Animal crackers are that childhood snack you never outgrow. From the plain ones to the iced ones, who can resist an open bag, or even better, the little train car box? These can be used as a snack or a snack-while-you-learn activity.
Animal Cracker Charades (Courtesy of jumpstart.com)
Have your children and their friends sit around a table so everyone can see and hear each other. Pick one child to go first and have them pick out an animal cracker from the box. Make sure no one else sees what they pick! Then, have the child take a look at what animal they have and then quickly put it in their mouth and eat it. Once the child eats the animal cracker they have magically transformed into that animal! Have them act just like the animal, making all the necessary sound effects and movements. Everyone else at the table must guess what animal the child has become. Whoever guesses correctly first is the next cracker eater. The child who guesses correctly most often during the game is the animal cracker charades champion!
You can make this yummy game a little bit more educational by telling fun facts about each animal after it is correctly guessed. For example:
- Lions only eat every three to four days.
- Camels have two layers of thick eyelashes to protect them from the dust.
- Rhinos roll in the mud so they do not get sunburned.
- Giraffes can survive up to two weeks without water.
- Elephant trucks continue to grow throughout their entire lifetime
Animal Sorting & Counting
Place several small plates or napkins in front of child. Ask them to sort the animals. When the box is empty, have them count each set of animals. Which set had the most? Which set had the least?
Animals Snacking
Using celery sticks cut into 2"-3" pieces, put peanut butter or cream cheese in the center dip of the celery. Place an animal cracker in the peanut butter or cream cheese. What would the animal like for a snack? Add several raisins, chocolate chips, carrot peels, chopped tomatoes or blueberries.
