This Giraffe Unit Study has all you need to learn about Giraffes with your students in a fun way with videos, crafts, printables, recipes and even an interactive quiz!
The most enjoyable way to learn about something is to explore it from every angle and in every way possible. With this Giraffe Unit Study, your children AND you will enjoy learning about Giraffes as you watch videos, read books, do crafts and printables and even make food together. Have fun!
In the printables section there is no end to keep everyone busy; find word scrambles, word searches, I spy, how many words can you find, coloring pages, a matching game and crossword puzzle.
There are also educational videos to watch, new books to check out, jokes to enjoy together and songs to learn.
Follow my Giraffe Pinterest Board for dozens of ideas from all around the web! I am constantly finding new things to add so there will be new things all the time!
When is World Giraffe Day?
World Giraffe Day is on June 21st every year. We celebrate the world’s tallest animal on the longest day of the year! (Or on the longest night, depending on which hemisphere you live.)
Other Unit Studies
Seasons and Holidays
Animals
Facts about Giraffes
Giraffes have been called camel leopards.
The scientific name of the giraffe is Giraffa camelopardalis.
Giraffes are mammals.
They are the tallest animal on land.
A male giraffe can grow up to 18 feet tall and a female 14 feet tall. Just their legs are 6 feet tall.
A male weighs between 2,400 and 3,000 pounds and a female between 1,600 and 2,600 pounds. Giraffes are the 3rd heaviest land animal. Elephants are first and rhinos are second.
The closest relative to the Giraffe is the okapi.
Giraffes live in the savannahs of Africa.
There are nine main subspecies of giraffe in Africa.
Giraffes are social animals. They live in groups of usually 15-20 animals, but sometimes up to 50, led by one adult male. There are also females, some young males and calves.
A group of giraffes is called a tower.
Giraffes have a few predators; lions, hyena packs and sometimes crocodiles. An adult male giraffe can defend itself even from a pack of hyenas. Calves count on their mothers for protection but many don’t live past one year.
A giraffe’s best defense from predators is their height and excellent eyesight to spot danger from afar. Many smaller animals like zebras and antelopes will hang out with giraffes so they can be alerted to danger.
The average giraffe can run up to 35 miles per hour for a short distance and 10 miles per hour for longer distances.
A giraffe’s feet have a circumference of 12 inches. That is the size of a dinner plate! If they do need to defend themselves against a lion, it could kill it with just one kick!
A giraffe’s spots are like a human’s fingerprints in that no two giraffes have the same pattern.
A giraffe’s heart can weigh up to 25 pounds! Out of the other land animals, only an elephant has a heavier heart.
Giraffes are herbivores, which means they eat plants.
A giraffe eats mostly the leaves and buds of the acacia tree. Their long tongue and lips allow it to avoid the thorns.
They do not eat grass.
They will eat up to 100 pounds of vegetation a day!
Giraffes rarely drink water though! The food they eat has water in it and it is too difficult and risky for them to drink too often. They only drink once every few days!
A giraffe walks by moving both legs on one side of their body and then both legs on the other side. That isn’t how most animals walk.
They run like most other animals though, by pushing with their rear and front legs at the same time.
A giraffe’s tongue is about 21 inches long. It is also prehensile, which means it can twist and grab things. That makes it perfect for pulling the leaves and twigs from high in the acacia tree.
Their tongue is a purplish-blue color. It is out grabbing leaves for much of the day in the bright sun and it is thought that the color keeps it from getting sunburn.
Giraffes have 2 horns between their ears called ossicones. They both have hair on them but a male’s has less because of the sparring they do.
Giraffes make a bellowing or flute like sound and other sounds that are beyond the range of human hearing.
Giraffes only need between 10 minutes and 2 hours of sleep each night!
An adult male is called a bull.
An adult female is called a cow.
A mother giraffe usually has only one baby at a time.
A baby giraffe is called a calf.
When two bulls fight, they butt their necks and heads together. It is called necking. Usually no one is badly hurt.
When a calf is born, they weigh 100 pounds and are 6 feet tall.
They can stand within 30 minutes and they are able to run in only a few hours.
Calves live with their mothers until they are 1 ½ to 2 years old. They are mature at 4 years old and fully grown at 6 years old.
Giraffes can live up to 25 years in the wild and up to 40 years in captivity.
**When you think you know the facts, take the interactive quiz at the bottom of the post! 😊
Videos about Giraffes
How Drinking Giraffes Avoid a Head Rush 2:00
Giraffes for Kids: Learn about Giraffes – FreeSchool 2:48
Giraffe Facts for Kids | Classroom Edition Giraffes Learning Video Homeschool Pop 6:08
Giraffe 🦒 Animals for kids 🌳 Episode 7 Smile and Learn 4:11
Leafy Lunchtime with Giraffes | Sam’s Zookeeper Challenge Nat Geo Kids 3:32
All About Giraffes | Mammals | The Good and the Beautiful 7:27
Songs
Taaaaallest Animal on Earth!! The Giraffe SONG! 1:46
the mrbrown show: the giraffe song 2:41
The Giraffe Song | Animal Songs for Kids | Fun Giraffe Facts | Silly School Songs 3:09
Giraffe – Learning Songs Collection For Kids And Children | Happy Kids | Jungle Beats 1:18
Some Jokes
Kids love jokes so I had to include some good ones here for them!
Printables
Giraffe I Spy Printables (2 levels and I spy and color)
12 Free Giraffe Coloring Pages
2 Free Giraffe How Many Words Printables
2 Giraffe Word Scramble Printables (2 levels)
2 Giraffe Word Search Printables (2 levels)
Crafts and Activities
Giraffe Sticky Wall activity by Taming Little Monsters
Giraffe Sensory Bag by Taming Little Monsters
Toilet Paper Roll Giraffe marionettes by Red Ted Art
Giraffe Corner Bookmark Design by Red Ted Art
Cute Giraffe Craft for Kids by In the Bag Kids Crafts
Paper Cone Giraffe Craft by Kids Craft Room
Giraffe Headband Craft For Kids by Simple Everyday Mom
Paper Plate Giraffe Craft by Simple Everyday Mom
Giraffe Handprint Craft For Kids by Simple Everyday Mom
How to Build a Giraffe Art Bot by Steam Powered Family
Recipes
Gerald the Giraffe Bananas from Marina Makes
Giraffe Pancakes from Chef Club
Giraffe Bread by Scandinavian Today
How to Draw Giraffes
Here is some instruction on how to draw Giraffes. They are both a little bit different and the outcome of what the giraffe looks like is a bit different so you can choose which you like.
How to draw a giraffe easy by Art Projects for Kids This one shows a realistic giraffe and step by step how to draw it.
How to draw a giraffe by Skip to my Lou This one is a bit simpler than the one above and also with step by step pictures.
How to Draw a Giraffe by Art for Kids Hub 6:38 video showing step by step
I found the facts for this post from the following sources
It is always good to cite your sources and if you would like to read more details, there is much more information at the links.
How much do you remember? Take your Interactive Quiz here!
Giraffe Quiz
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Cindy
Welcome! I am a wife, mother, mother-in-law, Grammy, daughter, sister and retired homeschooler. I enjoy writing about things I have learned over the years, sharing recipes and tips with others and making free printables for parents and teachers.
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