Kenyan Landscapes: Savannah and MountainsActivities & Teaching Strategies
Active learning helps Year 2 students grasp Kenyan landscapes by engaging multiple senses and movement, which builds lasting understanding. When children touch materials, arrange images, and build models, they internalize features like savannah grasses or Mount Kenya’s slopes more effectively than through passive listening.
Learning Objectives
- 1Compare the physical features of the Kenyan savannah with a chosen UK landscape, identifying at least two similarities and two differences.
- 2Classify animals based on their habitat, distinguishing between animals typically found on the Kenyan savannah and those found in the United Kingdom.
- 3Describe the key visual characteristics of Mount Kenya, including its scale and general appearance.
- 4Explain how the environment of the Kenyan savannah might influence the types of animals that live there.
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Image Sort: Landscapes Match
Provide photos of savannah, Mount Kenya, and UK scenes. In small groups, students sort images into categories and label key features like trees or peaks. Groups share one observation with the class.
Prepare & details
What do you notice about what the savannah in Kenya looks like?
Facilitation Tip: During Image Sort: Landscapes Match, place images face down and have pairs take turns flipping two cards to find matches, encouraging discussion about what they see.
Setup: Wall space or tables arranged around room perimeter
Materials: Large paper/poster boards, Markers, Sticky notes for feedback
Animal Habitat Hunt: Kenya vs UK
Display animal cards from both countries. Pairs match animals to savannah, mountain, or UK habitat pictures, then discuss adaptations like long necks for giraffes. Create a class comparison chart.
Prepare & details
Can you name some animals that live on the Kenyan savannah?
Facilitation Tip: For Animal Habitat Hunt: Kenya vs UK, provide small world trays with loose parts so students can physically group animals into habitats as they decide.
Setup: Wall space or tables arranged around room perimeter
Materials: Large paper/poster boards, Markers, Sticky notes for feedback
Diorama Build: Savannah Scene
Students use trays, sand, grass cuttings, and toy animals to build a savannah model. Add Mount Kenya with clay. Pairs explain their model to another pair, noting UK differences.
Prepare & details
How are the animals in Kenya the same as or different from animals in the United Kingdom?
Facilitation Tip: In Diorama Build: Savannah Scene, limit materials to natural textures like twigs for trees and sandpaper for grass to focus attention on landscape features.
Setup: Wall space or tables arranged around room perimeter
Materials: Large paper/poster boards, Markers, Sticky notes for feedback
Map Mark: Key Features
On outline maps of Kenya and UK, individuals mark savannah areas, Mount Kenya, and familiar UK sites. Share maps in whole class to trace animal routes.
Prepare & details
What do you notice about what the savannah in Kenya looks like?
Facilitation Tip: When completing Map Mark: Key Features, use highlighters so students can trace and label rivers, mountains, and savannah zones on laminated maps.
Setup: Wall space or tables arranged around room perimeter
Materials: Large paper/poster boards, Markers, Sticky notes for feedback
Teaching This Topic
Teachers should begin with concrete examples before abstract comparisons, using real photographs of Kenyan landscapes to anchor understanding. Avoid starting with maps or graphs, which can overwhelm young learners. Research suggests young children learn spatial concepts best through hands-on exploration and storytelling, so link activities to simple narratives like 'a day in the savannah' to make the content relatable and memorable.
What to Expect
By the end of these activities, students will confidently identify key features of Kenyan landscapes and compare them with UK landscapes using clear language. They will use photographs, maps, and models to explain differences in vegetation, wildlife, and terrain with examples from both regions.
These activities are a starting point. A full mission is the experience.
- Complete facilitation script with teacher dialogue
- Printable student materials, ready for class
- Differentiation strategies for every learner
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
Common MisconceptionDuring Image Sort: Landscapes Match, watch for students who group images based on color or sand-like textures instead of landscape features.
What to Teach Instead
Use a sorting mat with two columns labeled 'Savannah' and 'Other Landscapes.' Have students place images only if they can point to grass, trees, or animals as evidence, correcting misplaced cards as a group.
Common MisconceptionDuring Animal Habitat Hunt: Kenya vs UK, watch for students who place savannah animals in fenced areas like UK farm fields.
What to Teach Instead
Provide two separate trays labeled 'Kenyan Savannah' and 'UK Farm.' Have students physically move animal figurines to the correct tray, prompting them to explain why each animal belongs in its place.
Common MisconceptionDuring Diorama Build: Savannah Scene, watch for students who create a desert with sand and no plants or animals.
What to Teach Instead
Ask students to include at least three green elements (grass or trees) and two animals in their diorama. Provide picture prompts of savannah scenes to guide placement and discussion.
Assessment Ideas
After Image Sort: Landscapes Match, show two new images and ask each student to point to the Kenyan savannah. Ask them to name one animal they might see there, then ask for one difference between the landscapes.
During Animal Habitat Hunt: Kenya vs UK, collect students’ marked worksheets. Check that circles (Kenyan animals) and squares (UK animals) are correctly placed and that sentences reflect habitat needs, such as 'Zebras need wide spaces to run.'
After Diorama Build: Savannah Scene, ask students to share their models in small groups and explain one feature they included. Record key phrases on the board to assess understanding of vegetation, wildlife, and terrain.
Extensions & Scaffolding
- Challenge students who finish early to add a weather element to their diorama, explaining how rain supports savannah plants and animals.
- Scaffolding for struggling students: provide picture cards with key vocabulary (acacia, glacier, zebra) to place on their models or maps as labels.
- Deeper exploration: invite students to research one Kenyan animal, create a fact file, and present it to the class using a map to show its habitat.
Key Vocabulary
| Savannah | A large, flat area of land with grass and very few trees, often found in hot countries. It is home to many large animals. |
| Grassland | An area where the primary vegetation is grass. The Kenyan savannah is a type of tropical grassland. |
| Habitat | The natural home or environment of an animal, plant, or other organism. Different habitats support different kinds of life. |
| Physical Features | The natural characteristics of the Earth's surface, such as mountains, plains, rivers, and forests. |
Suggested Methodologies
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