Create your own party animals
Donna’s Day
Whether there’s a birthday in the house or simply a desire to gather family and friends for a meal around the table, these animal-riddle place cards will delight and challenge your young guests.
You’ll Need
•Sturdy cardboard from a cereal box or carton,
•Scissors
•Paint and markers
•Clothespins or office-supply clips.
•Craft items to embellish the creations, such as fabric, feathers and googly eyes
•Household glue
Directions
•Cut animal shapes from the cardboard, approximately 3 inches by 6 inches. (Refer to simple drawings from coloring books to help you out.) Paint and decorate.
•Attach clothespins or clips to the bottom of each animal character to create feet for them to stand upright on the table.
•Cut a corresponding symbol from cardboard, paint and decorate. For example, make a banana for a monkey, a bone for a dog, an iceberg for a penguin. For an extra play-on-words, you might want to turn the tables and draw a computer for a mouse.
On the back of each corresponding symbol, write a riddle that gives a clue to the animal or thing to which it belongs. Here are some fun riddles to get you started:
On the back of a banana: “I usually live in the jungle and swing from tree to tree, Curious George is a book that is written about me!”
On the back of an iceberg: “I live where it’s cold. The water is freezing. I swim and eat fish, and I am not teasing.”
On the back of a little gray mouse with tail: “I live on a desk and you must use my keys to learn information, but this mouse can’t eat cheese.”
Before the party or meal, set one animal at each place setting on the table. Put all of the symbols into a basket by the front door. As guests arrive, invite them to choose a symbol. When they come to the table, they should read the riddle for a clue to finding their place at the table.