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Quizzical & Querrelsome Quails: An Integrated Unit for Grades 2-4

In this post, I talk a little about quail, introduce some kids' books that focus on them, and then offer a possible integrated unit outline.

1. First, a little about Quail

Readers of this blog may have read some of my posts on 'Key Themes' in children's literature before. As well, some will know that I like birds and you may have seen my post titled 'Birds in Children's Literature: 35 Great Books to Read'. This post shares a thematic unit of work that has a focus on a very particular type of the bird - the quail!

In the last few years I've been keeping some native Australian birds and have loved caring for them and watching them have young and rearing them. Some of my favourite birds are quail. As a young child I had the chance to keep some Australian native King Quail and experience the joy of seeing their eggs hatch to reveal young who from birth could feed, run and act with a degree of independence. The King Quail does well in captivity and breed rather easily and provide hours of interest for adults and children.

Above: Two chicks seek the protection of an aunt.

We always love it when animals take on almost human qualities and even quails do things at times that remind us of special human qualities (Anthropomorphism). Here are some of the characteristics I've observed:
What I love most about King Quail is that they tend to rear chicks as a family group. Typically, owners keep one male and 2 to 3 females together. When one hen has chicks, all family members help to raise them. The father protects the young, all sit on them to keep them warm in cold weather and every adult male or female shares duties to protect and help them to find food.

It's hardly surprising that these cute birds would have had a number of children's books written about them, or with quail of one type or another as central characters. Your children might simply enjoy some of the books that follow or they could become part of an integrated unit for a class, or a home project for others. Here are some books that might be part of a unit of study. I follow this with a plan for a unit of work

2. Some Books on Quails

'The Hunter and the Quail', by Nazli Gellek A hunter captures many birds each day until a wise quail teaches the flock how their cooperation will allow them to escape. By avoiding petty arguments, the wise ones outwit the hunter and live in peace.

'Quail Can't Decide', by Jacquelyn Reinach

This is one of the forty books in the Sweet Pickles series. These are all set in the fictional town of Sweet Pickles and are about anthropomorphic animals with different personalities and behavior. There are 26 animals—one for each letter of the alphabet. Quail has an interesting problem; she can't make up her mind how she will spend a dollar. What will she do?

'How the Quail Earned His Topknot', by Richard Oldenburg & illustrated by Elizabeth Lauder A young quail loves running so much that he's never even tried to fly. All the other quail tease him and think he's strange. Tired of being made fun of, he decides to learn to fly as well. The quail enters a contest that requires him to run and fly, and he's set to race against a fast road runner bird. Will his running skills come in handy? Has he had enough practice flying so he can win the race? This cute story teaches children to value each other's differences. Richard Oldenburg has included science as an integral component in his teaching career. A graduate of California State University, Long Beach, he has been a teacher and administrator at all levels of education. A member of the Society of Children's Writers and Illustrators, as well a graduate of the Institute of Children's Literature, he continues to write on animal themes. In his spare time Oldenburg concentrates on golf, fishing, and spending time with the grandchildren. 'The Quail, Robert', by  Margaret Stranger

This may well be the most popular quail book of all. It is a bestseller and acclaimed classic. It tells of a little bird who preferred human companionship to other quail.

GQ GQ. Where Are You?: Adventures of a Gambel’s Quail, by Sharon I. Ritt & illustrated by Nadia Komorova 'Where Are You? Adventures of a Gambel's Quail' "...is a lovely introduction for young readers to one of the desert's cutest critters. Her verse is simple, yet eloquent, and lots of fun to read. Artist Nadia Komorova's beautifully rendered illustrations add a dazzling splash of color that makes turning the page to see what comes next a true pleasure. I have a place reserved for this book in my library." (Conrad J. Storad)

'Quails : Amazing Pictures and Facts about Quails', by Breanne Sartori [Non-fiction] Let's Learn About... Quails - Amazing Pictures and Facts about Quails. Have your children ever wondered EXACTLY what a quail is? There are so many awesome things to learn about quails. Where do they build their nests? Why do they live alone? In this book you'll find answers to these questions and many more in simple, fun language. Each fact is accompanied by incredible pictures to keep even the youngest child fascinated. In school our children aren't taught in a way that makes them curious and want to learn. I want to change that! This book will show your children just how interesting the world is and help excite a passion for learning. Your children will learn how to: Become curious about the world around them, find a motivation to learn, use their free time to discover more about the world - and have fun while doing so! And much more!

'The Quail Club', by Carolyn Marsden [For Older Readers, 10+] "A compelling sequel to 'The Gold-threaded Dress' . . . . Marsden handles a perennial topic with poignancy and grace." (School Library Journal)

Oy lives in America now, but she loves learning traditional Thai dances almost as much as being in the Quail Club - five friends who meet after school to hatch and care for baby quail. When their teacher announces a talent show, Oy knows how proud her family would be to see her step onstage in her gold-threaded dress from Thailand. But bossy Liliandra vows to kick Oy out of the club if she won't team up for a very different kind of dance. In this finely crafted novel, Carolyn Marsden explores what it takes to be a true friend and still be true to yourself.

3. What might an integrated unit on quails look like?

Here is a sample unit that children in grades Two to Four would enjoy.

a) Introduction & Observation

There are varied ways you could begin the unit. This includes:

Read one of the books above and discuss and perhaps simply enjoy and discuss it the first time. After this perhaps reconsider it and see what it teaches us about quails, including their habits, characteristics, food, family patterns, enemies, food and so on.

Or, have a friend or contact (perhaps even a local pet shop) bring in a quail (or two) to show the class. This would need to be done carefully and probably with quail used to human handling as they are generally shy creatures. Alternatively, you could show them a video of a group of quail either wild or in captivity. The class could observe them and discuss what they saw. How did they move? What were some of their habits? What was their food? Were there differences between male and females? b) Learning about their habitat & life

Using varied resources (books, film, observation, talk by a handler etc) consider the habitat of the quail, food, shelter, nesting habits, reproduction, food.

c) Response

There are many ways that students could respond to their reading, viewing or direct observations. This could include:

Posted by Trevor Cairney at 9:23 AM Labels: children's literature, integrated units, science, thematic units 
I live in Maine during the summer and Tucson, Arizona in winter. My bird feeder customers are different in each locality. At this time of the year I mourn leaving the bluejays, nuthatches, chickadees, downey and hairy woodpeckers. Reading this blog today about the quail reminds me of what waits at my feeders in Arizona. I think of the Great Horned Owl triplets that were almost ready to leave the nest last April and my lucky chance to see one new Gambel quail family right before leaving. These birds are truly special to observe over their life cycle. The parenting behavior you wrote about is remarkable.

I just ordered GQ, GQ, Where Are You to share with the children I teach in Tucson. Thanks for the gift of this title and for the reminder that when one door closes another opens!

September 21, 2016 at 3:45 AM 
Glad you liked the post. I was in Arizona last year, including Arizona and visited my good friends Ken & Yetta Goodman. It was wonderful to sit in their back yard (you'd say garden, but they simply back onto the desert and to watch the bird life, including humming birds. Arizona is one of my favourite places in the world!

September 21, 2016 at 1:35 PM