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Do you have a trip to the zoo planned? Is the zoo just not an option? These activities below are great for preparing your child for a trip to the zoo or as an alternative to visiting the zoo. Either way, your preschooler is sure to have fun with these safari-themed activities!
Sensory Bin
For this activity, you will need a small plastic bin, a few types of dried lentils with a natural look, plastic jungle animals, spoons or scoops, and bowls. Place all these items into the plastic bin to create a safari-themed sensory bin for hours of fun for your preschooler.
Read about Safari Animals
Visit your local library to choose a few books about the types of animals that live in the jungle. Try to guide your child to choose at least one fiction and one non-fiction book. Reading about the animals they may see on a safari will help guide their play in a more purposeful way. “African Animal Alphabet” by Beverly and Dereck Joubert is a great book to introduce the different types of animals living in Africa, as well as practicing letter recognition!
Finger Play and Song
Sing “Five Little Monkeys Swinging from a Tree” with your preschooler. These little monkeys are swinging from a tree and teasing Mr. Alligator that he cannot catch them. Sly Mr. Alligator is a bit faster than those monkeys, and your preschooler is sure to love the “snapping” of your hands when they catch another monkey!
Crafts
Create a pair of binoculars using two empty toilet paper rolls, green construction paper, glue, and yarn. Glue or tape the toilet paper tubes together. Cut a strip of green construction paper that is large enough to wrap around the two toilet paper tubes and the same length as the tubes. Encourage your preschooler to decorate their paper with leaf drawings on one side before wrapping it around the toilet paper tubes and gluing. Poke holes in the ends of the toilet paper tubes and attach a length of yarn.
Safari Scavenger Hunt
This activity takes a bit of preparation, but it is so much fun! Find pictures of a variety of animals you would find on a safari. Place these photos around your house in different locations. Include a notecard with each animal with a few fun facts about that animal for your preschooler to read with you. Make a list of the animals your little one will be hunting for on their scavenger hunt, and begin the safari! Don’t forget the binoculars you created using the activity above! Surely, these activities will keep your little preschooler engaged, introduce them to some new animals, and allow you to spend some bonding time together, all from the comfort of your home!
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