Pratique du Shadowing: Bats for Kids | Learn cool facts about bats - Apprendre l'anglais à l'oral avec la vidéo
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Bats.
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Hi friends!
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Today we are going to learn all about bats.
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And if you want to read along with us, check out learnbright.org to find this lesson plan.
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What are bats?
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The only mammals that fly are bats, which is why some people mistake them for birds when they are in the sky.
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But bats are more closely related to you than they are to a bird.
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Plus, bats don't have feathers.
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Instead, they have fur in various colors, such as gray, tan, brown, or black.
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While bats live worldwide.
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Most of them live in the tropics.
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And most of them like to rest in dark places like caves, hollow trees, or even in attics.
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But a few like to rest on rocks or trees.
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There are over 1,300 species or types of bats.
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Depending on the species, when their wings are spread open, they can measure from 6 inches to 5 feet across.
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That's probably taller than you!
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Their wings, which are their hands, are made of thin layers of bare skin, which join their long fingers together.
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Bat wings stretch from the end of their long hands down to their legs.
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They also have huge ears that point forward.
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Large groups of bats are called a collective, cauldron, or colony, when they are swarming.
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Bats prefer to live in groups and hang upside down by their feet while sleeping.
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Scientists think sleeping upside down helps them escape predators because they can quickly drop into flight.
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In addition, they are nocturnal and prefer to sleep during the day and hunt for food at night.
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What do bats eat?
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If you are a night flying insect, watch out for bats.
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Some bats eat mice, reptiles, birds, and other smaller bats.
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But most bats eat nothing but insects.
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Small bats, the size of an adult thumb, can eat about 4 to 8 grams, that's about 2 grapes, of insects each night.
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You might be thinking that's not a lot.
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And when you take one million bats that eat insects every night, that's a lot of insects.
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It's actually about a thousand metric tons.
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Other bats eat small animals, like birds, frogs, mice, or fish.
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Many bats prefer to eat fruit, nectar, and pollen from flowers.
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But the vampire bat of South and Central America feeds on the blood of large birds and mammals.
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Other interesting facts.
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While they are flying, bats send out a cry from their mouths or noses that is so high-pitched people cannot hear it.
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The sound helps them figure out the distance they are from particular objects and the size of the object.
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The sound of the cry bounces off of objects and echoes back to the bat.
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Using the sound waves, they can create a picture of exactly what's around them.
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This is called echolocation.
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Echolocation enables bats to avoid flying into objects in their path and to locate insects to eat.
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When they find an insect, they trap it with their wings or tail and then reach over to put it in their mouth.
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Unfortunately, chasing and eating insects using echolocation often makes their flight pattern look erratic or uneven rather than smooth like birds.
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The saying, blind as a bat,
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is inaccurate because bats have excellent eyesight and extraordinary hearing.
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The bat is so unique that some ancient civilizations worshipped them.
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For example, the Aztecs had many different gods, and their god of the dead was called Mclantacutli,
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and he had a scrunched bat-like face with clawed hands and feet.
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Why are bats important to the environment?
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Just like bees and butterflies, Bats are pollinators as they fly from plant to plant in search of food.
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Hundreds of plants, like bananas, mangoes, and avocados, rely on bats to pollinate them.
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Bats also help spread seeds for nuts, figs, and cacao, the main ingredient in chocolate.
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Without bats, we might not have delicious chocolate desserts.
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They also play an extremely important, or essential, role in pest control.
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By eating literally tons of insects a night, they help stop crop damage and decrease pesticide use.
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But sadly, bats are declining across the globe.
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People kill bats when they don't have to, because they don't understand their importance to the ecosystem.
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And because of human progress and activity, bats are losing many of their caves for shelter, causing habitat loss.
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And since 2006, 5 million bats have died have died from White Nose Syndrome disease.
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But with knowledge and protection, we can help the numbers of bats soar again.
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We have just learned some pretty bat-tastic facts.
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Let's review.
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Why is the bat population shrinking?
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Where did you find that information?
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The bat population is shrinking because people kill bats when they don't have to, and because of human progress and activity.
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Why do scientists think that bats sleep upside down?
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Scientists think sleeping upside down helps them escape predators because they can quickly drop into flight.
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True or false?
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Bats are nocturnal.
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True!
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Bats are nocturnal.
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Fantastic work, friends!
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Remember, if you liked this lesson, check out even more on our website, learnbright.org.
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And have a bat-tastic day!
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Hope you had fun learning with us.
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Visit us at learnbright.org.
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for thousands of free resources and turnkey solutions for teachers and homeschoolers.
Why practice speaking with this video?
Practicing your English speaking skills using the video about bats can enhance your vocabulary and improve your pronunciation. By engaging with the content, you can learn fascinating facts while simultaneously developing your speaking abilities. This approach allows you to incorporate the shadowing technique—a method where you listen to native speakers and repeat what you hear in real-time, such as in this educational video. Using this shadowing app or technique can aid in building fluency, helping you sound more natural and confident when speaking English.
Grammar & Expressions in Context
Throughout the video, several useful grammatical structures and expressions can benefit learners:
- Simple Present Tense: The speaker frequently uses the simple present to convey facts ("Bats are the only mammals that fly"). This tense is essential for stating general truths and facts.
- Comparative Structures: Phrases like "more closely related to you than they are to a bird" highlight comparison and help in making distinctions. Practicing this structure can enhance your comparative language skills.
- Imperative Sentences: The speaker invites viewers to engage with the content ("check out learnbright.org"). Imperatives are great for commands or suggestions, useful in everyday conversation.
- Quantifiers: Expressions like "about a thousand metric tons" provide learners with ways to articulate quantities effectively, essential for both academic and casual discussions.
Common Pronunciation Traps
When practicing your speaking skills as you shadow the video, pay attention to these common pronunciation challenges:
- Nocturnal: This word can be tricky because of its uncommon syllable structure. Practice articulating it slowly before speeding up.
- Echolocation: Try breaking this word down into smaller parts ("echo-location") to pronounce it correctly and emphasize its scientific meaning.
- Species: Some learners confuse the pronunciation, which should sound like "spee-sheez." Ensure you practice this plural form correctly to avoid common mispronunciations.
Incorporating this transcript into your IELTS speaking practice can also provide enriching content for discussing unique animal facts or environmental topics. With consistent practice using the video, you can develop your speaking skills effectively and gain confidence in your English abilities.
Qu'est-ce que la technique du Shadowing ?
Le Shadowing est une technique d'apprentissage des langues fondée sur la science, développée à l'origine pour la formation des interprètes professionnels. Le principe est simple mais puissant : vous écoutez de l'anglais natif et le répétez immédiatement à voix haute — comme une ombre suivant le locuteur avec un décalage de 1 à 2 secondes. Les recherches montrent une amélioration significative de la précision de la prononciation, de l'intonation, du rythme, des liaisons, de la compréhension orale et de la fluidité.