A Free Froggy Bonanza by

www.muddyfaces.co.uk

Little Green Frog

(Stick out your tongue on every 2nd "Mm" and open mouth wide for any Aahh!)

Mm, Mm went the little green frog one day,

Mm, Mm went the little green frog,

Mm, Mm went the little green frog one day,

And they all went Mm, Mm, Aahh!

But! We all know frogs go, (Clap)

Lahdeedahdeedah! (Clap) Lahdeedahdeedah! (Clap)

Lahdeedahdeedah! We all know frogs go, (Clap)

Lahdeedahdeedah! They don't go Mm, Mm, Aahh!

.

Five Little Tadpoles

Five little tadpoles swimming near the shore.

The first one said, “Let’s swim some more.”

The second one said, “Let’s rest awhile.”

The third one said, “Swimming makes me smile.”

The fourth one said, “My legs are growing long.”

The fifth one said, “I’m getting very strong.”

Five little tadpoles will soon be frogs.

They’ll jump from the water and sit on logs

.

Breathing

Frogs breathe through their nostrils while also absorbing about half the air they need, through their skin. They need to keep their skin moist to enable themselves to breathe properly and they secret mucus to help do this; that is why frogs are often regarded as slimy.

Drinking

Instead of drinking water, frogs soak it into

their body through their skin.

Eating.

Frogs use their sticky, muscular tongue to catch and swallow food. Unlike humans, their tongue is not attached to the back of its mouth, but is attached to the front. This enables the frog to stick its tongue out much further.

Frogs and toads are

amphibians from the

same family, but they

are different species.

The skin of a toad is

generally dry and

bumpy. Toads are

toothless and usually

lay eggs in a long

string. The skin of a

frog is smooth and

they have small fish

like teeth and eyes,

that often protrude.

Frogs usually lay eggs

in a tight circular

group. (Pictured)

Using a frog life cycle to

help us explore the

development stages, we

started to create our own

life cycle out of clay.

Rolling lots of little balls

for the frogspawn was

fun and pushing a felt tip

lid into each one created

the small black egg.

Clay Animals

We have a large bag of

natural clay for using in

our mud kitchen.

This type of clay has a

lovely slimy texture to

work with. Unlike kiln

dry clay, it is not very

strong when it dries out.

It often gets deposited

around the garden, so I

like to use this natural

clay, rather than an air

drying one . Many air

drying clays have added

fibres to give them

rigidity when the clay

has dried out.

OPSTA22 School Buff Clay GWANI02 Life cycle of a frog www.muddyfaces.co.uk

To make the body, take a large piece of clay and mould into a sand timer shape. Squash it down

to make it flatter. Back legs, roll out two long sausages and flatten one end to create a flipper .

Squash onto the body then bend each sausage to create the legs of the frog. The front legs are

made in a similar way, only shorter.

Roll out two thin sausages and blend onto the back for ridges. Use two small clay balls blended

onto head for eyes.

Smooth off all the joins using water and allow to dry slightly before adding detail with a small

tool /pencil .

Once you have made your

clay frog, it is imperative

you take it to explore

around your garden. Don’t

forget the thing clay frogs

like most, is a little push on

the swing. Keep an eye out

for clay frog-eating birds

high up in the branches!

Painted frogs on

wood.

Paint the whole

area green, and

allow to dry.

Draw a central line

and nostrils in thin

black pen.

Larger black spots

and two yellow

spots for eyes,

allow to dry.

Put in final eye

detail to bring it

alive.

When making

resources I use

acrylic paints and

pens as they last

out in all weathers.

If doing wood

painting with

children, normal

poster paint works

fine.

Five little speckled frogs, sat on a hollow log,

Eating some most delicious bugs, Yum, Yum.

One frog jumped in the pool, Where it was nice and cool,

Now there are four green speckled frogs,

GGGGLLLLUUUUBBBB GGGGLLLLUUUUBBBB.

Create your own speckled frog set

We got a little carried away developing this idea. From the initial five speckled pebble frogs,

we ended up with an oak log, a pool and some unfortunate flies.

How to make up your own set. Paint up some pebbles using a non washable paint or even permanent markers-.

Number the frogs underneath 1,2,3,4,5. Find a bucket or tub - the deeper the better. Sing the song "Five little speckled

frogs", and plop the stones into the bucket as they jump into the cool pool. Lots of splishing and splashing! How about

mixing materials eg. a couple of pebbles and a couple of pieces of wood - it may stimulate a conversation about why

some frogs float and others sink. We chose to add some floating flies.

The boys were not too interested in the song, but played for ages bombing the flies and trying to sink them. If you get it

right, (or cheat by placing a frog on top of a fly carefully), a frog can hold a fly at the bottom of the bowl.

When the boys discovered the numbers on the bottom of the frogs they discussed about lining them up in order and

then jumping them into the pool one by one. They soon returned to the splashing and fly bombing frogs!

Frog in a Milk-Pail A frog was hopping around a farmyard, when it decided to investigate what was in a metal pail. Being a little too curious, he wanted to see what the white liquid in it was and oops he toppled into the pail half-filled with fresh milk. As he swam about, trying to reach the top of the pail, he found that the sides of the pail were too high and steep to climb out. He swam down and pushed off the bottom of the pail but found it too deep. He kicked his legs as fast as he could trying to propel himself out of the pail. Whatever he did he just couldn’t escape. But this frog was determined not to give up, and he continued to struggle. He kicked and squirmed and kicked and squirmed, until at last, all his churning about in the milk had turned the milk into a big hunk of butter. The butter was now solid enough for him to climb onto and get out of the pail! Never give up!!

Useful links

One of the most common questions is, "What is the difference between Frogs and Toads?" Most are surprised to hear that all toads actually are frogs! Find out more on the Frogland website, a comprehensive and fun resource about frogs and toads. Read about Bog Gardens and Mini-Ponds on the Froglife website Froglife Conservation of amphibians and reptiles – frogs, toads, newts, snakes and lizards – and saving the habitats they depend on. “Amphibians, particularly frogs, require damp habitats. Whatever your size of garden, any kind of water related feature such as a bog garden area or mini ‘tub’ pond that’s accessible will be beneficial to your local amphibians. A bog garden can be a standalone feature or be a perfect habitat accompaniment alongside your pond. A ‘tub’ style mini wildlife pond can be easier to install and manage than a larger sized wildlife pond, and are generally considered safer for children.”

The Sticky Tongue Project “addressing biodiversity & conservation issues with a special focus on

reptiles & amphibians by engaging audiences using a unique multi-media approach” .

Amphibian & Reptile Conservation Trust Conserving amphibians and reptiles and saving the

disappearing habitats on which they depend.

ARG UK Amphibian & Reptile Groups of the UK Supporting 60+ ARG groups in the UK; local

contacts, ID guides, surveys etc.

Amphibian Specialist Group & Amphibian Survival Alliance Focusing on sites & habitats and

working to improve amphibian quality of life .