident of the U.S. age 18 or older. See the Digital Resource Guide or visit storyworks.scholastic.com/contests for details.

This infographic was originally published in the February 2025 issue.

Poll

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Table of Contents
Step-by-Step Lesson Plan
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1. Reading and Discussing

  • Have students preview the infographic, including the headline, subhead, images, and the “Write to Win” box.
  • Ask: Is the purpose of the infographic to:
    • explain something to you?
    • convince you of something?
    • tell you how to do something?
  • If a video is included with the infographic, show it to the class.

2. Reading and Discussing the Infographic

  • Break students into groups to read each section of the infographic and discuss what they find interesting, surprising, convincing, or confusing.
  • Come back together as a class and ask volunteers to summarize the main idea and supporting details from the infographic.

3. Skill Building and Writing

  • Distribute the Guided Writing skill builder, which will help students identify key details in the infographic and respond to the writing prompt in the “Write to Win” box. If you’d like, you, a parent, or legal guardian can submit students’ entries to the writing contest. Find more details at storyworks.scholastic.com/pages/storyworks-contests.
  • Optional: Distribute the Make Your Own Infographic activity, which guides students to choose a topic, research it, and create an infographic to share information.
Can't-Miss Teaching Extras
Explore the Storyworks Archive

Do your students want more articles about the amazing abilities of animals? We’ve got you covered with “The Blob That Lives Forever,” about the immortal jellyfish and other long-living creatures; “This Frog Is See-Through,” which introduces readers to the glass frog; “Who’s Looking at You?,” an article about some of nature’s most incredible eyes; and stories about animals that have saved the lives of humans, like “The Pigeon Hero of World War II,” “The Frozen Race,” and “Dogs to the Rescue.”

Learn More About Tarsiers

The Rainforest Action Network offers a webpage of fun and interesting facts about the adorable but shy tarsier.

Get to Know a Dog’s Nose

PBS explains why dogs are such great sniffers in this fascinating 3-minute video. (Note: Video starts after short advertisements.)

Watch a Video

Meet some other animals with astounding abilities in this 3-minute video from Fun for Kids Learning Channel. (Note: Video starts after short advertisements.)

Text-to-Speech