Little Learners: Zoo

Pretend to waddle with penguins, sway with elephants, and lounge with lions as you visit the zoo in this month's books and activities. 

READ: Z is for Zoo by Greg Paprocki  

Z is for Zoo book cover

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An engaging collection of 26 illustrations featuring every child's favorite zoo animals from around the world, from apes to zebras, all shown in their zoo habitats. 

Increase pre-literacy skills as you read together: 

  • See how many animals your little one can name. Start with the images inside the front cover and continue as you read the book. Ask them to point to the animals as they name them.  
  • After reading a few pages, pause and encourage your little one to say the letter on different pages. Take turns pointing to the letters or tracing them with your finger. 
  • In addition to the animals named, ask your little one about what else they see on different pages. Please see the suggested questions below.  
    • What colors do you see?
    • What is near the animal?
    • Is the animal big or small?

SING: We're Going to the Zoo  

EXPLORE: Zookeeper 

Child petting an animal at the zoo

Materials 

  • Plush or plastic toy animals
  • Small plastic bucket or beach pail
  • Optional: hat, small plastic shovel, brush

Instructions 

  1. Together with your little one, sort the toy animals and place them around your space. For example, if there are multiple bears, all bears would be grouped together and placed in the same section. 
  2. Once the animals are sorted, it's time for the zookeeper to get ready! Give your little learner the hat to wear and the bucket to carry. 
  3. Care for the animals by pausing by each animal, talking with your little one about what the animal eats, and pretending to feed each one. 

JOIN: Attend a program virtually or in person! 

View all early childhood programs and events offered this month.  

KEEP READING: What else can you see at the zoo? Read these book to find out. 

 

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