Animal Tracks on the Trail

Trails of laminated animal footprints cover the floor: tiny mouse steps close together, long giraffe strides, paired kangaroo prints. Children follow each trail stepping only on the prints, adapting their balance to steps of different lengths and rhythms.

How to play

1. Tape three footprint trails to the floor: mouse (short and close), giraffe (long and far apart) and kangaroo (in pairs) (2 min).
2. Sit and look at the prints, guessing which animal walked down each trail (2 min).
3. Walk the mouse trail on tiptoe and in silence, stepping on every print (3 min).
4. Walk the giraffe trail with giant steps and a long, stretched-up neck (3 min).
5. Walk the kangaroo trail with feet together, stepping or hopping from print to print (3 min).
6. Each child picks a favorite trail for the last trip and tells the group about it (1 min).

Rules

• I only step on the prints.
• I follow my friend without pushing.
• Each trail is walked like its animal.
• If I can't reach a print, I put my foot nearby and keep going.

Variations

Adaptations

• Students who use a wheelchair or walker follow a chalk trail of wheel tracks next to the footprint trail.
• Blind or low-vision students: raised foam prints and bare feet so they can feel them.
• Students who need more support: add in-between giraffe prints in another color they can use if needed.

Learning goals

• Adjust step length and rhythm while keeping balance.
• Follow a path marked on the floor.
• Connect different ways of moving with familiar animals.

Equipment for a class of 25

• Laminated footprints: 40
• Masking tape: 2

Teacher tip

Tape every edge of the prints down, because a lifted corner is slippery. Measure the giraffe stride against your smallest child, not your tallest.

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