Crafts
Kids love crafts. Fold a paper plate three times into equal sides to create the long body of an alligator. Glue it together. Paint it green. Trim the head at the corner edges to create the snout shape. Add bulging eyes on top and they̵7;ve created their own paper alligator. Assign an alligator bookmark project using green construction paper. Draw the alligator on the piece of paper and then cut it out. Permit the kids to decorate their alligator however they want. Disney suggests that kids create an alligator head pencil holder using green kitchen scrub pads. Tack on googly eyes to small pompoms to create the bulging eyes that sit on the top of an alligator's head.
Toys
Kids also love to play with toys. Use a green sock to create an alligator sock puppet. The children then glue eyes, teeth and scales on their alligators with items available at a crafts store, or they use markers or paint to draw them in. Glue on white felt for teeth. Construct alligators out of clothespins and pipe cleaners. The clothespin is the body and the pipe cleaners are wired through the clothespin and bent into the alligator̵7;s stubbly little legs. Once the shape has been formed, paint it green and color in the alligator̵7;s eyes.
Games
Online alligator games give the children a chance to learn more about alligators and have fun at the same time. Announce a classroom contest and award toy prizes for the top scores. Educational games such as Alligator Pond keep track of scores. Assign games like Alligator Jigsaw and Reptile Word-o-Rama as homework for kids as an alternative to paperwork. Children can also learn about alligators by pretending to be one. One person pretends to be the alligator while others try to cross by. The alligator uses his hands to simulate the jaws. If he snaps one of the players and locks his finger, then that player becomes the new alligator.
Projects and Outings
Old-fashioned book reports and science projects still work to help kids learn. Assign each child a book about alligators and ask each pupil to give a two- or three-minute presentation on what they've learned. Organize groups of students and assign a topic about alligators for each group to cover. Topics could include reproduction, habitat, eating habits or what to do if you were attacked by an alligator. Once the projects have been completed, take the kids on a field trip to an alligator farm or swamp exhibit.