Z is for Zoo

 This was one of my most favorite activities that we did all year. Each child was zoo keeper for a day and got a chance to learn how to take care of their animals. Each zookeeper got an official badge.

I made cages for the animals using boxes, spray paint and elastic. (I got the original idea from teachingmama. I'll link it below.) The funniest part was that I learned I am not a street tagger at heart. After spray painting all those boxes, my pointer finger was sore for days! I guess I'm going to have to build up some callouses if I ever consider street art as my choose profession. :)

Originally I stapled the elastic to the box, but we had to do some cage repairs throughout the day, so I think I will try a different strategy this year. The elastic kept slipping out of the bottom of the staples where they bend in. Maybe brads or something that the elastic can't slip through will work better. 

The kids started by labeling their animal cages so that people visiting the zoo would know which animal they were looking at. 

Each child got a chance to check the health of their animal.

Then they made sure the animals had everything they need: food, water, and a comfy place to sleep. The kids filled cups with "water." Drew pictures of food for the animals and cut out a fuzzy blanket for them to use. 

We used the free printable from Teaching Mama and the kids loved having a check list to make sure they were doing everything they could to ensure the happiness of their animals. 

All in all, it was a huge success and something we will keep doing for many years to come.