Field Trip: Rio Grande Zoo

A while back we took Erik on a trip to see the local zoo. It was really a lot of fun! We spent a couple of hours wandering around looking at and talking about some of his favorite animals, most of which he's only ever seen in pictures.

He LOVES elephants, we watched these guys for a long time!

 It was fun to expand his vocabulary as we talked about the names of the different animals, many he already knew, but some he'd never seen or heard of before. We were there in the early morning when many of the animals were just getting started on their breakfast, so we got to talk about what the different animals each eat. 

We worked on gross motor skills running and jumping and climbing our way around the zoo.

 We also bought a few handfuls of food to feed to the ducks and fish in the pond. Having to pinch up the little bits of food was good for his little fingers.

Outings like this are such a great way to work on so many valuable skills with your child, as well as build their self esteem by making them feel like they're a special part of your family.