The Feelings Zoo

Children turn into animals with feelings: an angry lion, a scared mouse, a happy puppy, a sad elephant and a calm cat. It builds varied locomotor movement and expressing feelings through pretend play.

How to play

1. The teacher introduces the zoo: every animal has a feeling. Together, we become the angry lion: on all fours, roaring and clawing at the air (2 min).
2. The scared mouse: quick tiny steps, then hiding crouched and trembling in a corner (2 min).
3. The happy puppy: hops, wagging tail and saying hi to friends (2 min).
4. The sad elephant: slow, heavy steps with the trunk drooping to the floor (2 min).
5. The calm cat: slow stretches, purring and curling up (2 min).
6. The teacher beats the drum and calls an animal at random; children switch and, at the end, everyone falls asleep as calm cats (2 min).

Rules

• Lion claws only swipe the air.
• Every animal moves without bumping.
• When the drum goes quiet, the animals freeze.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: show the animal with face, arms and sounds.
• Autism: allow doing only the sounds or only the movements, not both at once.
• Hearing loss: use animal picture cards to signal each change.

Learning goals

• Move in a variety of ways.
• Connect feelings to how animals move.
• Enjoy pretend play.

Equipment for a class of 25

• Hand drum: 1

Teacher tip

The angry lion needs a clear rule before you start: “claws in the air.” Always end with the calm cat to wind down before moving on.

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