Tapestry of Faith: World of Wonder: A Program on the Seven Principles of Unitarian Universalism for Grades K-1

Alternate Activity 3: Animal Play Videos

Part of World of Wonder

Activity time: 15 minutes

Materials for Activity

  • Computer with Internet access or a DVD player, and a large monitor or digital projector
  • Video footage of animals playing

Preparation for Activity

  • Preview and choose video footage of animals playing. Suggestions from YouTube include this video of elephants playing in the water or this one about wild animals at play. Some suggested DVD's include: "Animals at Play," produced by Bfs Entertainment or "Zoboomafoo: Animals at Play," an episode of the PBS series, Zoboomafoo, both available from Amazon or perhaps at your local library.
  • Set up and test computer or video player, and monitor or projector. Cue the footage you plan to show.

Description of Activity

This activity fosters empathy and reinforces that many creatures benefit from playing.

Watch the video footage together. Then, guide children to process with questions such as:

  • Did you see anything that surprised you? How about anything that made you laugh?
  • I wonder what you noticed about how the animals played.
  • Have you ever played like that?
  • I wonder what the animals were feeling while they were playing.
  • Have you ever played with an animal or watched an animal playing? What was it like?
  • I wonder why playing is an important part of the web of life.