If I Were an Animal

If you could have an animal body, what creature would you be? Why? Draw your dream and then spin a tale about your adventures.

1. Choose an animal! What animal characteristic would you like to experience? Would you run like the wind on four legs? Or fly over your house with strong wings? Or swim to ocean depths using your flippers and tail? Use your imagination to dream up a new way of seeing your head combined with an animal, fish, or bird body.

2. Use Crayola® Color Switchers™ Markers to fill in the background first.

3. Flip the Marker and apply the special color switcher to create interesting and zany features to your nonsense creature.

4. Write an imaginative story. With Crayola Erasable Colored Pencils, write a creative story about your adventures. Tell where you live and what you eat. Do you pal around with your old friends?

Adult supervision is required for any arts & crafts project. Observe children closely and intervene as necessary to prevent potential safety problems and ensure appropriate use of arts and crafts materials. Some craft items, particularly beads and buttons, are potential choking hazards for young children. Avoid use of such small parts with children younger than 3 years. Craft items such as scissors, push pins and chenille sticks may have sharp points or edges. Avoid use of materials with sharp points by children younger than 4 years. Read all manufacturers' safety warnings before using arts and craft supplies.

• Create animal or insect mix-up books. Draw several animals on the same size paper. Lay one on top of the other and staple them together. Cut through all the pictures, dividing the animals into sections of heads, abdomens, and feet. Flip sections to change a creature’s head or body parts and create a new nonsense character.
• Students with special needs may prefer to look at animal pictures and in mirrors when making their drawings. Some may benefit from talking about their stories with an adult to help them think through the implications of an imaginary body.

Lesson Plans

crayola supplies

• Erasable Colored Pencils
• Construction Paper
• Color Switchers™ Markers

grades

• Grades 1 to 3
• Grades 4 to 6
• Special Needs

subjects

• Language Arts
• Visual Arts

time

• 30 to 60 minutes

benefits

• Students choose a favorite animal and identify its prominent characteristics such as fins and a tail, four sturdy legs, or strong wings.


• Students draw their favorite animals, adding their own heads to animal bodies.


• Students write a creative, detailed short story about themselves as a nonsense creature.

Research Canada Standards
Research UK Standards
Research U.S. Standards