Are you a night owl? Let’s be real. Even if you enjoy staying up late, the last thing you want to do at 11 pm on a Sunday night is write lesson plans for the week. It’s the perfect buzzkill for your weekend and a horrible way to start your week fresh when learning about nocturnal animals. I have a solution: engaging, hands-on nocturnal animal activities that are done for you and even include your weekly lesson plans. Now you can stay up late and rock the week with your preschoolers!
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Nocturnal Animals Lesson Plans
Mole Maze Alphabet Game
Nocturnal Animals Activities
Do your kids love mazes?
This maze is a little different – the letters of the alphabet are hidden in the dirt for the mole to dig through. Can they connect the tunnel for the mole from start to finish?
As they connect all the letters with the tunnel pieces, they can also try and give the mole a special worm surprise along the way!
Get your kids started on their letter identification and spatial reasoning with this fun and educational Mole Maze activity!
Materials:
Nocturnal Animal ABC
Initial Sound Activity
How many nocturnal animals can you name?
Well, by the end of this nocturnal animal alphabet activity, you and your preschoolers will be able to name at least 20!
Flip over a card with a picture of a nocturnal animal. There are two levels: one that includes both the uppercase and lowercase letters and one that is missing the beginning letter – making it easy to differentiate for your class.
Then, find the matching beginning letter on the mat and place it in the moon container, singing the “Nocturnal Animals” song as you go. This is a great way to teach your kiddos about phonics and nocturnal animals, all while having a blast!
Click the link below to see a video of Nocturnal Animals ABC in action!
Materials:
- Nocturnal Animal ABC
- cookie sheet (Dollar Tree)
- disinfecting wipes container
- magnetic letters
Alphabats
Bat Alphabet Activity
Teaching preschool sometimes feels like finding your way through a cave without a lantern. You never know when you might bump into a stalactite or have a screeching creature fly into your face. Plus, tons of small spaces to maneuver through.
Okay, maybe it’s not like that (most days).
But you know what can help light your way? Flashlights. Especially when they are used to engage your creatures preschoolers with learning.
Start by building a simple cave. Think black plastic tablecloth or fabric wrapped around a box or a table. Then, tape up the Alphabats posters (no cutting necessary) for your preschoolers to search around the cave for lettered bats.
There’s a song and a recording sheet to work on letter formation, making this nocturnal animal activity a bright addition to your literacy centers.
Materials:
- Bat Alphabet Activity
- large cardboard box
- flashlights
- markers
Alphabats
Bat Alphabet Game
There are days when you are just barely hanging in there.
For the days that you’ve arrived at school feeling as blind as a bat without a clue what to do, just pull out this Alphabat letter game. It’s low-prep, engaging, and will make you feel like flying.
Start a 3-minute timer. Then, take turns flipping over the bat alphabet cards, saying the letter aloud. But watch out! If you draw a “Boom!” card, all of your cards get shuffled back into the pile.
The winner is the player that ends up with the most cards when the timer goes off. The best part: luck determines the winner rather than ability, so everyone enjoys this bat alphabet game, especially when it gives you that easy, teacher win.
Materials:
Porcupine poke Letters
Fine Motor Alphabet
Preschool teachers are limited on time. So let’s make it a point to combine fine motor skills and learning activities whenever we can.
We know that little learners learn through movement, making this push-pin fine motor activity a must-do during your nocturnal animals theme.
Just print off the porcupine poke letter cards and gather your supplies. You have two options for implementing this fine motor alphabet activity.
First up? Use push pins (like porcupine quills) and a corkboard or carpet and have those tiny fingers poke holes in the letter card. Second option? Round up some cotton swabs and pull the paint out of the cabinet. Have your little ones dab dots onto the letter cards.
Which will you choose?! Either one is sure to be a poke hit!
Materials:
- Porcupine Poke Letters
- large push pins
- cork board or carpet
- cotton swabs
- paint
Raccoon Rhymes
Nocturnal Animal Activities
Did you know that raccoons are named for their extremely dexterous hands? I’m sure anyone who’s had their garden, cooler, or trash can ransacked by a raccoon can agree.
And with this next nocturnal animal activity, your preschoolers will be working on their dexterity as well as their rhyming skills.
Pick up the crumpled trash using tongs, open it up, and discover the trash that the raccoon found during its last plunder.
Then, sort the trash back into the trash can with the matching rhyming word on the front.
Your preschoolers will love picking up the trash and helping sort it back into the right bin, they won’t even realize they are learning!
Materials:
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MORE Nocturnal Animal Activities
These nocturnal animal activities are a fun and unique way to help preschoolers learn their alphabet, rhyming words, beginning sounds, and more. The best part is that these activities can be done right at home or in your classroom with things you probably already have. Get your kids excited about learning by incorporating some of these nocturnal animal activities into your next preschool lesson plan.
