When walking recently, I encountered deer sleeping in the woodlands which led me to wondering about the sleep patterns of other animals. Make a list of questions your children (or you) have about how, when, and for how long animals sleep. Are there differences between mammals, reptiles, fish, amphibians, and birds? And what about invertebrates, like snails, insects, and worms? Which animals are nocturnal, diurnal, or crepuscular?

Jabba, my lab frog, often slept under his heat lamp.

Myrtle, the lab turtle, brumated during winter months.

The ducklings we hatched in lab always cuddled together when they slept.

I captured a photograph of a sleepy octopus at the Sanibel Shell Museum.

Bumblebees rest too!

This is Phoebe, my daughter’s cat. sleeping in the sun on a winter day.

Let’s discover some answers together.

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Challenge your students to learn about the sleeping pattern of two animals that were not mentioned in the videos.

I encountered this squirrel on the Greenway path and it didn’t move as I approached. Maybe it was asleep!

One of my favorite bedtime stories read by the author, Mem Fox. Go here for full screen.