Animal Guessing Games
Can you figure out who’s who?
• The Donkey’s Christmas Song, by Nancy Tafuri (optional)
• paper
• crayons
In The Donkey’s Christmas Song, a variety of farm animals and the sounds they make are portrayed. What animal noises can your child make? Play a guessing game with your child. Make a variety of animal noises and invite your child to guess the animal. Then switch places and your child can make the noises while you guess. Next, try making up some animal riddles. For instance: “I have four legs. Sometimes I’m brown, sometimes I’m black and white. I usually live on a farm. People milk me. What am I?” A cow! You might even challenge your child to come up with riddles on his own. Play 20 questions with animals. Ask your child to think of an animal. You have up to 20 questions to ask to guess what animal he has in mind. Finally, you could have your child infer what animal you are drawing as you draw it. First draw the body. Can he guess? Then add legs. Next add a tail. Finally add the head. Can he guess before you finish the animal? And remember, you don’t have to limit yourself to farm animals!
• supports inference skills
• provides practice with problem solving
• promotes awareness of animal characteristics
