Semi-colons: silver ants

1 - Learning Objective

Learning Objective

We are learning how to write sentences that use a semi-colon to mark a boundary between two main clauses.

Context: silver ant

Where in the world is the Sahara? Click the 🌍

Clip Description

Silver ants are true record breakers. Not only are they the fastest ants on the planet, but they are also able to thrive in one of the hottest places on earth – the Sahara Desert. While most Saharan creatures (including ant-eating lizards) escape the scorching midday sun by finding shade or burrowing deep into the sand, silver ants happily carry on with their daily duties of scavenging for food, even though temperatures can reach a sizzling 70 degrees Celsius underfoot.

In this fascinating clip, we learn about the silver ant’s remarkable silver-haired body, and how its silvery hairs are the reason why it is able to scavenge for food in the full glare of the sun.

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Having watched the video clip, use the ‘Hands Down Class Discussion’ prompt below to discuss the question: Why does the world ant population outnumber the human population by so much? (For every human there are an estimated 2.5 million ants!)

 – Hands Down Class Discussion (Click

Word Challenge

See if you can create a a temperature word cline with freezing at one end of your list and sweltering at the other.

e.g.  freezing, chilly, cold, nippy, …