Make an alphabet zoo display #gluenglitter

We've had some great outings to the zoo lately and so Big Brother asks almost daily if we can go! Since there's no way we can do that, I decided we could make a zoo display board featuring some of our favorite animals to have here at home. Then, we took it one step further and made it an "alphabet zoo". 

If the zoo isn't your thing, this project could adapted for any favorite place--museums, art galleries, theme parks, botanical gardens, etc.

Here's what you need (you can see photos from our shopping trip here):

 - Elmer's tri-fold display board (the cardboard or foam varieties are both fine)

 - Cutting blade

 - Paint & paintbrushes

 - Elmer's glue spots or other photo-safe adhesive

 - Zoo materials (photos, maps, stickers, etc.)

 - Letters (I cut mine out with my Cricut)

The Elmer's tri-fold display boards are quite large (36" x 48"), giving you a lot of space to work with (perfect for adding lots of photos).

But, since the board was for Big Brother, we decided it would be easier for him to handle if it was a bit smaller. So, "B" cut the board in half! 

This worked out great as he not only has a board he can handle better, but we have another board to use for another project! :) 

As soon as we had our cut board, Big Brother and I went right to work on painting it!

The tiger was the big favorite from our zoo trip last week, so we did a tiger painting.

*a note about painting the board--it caused ours to curl a bit. The board still stands on it's own, but won't fold flat. Not sure if that happened because of the type of board (foam as opposed to cardboard) or the type of paint, but the board does have a bit of a bend to it. 

Once the board was dry, Big Brother and I decided where the animal pictures should go and started sticking them on with our Elmer's glue spots.

Then, next to each picture, I attached the letter the animal's name starts with and wrote the animal name underneath.

Big Brother has loved looking at all the pictures and going over the letters! When it's not being used, it can be a cool poster in his room (which is animal themed). But, he's really enjoying that he can use it when he plays with his animals.

 

This morning, it served as the  backdrop for playing zoo! And, once again, I've been asked about 10 times today if we can go to the zoo again! :) 

Do YOU have any favorite zoo projects?

Linked to: *Show & Tell, *Show Me What Ya Got, *High Paw-Show Us Your Best

Disclosure: This project has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Elmer's #gluenglitter #collectivebias. All opinions & experiences are my own. For more information, read my disclosure policy.