Deserts

Personal Social and Emotional

Talk to the children about what deserts are. Discuss with the children how the deserts can be very hot in the day and very cold at night. Ask the children how they feel when they get hot or cold.  

Communication and Language

Show the children pictures of different desert animals and ask them questions about them. Introduce new vocabulary such as desert animal names.

Physical Development

Provide a sensory desert tuff tray using sand, small world creatures and animals. Hide things in the sand and ask the children to dig with their hands and feel them.     Using sand in trays ask the children to make patterns in the sand. Can they form the first letter of their name.

Literacy

Learn the rhyme ‘Alice the Camel.’ Encourage children to join in with the words and some simple actions.    Read the story ‘Who's Hiding in the Desert?’ by Katherine McKewan.

Mathematics

How many legs does a camel have? What shape is the pyramids in the desert?

Understanding the World

Using a map of the world show the children where the deserts are and the names of them.                  

Expressive Art and Design

Listen to ‘Arabian Night Music’. Encourage the children to move freely to the music, using floaty scarves.   Create a desert scene, using paint, glue, and different materials.                 

Focused Vocabulary   

 Desert, Cactus, Camel, Lizard, Rattlesnake, Sand, Sahara, Scorpion