African Savanna Animals Song - Fantastic Fun & Learning

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Head to the scorching heat of the African Savanna from the comfort of your classroom and learn about all the animals that call this safari zone home! As part of our preschool songs series, this fun rhyming song will help your kids learn about this amazing place’s animals using this fun Savanna Animals Song. Try the free version, or get the full African Savanna Animals song pack for more fun and learning!

African Animals Movement Song and Emergent Reader for PreK and Kindergarten

Savanna Animals Song

This circle time song is the perfect way to get your kids moving while learning about the animals of the savanna!

Your students will learn all about the different animals of the savanna, how they move about the safari zone, and the sounds they make in this simple song.

This free printable Savanna Animals preschool circle time song is part of our preschool circle time song series. Throughout the series, I’m introducing 24 engaging songs that are perfect for toddlers and preschoolers. Each song is adapted from a popular tune so kids can easily join in and sing along!

For each song, you can grab the free printable version that includes the song text and song pieces in color, or you can purchase the full song pack, which includes additional supporting activities to extend the fun and learning, as well as the black and white version of the song text and song pieces.

EXTENSION ACTIVITIES

Additional Tips and Ideas for Use:

Print the song pages (you can make them even bigger if you have large-size printer capabilities), display the song pages on a presentation device, or copy the song onto chart paper.
You can use the song and picture prompts as they are listed on the song charts, or you can have kids brainstorm their own savanna life and actions to include in the song and make up their own verses.
As you sing, either hold up a cue card yourself to help kids remember what is next or have song helpers hold up the cards for classmates to see.
You can also combine the song pages into a songbook for kids to read and sing during center time.

GENERAL FACTS ABOUT THE AFRICAN SAVANNA

Savannas are generally found between the desert biome and the rainforest biome. They are most commonly located near the equator.
The largest savanna is located in Africa. Nearly half of the continent of Africa is covered with savanna grasslands.
Many animals of the savanna are endangered due to overhunting and loss of habitat.
The African savanna has both the largest and tallest land animals in the world, the elephant and the giraffe!

Free Printable Animals on the Savanna African Animals Song for Kids

FACTS ABOUT SAVANNA ANIMALS

The African Bush Elephant is the world’s largest land animal, with adult males standing up to 3m high and weighing over 13,000 pounds. Elephants are very strong, and have around 150,000 muscles in their trunk alone! There are only three species of elephant living today. They are the African Bush elephant, African Forest elephant, and Asian elephant. The ears of African elephants are much larger than their cousins, and are often described as being shaped like the African continent!

Cheetahs are the fastest land animals on Earth, capable of reaching speeds of up to 75 mph! Cheetahs have approximately 2000 spots, and it is possible to identify cheetahs by their unique spots and patterns. The cheetah actually gets its name from the Hindi word “chita,” which means “spotted one.”

Gazelles are well-adapted to life in dry environments, but even they may struggle when food and water dwindle in severe droughts. Some species can adjust their physiology to cope. Sand gazelles, for example, have evolved the ability to shrink oxygen-demanding organs like the heart and liver during lean times. When fleeing from a predator, gazelles often perform a distinctive stiff-legged vertical leap known as “pronking” or “stotting.”

Hippos are the third largest mammals on Earth. Native to Africa, hippos are the third largest land mammals. Elephants and White Rhinos are the two largest land mammals. Hippos can hold their breath for an average of 5 minutes. That’s long enough to take walks along lakebed and riverbed floors. No wonder their nickname is the “river horse!” Hippos are herbivores, meaning they fuel their bodies with plants! Hippos eat, on average, 80 pounds of grass each night.

There are only 5 species of rhino left in the world. Two African rhino species, the black and white rhinos, and three Asian rhinos, the Greater One-horned, Sumatran, and Javan rhinos.  Male rhinos are called “bulls,” females are called “cows,” and their young are “calves.” Rhino horn is made up of keratin, which is the same protein that forms the basis of our hair and nails.

Every zebra has a unique stripe pattern! While zebras might look the same to us from a distance, there are actually small variations in each zebra’s stripes. Just like their horse relatives, zebras are able to sleep standing up by locking the joints in their knees. The plains zebras found in the savanna can weigh up to 850 pounds. Their territory stretches from southern Ethiopia and South Sudan to northern South Africa.

Young lions have spots on their sandy coats, but these naturally disappear as they mature. Most male lions grow impressive manes the older they get. These manes grow up to 16cm long and are a sign of dominance. However, not all male lions have manes. “Maneless” male lions are common in parts of Africa, such as Tsavo National Park in Kenya. This is likely an adaptation to the local climate, as manes can reduce heat loss.