Guess the animal
You’ll need
- Device to play music
- Pictures of animals (optional)
Before you begin
- Make sure you’ve got enough space for everyone to move around safely.
- If you want to move around to music, get it ready before the session. Music doesn’t just make the game more fun – you might find that it helps the game run more smoothly too. Music lets everyone know when to start (and stop) moving… and who doesn’t want to pretend to be a dancing giraffe?
- Decide if you want to have pictures of the animals ready to show everyone. You could use pictures from a book, magazine, or device (like a phone).
Story time
- Everyone should sit in a circle.
- Someone should read Animal Limericks by Jess Connett.
- After reading the story, everyone should take some time to reflect on it as a group. We’ve included some questions to help you reflect in the pink box below.
In Europe I met a nice cat,
Who slept every night on my mat.
He was well dressed
And I was impressed
When I first saw him wearing a hat!
In Antarctica there was a seal
Who liked to eat fish every meal.
I offered him chips,
He said: “Yuck, what’s this?
“But I’ll take mushy peas with my eel!”
In Asia I saw a great ape,
Wearing a Superman cape!
The orangutan,
Was such a big fan,
She’d made it herself from some drapes.
The green South American frogs
Do all of their singing on logs.
They warble in crowds,
Which upsets the clouds,
And then it will rain cats and dogs!
In Africa lived a fierce croc
Who had lost one of his socks.
From deep in a bog,
He pulled out a clog,
And now when he walks one foot knocks!
One animal in North America
Was a black bear, name of Erica.
She swam in a pond,
Which turned her hair blonde,
And laughed until she was hysterical!
In Australia I met a snake
Whose favourite dinner was steak.
I took him to dine,
And he ate all of mine,
And even devoured my cake!
By Jess Connett
Guess the animal
- Everyone who has a favourite animal should share what their favourite animal is. Everyone should chat about whether the animal is a pet or a wild animal. What’s the difference?
- The person leading the activity should explain that animals come in all shapes and sizes, from tiny ants to gigantic whales.
- The person leading the activity should read out some clues about an animal.
- Everyone should try to guess which animal the person leading the game is describing.
- Everyone should move around the space pretending to be that animal. Can people jump around like a kangaroo? What about waddling like a penguin?
- Everyone should keep repeating steps three to five to continue playing.
- After the game, everyone should chat about which animal was the most fun to be. Does that animal live nearby or does it usually live far away? Did anyone learn something new about an animal?
Frog
- I live near water
- I have a long, sticky tongue
- My tongue is great for catching insects
- I can jump really far
- I used to be a tadpole
Fun fact – frogs don’t drink. Instead, they soak up water through their skin.
Elephant
- I have four strong legs
- I’m grey
- I’m very big and heavy
- My skin is thick and wrinkly
- I use my trunk to suck up water
Fun fact – elephants are the biggest animals that live on land.
Kangaroo
- I live far away, in Australia
- I use two of my legs to hop around
- My big tail helps me balance
- When I was a baby, I lived in my mum’s pouch
Fun fact – kangaroos are great at moving forwards, but they can’t walk backwards.
Parrot
- I have wings
- I’m a type of bird
- My feathers have lots of beautiful colours
- I sometimes sound like I’m talking
Fun fact – parrots are the only birds that can eat with their feet. They use their feet a bit like people use their hands.
Snake
- I’m long and thin
- I live all over the world
- I have no legs
- I have smooth, scaly skin
- I make a hissing noise
Fun fact – people smell with their noses, but snakes smell with their tongues.
Squirrel
- I make a nest in a tree
- I’m great at moving through the trees
- I have a big fluffy tail
- I love to eat acorns
Fun fact – squirrels hide their nuts in the ground to save them for later.
Penguin
- I have wings, but I can’t fly
- I’m great at swimming
- I’m black and white
- I slip and slide on the ice
Fun fact – penguins use their wings as flippers to swim underwater.
Giraffe
- I have four long legs
- I eat leaves from trees
- I live in Africa
- I have a very long neck
Fun fact – adult giraffes are taller than a double decker bus. That’s taller than three adults standing on each other’s heads!
Butterfly
- I have four wings
- I love drinking nectar from flowers
- My wings have beautiful colours and patterns
- I used to be a caterpillar
Fun fact – people taste with their mouths, but butterflies taste with their feet. When they land on something, they can tell if it’s good to eat or not.
Reflection
This activity encouraged everyone to practise listening and have fun being active. Everyone learned about animals around the world and how they’re all different.
Animal Limericks
- What animals can you remember from the limericks?
- Do you know what a limerick is?
- What other animals can you think of to create your own limerick?
Guess the animal
- What was it like moving like an animal? Was it fun?
- Were some animals more difficult to guess than others?
- Has anyone seen any of these animals before? Where did they see them?
- If people could be an animal, what animal would everyone want to be?
Safety
All activities must be safely managed. You must complete a thorough risk assessment and take appropriate steps to reduce risk. Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. Always get approval for the activity, and have suitable supervision and an InTouch process.
- Active games
The game area should be free of hazards. Explain the rules of the game clearly and have a clear way to communicate that the game must stop when needed. Take a look at our guidance on running active games safely.
- You can make the clues as tricky or as easy as you like. It’s up to you how many animals you explore with your group.
- With a little help, some people might be able to come up with their own animal clues for others to guess.
- If there’s time (or you run out of clues), you could ask for suggestions of other animals to copy. People could act out another animal for others to guess.
If anyone finds it too tricky to move around the space like an animal, everyone could act out the animal while sitting down or you could explore the different noises animals make (rather than thinking about how they move).
All Scout activities should be inclusive and accessible.
Don’t keep your new knowledge to yourself – tell the people you live with what you’ve learned about animals.
Feeling curious? You could choose an animal and find out about it. Can you write your own clues or find your own fun fact?
It’s up to each person to choose how they move around the space – there’s no right or wrong way to be any of the animals.
Give people the chance to share anything they already know about any of the animals.