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JUNGLE THEME

CRAFTS:

Animal Cracker Art
Supplies needed:
Light Blue Construction paper
Animal Crackers
Glue
Crayons or markers (Crayons work better)
Give each child a sheet of light blue construction paper and let them create a scene for their animal crackers to appear in. (They have a much easier time if you prepare an example for them to look at). After each child has completed their scene just glue the animal crackers to their picture.

Clothespin graph
Use a half-sheet of bristle board and at the top print this question:
"Which one of these is your favorite?"
On the left side, glue a picture of a lion, and a tiger on the right side. Draw a line down the center. Give each child a clothespin with their name on it. They each have to decide and tell why one of the animals is their favorite. They then put their clothespin on that side of the chart.

Elephant Film Canister Finger Puppet
1. Remove the lid from a 35 mm plastic film canister.
2. Glue gray paper around the sides and a paper circle on the bottom of the canister. Add eyes and trunk by gluing to the circle (trunk can be fan folded to make 3 D).
3. Cut ears and glue to sides (close to front circle edge ). Add a tail to the back top.
4. Place tissue inside the canister to help your finger fit snugly.

Elephant Masks
Materials:
large paper plates, panty hose (stockings), markers or crayons, newspaper or packing peanuts, elastic
Take large paper plate and cut a hole in the middle. Cut one leg of a pair of panty hose and fill it with scrunched up newspaper or packing peanuts. Pull the opened end through the hole in the paper plate and knot it. Decorate the rest of the elephant mask with ears, eyes and mouth. You could use elastic on the back to hold the mask on. 

Lions Everywhere!
Use yellow construction paper shapes:
Round for the head
Rectangle for body
Smaller rectangle for legs
Glue on short bits of brown yarn for their mane and tail. Use the same shapes as above, but cut out of orange for tigers. Add black stripes.

Marble Painting
Cut out simple cat shapes from orange construction paper, and use black paint to make tigers with stripes.

Newspaper Trees
Take 3 sheets of newspaper and roll them up overlapping as you go. Tape the bottom. Cut about 4 or 6 slashes 1/3 of the way down the top. Gently pull up on one of the inside "leaves" and then you have a paper tree.

Paper Plate Lion
Let the children color paper plates with markers or crayons. Glue brown and yellow yarn all around the edge. Tape a tongue depressor or craft stick to the back for a handle. Use wiggly eyes or cut out large eyes for the children to look through (like a mask). Use a large black pompom for the nose and strips for the whiskers.

Rainforest Collage
Make rainforest collages from rainforest products such as coffee, sugar, tea.

Stand Up Elephant
Fold a 9 x 12 gray construction paper to form a 6 x 4 1/2 rectangle. Cut a half circle from the open edges to form legs and a body. Save the scraps to make ears later. Clip on the fold to make a slot for the head. Cut a circle from a 6" square of gray paper for the head. Add the half circle scraps for ears. Trim them up if you need to. Add a 1 X 6 strip for the trunk. You can roll it on a pencil to make it curl up. Put the head in the slot on the back. Use a gray scrap for a tail. Draw on eyes or glue on wiggly eyes. Stand up your elephant and give him/her a name.

Squawking Toucan Beaks 
Provide each child with a snow cone cup. (cone-shaped) Let them decorate their "beaks" with colorful markers. Allow them to spend some time on this project. You may want to hang some colorful pictures of real toucans near the table to show how colorful toucans are. Use a hole punch to make a hole on each side and tie a piece of yarn to each side to hold the beak onto the child's face.

Sponged Giraffe
Cut a giraffe shape from orange paper, and sponge paint it with black paint to make spots.

Thumb print Monkeys
Give each child a piece of construction paper with the outline of a tree drawn on it. Set out ink pads and felt tip markers. Let the children make thumb print monkeys all over their tree pictures. To create each monkey, have them press a thumb on an ink pad and make two thumb prints, one above the other, on their papers. Then let them complete their monkeys by adding faces, arms, legs, and tails with the markers.

Zany Zebras 
Give each child a construction paper picture of a zebra with no stripes, mane, or tail. Use a fine brush or Q-tip & have them make stripes with black tempera paint. When paint dries, glue strips of fluorescent paper on neck & tail. Have the kids fringe paper. 

GAMES & ACTIVITIES:

Jungle Fun
After talking about what animals live in the jungle, ask the children to draw and cut out three or more animals that live in the jungle. Make binoculars out of toilet paper rolls. When the children are not there, tape the pictures out in the hall and then go out on a safari. The children are to find the pictures that belong to them. 

Rainforest
If you decorate the room to look like a rainforest, you could use some steam vaporizers. This will enable the children to understand more about the type of weather that is found in the rainforest.

Roaring & Growling
During circle time, have each child roar like a lion or growl like a tiger and record each roar/growl. Then play it back and see if they can recognize who's voice it is roaring and growling. 

Safari Hunt
Decorated your toilet paper binoculars and went on a Safari. Hide animals all over and pretend to put on your backpacks, hats etc. Then stop in the middle because it's so hot and have a pretend drink of water and put on your sunscreen.
 
 

What Shape Is An Elephant?
Give a child a sheet of construction paper and tell them they will have to tear 6 shapes from this.
1. The largest shape needs to be a square.
2. Next tear a triangle about half the size of the square.
3. Tear 4 rectangles all the same size.
4. Put the shapes together to make an elephant that looks like he is walking.
5. Add details with felt pen (eyes, wiggly lines for wrinkle skin, a tail)

SONGS:

Baby Frogs 
"Ribbit Ribbit" said mama frog
Sitting on a great big log
"Where are my babies, where can they be?"
Then out of the pond jumped one, two and three.
(Hold up three fingers , one at a time)
She was happy as could be,
But where were the others? She couldn't see.
So, "Ribbit, ribbit," she called again.
Then out they jumped---4,5,6,7,8,9 and 10.
(hold up remaining fingers one at a time)

Did You Ever See an Elephant?
Tune: Did You Ever See a Lassie?
Did you ever see an elephant
An elephant, an elephant,
Did you ever see an elephant
Spray water with her trunk?
Spray water all over,
Spray water all over,
Did you ever see an elephant
Spray water with her trunk?
Did you ever see an elephant
An elephant, an elephant,
Did you ever see an elephant
Eat peanuts with her trunk?
Throw peanuts in her mouth,
Throw peanuts in her mouth,
Did you ever see an elephant
Eat peanuts with her trunk?
Did you ever see an elephant
An elephant, an elephant,
Did you ever see an elephant
Hug her baby with her trunk?
Wrap it this way and that way,
And this way and that way,
Did you ever see an elephant
Hug her baby with her trunk?

Five Gray Elephants
Five gray elephants, marching through the glade,
Decide to stop and play like they are having a parade. The first sings his trunk and announces he'll lead;
The next waves a flag which of course they need.
The third gray elephant trumpets a song;
The fourth beats a drum as he marches along.
While the fifth makes believe he's the whole show
And nods and smiles to the crowd as they go.
Five gray elephants, marching through the glade,
Having a lot of fun during their parade.

I'm Being Eaten by a Boa Constrictor
(Sung) I'm being eaten by a boa constrictor 
(Spoken)Oh, no, he's got my toe 
Oh, gee, he's got my knee 
Oh, my, he's got my thigh 
Oh, yip, he's got my hip 
Make haste, he's got my waist 
Be calm, he's got my arm 
That's grand, he's got my hand 
That bum, he's got my thumbhole, yes, 
he's got my chest 
Oh, heck, he's got my neck 
Hey, Ted, he's got my head!

Little Froggy
(tune: I'm a little teapot)
See the little froggy
Swimming in the pool
The water's great
It's nice and cool
When he gets all cleaned up
Out he'll hop
Squeaky clean
From bottom to top.

Miss Mary Mack
Miss Mary Mack, Mack, Mack
All dressed in black, black, black.
With silver buttons, buttons, buttons
All down her back, back, back.
She asked her mother, mother, mother,
for fifty cents, cents, cents,
To see the elephant, elephant, elephant,
jump the fence, fence, fence.
He jumped so high, high, high,
he reached the sky, sky, sky,
And didn't come back, back, back,
till the fourth of July, July, July.
He fell so fast, fast, fast,
He fell so hard, hard, hard,
He made a hole, hole, hole,
in her back yard, yard, yard.
He went bumpy thump, thump, thump!!

See the Little Froggy
On the lily pad
Trying to catch flies
She's getting sad.
When she catches one,
She'll gobble it up
Back in the water
She'll go kerplop!

The Elephants Are Here!
A movement song to the tune of "The Farmer in the Dell"
The elephants are here! (Look excited)
The elephants are here!
Look at all the elephants! (Shade eyes as if looking)
The elephants are here!
They're exercising now. (March in place, keeping feet on floor, pumping arms)
They're exercising now.
Look at all the elephants!
They're exercising now.
(Have kids name various exercises and do them--tricky while singing!)
They're jumping up and down!
They're jumping up and down!
Look at all the elephants!
They're jumping up and down!
They're doing push ups now
They're touching all their toes
They're spinning 'round and 'round
Keep going until kids are EXHAUSTED
Sing the last verse slowly as sink to floor and lie down on backs
They're all exhausted now...
They're all exhausted now...
Look at all the elephants...
They're all exhausted now...
ZZZZZZZ (Lots of snoring)

Three Talking Toucans 
Three talking toucans sitting in a tree
The first one turned & squawked at me!
Three little toucans sitting in a row
The second one said"I flap my wings,watch me go!"
Three little toucans sitting side by side
The third one said "my bright beak, I open wide!"

Three Frolicking Red Eyed Tree Frogs
Three little frogs sitting in a tree
The first one turned & jumped towards me!
Three little little frogs hopping all about
The second one said "at night's when I come out!"
Three little frogs leaping tree to tree
The third one said "hey,wait for me!

The Mighty Morpho Butterflies 
Three morpho butterflies gliding through the trees
The first one swooped to take a look at me!
Three morpho butterflies sitting on a leaf
The second one was trying to eat something sweet!
Three morpho butterflies flitting all about
The third one landed on my snout!

Zoo Walk
(Tune: Frere Jacques)
I'm a lion, I'm a lion
God made me, God made me.
Listen to me talk now (roar)
See how I can walk now
I'm a lion, I'm a lion.
 

STORIES:

Have any good stories? Let us know!
 

FOOD SUGGESTIONS:

Animal Sandwich
Have the children spread frosting on an animal cracker, and then put another one on top, like a sandwich cookie. 

Animal Crackers

Baked Elephant Ears
How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time! Start with this snack that's shaped like an elephant ear.
You will need: 1 stick of pie crust mix, Medium mixing bowl, Measuring spoons Hot water, Fork, Wood board, All-purpose flour, Baking sheet, 2 tablespoons sugar. 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon, Shaker or spoon
1. Have adult break pie crust into little pieces in the bowl. Add 3 tablespoons of hot water. Mix with fork till the dough sticks together.
2. Sprinkle the wood board with flour. Pat your hands with flour. Form the dough into a big ball on the board and divide into 4 parts. Form each part into a ball. To make elephant ears, use your whole hand to flatten each ball. Press hard so that the dough gets thinner. It should be about 1/4 inch thick.
3. Place each piece of dough onto an ungreased baking sheet. Mix sugar and cinnamon. Place in shaker. Sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar topping on your elephant ears. Be careful not to get the sugar on the baking sheet. Have adult bake at 350º for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool.

Edible Peanut Play Dough
1/4 cup. peanut butter
1/2 cup. dry milk
1/2 tbs. honey
Knead all ingredients in a zip lock bag. Use the dough to make edible sculptures (even peanut-loving elephants!). You can even decorate the sculptures with raisins or candies. A fun activity and a yummy snack.

Elephant Heads
Needs: can biscuits (each child needs two biscuits) - cinnamon sugar - 2 raisins - a craft stick and the foil or baking paper same as above.
Give each child two biscuits. Have them place one biscuit and flatten just a little. Next with craft stick have them cut other biscuit into 3 pieces with the middle piece being narrow (this is the trunk) the 2 outside pieces are the ears.
Add to the biscuit - the 2 ears and put trunk in the middle. (Have them press the edges down so they stick to the biscuit . Add raisin for eyes. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake until golden brown. The children love to eat them while still warm. 

Jungle Animal Centerpiece (Edible) 
Pick an apple that will stand up by itself nicely. Cut the apple in half, horizontally. Place the two cut ends in a little lemon juice, to retard browning). Cut a plastic straw into 3 equal pieces. Pick 3 jungle animals from a pkg. of animal crackers. Place the straws into the bottom half of an apple evenly. Attach each animal cracker with a dot of peanut butter. Press top half of apple into bottom half of apple. Instant animal carousel.

Toast cut into jungle shapes

Cake decorated like a jungle on top. 

TIPS/NOTES: