STEM for Kids - Guess the Animal

DISCOVER

In this activity we will:

1. Learn about animals of the savannah and their key features.

2. Identify and differentiate animals based on their features.

PLAY

Materials You Need

1. Art paper cut into large circles to create subsets
2. Crayon/Colour pencil
3. Magnifying glass (optional)
4. Printables: Vocabularies, Features, Animals

Set it Up

1. Print and cut out vocabularies, animals and animal features.

Steps to Guide Little Discoverers

1. Introduce each animal along with their features and the vocabularies for them.
2. Play a game of ‘I Spy’ to learn about the features of different animals.
3. Discuss about each animal through open ended questions. Example: What would elephants use their tusks for? Would you like to be as tall as a giraffe?
4. Overlap the round art papers together to create a subset. Explain how subsets work.
5. Input the name of different features into each circle for children to identify the animal that shares the features.

LEARN

This activity allows children to practice the decision making process by gathering information, and analysing it before coming up with a possible answer. Not only do they gain a deeper understanding of the subject matter, they learn to apply their knowledge too.

Key vocabularies to use:
Fur, skin, stripes, long tail, short tail, horn, tusks.

Ways to adapt the activity:
For beginners, challenge kids to categorise and match one feature to one animal. E.g. spots for cheetah
For advanced learners, challenge kids to match animals with more than one feature. E.g. spots, long tails and fur for cheetahs.

Continue the exploration by exploring animals of other land habitats. For example, tropical rainforest, tundra and mountains.