Page 53 - sample pack

53

Giant Pandas 大熊猫

Background

The Giant Panda is one of the most famous Chinese animals. Its name in Mandarin, 熊猫, means ‘bear cat’, because it is a member of the bear family, but has eyes similar to a cat’s. The panda has black fur around its eyes, on its ears and on its legs. The Giant Panda mainly eats bamboo, and sometimes eats small amounts of other leaves, honey and fsh.

The Giant Panda is an endangered species, and has been pushed out of its natural habitat by farming and deforestation. There are less than 300 living in captivity, with around 2,000 living in the wild.

Both the dragon and the panda are national emblems of China; a national emblem is a picture that represents a country.

Class activity: Research

Unfortunately, there are lots of endangered species in the world – see if you can research other endangered species and put them on a map of the world to show where they are. Report back to the class about what you fnd out.

Arts and crafts: Panda collage

Materials:

For the panda: 1) 1 paper plate 2) White card 3) Black card 4) Glue

For the bamboo:

1) 3 sheets of A4 green card 2) Sticky tape 3) Glue

Method:

For the panda:

1) Cut out a circle of white card for the panda’s head. The paper plate will be the panda’s body, so make sure the circle you cut is smaller than the plate!

2) Cut out two ears, two eyes, two arms and two legs and a mouth from the black card

3) Glue the head onto the body, then glue the other body parts onto the panda

For the bamboo:

1) Roll two pieces of card to make a long ‘stalk’ of bamboo

2) Tape the card at each end to secure it

3) Cut out some leaves from the other piece of card and glue them onto your stalk

NATURE