The second graders are hard at work building their animal habitat dioramas. Three weeks ago, each student randomly selected a paper bag containing a small toy figure of a North American animal. Since then, they have read about their chosen animal, identified its traits, and examined pictures of its natural habitat.

This week, the students are selecting backgrounds, painting sets, and learning how to construct realistic, scale models of their animals' environments. Their completed dioramas will be showcased in the "North American Animals Museum" outside the lower school science classroom (Room 243) during the week of the Spring Parent-Teacher Conferences.