3FN9 – Science – Cat’s Tongue and Whiskers

How do FreeNode lessons work?

FreeNodes are instructor-led schooling lessons with a unique approach, granting you the freedom to independently teach using a personalized lesson plan. This autonomy enables you to tailor your lessons to suit students’ individual needs, learning styles, and interests.

To use a FreeNode, read the provided class outline & follow the formatting provided for each class. Make sure to touch on the Theocratic Connection in each class. Follow the outline closely so it is aligned with our main at-home curriculum.

How Do I Use the FreeNode?

Read this lesson plan before class to familiarize yourself with the ideas and concepts you’ll be teaching the students. You may print this page out if you need to use it as a reference point during live classes.

This lesson is a guide, but feel free to expand on the content or decrease/increase what you teach depending on the learning levels of the students in your class or the amount of time you have to cover the material.

Can I show videos in FN classes?

Yes, feel free to include additional material to supplement the class lesson material. Videos, Physical Objects, Games, Activities, etc. are okay to share in live classes.

Videos should have no advertisements or logos and should be viewed by you before showing them to the students to ensure no offensive or questionable content is included.

The video should make up only 1-3 minutes of the live class and should not take the place of instructor-led instruction. Videos should be supplementary only.

How do bookmarks work?

Bookmarks help you keep track of lessons you’re going to teach in future live classes. The bookmarks you see are for all your bookmarked lessons across all grades.

You can bookmark a lesson by visiting the lesson you want to bookmark and clicking the “bookmark” button in the bookmark section.

You can remove a single bookmark by visiting a lesson you’ve bookmarked and clicking the “bookmark” button again to unbookmark it.

You can clear all of your bookmarks by clicking the “clear all bookmarks” button. Be careful, this will erase all of your bookmarks.

Class Lesson Plan

Objectives:

Students will explore the unique features of cats, focusing on how Jehovah’s design equipped them with special qualities for grooming and navigating their surroundings.

Materials:

Whiteboard/Chalkboard and markers/chalk
Visual aids (pictures of cats,diagrams of cat tongues and whiskers, if available)
Interactive online resources (optional)

Introduction (5 minutes):

Begin by discussing with the students their experiences or observations with cats. Ask questions like, “Have you ever seen a cat grooming itself?” or “What do you notice about a cat’s tongue or whiskers?”

Theocratic Connections:

Emphasize the idea that Jehovah designed animals with specific qualities and abilities. Refer to Romans 1:20, which mentions learning about Jehovah through His creation.

Activity 1 – Cat Tongues (10 minutes):

Discuss the importance of grooming for animals. Show pictures of cats grooming themselves and ask students to share what they observe. Explain that a cat’s tongue is like a built-in brush with tiny hook-shaped cones called papillae. Use diagrams to illustrate the structure of a cat’s tongue and how it helps in cleaning. Optional: Show them how to draw a cat’s tongue and label the papillae.

Activity 2 – Cat Whiskers (10 minutes):

Discuss the role of whiskers in a cat’s life, especially in the dark. Show pictures of cats using their whiskers to navigate or catch prey. Explain that cat whiskers are connected to special tissues with many nerve endings. Discuss how nerve endings help animals sense their environment. Optional: Show them how to draw a cat’s face, emphasizing the whiskers and their connection to nerve endings. Encourage students to label and explain the purpose of cat whiskers.

Conclusion (5 minutes):

Recap the main points about cat grooming, focusing on the amazing design of cat tongues and whiskers.

Assessment:

Evaluate student understanding through class discussions, participation in activities, and their ability to explain the purposes of cat tongues and whiskers.