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Reception Animals
Working Animals

Find out about the animals that work and help us in so many ways. Learn about the strong animals that help us to do heavy and difficult jobs, such as heavy horses and elephants. Study how dogs help people who have problems with seeing or confidence. Discover animals that can identify and track scents or deliver secret messages. Take part in role-plays, listen to stories and represent ideas with art and design and technology. Express learning through writing and speaking.

block outcomes

Session 1 How am I helpful?

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Objectives

Early learning goals

  • Listen attentively in a range of situations.
  • Listen to stories, accurately anticipating key events and respond to what is heard with relevant comments, questions or actions.
  • Give attention to what others say and respond appropriately, while engaged in another activity.
  • Talk about how they and others show feelings, talk about own and others’ behaviour, and its consequences, and know that some behaviour is unacceptable.
  • Work as part of a group or class, and understand and follow the rules.
  • Adjust behaviours to different situations.
  • Represent own ideas, thoughts and feelings through design and technology, art, music, dance, role-play and stories.

Lesson Planning

Meet Super Worm! Use role-play to recreate different ways he is helpful and give suggestions about how the children can be helpful in different situations.

Teaching Outcomes
 To identify helpful behaviour, explore a range of different situations where they are able to demonstrate helpful behaviour to each other and recognise the positive feelings associated with being helpful to others.

Children will:

  • Identify and understand different ways they can help adults and one another.
  • Express personal opinions, using because to justify their choice.
  • Use play experiences to share knowledge of helpful behaviours.

Provided Resources

  • We are helpful lyrics
  • A1 paper outline of a child

You Will Need

  • Superworm by J. Donaldson
  • A sheet of A4 paper per child, folded into quarters
  • Drawing and colouring pencils
  • Wormery (see weblink)
  • Range of different sized hula hoops
  • Playdough (see weblink)
  • Circle of paper

Session 2 Strong and mighty!

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Objectives

Early learning goals

  • Listen attentively in a range of situations.
  • Listen to stories, accurately anticipating key events and respond to what they hear with relevant comments, questions or actions.
  • Give attention to what others say and respond appropriately, while engaged in another activity.
  • Write simple sentences which can be read by themselves and others. Some words are spelt correctly and others are phonetically plausible.
  • Show good control and co-ordination in large and small movements.
  • Move confidently in a range of ways, safely negotiating space.
  • Handle equipment and tools effectively, including pencils for writing.
  • Know about similarities and differences in relation to places, objects, materials and living things.

Lesson Planning

Children discover a heavy object in their classroom. They learn how horses and elephants have been trained to move heavy items and compare and contrast this with machines.

Teaching Outcomes
 To identify and describe strong animals that can be trained to help humans complete difficult tasks, compare and contrast using animals and machines to undertake the same role, create models and puppets using imagination to combine and decorate materials.

Children will:

  • Know that some animals can be trained to undertake specific jobs.
  • Understand that people choose animals for specific roles because of their talents.
  • Be able to compare and contrast the effect of animals and machines.

Provided Resources

  • Outline of a horse and elephant with writing template
  • Large outline of a horse and elephant for enlargement to A1
  • Finger puppet templates

You Will Need

  • Large log
  • Bottle-top elephant (see weblinks)
  • Handwriting and colouring pencils
  • Coloured paper
  • Colouring media
  • Small world forest scene

Session 3 Help me to see it!

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Objectives

Early learning goals

  • Follow instructions involving several ideas or actions.
  • Answer ‘how’ and ‘why’ questions about experiences and in response to stories or events.
  • Show good control and co-ordination in large and small movements.
  • Move confidently in a range of ways, safely negotiating space.
  • Work as part of a group or class, and understand and follow the rules.
  • Adjust behaviour to different situations.
  • Using quantities and objects, add and subtract 2 single-digit numbers and count on or back to find the answer.

Lesson Planning

Children understand how dogs are able to help blind/partially-sighted people to move around safely. They learn how to care for a dog and know the difference between pet dogs and working dogs.

Teaching Outcomes
 To know that dogs can be trained to give assistance to blind/partially sighted people, identify canine body parts, work collaboratively and appreciate the difference between a working dog and a pet.

Children will:

  • Know that dogs can be trained to lead blind/partially sight people.
  • Appreciate the positive impact a guide/assistance dog can have for a blind or partially sighted person.
  • Understand how to look after and care for a dog.
  • Be able to identify the different parts of a dog.

Provided Resources

  • Drawing of a dog and parts of body
  • Venn diagram
  • Large outline of a guide/assistance dog

You Will Need

  • Items for an obstacle course
  • Eye-masks or blindfolds
  • Strips of A3 paper
  • Drawing and colouring pencils
  • Different soft toy dogs
  • Grooming brushes
  • Dog bowl
  • 1-9 dice
  • Dog biscuits/counters

Session 4 Detectives!

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Objectives

Early learning goals

  • Follow instructions involving several ideas or actions.
  • Answer ‘how’ and ‘why’ questions about their experiences and in response to stories or events.
  • Try new activities confidently.
  • Use phonic knowledge to write words in ways which match their spoken sounds.
  • write some irregular common words.
  • Write simple sentences which can be read by themselves and others. Some words are spelt correctly and others are phonetically plausible.
  • Know that other children don’t always enjoy the same things, and are sensitive to this.
  • Know about similarities and differences between themselves and others.

Lesson Planning

Children use their sense of smell to identify a range of familiar scents. They know that dogs can be trained to identify and track scents. Children know that dogs can be used to help increase confidence and self-esteem.

Teaching Outcomes
To know that dogs can be trained to identify and follow scents, to discuss scents they like/don’t like, to know that dogs can be used for therapy with children in schools.

Children will:

  • Know that dogs are trained to recognise scents.
  • Recognise the scent of familiar objects.
  • Identify scents they/others like and don’t like.
  • Understand that dogs visit schools and help give children confidence to undertake tasks they find difficult.

Provided Resources

  • Outline of a detective dog
  • Outline of a reading dog

You Will Need

  • The Detective Dog by Julia Donaldson
  • Covered box with different smelling items
  • Sticky-notes
  • Writing/colouring pencils
  • A1 red and green paper
  • Zig-zag book
  • Different dried herbs/spices
  • A3 card
  • Doubled-sided tape/PVA glue

Session 5 Secrets!

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Objectives

Early learning goals

  • Express effectively, showing awareness of listeners’ needs.
  • Use phonic knowledge to write words in ways which match their spoken sounds.
  • Write some irregular common words.
  • Write simple sentences which can be read by themselves and others. Some words are spelt correctly and others are phonetically plausible.
  • Recognise that a range of technology is used in places such as homes and schools.

Lesson Planning

Children understand how pigeons have been used to transport secret messages. They consider which animal they think is the most helpful and provide a reason for their choice. Children vote to discover the most helpful working animal!

Teaching Outcomes
To know that pigeons can be trained to transport secret messages; create secret messages and share these with trusted friends; work collaboratively; to decide which animal is the most helpful and recognise why.

Children will:

  • Know that pigeons have been used to carry secret messages.
  • Make and read a secret message.
  • Be able to identify a variety of British wild birds.
  • Share an opinion with adults and peers and provide a reason for their opinions.

You Will Need

  • A3 and A4 white paper
  • White wax crayons
  • Watercolour paints and brushes and water
  • Paper plates
  • Drawing and writing pencils
  • Felt-tipped pens/coloured paper
  • Mirrors
  • PE cones or skittles
  • Digital cameras/tablets

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