DESTINATIONS

Petting Zoo Lesson Plan

Please note, this lesson plan was created by FieldTripDirectory.com as a general guide and is not specific to any particular venue listed on our site.

FUN FACTS

Petting zoos feature a variety of domestic animals. Common animals include sheep, goats, rabbits, ponies, alpacas, llamas, pigs and miniature donkeys. Petting zoos are popular with small children, who will often feed the animals.

Sheep can recognize facial expressions. They really like smiles 🙂

Cows have best friends and become distressed if they’re separated from them.

Newborn piglets learn to run to their mothers’ voices and to recognize their own names. Mother pigs sing to their young while nursing.

Goats were one of the first animals to be tamed by humans and were being herded 9,000 years ago.

Rabbits are herbivores (plant eaters).

BEFORE YOU GO

Knowledge

Interacting with farm animals can teach children about how farm animals live and socialize.

A petting zoo is a facility that keeps domesticated animals and allows visitors to pet them, interact with them, and often feed.

 

Find out if any students have visited a petting zoo.

 

Make a list of some of the animals that the students will see at the petting zoo.

 

Divide students into groups and from the list, assign each group an animal to research.

 

Sample questions:

  • Describe the animal assigned
  • Why is the animal colored this way?
  • What do the animals eat? How do they sleep? What is their exercise? Do they play?
  • How do they interact with their family and the other members of their group?

 

Review student behavior for feeding and petting the animals at the zoo.

 

Vocabulary

Domesticated animals: an animal of a species of vertebrates that has been domesticated by humans so as to live and breed in a tame condition and depend on humankind for survival.

Cub: name of baby animal for bear, lion, tiger, wolf, fox.

Kitten: name of baby animal for a cat

Calf: name of baby animal used for a cow, elk, moose, elephant, reindeer, whale.

Fawn: name of baby animal used for a deer

Puppy: name of baby animal used for a dog, fox, wolf, otter, seal, walrus, mouse, rat.

Duckling: name of baby animal used for a duck.

Kid: name of baby animal used for a goat.

Piglet: name of baby animal used for a pig.

Lamb: name of baby animal for a sheep.

Colt: name of baby animal for a horse.

SKILLS

– Listening skills

– Verbal communication

– Vocabulary development

– Data interpretation

– Information analysis

– Writing

FOLLOW UP

– Draw your favorite animal from the petting zoo. Explain why and describe their eating and other habits they observed.

Go to the library and have students select a picture book of their selected animal.