Let's Go to the Zoo!
Make going to the zoo a great learning experience for your students with these engaging lesson plans.
By Jennifer Sinsel
Step into any young child’s bedroom, and you’re likely to see toy chests full of stuffed animals and shelves lined with plastic dinosaurs. Take a look at the bookshelf, and you’ll encounter everything from books on talking forest critters to cows that type! If that child is fortunate enough to have a pet at home, the animal is likely showered with love and attention on a daily basis.
Animals hold a special fascination for young children, and few outings garner as much enthusiasm among my primary students as a trip to the zoo. From the long-necked giraffes to the giant desert tortoise, kids are captivated by the amazing variety of creatures on display. As a teacher, you can take advantage of this interest by turning a zoo excursion into a learning experience!
Create a Scavenger Hunt
Before you go, spend a few minutes pasting ClipArt images of different animals onto a piece of paper. Try to include a wide variety of animals your students might see at the zoo, such as elephants, lions, snakes, chimpanzees, hippos, zebra, flamingoes, bears, and antelope. For an additional challenge, you might also include items such as a rock, flower, baseball cap, trash can, or someone wearing red.
Give students the list, along with a pencil, and ask them to watch for the items pictured on the paper. Staying on the lookout for specific animals and other items not only enhances powers of observation, it also improves vocabulary (think gorilla or chimpanzee instead of monkey!). When students spot something on the list, have them mark it with a circle or an X. You’ll be amazed at how important it becomes for them to find everything!
The Power of Observation
A trip to the zoo often places primary students on sensory overload. With so much to see, they often complete a quick “drive-by” of each exhibit and move on to the next one. You can encourage your students to develop observation skills by asking them to use their senses to describe various animals. What color is the animal? Is it bigger or smaller than a classroom desk? What kinds of sounds does it make? How does it behave around other animals? Do you think this animal usually lives in warm areas or cold areas?
You can stretch your students’ brains by asking them to compare and contrast various animals. For example, how are gorillas and spider monkeys similar? How are they different? Encourage them to think about size, color, fur length, and behavior. Certain animals, such as peacocks, also provide a wonderful opportunity to discuss similarities and differences. Many times, children will assume that a brightly colored male and a drab, brown female are two different types of birds. In actuality, female peacocks are brown in order to provide camouflage while nesting, and males display beautiful colors in order to gain the attention of a female. As with most things involving animals, children are fascinated with this knowledge and will begin to notice the differences between males and females in lions, deer, and other species as you make your way around the zoo.
A Picture’s Worth a Thousand Words
If you have a camera, take pictures of the animals and other interesting things at the zoo. Older students can even take turns with the camera! Encourage them to photograph favorite or unique animals, best places to eat (perhaps a snack of animal crackers!), interesting exhibits, or whatever strikes their interest.
When you get back to school, develop the pictures and divide students into groups to write captions for each one. Put the pictures together in a class scrapbook or photo album to create a cherished memory to look back upon at the end of the year!
For more great ideas on making a trip to the zoo a learning experience, try one of the following lesson plans.
Zoo Activities and Lessons:
Before visiting a zoo, students talk about what they might see. They make a video of their trip, and write a voice over detailing what they learned during the trip. Student then are put into groups to study a particular animal. They write poetry about the animal they studied.
In this lesson students design a model zoo, and create realistic habitats for the animals. The models include displays about each of the animals. Students then make a presentation about their model zoo.
Students learn about zoo workers, and what they do. Students create a class book about zookeepers, and other people who work at the zoo.
