Wild and Kind Kids Club

Week of July 13 | Two-Toed Sloth

It's time to trek to the rainforest!

This week, we're climbing into the lush rainforests of Central and South America to meet one of nature's most unusual animals: the two-toed sloth! They spend nearly their whole lives upside down in the trees, move at their own unhurried pace, and even carry tiny rainforest neighbors in their fur. Together, we'll discover why sometimes the slowest way is sometimes the smartest way.

There are so many ways to explore this week. Pick one activity or try them all.

Remember: there is no wrong way to adventure!

Download a Weekly Adventure Tracker

Supplies You'll Want

Construction Paper

Markers

Scissors

Glue

Paint

Yarn

Water Balloons

Sidewalk chalk

Optional:

- Popsicle stick

- Wiggly eyes

Two-Toed Sloth Coloring Sheet

Sloth Mask Template

Habitat Challenge Cards

Adaptation Olympics Ideas

The Sloth Who Slowed Us Down by Margaret Wild and Vivienne To

Over and Under the Rainforest by Kate Messner and Christopher Silas Neal

Daily Guide

MONDAY

Meet the Two-Toed Sloth

Today’s Discovery: Two-toed sloths are built for life upside down! Their long arms and large, curved claws act like natural hooks, helping them hang from branches while they eat, sleep, and travel high in the rainforest canopy.

Listen: Listen to this week's Wild and Kind Kids episode. (Listen on Apple Podcasts, our website, or just search for "Wild and Kind Kids" wherever you listen.)
Create: Color your Two-Toed Sloth coloring page.
Watch: Play this clip of two-toed sloths in Costa Rica to see how they move through the trees.
Talk About It: As you watch or color, look closely at the sloth's body. What do you notice about its arms, claws, and the way it moves? How do you think those adaptations help it live high in the rainforest canopy?

Grown-Up Tip: Invite your child to color while they listen to the episode. Afterwards, compare the coloring page to the real sloths in the video. What looks the same? What looks different?

TUESDAY

Explore Life Upside Down

Today’s Discovery: Two-toed sloths spend almost their entire lives hanging beneath tree branches. Their bodies are specially adapted for life upside down! Even their fur grows "backward" compared to most mammals. Instead of growing from their back toward their belly, it grows from their belly toward their back, helping rainwater run right off while they're hanging in the trees.

Create: Make your own hanging sloth using your handprint! Trace your hand to create the sloth's body, add a head, and glue it to a popsicle stick "branch." (You can download our step-by-step instructions here.)
Explore: Now it's your turn to become a sloth! With a grown-up's help, create a sloth station under a sturdy table in your home. Lie on your back beneath the table and try a few upside-down challenges:
- Read a book.
- Draw a picture. (Try taping your paper to the underside of the table!)
- Write your name.
- Cut a shape out of paper.
Talk About It: Which challenge was the hardest? Why do you think sloths can do these kinds of things so much more easily than we can?
Grown-Up Tip: Sloths are specially adapted for life upside down. Their long arms, curved claws, muscles, and even the way their internal organs are supported help them hang comfortably for hours. As your child explores, talk about how it felt to do everyday activities upside down. How is their experience different from the sloths they watched on Monday?

WEDNESDAY

Live Life Sloooow

Today’s Discovery: Two-toed sloths eat a diet that's mostly focused on leaves. Leaves don't provide very much energy, so two-toed sloths have adapted to move slowly and conserve energy. Their slow lifestyle helps them survive in the rainforest.

Read: Together, read The Sloth Who Slowed Us Down by Margaret Wild. How does the sloth change the family's life? How would you spend a slow week as a family?
Slow it Down: Head outside for your own Slow Sloth Walk! With a grown-up, take a sloooow walk that's focused less on getting somewhere and more on noticing the world around you. Move slowly. Stop often. Look closely. Take a pen and paper or a paint set along to capture what you see. You might record:
- An insect
- A feather
- An interesting flower or plant
- A spider web
- A colorful bird
- An interesting leaf
- A cool building or building detail
- A unique mailbox, fence, or door
- An interesting item left on the sidewalk
- A funny cloud, shadow, or reflection
- Anything else that makes you stop and say, "Wow!"

Don't worry about making a perfect drawing. Scientists often sketch what they observe to help them remember important details.

Talk About It: What did you notice when you slowed down? Did you discover anything you might have missed if you had been hurrying?

Grown Up Tip: Encourage your child to take their time. Ask open-ended questions like, "What do you notice?" or "What do you wonder?" Slowing down helps children practice one of the most important skills of every scientist: careful observation.

THURSDAY

Design A Furry Ecosystem

Daily Discovery: A sloth's fur is home to tiny living things! Green algae can grow in its fur, helping the sloth blend into the rainforest trees. Tiny sloth moths also spend part of their lives living in a sloth's shaggy coat.

Make: Make your own paper plate sloth! Start by cutting or folding a paper plate in half. Paint it brown like a sloth's fur, then add touches of green and tan to represent the algae and tiny moths that live there. Try using sponges, cotton swabs, or even your fingertips to create different textures. Add a sloth head and long arms to complete your rainforest friend. (Download our step-by-step instructions here.)
Explore: Head outside and look for examples of camouflage. Can you find an insect that blends into a leaf? Moss growing on a tree? A bird that's hard to spot? What helps each one stay hidden?
Talk About It: Why would camouflage be especially important for an animal that moves as slowly as a sloth?

Grown-Up Tip: Scientists are still studying the relationship between sloths, algae, and the tiny moths that live in their fur. While researchers are still learning exactly how these organisms benefit one another, the green algae almost certainly helps sloths blend into the rainforest canopy, making them harder for predators to spot. As your child paints, encourage them to think like nature. What colors, patterns, and textures would help their sloth disappear into the trees?

FRIDAY

Adapt Like an Animal

Daily Discovery: Every animal has adaptations that help it survive where it lives. Sloths use camouflage, curved claws, and slow movements to survive in the rainforest. A desert fox, mountain goat, or coral reef fish would need very different adaptations!

Create: Make your own sloth mask! Use our template to cut out a sloth face. Color your mask, then use leaves, grass, flowers, bark, or other natural materials you've found on the ground to help your sloth blend into the rainforest. Parent tip: You can print on cardstock or paste the mask on to cardboard to make it sturdier for holding natural items.

Imagine: Now it's your turn to become an animal designer! Print and cut out our habitat challenge cards. Shuffle them and turn them over. Choose one card without looking and read about the habitat. (You can also do research on your own!)

Next, draw an animal that could survive there. Think about its:
- Body covering (fur, feathers, scales, or skin)
- Legs, wings, fins, or claws
- Colors and camouflage
- Special features that help it find food or stay safe

There's no single right answer. Just be ready to explain how your animal's adaptations help it survive!

Talk About It: Which adaptations did you give your animal? Why do you think those features would help it live in its habitat?

Grown-Up Tip: Encourage your child to explain why they made each choice. Instead of saying, "It has big feet," ask, "How do those feet help your animal survive?" Explaining their thinking helps children understand that adaptations are solutions to the challenges animals face in different habitats.

Bonus! Ecosystem Exploration

BONUS!

Dig Deeper Into the Desert

This week's Wild & Kind story takes place high in the tropical rainforest canopy. Rainforests are some of the most diverse places on Earth, home to millions of different plants and animals. From towering trees and colorful birds to tiny insects and sleepy sloths, every living thing has special adaptations that help it survive.

Learn More: Read Over and Under the Rainforest by Kate Messner and Christopher Silas Neal. What does it suggest it's like living in the rainforest? As you read, look for the many different plants and animals that share the rainforest. What adaptations might help each one survive in its own part of the forest?
Host your own Rainforest Adaptation Olympics! Every rainforest animal moves in a different way because it has different adaptations. Think you have what it takes to survive the rainforest? Download our Rainforest Adaptation Olympics Guide and challenge your family to move like real rainforest animals! (Download the guide here.)
Take Action. Rainforests provide wood and paper products that people use every day. When you're shopping with a grown-up, see if you can find products with the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) logo. The FSC label helps identify wood and paper that come from responsibly managed forests, helping protect wildlife habitats for animals like sloths.
Talk About It: Which rainforest adaptation would you choose if you could borrow one for a day? Why?

Grown-Up Tip: The FSC logo can be found on many everyday products, including books, notebooks, tissues, paper towels, and even some wooden toys and furniture. Make it a scavenger hunt the next time you're at the store and see how many responsibly sourced products your family can spot!

You did it! This week you learned about symbiosis, camouflage, and rainforest adaptations. Next week, it's time to head to the wetlands. Get those waterproof shoes ready!

We love seeing Wild & Kind Kids in action. If your family creates a craft, completes a challenge, or discovers something new, tag @wildandkindkidspod on Instagram or send us an email at wildandkindkidspod@gmail.com.