Activity Plan #2 - Jungle/Rainforest Week: Friday – Special Activity

Activity Plan #2
Jungle/Rainforest Week: Friday – Special Activity

Activity: DRAMATIC PLAY: Based on The Animal Boogie by Debbie Harter – Animals in the Jungle – A Safari Adventure

Why do this activity? To promote physical, intellectual, language, emotional/social, and creative development by teaching children about common objects (animals) in an uncommon way.

What can children learn?
Physical – Walks with an agile, almost adult style; runs around obstacles; climbs ladders, uses slide independently; alternates feet when climbing stairs
Intellectual – Remembers rules for outside and playground activity areas; hears sounds and matches them with known objects; learns by doing and through the senses; matches pictures to objects;
Language – Identifies most common objects; answers simple questions
Emotional/Social – Imitates parents and playmates;

Vocabulary Words: jungle, bear, vulture, leopard, monkey, elephant, parrot, cobra, hornbill, safari, explore, discover, Africa

Materials: Various stuffed jungle animals (bears, monkeys, elephants, colorful birds, big cats, snakes); jungle safari hats (1/child and teacher); faux plant life; binoculars; magnifying glasses; tape/CD of jungle sounds; tape/CD of big animals stomping sounds; Book: The Animal Boogie (check out of library on Wednesday); flashlights

Prepare for the Activity: Set up outside play area with faux and real plant life; “hide” animals in the plants and around the playground (during nap/break time); set up tape/CD player (hidden) and have jungle sounds playing; set out all the props we have to encourage children to dress up for our hunt

Lead small groups: From snack time (post-nap) start a CD/tape player with the Large Animal Walking sounds. Ask children if they have any idea what could be making those noises. Invite children to sit on the rug and try and figure it out. Have them call out suggestions (no wrong answers, but try and steer them towards large animals.) When all the children have participated tell them you think you heard more sounds like that outside and ask them if they want to go outside and explore the yard. Encourage all the children to dress up in the props that are laid out in the dramatic play area. After all the children have dressed up, lead them outside to the yard. Start by putting your hand to your ear, say things like “I think I hear something” and, “Do you children hear anything?” Take big steps and walk in an overly-dramatic way. Have children use props they brought out to search in the bushes, on the playground, etc. When they find an animal, gather the children around and talk about what they found. Talk about basic things like what the animal eats, where it lives, etc. Help the children out if they can’t find the last few animals. Activity should last ~30 minutes.

Respond to individuals: While you are outside encourage children to explore the bushes and playground. Ask children if they know the names of the animals they find. Talk about where the animals live and what they eat. Talk about how they are wild animals and not pets.

Follow up after the activity: Shaniqua was very engaged in this activity, though she tended to want to walk off away from other children. We know she has a tendency to want to work alone so this was a little challenging for her. She wanted to cuddle and play with the stuffed animals we found and ran into a bit of a scuffle when someone when someone wanted the lion she was carrying. We separated the children and asked Shaniqua if she wanted to share the lion. She relented when the other child said “please” and “thank you”.

Involve families: Shaniqua’s dad works at the local zoo so I am going to ask him to come speak to the class. I am also going to talk with the families of my children about planning a family day trip to the zoo to see the animals we have been learning about this week.

Notes: We didn’t find that any of the children had a big problem with the activity, though a few of our youngest three’s were restless at the end. We might shorten the activity to ~20 minutes next time to see if we experience similar problems, since finding every animal isn’t important nor the point of the activity. All the children enjoyed dressing up and expressed a desire to do this activity again. I can see how this activity could be easily redefined to fit other themes.


Rationale
I selected this activity because it fit many developmentally appropriate standards for three-year-olds. Based on the observation I made of Shaniqua I found her to be on track with other children her age. She walked with an agile, almost adult style and ran around obstacles. Intellectually I observed Shaniqua hear sounds and match them with known objects and learn by doing and through the senses. This activity was very language-oriented so I knew this would be a good chance for Shaniqua to broaden her vocabulary. Emotionally and socially Shaniqua was on par with other children her age. She had a high level of self-direction and independence which was almost counterproductive since this activity was inherently group based. She followed the outside rules very well though, and did not have to be reminded like she sometimes does in regular outside time.



Evaluation

If the activity was DAP I would expect to see children:
• Working well with other kids, not fighting over animals or props
• Showing excitement and pride when they find things
• Using props for their intended use
• Actively listening and learning about the facts that we talk about
• Showing excitement to do this activity again or do follow-up activities based on this one

If the activity was not DAP I would expect to see children:
• Acting out and playing on the play equipment as opposed to keeping on the task at hand
• Using props improperly and hitting other children or throwing things
• Acting disinterested/bored in the activity
• Not showing excitement about any follow-up activities or about doing this again