¡Misión Posible: Espía animales! /
Mission Possible: Spy Animals!
Books to Share
- Borreguita y el coyote and Borreguita and the Coyote by Verna Aardema.
- Eight Animals on the Town by Susan Middleton Elya.
- El gallo que fue a la boda de su tío and The Rooster Who Went to his Uncle's Wedding retold by Alma Flor Ada.
- Niña bonita by Ana Maria Machado.
- Tomasa the Cow / La vaca Tomasa by Pietrapiana.
- Los tres pequeños jabalies / The Three Little Javelinas by Susan Lowell.
Name Tags
Refreshments
Serve pineapple juice popsicles. To make them, buy a can of pineapple juice. Pour the juice into an ice cube tray. Allow the juice to partially freeze. Insert toothpicks or wooden ice cream spoons. When frozen, pop them out and serve in foil cupcake paper liners.
Bulletin Board
Who Knows, Whose Nose? / De quien es esta nariz?
Cut out animal noses from magazines. Cut out a bird beak, an elephant's trunk, an anteater's nose, etc. Decorate with question marks and magnifying glasses. Put together an activity sheet with clues such as "this animal loves to eat ants". Display copies of animal books in English and Spanish such as the following:
- Carlos and the Skunk and Carlos y el zorrillo by Jan Romero Stevens.
- Cuckoo: a Mexican Folktale / Cucu: un cuento folklórico Mexicano by Lois Ehlert.
- The Lizard and the Sun / Lagartija y el sol by Alma Flor Ada.
- The Twenty-five Mixtec Cats by Matthew Gollub.
Fingerplays
Los animalitos
Detrás de Doña Pata
(Shake your shoulders up and down)
Corren los patitos;
(Put your heels together and make running motions)
Por allí, por allá,
Cuá, cuá, cuá.
(Put hands together and make quacking motion)
Detrás de Doña Gallina
Siguen los pollitos;
Por allí, por allá,
Pío, pío, pío.
Detrás de Doña Borrega
Van los borreguitos
Por allí, por allá,
Beh, beh, beh.
The Little Animals
(This traditional rhyme was translated into English translation by Rose Treviño. Create motions for Mrs. Chicken and Mrs. Sheep.)
After Mrs. Duck
(Shake your shoulders up and down)
Run the little ducklings;
(Put your heels together and make running motions)
This way and that way,
Quack, quack, quack.
(Put hands together and make quacking motion)
After Mrs. Chicken
The little chicks follow;
This way and that way,
Cheep, cheep, cheep.
After Mrs. Sheep
Go the little lambs;
This way and that way,
Baa, baa, baa.
Cinco ratoncitos
(Tradicional)
Cinco ratoncitos
(Wave five fingers)
De colita gris,
(Wave five fingers behind you)
Mueven las orejas,
(Grab your ears and move up and down)
Mueven la naríz.
(Pinch end of your nose and move around)
Uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco!
(Count off on five fingers)
Corren al rincón!
(Put fingers behind your back)
Porque viene el gato,
A comer ratón…
Five Little Rats
(English translation by Rose Treviño.)
Five little rats
(Wave five fingers)
With gray little tails
(Wave five fingers behind you)
Move their ears,
(Grab your ears and move up and down)
And move their nose.
(Pinch end of your nose and move around)
One, two, three, four, five!
(Count off on five fingers)
They run to a corner!
(Put fingers behind your back)
Because here comes the cat,
To eat the rat…
Rhymes
Periquito
(Tradicional)
Periquito, periquito,
Te pareces a tu Papá
Por arriba por abajo,
Por delante y por detrás
Little Parakeet
(English translation by Rose Treviño.)
Little parakeet, little parakeet,
You look just like your Pop
From your feet to your middle,
From your middle to your top
Songs
La planchadora
Una rata vieja
que era planchadora;
por planchar su falda
se quemó la cola.
Se pusó pomada
se amarró un trapito
y a la pobre vieja
le quedó un rabito.
The Laundress
(This traditional song is translated into English by Rose Treviño. It is recorded on Diez deditos by José-Luis Orozco.)
A little old rat
Who did the ironing;
While ironing her skirt,
She burned her tail.
She put on a salve
And tied a bandage on her tail,
And the poor little old one
Ended up with a shorter tail.
Cinco patitos
(Tradicional)
Cinco patitos fueron a nadar
Sobre el lago y más alla
La pata dijo cuac, cuac, cuac
Cuatro patitos regresaron p'atrás.
Versos:
Cuatro patitos fueron a nadar...
Tres patitos fueron a nadar...
Dos patitos fueron a nadar...
Un patito fue a nadar...
Five Little Ducks
(Traditional)
Five little ducks went out one day
Over the hill and far away
Mother duck said quack, quack, quack
Four little ducks came back to play.
Verses:
Four little ducks went out one day...
Three little ducks went out one day...
Two little ducks went out one day...
One little duck went out to play...
Riddles
¿Por qué los pájaros vuelan hacia el Sur?
Porque tardarían más si se fueran caminando.
Why do birds fly South for the winter?
Because it would take too long for them to walk.
¿Qué animal come con la cola?
Todos, ninguno se la quita para comer.
What animal eats with its tail?
All of them, not one takes it off when they eat.
Story With No End!
(Repeat this "story with no end" over and over!)
Una hormiguita
(Tradicional)
Esta era una hormiguita
Que salió de un hormiguero;
Se robó un granito
Y volvió a su hormiguero.
Y vino otra hormiguita
Del mismo hormiguero;
Se robó un granito
Y volvió al hormiguero.
Y vino otra hormiguita…
A Little Ant
(English translation by Rose Treviño.)
There was a little ant
Who left the anthill
To steal a little grain
And then returned to the anthill.
Along came another little ant
From the same anthill
Who came to steal a little grain
And then returned to the anthill.
Along came another little ant...
Flannel Board Story / Short Reader's Theater Script
El coyote y el tlacuache
(This traditional folktale about a coyote and an opossum might call to mind the tale of Borreguita and the Coyote by Verna Aardema. Adapted and translated into English by Rose Treviño from a traditional folktale from Mexico. Copy and color the coyote and possum patterns to make flannel board animals.)
Narrador: Había una vez, un tlacuache que vivía en una cueva. Un día tenía las patas apoyadas sobre la pared cuando llegó el coyote.
Coyote: ¿Qué haces, Tlacuache?
Tlacuache: Pués nada.
Coyote: ¿Porqué tienes las patas apoyadas sobre la pared?
Tlacuache: Sabes que estoy atrancando el campo del cielo que va a hundirse y si se cae, nos tapa.
Coyote: ¡Aye, que horible! ¿Te puedo ayudar?
Tlacuache: ¡Claro que si! Ven y pon las patas apoyadas sobre la pared. Haz fuerza. Voy a traer un puntal.
Coyote: Muy bien, pero no te tardes.
Narrador: Tlacuache se puso de pie y se fue y no regresó. El Coyote desesperaba.
Coyote: ¿Cuándo volverá ése Tlacuache que fue a buscar al puntal?
Narrador: Después de esperar mucho tiempo, se dio valor y saltó a un lado, escapando luego a todo correr. Cuando volvió la cara, vio que no había sucedido nada.
The Coyote and the Opossum
(English translation by Rose Treviño.)
Narrator: Once there was an Opossum who lived in a cave. One day he was leaning with his feet placed firmly on a wall when Coyote walked by.
Coyote: What are you doing, Opossum?
Opossum: Nothing much.
Coyote: Why are you leaning with your legs firmly planted on the wall?
Opossum: Well, you see, I am holding up this wall because if it falls it will cover this land completely and we will be trapped underneath it.
Coyote: Oh how horrible! Can I help you?
Opossum: Of course you can! Come and put your feet firmly against this wall. I'll go find something to support it.
Coyote: Okay, but hurry!
Narrator: Opossum quickly ran away and never returned. Coyote became desperate.
Coyote: When is Opossum going to return with something to support this wall?
Narrator: After waiting for a very long time, Coyote bravely jumped off to one side ready to escape the landslide. When he opened his eyes, he saw that nothing had happened. Opossum had tricked him!
Games and Activities
La casa del conejo
Esta es la casa del conejo
y el conejo no está aquí.
Salió esta mañana
Y no ha vuelto por aquí.
¡Ay! ¡Ay! ¡Ay! ¡Ay!
El conejo ya está aquí.
Escoge a la niña o niño
Que te gusta más a ti.
The Bunny's House
(This traditional rhyme is translated into English by Rose Treviño. The children stand in a circle. Choose one child to be the bunny who walks around on the outside of the circle. The children recite the rhyme together. In the second verse, the bunny enters the circle to choose a new bunny. Let everyone have a turn as the bunny.)
This is the bunny's house
But the bunny isn't home
He went out this morning
And he hasn't returned.
Oh! Oh! Oh! Oh!
The bunny has returned.
Now choose the little girl or boy
That you like best.
Craft
Molas
Materials
- Patterns of an animal in three different sizes
- Construction paper in various colors
- Pencil
- Scissors
- Glue
Directions
Mola is traditionally the name used for the blouse worn by the Indian women in Spanish-speaking countries; but the term has come to represent the reverse applique panels that are made to adorn the blouse. Traditionally, each mola, or panel, is hand sewn with from two to seven layers of different colored cloth. Examples of molas may be viewed at www.folkart.com/~latitude/swenty-3/. The designs, which are often inspired by nature, are frequently animals, sea-life, plants, and flowers. Animals such as lizards, birds, or turtles are especially common. This mola will be made up of three different colors and sizes of a fish and three fish patterns are included here. For preschoolers, cut out all three patterns in advance on different colors of construction paper. Older children may trace and cut out their own fish. Glue the smallest fish to the top of the mid-sized fish and glue the mid-sized fish to the largest fish. Use left-over scraps of colored paper to add designs or facial features to the creatures.
Guest Presenters
Contact the zoo, a pet shop, or an animal shelter and invite them to bring some small animals to the library and talk to the children about caring for pets and/or wild animals.
Web Site
- Kuna Molas & Molitas of San Blas, Panama
- www.folkart.com/~latitude/swenty-3/
Audio Recordings
- "Las hormiguitas" on De colores by José-Luis Orozco.
- "Con real y medio" on Infantiles por Hugo Líscano y Javier Galué, Vol. 1 by Hugo Líscano.
Videos
- Antarctic Antics. (5 minutes)
- Descúbrelo, Vol. 3 & 4. (20 minutes)
