Over 300 Species of Squirrels = LOTS of Activities!
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SQUIRRELS!!! They are everywhere! But did you know there are over 300 different species of squirrels?? That means there are an endless amount of activities to do with your kids JUST centered around squirrels!! Check out this book at the library or purchase it to jumpstart your squirrely knowledge! Squirrels: The Animal Answer Guide. The internet is also a great source of squirrely information! Did you know that January 21st is Squirrel Appreciation Day?!
Can you even name 3 different species of squirrels? I know there are different types of squirrels, but I didn’t actually know the species name of many of them! And did you know that a baby squirrel weighs about one ounce, and is about one inch long!! How TINY! About four squirrels are born per litter.
Why not make a squirrel feeder with a pinecone and some peanut butter?! Don’t have a pinecone to use? Just put some bread or bird seed outside on a plate – a squirrel is bound to come sniffing around for an extra treat!! You can have your kids do this printable maze to help the squirrel get back home to his tree! The go outside and see if you can find a squirrel – can you figure out where it’s home is? Maybe an activity to make a big construction paper tree would be fun with some small squirrels cut out. Your kids can then decorate the tree with leaves, squirrels, and nuts!
I used to live up north and occasionally see these black squirrels – which for a Florida girl was quite an interesting observation!! I was in my twenties before I even knew that black squirrels existed!! Crazy huh? Encourage your kids to make their squirrels any color(s) that they want them to be!! Go outside and collect a bunch of large leaves for a leaf collage, then have a crafty squirrel poking out of the collage!
What about the flying squirrel? This brings about some great ideas for wind speed. Have your kids make their own airplanes and hypothesize whether a squirrel would be faster than their airplanes! Watch some YouTube videos with flying squirrels in it, then learn why they “fly”!
Ranger Rick has a Squirrel Sighting Log Book page that you can print out and paste in your nature journal! Collect some acorns and have an acorn tossing game – they are ridiculously difficult to see to catch!! Why not write a poem about a squirrel, or make some squirrel puppets and put on a show! There is an endless amount of squirrely activities you can do with your children!! Our family LOVES The Sneaky Snacky Squirrel Game by Educational Insights!
Here are just a few species of squirrels to enjoy and study:
Texas Antelope Squirrel
 Golden-backed Squirrel
 Temminck’s Giant Squirrel
Alfaro’s Pygmy Squirrel
Long-nosed Squirrel
Arctic Ground Squirrel
Hairy-footed Flying Squirrel
I have a picture of an albino squirrel we got during a photo shoot!