Animals, Their Young Ones and How Animals Care for Them for Pre-School Level 4

Class: Pre-School Level 4
Term: Third Term
Week: 8
Age: 5 years
Duration: 30 minutes
Subject: Basic Science and Technology
Curriculum Theme: Basic Science and Technology
Previous Lesson: Animals and their habitats.
Topic: Animals and Their Young Ones
Subject Matter: Animals, their young ones and how animals care for them.

Specific Objectives

By the end of the lesson, pupils should be able to:

Cognitive Domain

• Identify at least three animals and their young ones from pictures or a video.
• Name the young ones of common animals like a dog, goat, and lion.
• State one way animals care for their young ones.

Affective Domain

• Show interest in learning about different animals and their babies.
• Appreciate how animal parents care for their young.

Psychomotor Domain

• Point to the correct young one when shown a picture of an adult animal.
• Participate in a simple matching activity of animals to their young ones.

Social Domain

• Take turns to mention animal names and their young ones.
• Collaborate with peers during group activities.

Reference Materials

NAPPS National Unified Teaching Scheme for Pre-School Level 4; Early Childhood Care and Education resources; suitable early-years science workbook.

Instructional Materials

Charts and pictures of animals and their young ones (e.g., dog-puppy, cat-kitten, hen-chick, goat-kid, lion-cub, cow-calf, duck-duckling); video documentary showing animals and their young ones; video player or tablet; animal flashcards.

Rationale for the Lesson

This lesson helps pupils understand the life cycle of animals and the concept of family in the animal kingdom. Learning about how animals care for their young also fosters empathy and connects to their own experiences of being cared for by their parents.

Prerequisite/Previous Knowledge

Pupils can identify different common animals and know that animals are living things.

Lesson Content/Board Summary

Animals and Their Young Ones

Animals are living things, just like people. Many animals have babies, and these babies have special names.

• A Dog’s baby is called a Puppy.
• A Cat’s baby is called a Kitten.
• A Hen’s baby is called a Chick.
• A Goat’s baby is called a Kid.
• A Lion’s baby is called a Cub.
• A Cow’s baby is called a Calf.
• A Duck’s baby is called a Duckling.
• A Sheep’s baby is called a Lamb.

How Animals Care for Their Young Ones

Just like our parents take care of us, animal parents also take care of their babies. They do many things to help their young ones grow strong and healthy:

• Feeding them: Mother animals feed their babies milk or find food for them.
• Protecting them: Animal parents keep their babies safe from danger and other animals.
• Teaching them: Parents teach their young ones how to find food, hunt, and survive.
• Keeping them warm: They build nests or shelters to keep their babies warm and safe.

Key Words

• Young ones – baby animals.
• Care – to look after someone.
• Puppy – a baby dog.
• Cub – a baby lion.
• Kid – a baby goat.

What the Teacher Should Show or Draw

The teacher should display charts and pictures of various adult animals alongside their young ones. For example, a picture of a dog with its puppy, a hen with its chicks, and a lion with its cub. Draw simple stick figures of an animal feeding its baby.

Animals and Their Babies Song

Tune: “Are You Sleeping?”

Doggy, doggy,
Has a puppy.
Woof, woof, woof!
Woof, woof, woof!
Lion, lion,
Has a cubby.
Roar, roar, roar!
Roar, roar, roar!
Goat, goat, goat,
Has a little kid.
Maa, maa, maa!
Maa, maa, maa!

Actions: Point to pictures of animals, make animal sounds, rock arms like holding a baby.

How to use the rhyme: Sing the song together, pointing to the corresponding animal and its young one on charts or flashcards. Encourage pupils to make the animal sounds and actions.

Watch and Learn About Animal Babies

The teacher will play a short video documentary showing different animals and their young ones, highlighting how the parents care for them.

Pupils will watch and observe the animals and their babies in the video.

Teaching Methods/Instructional Techniques

Play-based Learning, Demonstration, Guided Practice, Songs and Rhymes, Storytelling, Picture Talk, Question and Answer, Video Observation, Repetition, Practical Activity.

Instructional Procedures

Step 1: Introduction

Time: 3 minutes

Teaching Skill: Engaging/Recalling

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher greets the pupils and asks them to name some animals they know. “Good morning, children! What animals do you see around your homes or in books?”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils respond by naming animals like dog, cat, goat, hen.

Learning Point: Pupils recall familiar animals.

Step 2: Presentation of Animals and Their Young Ones

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Identifying/Naming

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher displays pictures or charts of adult animals and their young ones. “Look at this picture! This is a dog, and this is its baby. Do you know what a baby dog is called? It’s a puppy!” The teacher repeats for other animals like goat-kid, lion-cub, cat-kitten, hen-chick.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils look at the pictures, listen to the teacher, and repeat the names of the young ones (e.g., “Puppy! Kid! Cub!”).

Learning Point: Pupils learn the names of young ones for various animals.

Step 3: Video Observation

Time: 7 minutes

Teaching Skill: Visual Learning/Observation

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher introduces the video. “Now, let’s watch a short video to see more animals and their babies, and how they live together!” The teacher plays the video and pauses to point out specific animals and their young ones, and how they interact.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils watch the video, observe the animals and their young ones, and try to identify them as they appear.

Learning Point: Pupils visually reinforce the connection between adult animals and their young ones.

Step 4: Discussion on Animal Care

Time: 5 minutes

Teaching Skill: Explaining/Discussing

Teacher’s Activity: After the video, the teacher asks, “What did you see the animal mummies and daddies doing for their babies in the video? How do they take care of them?” The teacher guides the discussion to feeding, protecting, and teaching.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils share what they observed, giving simple answers like “The mummy fed the baby” or “The Daddy protected them.”

Learning Point: Pupils understand that animal parents care for their young ones in different ways.

Step 5: Song and Reinforcement

Time: 3 minutes

Teaching Skill: Musical Learning/Repetition

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher leads the pupils in singing the “Animals and Their Babies Song.” The teacher encourages pupils to use the actions and make the animal sounds.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils sing the song with actions and sounds, reinforcing the names of animals and their young ones.

Learning Point: Pupils remember animal-young one pairs through song and movement.

Step 6: Matching Activity

Time: 3 minutes

Teaching Skill: Practical Application/Matching

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher distributes animal flashcards (adult animals and their young ones mixed). “Now, let’s play a matching game! Find the mummy or daddy animal and match it with its baby.” The teacher guides pupils to correctly match the pairs.

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils pick up flashcards and try to match the adult animals with their correct young ones.

Learning Point: Pupils apply their knowledge to match animals with their young ones.

Step 7: Evaluation/Review

Time: 4 minutes

Teaching Skill: Questioning/Assessment

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher checks pupils’ understanding through short questions and practical tasks.

1. “What is the baby of a dog called?”
2. “Show me the picture of a lion’s cub.” (Teacher points to mixed pictures)
3. “Name one way a mother hen takes care of her chicks.”
4. “Can you tell me another animal and its baby?”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils respond orally and demonstrate the required skill where appropriate.

Learning Point: Pupils demonstrate understanding of the lesson.

Step 8: Conclusion

Time: 1 minute

Teaching Skill: Summarizing/Closing

Teacher’s Activity: The teacher praises the pupils for their participation. “Well done, everyone! Today we learned about animals, their babies, and how they care for them. Remember, all living things need care.”

Pupils’ Activity: Pupils respond to the teacher and prepare for the next activity.

Learning Point: Pupils consolidate their learning and feel encouraged.

Lesson Keywords

• Animals – living things that can move and eat.
• Young ones – the babies of animals.
• Puppy – a baby dog.
• Kitten – a baby cat.
• Chick – a baby hen.
• Cub – a baby lion.
• Kid – a baby goat.
• Care – to look after someone or something.

Differentiation

Support:

• For pupils who struggle, use only 2-3 common animal pairs (e.g., dog-puppy, cat-kitten) and provide larger, clearer pictures.
• Repeat the names of the young ones slowly and encourage hand-over-hand pointing during matching activities.
• Allow pupils to simply point to the correct picture rather than naming if they are shy.

• Challenge quicker pupils to name the young ones of additional animals not covered in detail (e.g., horse-foal, pig-piglet).
• Ask them to describe more ways animals care for their young or give specific examples from the video.
• Encourage them to draw their favourite animal and its baby.

Note for teachers using this lesson plan

Before the lesson, ensure all charts, pictures, and the video documentary are ready and easily accessible. The video should be pre-screened to ensure it is age-appropriate and directly relevant. Emphasize the connection between human families and animal families in terms of care and protection. Encourage active participation by asking open-ended questions and allowing pupils to share their observations. Observe pupils during the matching activity to gauge their understanding. For shy pupils, a gentle prompt or peer support can be helpful. The main idea for pupils to grasp is that animals have babies with special names, and animal parents care for their young ones by feeding, protecting, and teaching them. Observable actions like correctly pointing to a young one or naming it are good indicators of understanding.