Notes for adults

Age 1 · 5 min · Easy

Show your child large cards featuring eight farm animals and talk about the pictures together.

Learning objectives

• Look at or point to a picture shown by an adult.
• Join in with gestures, sounds or words.
• Explore pictures of different animals.

What you need

• Printed picture cards
• Scissors for adult use

Safety notes

Supervise your child throughout the activity. An adult should cut out the cards before play. Use large cards and put them away if your child tries to tear them or put paper in their mouth.

How to do it

1. Cut out the cards before you begin.
2. Sit close to your child and show them one card.
3. Point to the picture and name the animal: “It’s a cow!”
4. Let your child look at and point to the card without asking them to repeat the name.
5. Show one or two more animals, following your child’s interest.
6. Put the cards away when your child loses interest.

Teaching suggestions

• Speak slowly and give your child time to look or respond.
• If choosing between pictures is difficult, show just one at a time.
• When your child points, repeat the animal’s name: “You saw the duck!”
• Connect the pictures to animals your child has seen in books or on outings.

Variations

• Make it easier: Show one card and name the animal while your child looks.
• Make it harder: Show two cards and invite your child to point to the animal you name.
• Keep playing: Make an animal sound or movement and invite your child to join in.

Talk about it

• What do you see?
• Which animal would you like to look at now?
• What sound does this animal make?
• Where have you seen an animal like this?

What to look for

• Notice whether your child looks at or points to a picture.
• Notice whether your child responds with a gesture, sound or word.
• Observe which animals catch your child’s interest.