Robot Penguins

Open Ended

Pretend you are a king penguin caring for an egg.
In the distance, you see a human walking toward you… but on the other side, a small robot shaped like a chick is rolling your way. Which one would make you more nervous? Why? What would your instincts tell you to do?

Fill in the Blanks

LO: SWBAT analyze the controlling idea and supporting evidence to paraphrase and

a text.

Multiple Choice

Based on the title “Robot Baby Penguin Infiltrates Antarctic Colony”, along with the photograph and caption, what will the topic of this text most likely be?

• How penguins survive the harsh Antarctic climate

• How scientists use a robot penguin to study a colony

• The life cycle of baby penguins from birth to adulthood

• The dangers penguins face from predators in Antarctica

The topic is about scientists using a robot baby penguin to infiltrate and observe an Antarctic colony, because the title and caption suggest technology is being used to study penguins in their natural environment.

​Explanation:

Open Ended

Students will complete the summary on their paper, then type done on Quizizz when finished.

When the timer ends, they will pair and share their summaries with a partner, and afterward we will go over the responses together as a class.

Multiple Choice

What is the controlling idea of this section?

• Scientists created a penguin-shaped robot to study penguins more safely and respectfully.

• Researchers travel to Antarctica to collect data using new scientific equipment.

• Penguins often react strongly when humans enter their natural habitat.

• Robots are commonly used for missions on the moon, Mars, and other hard-to-reach places.

Multiple Choice

Which detail best supports the controlling idea?

• Humans have used robots to explore places such as the moon and Mars.

• The robot’s fluffy penguin-chick design lets it move through colonies without stressing the birds.

• Scientists from the University of Strasbourg worked on the project.

• Antarctica is difficult for humans to reach.

Multiple Choice

What is the best paraphrase of paragraph 1?

• Humans have spent years building robots to visit places that are hard for people to reach, such as the moon and Mars, and now they have created a new robot designed specifically to explore penguin colonies on Earth.

• Scientists have decided not to send humans into outer space anymore and instead plan to rely on different animals to complete dangerous missions that people used to handle themselves.

• People have always been able to travel to and study penguin habitats without facing any major challenges, so robots are not really needed for this type of exploration.

• Engineers have recently built robots that can move through penguin colonies to collect temperature and climate information, helping researchers learn more about the Antarctic environment.

Open Ended

Highlight the sentences that show how human researchers stress penguins and how that stress harms both the animals and the research, then paraphrase these pieces of evidence in your Student Activity packet and type done when you are finished.

Open Ended

Students will complete the summary on their paper, then type done on Quizizz when finished.

When the timer ends, they will pair and share their summaries with a partner, and afterward we will go over the responses together as a class.

Multiple Choice

Which sentence provides the strongest evidence for the controlling idea that human closeness directly harms both penguin well-being and research accuracy?

• Animals often get stressed when researchers try to get close to them in the field.

• Their heart rates rise and they react with alarm when approached by humans.

• Approaching wild animals can cause stress, escape behavior, and potential breeding failure that weakens the data collected.

• Researchers usually need to stand within about two feet of a penguin to gather information.

Multiple Choice

Which sentence most clearly connects the need for close-range data collection to the larger problem described in the controlling idea?

• Stress responses can lead to escape behavior and potential breeding failure.

• Human researchers often have to stand within two feet of a penguin to collect necessary information.

• Devices used to collect data can only send signals over short distances.

• Animals often change their behavior when humans stand too close during observation.

Open Ended

In your Student Activity packet, write the controlling idea of the section. Then highlight the two pieces of evidence already marked, and add one more supporting sentence.

Open Ended

Summary:

Identify the sentences that show how penguins react to humans versus robots, explain how the penguins’ extra movement causes problems in the colony, and combine those ideas into one clear summary of the section.
Write this in your student activity packet, and type done when you are finished.

Multiple Choice

Which detail best demonstrates that penguins experience significantly more stress from humans than from robots?

• Penguins can shuffle away while keeping their egg or chick balanced on their feet.

• Human approaches caused a heart-rate spike about four times larger than robot approaches.

• Penguins moved farther when approached by humans than when approached by the rover.

• Scientists have been comparing how penguins react to humans and robots on Possession Island.

Multiple Choice

Which statement best captures the overall difference between human and robot approaches to penguins?

• Humans cause penguins to experience far greater stress and movement, leading to colony-wide conflict.

• Penguins react with equal stress to humans and robots, but humans stay longer.

• Robots create more confusion in the colony because they move silently.

• Penguins prefer humans because they move more slowly and predictably.