Group Activities

Adult-Child

Nature Tots

Polk County Conservation Board

Age level:  3 year olds and an adult

Season:  Any Season

Time:  1 hour

Topic:  Snake, Turtle, Reptiles

Title: “S” is for Snake and “T” is for Turtle!

Pre-program Activity: 

Ask tots to make a snake from dough.  Can you shape it into an “S”?

Story: 

Little Green Snake

Box Turtle at Long Pond by Lindsay Barrett George

Song/Activity: 

Ask children to move like a snake; then like a turtle.

 Ask children and adults to make snakes with their fingers and follow the movements to:

Little Snake

            Sung to:  “Twinkle, twinkle, Little Star”

Slowly, slowly

Turn around.

Look behind you

On the ground.

You will see

A snake wiggle.

Careful, now,

He’ll make you giggle!

Slowly, slowly

Turn around.

There’s a snake

Right on the ground.

Show & Tell: 

Using a live snake & live turtle, discuss reptile features. Should you pick up a wild turtle or snake? (No.) Can you keep a turtle or snake that you find in a park? (Check local laws for restrictions, most wild animals are protected and cannot become pets.)

Parent/Child Activity: 

Explore park area for places snakes or turtles would sun themselves or lay eggs.  Before the program, place several snake eggs (plastic eggs) around the park.  Inside the eggs place gummy worms (baby snakes).  Make sure the children know how many eggs they can find, so that everyone gets some.

Craft:  Noodle snake

Materials: Colored tube pasta, pipe cleaners, googley eyes, yarn for tongues, glue.

Ask tot to string the noodles onto the pipe cleaners. Adult can glue on googley eyes and yarn tongue if they like.

Other craft options

• Make snake tracks by dipping pieces of yarn in poster   paint. Then drag the yarn on paper.

• Necktie Snakes

Materials:  old neckties, newspaper or plastic grocery bags, eyes, felt for tongues, several staplers, glue

Stuff tie with newspaper or grocery bags. When full, staple it shut. Glue on eyes and tongue.

 Snack:

Gummy worms (snakes) from the snake egg hunt and reptile eggs (yogurt covered raisins).        

Playdough Worms (Snake) Recipe

1 cup flour                    Red food coloring

1 TBSP oil                   1 cup of water

1 tsp cream of tartar     ½ cup salt

Cook mixture over medium heat until mixture pulls away from sides of pan and becomes like playdough.  Knead until cool.  Keeps 3 months or more.

...prepared by Lori Foresman-Kirpes

Polk County Conservation Board

Nature Tots is funded by Polk County Conservation Board,

West Des Moines Park and Recreation,

and the Des Moines Chapter of the Izaak Walton League.

Age

3

 

Multiple Intelligences

Linguistic

(reading, talking)

Bodily-Kinesthetic

Gross motor or kinesthetic development (moving, running, moving your body, jumping)

Small motor or tactual development (blocks, puzzles, sensory)

Musical

(songs, patterns, sound)

Interpersonal

(understanding other people and social interactions)

Naturalist

(understanding of the physical world, nature)