Exploring animals through language

Elements of the child’s inquiry process	When children are engaged in the inquiry process, they:	When team members are modelling or supporting the inquiry process, they:
Initial Engagement noticing, wondering, playing	- Read a book that describes different species of animals - Provide the children with maps of the zoo	• Provide different resources for learning about animals like National Geographic Magazines or an animal encyclopedia in your classroom so that children can see real pictures, and great quality pictures of animals.
Exploration exploring, observing, questioning	- Try to introduce the children to words related to biodiversity. (family, habitat, etc.)	• act as facilitators to guide children with thoughtful, open-ended questions • Extend children's projects and big ideas into other learning areas (Chaillé, 2008)
Investigation planning, using observations, reflecting	- Create a word puzzle corresponding to different kinds of animals. Here's an example: - Cut the letters into individual pieces, and I would recommend either printing this resource on photo paper or putting thin pieces or stick to a thin piece of cardboard (from a cereal box). Ask the children to match up letters - Find a memory match board games with pictures of animals or make your own!	- Provide animal resources for them to refer to. • model how they can use the resource - some of the animals I provided in my example have long names so they may be harder for children to figure out you may want to give them hints about how many letters make up the name of the animal.
Communication sharing findings, discussing ideas	- Make sensory journals (What I saw, what I smelt, what I heard, what I tasted, what I felt) for the trip to the zoo. So that children can write down their feelings and memories of the zoo trip.	listen to the children to help them make connections between prior knowledge and new discoveries

Curriculum Expectations

Language - Big Idea: Children are effective communicators

1. communicate by talking and by listening and speaking to others for a variety of purposes and in a variety of contexts

2. demonstrate understanding and critical awareness of a variety of written materials that are read by and with the EL–K (Early Learning-Kindergarten) team

3. use reading strategies that are appropriate for beginning readers in order to make sense of a variety of written materials;

4. communicate in writing, using strategies that are appropriate for beginners

5. demonstrate a beginning understanding and critical awareness of media texts.

Where you can extend this Big Idea:

Dramatic Play

You could start by setting up the dramatic play area like a zoo, or a pet store. If the children get engaged with the area by pretending to be different animals then provide them with the materials to make animal masks, or costumes. You might end up creating a play or a video.

The link below is to an ECE's classroom who brought animals into dramatic play through various contexts http://www.urbanmamas.com/childcare/2010/03/music-art-based-joyful-learning-is-unique.html

Or you can provide finger puppets!

References:

The full-day early learning kindergarten program: 2010-11. (Draft ver. ed.). (2010). Toronto], ON: [Ministry of Education.

Chaillé, C. (2008). Constructivism across the curriculum in early childhood classrooms: big ideas as inspiration. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.