Let your preschoolers pretend to be zookeepers with a zoo-themed dramatic play area. Provide boots, coats, buckets, keys and nets for the children to become zookeepers. Arrange stuffed animals and pictures of animals to simulate a zoo. Encourage the children to care for the animals. What does a zookeeper do? What do the animals need to be healthy and happy? Read stories about zoos and zookeepers to increase student knowledge and understanding.
Combine snack and play with a game of Zoo Charades. Use a box of animal crackers for inspiration. Have the preschoolers pull a cracker out of the box and then act like that animal for their classmates. Or teach questioning skills with a game of Guess My Animal. Put a small animal toy or picture in a paper bag. Choose one student to look in the bag and answer questions about the mystery animal. Encourage students to ask questions to figure out the identity of the animal. Is it big or small? Does it have fur? Stripes or spots?
If possible, take your preschoolers on a field trip to the nearest zoo. Field trips are an opportunity for young children to gain experience and background knowledge that might not be available to them otherwise. Prepare for the field trip with books and basic research. After the field trip, ask each preschooler to create a page for a classroom book about the zoo. Ask children to draw a picture and tell you a sentence about their favorite animal at the zoo. Write their thoughts on the page and compile them into a book.
Create simple masks with paper plates and rubber bands. Cut two holes for the eyes in the center of the plate. Cut a large rubber band and staple each end to opposite sides of the plate. The preschoolers can use the rubber band to secure the mask to their heads. Provide a variety of art supplies for the preschoolers to turn their masks into zoo animals. Shredded paper makes a great lion mane and feathers quickly transform a plain plate into an eagle or owl.