Frazzeled Freya Activities

In this video I not only read my picture book but also discuss a little of the nature of frill-neck lizards and where you will find them.

Below are the resources I have prepared to accompany Frazzled Freya.

This Picture Book is suitable for children aged 4-8 years

The activities below are suitable for various ages in that range.

Note: Upper Primary children can still learn a lot form a picture book if used in conjunction with some of the below resources.

Research Questions

Frill-neck lizards are found only in the hot northern parts of Australia. Often the Northern Territory is referred to as the Top End. Can you find the ‘Top End’ on a map? Draw or trace a map of Australia and shade in this area yellow.
Eastern bearded dragons are considered frill-neck lizards’ cousins, they are very similar to look at and are often confused. These little fellows are found in the coastal regions of NSW and Victoria. Colour those areas green.
Find pictures of both frill-neck lizards and eastern bearded dragons. Can you spot the difference? List the differences. Draw a picture of both.
Lizards are cold-blooded reptiles. What does this mean?
What are the two different uses of the frill?

Freya is a frill-neck lizard that learns to overcome hers fears through playing games. Write a story that involves you learning something through playing a game.
Freya is frightened by the monster that is made by her shadow. Write a story about a monster created by another shadow.
Often our greatest fear is the fear of the unknown. Write a story about a monster hiding under your bed or in your wardrobe. What happens when you discover it?
What makes you frightened? Can you write a story to help you feel better about it?
Here’s a story starter, see if you can continue the story – Another flash of lightning lit the night sky. I counted to five before the booming crash of thunder echoed through my bedroom.

Make a paper frill-neck lizard.
Freya saw a dinosaur in her shadow. What shapes can you make with your shadow? Trace your shapes either with chalk or on large sheets of paper. You will need help. Turn your shape into an interesting animal or monster.
Do you have a collection of dinosaurs? Take them outside and trace their shadows.
Colouring pages. See images below.
Don’t forget when you are finished to go outside and play a game of shadows. See if you can catch each other by stepping on each-others shadows. One person at a time is ‘it’.

Freya is a Frill-neck lizard, she will open her frill as wide as she can when she is frightened to make herself look bigger and scarier to any predator as possible. However, to open her frill she must open her mouth as wide as they possible can. – True or False?
Twin Geckos, Gabbie and Grace, have little suction pads on their soles of their tiny feet to enable them to defy gravity. They are so clever they can hang upside-down from your ceiling. True or False?
Sloan is a very bad tempered slithery Northern Brown Tree Snake. He is among the worlds deadliest snakes. True or False?
Joanna is a friendly goanna that wants to play. However, when she lays her eggs she doesn’t look after them. A goanna lays her eggs in a termite mound where once hatched, the baby reptiles must dig their own way out. True or False?
As Molly our little Spinifex Mouse is the only mammal in our story, I am giving you a bit of a different challenge. This one is multiple choice. Decide which of these statements are True or False?

a) Spinifex Hopping Mice are so named because they hop on their hind legs just like kangaroos.

b) The desert floor is so hot they jump three times their height to cool their tiny feet.

c) They are a nocturnal desert dwelling mammal that during the dry season can survive on very little to no water.

d) They have very effective kidneys that absorb every drop of water from their waste making their urine solid.

The answers to the quiz are below the video.

You will see how a frill-neck lizards attempts to be scary, but is in fact frightened and runs away on its hind legs.

True
True
If Sloan were an Eastern or Common Brown Snake then he would be one of the deadliest snakes, as these are the second most venomous snakes in the world. However, Sloan is a Northern Brown Tree snake and not considered very dangerous to humans. His fangs are at the back of his mouth, making him unable to inject a huge bite. So the answer is in fact, false.
False - Trick question. Goannas do lay eggs into termite mounds and leave them to incubate. However they do not leave the young to dig themselves out. The mother returns to help dig them out.
A. C and D are all True. The only False is B.