Resources

The worksheets and other downloads in this section link back to schools' activities suggested in the Get Involved section of the WAD website. All the worksheets may be photocopied free of charge for use only in the classroom.

4 to 7 year olds

• 'Where do I live?' This worksheet asks children to pair animals with a suitable home environment, e.g. a fish with a tank, and a cat with a cosy basket. Children can be asked to colour in the pictures, then either to draw lines connecting the correct pairs or to cut them out and stick them on to a separate piece of paper. More able children could be asked to label the pictures.
• 'What do I need?' This worksheet encourages children to think about things animals need to keep them happy and healthy, using pet gerbils as an example. Children can be asked to colour in the picture as well as labelling the various items.
• 'Who came to our bird table?' Children can be asked to fill in this chart as a simple tally or else to draw the various species they see. The aim of this worksheet is to encourage observation skills and to learn about the dietary needs of wild birds.
• Animal mask templates can be used for art, drama and for exploring animal behaviour and movement. Children can be encouraged to paint or decorate them as realistically as possible, or alternatively to use glitter, sequins, fabric scraps, etc, to make fantasy creatures. The collection of mask templates will be expanded over the coming months, but currently comprises a Fox mask, a Badger mask and an Elephant mask.

8 to 11 year olds

• 'World Animal Day Young Animal Welfarist certificate' This certificate could be awarded to children whose work on an animal welfare project is particularly outstanding or to all children who complete an animal welfare-related assignment.
• 'Animals in danger' By being asked to pair up jigsaw pieces, children can be encouraged to think of cause and effect in terms of human actions harming animals and the environment.
• 'What comes from animals?' This word puzzle contains animal-related words, some of which may be unfamiliar to the children, e.g. gelatine, tallow. The children may not even realise that many of these items are animal products.
• ‘Animal acrostic’ This worksheet introduces the acrostic as a poetic form and is a useful exercise in deduction as the poet never mentions what kind of animal he is describing, although it would appear from the animal’s behaviour that it is a cat. Children could be asked to write a poem about an animal, describing its characteristics, but without mentioning what it is, and then challenge each other to guess the animal.
• 'Palesa finds a friend' This pack was produced by the Humane Education Trust of South Africa and WSPA Africa in Kenya and takes the story of a young girl adopting a maltreated dog as a way of introducing animal welfare concepts. The pack also includes differentiated comprehension questions and drama activities.

12 to 18 year olds

• 'World Animal Day' This is an example of a poem that was written to send to the press on World Animal Day. The poet is Australian and her work highlights some of the animal welfare problems in her country - students from other countries might have to do some research to find out what 'mulesing' means, for example (but please note, this is not for the faint-hearted!). Students could be asked to write about issues specific to where they live or to research problems in another country.
• ‘Sheep’ This poem by the Welsh ‘tramp poet’ W. H. Davies was written in 1916 and describes his experience working on a ship carrying sheep from the United States to Britain. The poem can be used as part of an investigation into the history of animal transport and trade, and also as a comparison with long-distance transport methods used today.
• 'Animal Rights, I Mean Writes' Poet Benjamin Zephaniah has created an animals' charter of rights in this poem, which could be used to stimulate a lively student debate. What rights do the students think animals have? What would constitute 'Cruel or degrading treatment'? Are animals discriminated against according to coat colour and fluffiness? What does the poet mean by seasonal orientation? The poem could also discussed in the context of the 'Five Freedoms' of animal welfare.
• 'Farm Animals' This pack was produced by WSPA Africa in Kenya. While designed for WSPA Africa's Kindness Clubs, the welfare concepts it covers are applicable across the world. It includes a research activity into farm practices, which could be easily conducted in a rural area in any part of the world, but would not really be suited to urban schools. For students in other countries, the pack could also be used as a geography resource as it gives an insight into African farming practices.
• 'Sanctuary or prison?' This pack was produced by WSPA Africa in Kenya for use in their Kindness Clubs. It offers an investigation into the humane issues surrounding zoos. It is applicable to anywhere in the world and includes guidelines for conducting a survey on people's attitudes towards zoos.

Miscellaneous resources

• JPG, GIF and PDF versions of the WAD logo for you to download and use in making your own worksheets, or for use on stickers, t-shirts, etc.
• A generic Sponsorship Form, which can be used for any kind of sponsored event for World Animal Day. This form has a space for the child's parent or guardian to sign, plus a space for the organizing teacher to sign to acknowledge receipt of the funds raised by the child.
• A Big Day Checklist to print off and customize for help in planning a school fund-raiser, such as a concert or sale. 

Organizations that Supply Educational Materials

The following organizations supply good quality educational materials that can either be downloaded directly from their website, or can be ordered online.

Compassion in World Farming is a UK-based international animal welfare group that campaigns specifically on farming issues. Many of their resources are available as downloads as well as by mail order. All resources have clearly defined age ranges.

NAHEE (the National Association for Humane and Environmental Education) is the educational division of the Humane Society of the United States. Some publications are available by subscription only, while others are also available online. Publications include KIND News (a four-page classroom newspaper featuring puzzles, projects, celebrity interviews, etc) and the accompanying teachers' journal KIND Teacher, and numerous books and posters.

The RSPCA has a wide range of educational material linked to the UK National Curriculum. Numerous photocopiable downloads are available.