The Gruffalo-Identifying and naming animals
A selection of activities and resources linked to The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler. Teachers can use this story as a starting point to help younger primary children (age 5 to 7) identify and name a variety of common animals including fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals as prominent characters include an example of a reptile (snake), a bird (owl) and a mammal (fox). An amphibian (frog) and various invertebrates are also included in the illustrations. Children may have fun trying to classify the Gruffalo; what type of animal is he and how do they know?
The snake, owl and fox are all predators who want to eat the mouse so this story also makes an interesting starting point to help children describe how animals obtain their food from plants and other animals, using the idea of a simple food chain, and to identify and name different sources of food.
This story would also support children to learn more about habitats and to identify and name a variety of plants and animals in different habitats, including micro-habitats.
Fast food chains
This resource, produced by the Wellcome Trust, is part of a pack that was sent into all UK schools in 2016.
However, it contains enough information so that it can be used even if you do not have access to this resource. It will help children to understand what a food chain is and to realise that they are part of a food chain. It also looks at the food chains in other parts of the world where the diet is different.
Once they have done this work children may enjoy thinking about the different food chains which contain a fox, and owl and a snake. What else do these predators eat apart from mice? Does anything eat them?
Education Pack: Food Chains
This resource comprises some sets of cards which can be used to build some food chains, and an idea for an active game which could be incorporated into a PE lesson.
There are already useful links to the story as the animals include a fox and a snake. Children could be encouraged to think about where mice and owls fit into these food chains.
Deadly 60 Food Chains
Once children have some understanding about food chains they may enjoy playing this interactive computer game where they identify the animals in a food chain and discover who the top predator is!
Education Pack: Woodland Tales
This resource has ideas for linking story telling to the topic of woodlands.
The story stick activity would support children to recount the story of a walk through the woods in chronological order. This is a valuable skill both for future non-fiction writing (such as recounting a science experiment), for retelling a familiar story, or for original story writing.
This resource also has suggestions for ways that you could use the woodland as a setting for your own retelling of the Gruffalo story or to work together to make a new story inspired by the woodland habitat and props found within it.
Nocturnal Animals (Age 5 to 7)
This resource contains an image rich powerpoint presentation about nocturnal animals and how they are adapted to live in the dark. It encourages children to think about the senses that animals would have to use if they could not rely on their sense of sight.
It then describes a feely bag activity where children identify a range of objects by touch or by scent. This would link well to literacy as children develop their vocabulary to describe the feel and scent of the objects as well supporting children to think about their senses of touch and smell.
A second activity involves listening to recordings of animal sounds and linking these to pictures of a selection of animals.
Stronger links to the story could be made by encouraging the children to think about how the mouse might feel walking through the wood at night. What sounds would he hear? How would he find his way? The story of the 'Gruffalo's Child', which is set at night, would sit well with this activity. Perhaps children could write a description of the mouse's walk through the 'deep dark wood' in the middle of the night.
