The zoo is a great family outing any time of the year. Whether you visit your hometown zoo or take a quick trip to a neighboring community to experience their zoo, it's an adventure that can appeal to families with kids of all ages.
But how do you keep your visit from being the "same old walk around the animal exhibits?" By doing a little pre-work to make your zoo visit event more interactive.
Here are a few ideas for helping your kids experience the zoo in a different way. Try something different each time you visit or assign one child (or a team if you are taking a group) to each of the tasks and see what new things you can learn.
Map It! Print out a world map or maps by continent (you can find several free map options here). Use a clip board and colored pencils and identify the countries that each animal is from as you move through the exhibits. At the end of your trip, take a look at the world tour that the animals helped you take!
From A to Zoo! Using a small notebook, list all the letters of the alphabet, A to Z, and use that to guide a scavenger hunt throughout the zoo. Will you be able to find an animal (or maybe something else in the zoo) that begins with every letter of the alphabet?
What Would the Animals Tell You? Use a notebook again to play "reporter" in the zoo. After learning about a specific animal from the educational displays, ask your kids to imagine how the animals would answer some basic interview questions about their background and even their life in the zoo. Encourage them to write down some notes and then create a story (or even a newspaper) about the animal. Be sure to take some pictures to accompany your story!
Whichever activity you choose, enjoy your visit to the zoo!
But how do you keep your visit from being the "same old walk around the animal exhibits?" By doing a little pre-work to make your zoo visit event more interactive.
Here are a few ideas for helping your kids experience the zoo in a different way. Try something different each time you visit or assign one child (or a team if you are taking a group) to each of the tasks and see what new things you can learn.
Map It! Print out a world map or maps by continent (you can find several free map options here). Use a clip board and colored pencils and identify the countries that each animal is from as you move through the exhibits. At the end of your trip, take a look at the world tour that the animals helped you take!
From A to Zoo! Using a small notebook, list all the letters of the alphabet, A to Z, and use that to guide a scavenger hunt throughout the zoo. Will you be able to find an animal (or maybe something else in the zoo) that begins with every letter of the alphabet?
What Would the Animals Tell You? Use a notebook again to play "reporter" in the zoo. After learning about a specific animal from the educational displays, ask your kids to imagine how the animals would answer some basic interview questions about their background and even their life in the zoo. Encourage them to write down some notes and then create a story (or even a newspaper) about the animal. Be sure to take some pictures to accompany your story!
Whichever activity you choose, enjoy your visit to the zoo!
