The other day I was gardening at the front of my house. I was digging a hole for a plant when suddenly I came across something that really surprised me.
![A picture of an egg lying on some soil next to some plants.](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/56e417e7e321404618edcd31/1600778790004-348ZCIU411XN8YBGC77F/Egg%2BTalk%2BStimulus.jpg)
Yes – an egg! In perfect condition! A normal-looking hen’s egg – just like you might eat for breakfast. I couldn’t believe it. How could an egg have got under the soil in my garden?
I asked a few people. Here are their thoughts:
It must have been carried by a fox and buried to keep it cool.
It must be from Halloween when kids were doing trick or treat and gradually the soil covered it.
Perhaps it fell out of someone’s shopping when they were swinging their bag.
Maybe a chicken escaped and needed to lay an egg.
Maybe it’s actually a lizard egg that just happens to look like a hen’s egg.
I wonder if any of your students have any logical or creative ideas about this?
It’s worth keeping an eye out for things you could use as a talk stimulus. It’s easy to take a quick photo; before you know it you’ll have a collection of thought-provoking – and talk-provoking – images.
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