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Enabling Environments: Let's explore ... elephants

Here are some ideas to show how a nursery can build up a wealth of resources to help children to learn, appreciate and have fun with the largest land animal, from Jean Evans.

Children are fascinated by elephants, and any exploration of them should, ideally, include a visit to a zoo or wildlife park to observe them in real life.

Settings can then supplement or, if necessary, substitute actual observations by introducing a wealth of website, video, poster and book images and providing model, puppet and soft-toy elephants to explore.

Following the individual child's direction of interest, try to provide interesting facts about elephants, such as why they flap their ears, why they love mud and whether they can swim. If children ask questions, help them to discover answers using a range of resources. Encourage comparisons with the lifestyles and features of children's other favourite wild animals.

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