How Some
Animals
Became What
They are Today
Fictional
Stories by
The Four Corners
Third Grade
Monday Group
Greetings parents and guardians of our
wonderful third grade partners!
This Fall we began an exciting new internship with Four Corners
School where the third graders visit Greenfield High School for an
exciting new educational experience. We work as partners each
Monday and Wednesday to explore the wonderful world of science
together.
Our first lessons were all about adaptation and how the
environment influences each species. We introduced the third grade to
our Science Center which houses a variety of plants and animals.
Students learned about living organisms and how they interact with
their environment. Our lessons emphasized the link between animals
and plants, how plants and animals react to our changing environment.
As we examined the adaptations of our unique plants and animals,
we also enjoyed reading many wonderful children's stories that included
many unique explanations of how organisms got to be the way they are
- both scientific and fictional. One of the favorite stories was a Native
American Tale about how “Bear Lost His Tail”. It is lots of fun observing
unique adaptations and we enjoyed many of the cultural stories. We
soon learned they’re not only physical but often behavioral
characteristics that help species survive.
We then enjoyed researching many unique cultural stories of how
adaptations occur. Many stories were recorded by Rudyard Kipling but
many more were discovered by the high school students from Native
American cultures. The third graders then created their own wonderful
creative stories of how many of our wild creatures got to be they way
they are.
We hope you enjoy our fun first project!
Happy Holidays Greenfield High Science Center
How Bear Lost His Tail -- An Iroquois Tale
Back in the old days, Bear had a tail which was his proudest possession. It
was long and black and glossy and Bear used to wave it around just so that
people would look at it.
Fox saw this. Fox, as everyone knows, is a trickster and likes nothing
better than fooling others. So it was that he decided to play a trick on Bear.
It was the time of year when Hatho, the Spirit of Frost, had swept across
the land, covering the lakes with ice and pounding on the trees with his big
hammer. Fox made a hole in the ice, right near a place where Bear liked to walk.
By the time Bear came by, all around Fox, in a big circle, were big trout and fat
perch. Just as Bear was about to ask Fox what he was doing, Fox twitched his
tail which he had sticking through that hole in the ice and pulled out a huge
trout.
"Greetings, Brother," said Fox. "How are you this fine day?"
"Greetings," answered Bear, looking at the big circle of fat fish. "I am
well, Brother. But what are you doing?"
"I am fishing," answered Fox. "Would you like to try?"
How Bear Lost His Tail -- An Iroquois tale Continued….
"Oh, yes," said Bear, as he started to lumber over to Fox's fishing hole.
But Fox stopped him. "Wait, Brother," he said, "This place will not be good.
As you can see, I have already caught all the fish. Let us make you a new fishing
spot where you can catch many big trout."
Bear agreed and so he followed Fox to the new place, a place where, as Fox
knew very well, the lake was too shallow to catch the winter fish--which always
stay in the deepest water when Hatho has covered their ponds. Bear watched as
Fox made the hole in the ice, already tasting the fine fish he would soon catch.
"Now," Fox said, "you must do just as I tell you. Clear your mind of all thoughts
of fish. Do not even think of a song or the fish will hear you. Turn your back to
the hole and place your tail inside it. Soon a fish will come and grab your tail and
you can pull him out."
"But how will I know if a fish has grabbed my tail if my back is turned?"
asked Bear.
How Bear Lost His Tail -- An Iroquois tale Continued….
"I will hide over here where the fish cannot see me," said Fox. "When a
fish grabs your tail, I will shout. Then you must pull as hard as you can to catch
your fish. But you must be very patient. Do not move at all until I tell you.“
Bear nodded, "I will do exactly as you say." He sat down next to the hole,
placed his long beautiful black tail in the icy water and turned his back.
Fox watched for a time to make sure that Bear was doing as he was told
and then, very quietly, sneaked back to his own house and went to bed. The next
morning he woke up and thought of Bear. "I wonder if he is still there," Fox said
to himself. "I'll just go and check.“
So Fox went back to the ice covered pond and what do you think he saw?
He saw what looked like a little white hill in the middle of the ice. It had snowed
during the night and covered Bear, who had fallen asleep while waiting for Fox
to tell him to pull his tail and catch a fish. And Bear was snoring. His snores
were so loud that the ice was shaking. It was so funny that Fox rolled with
laughter. But when he was through laughing, he decided the time had come to
wake up poor Bear. He crept very close to Bear's ear, took a deep breath, and
then shouted: "Now, Bear!!!"
Bear woke up with a start and pulled his long tail hard as he could. But his
tail had been caught in the ice which had frozen over during the night and as he
pulled, it broke off -- Whack! -- just like that. Bear turned around to look at the
fish he had caught and instead saw his long lovely tail caught in the ice.
"Ohhh," he moaned, "ohhh, Fox. I will get you for this." But Fox, even
though he was laughing fit to kill was still faster than Bear and he leaped aside
and was gone.
So it is that even to this day Bears have short tails and no love at all for
Fox. And if you ever hear a bear moaning, it is probably because he remembers
the trick Fox played on him long ago and he is mourning for his lost tail.
Note: This Native American tale is from the website: www.firstpeople.us,
a site with many native American tales from many of the tribes that are in the
United states. This particular version of “How The Bear Lost His Tail” is the
Iroquois version from that site
How the King Cobra got its Long Tail
One day the king cobra was slithering around
in the tall grass. He then came across a hole that a
human had been digging. After the cobra went into
the hole to cool down from the hot sun, the human
reached in, and grabbed the cobra by its tail. Reacting
to the surprise grab, the cobra bit the human. Raged
with anger, the human continued to pull on his tail to
remove him from his garden hole. His tail began to
stretch and stretch, as he started to come out of the
hole, he quickly latched on a root with his fangs, the
human pulled and pulled, until he could pull no more.
The snake then released and slithered his way out of
the hole and realized he had the longest tail in the
world.
THE END
The Turtle and the Hermit Crab
by Gabe
Once upon a time, there was a turtle and a hermit crab.
The turtle believed everything that the hermit crab told
him. The hermit crab said “ try this shell ” But the
shell of the hermit crab was too small. One day when
the turtle was walking on the shore, he found a shell big
enough for him. When he found the shell , he thought
about what the hermit crab had said and he tried on the
shell. He tried to get out of the shell, but couldn’t! He
was stuck with the shell forever! Then, the turtle gave
birth and the baby turtles were born with shells too.
That is how turtles got their shells!
How the Polar Bear got it’s White Fur
By: Tyler and Chris
One day the bear had caught a big fish. The bear was
playing in the snow when a hungry fox came by and asked the
bear for his fish. The bear said “No, catch your own,” so the
fox left and was unable to catch a fish. Later on the fox came
back and asked the bear “can you go under the snow?” the bear
said “of course!” The fox replied “I bet you can’t stay under as
long as me!” To which the bear replied “I bet I can.” So the
bear dropped his fish and got ready to go under the snow. The
fox said “ready, set, go!” and the bear leaped into the snow and
the snow and the fox ran off with his fish. The bear remained
there for hours and when he arose his fur was frozen white!
How the Tiger Got Its
Stripes
One time there was a tiger. The tiger liked
to be near fires. His friends always told
him to get away from fires because
they’re dangerous but he never listened
to them.
One time there was a super big fire and it
was REALLY hot. There was an eagle that
was near the fire and it said come close to
the fire and the tiger listened so the tiger got
on fire and it got black stripes. And that’s
how the tiger got stripes. THE END 
By: Caleb and Matt D
Once upon a time,
there was a wild dog
that had really dull
teeth. Then, one day,
he was so hungry and
somehow found this
incredible metal tree.
The dog soon realized
that he could sharpen
his teeth with this
magical tree and finally
got to eat his prey.
Since his teeth were sharp now, he ate his prey such as
squirrels and foxes happily for the rest of his life. That
is why dogs have such sharp teeth.
How the Cat Got His Whiskers
Once there was a toroise
named Savanna. She
lived in Africa. She met
a friend. One day her
friend decided to play a
trick on her. So, one
day Savanna followed
her friend and when she
got there she saw a lion.
She got scared so she
hid in her shell.
The End!
How the Hedgehog Came to Be
• One upon a time there was furry little rabbit. The little rabbit
saw a porcupine and instantly fell in love. The rabbit and the
porcupine both went on a date in the forest to the 99
Porcupine. They ate leaves, grass and worms. They drank
water from the pond in cups. “It’s a lovely day to take a
walk,” said the rabbit girl. “Of Course!” said the porcupine.
As they took a walk through the magical forest they saw
three magic mushrooms. Both of them ate the top of the
mushrooms and a baby appeared! The baby wasn’t quite a
rabbit or a porcupine, it was a hedgehog! Then the hedgehog
ate the mushrooms, after he ate the mushroom a baby boy
hedgehog appeared. The first girl hedgehog and the boy
hedgehog fell in love. The End