The Wild Robot

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

“An Additional Character”

In this activity, students will include a new animal in the novel to teach Roz about survival.

Roz meets several interesting animals in the novel and learns about survival techniques from these animals. For example, Pinktail teaches Roz to play dead and give off a rotten smell for survival, and a stick insect teaches Roz about camouflage. Consider an additional character that Roz could meet and explain the adaptations Roz would learn from this animal.

• Research and select an animal that is not in the novel that Roz could learn from.
• Provide the animal with a unique name that, in some way, reflects the animal’s attributes (For example, Pinktail or Brightbill).
• Create a drawing of the animal on a poster to explain what it would look like.
• On the poster, explain the attributes of the animal that provide it with unique survival techniques.
• Explain how Roz might use these techniques to survive on the island.

Present your poster to peers and explain the attributes of your animal, its name, and how it compares to other animals that may be present on the island. Then explain how Roz can use the animal’s survival techniques based on scenes in the novel.

Teaching Suggestion: As Roz learns what it means to be “alive,” she takes on the characteristics of animals and observes animal adaptations for survival. Students may find it beneficial to brainstorm animal behaviors and survival techniques they have observed in nature or on television. Consider encouraging students to further research animal adaptation and survival techniques prior to selecting an animal. Students may find it helpful to analyze the way the author creates names for his creatures. Often, the names reflect animal attributes in some way.

Differentiation Suggestion: For students with executive function differences, a small selection of pre-approved choices might be beneficial. Students with anxiety with speaking in front of a large group might benefit from a learning walk in which 4-5 students at a time repeat a brief presentation to small groups of peers who move from speaker to speaker.

Paired Extension Idea:

Host a discussion with a conservation agent in your state to discuss animals and how they adapt to survive in your area.

• Consider animals that you have seen or are present in your state.
• Create questions to pose to the conservation agent about animal adaptations and unique survival techniques.

Teaching Suggestion: Often, conservation agencies will visit classrooms or meet via video conference to discuss conservation education. Consider reaching out to a conservation agent and selecting a few agreed-upon questions from students to ask the conservation agent about animal adaptation and survival.