Changes to Environment
Plastic Zoo Animals Zoo Animal Masks Zoo Animal Stamps Books about the zoo and animals you see in the zoo Animal Print Paper Pictures of Zoo Animals Zoo Animal Vests or Costumes Zoo Keeper Hat and Outfit Zoo Animal Cookie Cutters Zoo Stuffed Animals Zoo File Folder Game Pictures of the zoo Barrel of Monkeys ​Zoo animal paper plates Water Table: plastic hippopotamus, alligator, polar bear, small plastic boxes, etc. Sensory Table: zebra, elephant, parrot, grass, dirt, tiger, ape, etc. Nutrition Activity: Animal Crackers, Children will learn to sort and identify animals, and where they can be found (zoo, jungle, safari, etc)
Teaching Concepts for Indoor Experiences
1. Look at plastic animals and pick which animals you might see in the zoo. 2. Zoo dress up 3. Draw/paint a picture of favorite zoo animal 4. Zoo Animals (refer to Learn Every Day vol. 2 pg. 383) 5. Animal Hunt (refer to Learn Every Day vol. 2 pg. 385) 6. Elephants Are Big! (refer to Learn Every Day vol. 2 pg. 390) 7. Glue orange and black strips of paper on white paper to look like tiger stripes 8. Color paper plate yellow, cut out middle (teacher assistance), glue brown strips of paper around edge and glue on ears to make a lion mask. 9. Build a zoo with blocks and put zoo animals in it 10. Using animal print paper match zoo animals to paper 11. Name that animal. Listen to zoo animal sounds and guess what it is.
12. Play "Pass the animals"
Pass one of the animals or animal flashcards to the nearest student. As you pass, say "(lion) (roar)". Have the students pass all the animals around the circle, all the while saying the animal name and noise.
13. Storytelling baskets. Make a toddler storytelling basket for a popular zoo book, for meaningful story telling and interaction through play. Have the children go around the room and collect different animals and props. Read the story together. Ask the children to find the right animal for each page as you go through the story, and match and name them all.
14. Feed the Lion Counting Game
This educational activity is a fantastic way to develop core math skills including counting and number recognition.
15. Take a Virtual Field Trip
This virtual zoo field trip includes an educational tour, offering all sorts of interesting facts about animal habitats and animal features while giving kids an up-close look at apes, lions, baby penguins, and more.
16. Zoo Activity
This educational activity challenges young learners to think critically in order to sort animals into separate bins of farm and zoo animals. You can enhance their learning by asking questions about what the animals eat, where they live, and how they move.
Teaching Concepts for Outdoor Experiences
1. Monkey See Monkey Do (refer to Learn Every Day vol. 2 pg. 379) 2. Alligator Crawl (refer to Learn Every Day vol. 2 pg. 379) 3. Animal Parade (refer to Learn Every Day vol. 2 pg. 381) 4. Zoo Escape (refer to Learn Every Day vol. 2 pg. 384) 5. Animal Legs (refer to Learn Every Day vol. 2 pg 386) 6. Elephant Stomp 7. Zoo animal yoga http://www.kidsyogastories.com/zoo-animals-yoga/ ​8. Using plastic zoo animals make prints in playdough
9. Play "Animals Walk" game Have everybody stand at one end of the classroom/playground. First model: hold up a flashcard of a lion. Shout "Run like a lion!" – then get down and crawl across the room like a lion all the time roaring. Then have everyone do it. Then do for all the other animals (e.g. "Stomp like an elephant!", etc.).
10. Zookeeper, May I?
Choose one child to be a zookeeper. Ask the "zookeeper" stand across the room or 10 feet in front of the remaining children. The zookeeper gives the instruction for other children to move like zoo animals. Examples: take five kangaroos hops, Walk four elephants steps, etc. Once the children reach the zookeeper, the zookeeper chooses a child to be the next zookeeper.
11. Animal Charades
Place a picture of different animals in a bag. One at a time, let children pick out an animal and act it out for others to guess.
Teaching Concepts for Music Movement Wellness IMIL
1. Crocodile Song (refer to Learn Every Day vol. 2 pg. 378) 2. Penguins, Penguins (tune: Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star) Penguins, penguins on parade Will you waddle in the waves? Penguins, raise your flippers high Waddle, waddle, wave goodbye. 3. Elephants Elephants walk like this and like that (sway body back and forth with hands swinging down like a nose) They’re terribly big and they’re terribly fat. (use arms to make a big belly) They have no hands, they have no toes, (wiggle hands and point to toes) And goodness gracious, what a nose! (lift outstretched arms up in air) 4. This is the Way (tune: Mulberry Bush) This is the way the elephant walks, The elephant walks. This is the way the elephant walks, In the zoo! **sing same tune with the following animals **kangaroo…hops **lion…roars **alligator…snaps **seal…claps **peacock…parades **hyena…laughs **penguin…waddles 5. Polar Bear, Polar Bear Polar bear, polar bear, turn around, Polar bear, polar bear, touch the ground, Polar bear, polar bear, show your shoe, Polar bear, polar bear, that will do. Polar bear, polar bear, bend your knee, Polar bear, polar bear, climb a tree, Polar bear, polar bear, make a frown, Polar bear, polar bear, sit right down. Polar bear, polar bear, stand on your toes, Polar bear, polar bear, touch your nose, Polar bear, polar bear, wink your eye, Polar bear, polar bear, say good-bye! 6. Z is for Zoo (tune: I’m a Little Teapot) I’m a little letter; My name is Z. You can draw me, One, two, three! You are sure to find me At the zoo. Zoo begins with Z And that is true! 7. Zoo Animals (tune: If You’re Happy And You Know It) If you want to be a monkey Jump up high! If you want to be a monkey, Jump up high! If you want to be a monkey, if you want to be a monkey, If you want to be a monkey, Jump up high! Repeat with: Lion/roar out lout Eagle/flap your wings Elephant/swing your trunk Snake/slither slow (or hiss like thisss…) 8. We're going to the Zoo (Tune:The Farmer in the Dell)
We're going to the zoo.
We'll see a kangaroo
And a cockatoo.
So how 'bout you? We're going to the zoo.
Lions roar and play,
With tigers so they say.
Elephants spray
And zebras neigh
At the zoo all day.
9. Elephants
An elephant goes like this and that (stomp feet)
He's terribly big (raise arms over head)
And he's terribly fat (stretch arms to side)
He has no fingers (wiggle fingers)
And he has no toes (wiggle feet)
But, goodness gracious WHAT A NOSE!!!! (pull on pretend trunk in front of nose)
Teaching Concepts for Fingerplays
1. Three Little Monkeys (refer to Learn Every Day vol.2 pg. 378) 2. Ten Little Monkeys (refer to Learn Every Day vol. 2 pg. 379) 3. Sally the Camel Sally the camel has five humps. Sally the camel has five humps. Sally the camel has five humps, Ride, Sally, Ride. Boom! Boom! Boom! **Repeat verse with four humps, three, two, one, and then no humps. Sally the camel is a horse of course 4. Five Little Elephants Five little elephants rowing toward the shore. One fell in, then there were four. Four little elephants climbing up a tree. One slid down, now there are three. Three little elephants living at the zoo. One walked out the gate, then there were two. Two little elephants playing in the sun. One fell asleep, now there is one. One little elephant isn’t any fun. Abra-ca-dabra, then there were none! 5. 100 Animals I went to the zoo And what did I see? 100 animals Looking at me. There were, 10 tall giraffes, eating from the trees. 10 silly monkeys, scratching on their knees. 10 sleeping snakes, lying in the sun. 10 munching elephants, eating peanuts one by one. 10 leaping tigers, performing in the shows, 10 pink flamingos, standing on their toes. 10 grouchy bears, trying to get some sleep. 10 happy hippos, in the water deep. 10 roaring lions, walking two by two. 10 galloping zebras, all living in the zoo
Teaching Concepts for Distance Learning
I Spy
Use a book of animals and magnifying glass to search for different animals, use words like, "I spy with my little eye an animal that has brown spots", continue naming different things about the animal.
Letter Search
Use a magnifying glass to search for the letter of the week through out the house, books, magazine, etc..
Scavenger hunt
You can gather a list or some ideas include looking for particular shapes, colors, items that are a certain length, or items that start with a particular sound.
Animal Walks
Show an animal card or say an animal and students move like that animal.