# Edible Zoo > Kids plan and build a zoo on a tray from pantry foods: a blue Jello pond with goldfish crackers, chocolate rice crispies ground, broccoli trees and animal crackers stuck down with cream cheese. Then they play with it and taste their own creation. - URL: https://www.funlittles.com/edible-zoo-for-world-animal-day-2012/ - Ages: 3–7 yrs · Difficulty: easy · Mess: medium - Time: prep 10 min, activity 30 min - Works for: one-on-one, small group, whole class · one batch serves about 2 kids - Skills: planning, creative-thinking, fine-motor, animals, sensory-exploration, trying-new-foods - Cautions: wheat-gluten, dairy, food-dye, ingestion-risk ## Materials (one batch) - Blue Jello (gelatin dessert), made and set - Chocolate rice crispies cereal - Broccoli tops - Animal crackers - Goldfish crackers - Softened cream cheese - 1 piece Jello pan or baking tray (household) - Small bowls or plates for each ingredient (household) - 1 piece Butter knife (household) - 1 sheet Paper and pencil (household) - Small toy people (e.g. Lego figures) (optional) ## Safety - This is real food that kids are meant to taste. Everyone washes hands before building, and the tray and tools should be clean. - Check every child's allergies and dietary needs first. Crackers and cereal usually contain wheat or gluten, cream cheese and goldfish crackers contain dairy, and Jello contains food dye and gelatin. - Toy figures and Lego people are not food and are small parts. Keep them away from children who mouth toys, and count them back out before anyone eats. - Broccoli pieces and crackers can be a choking hazard for young children. Cut them small and supervise tasting. - Adult handles the boiling water when making the Jello ahead, and handles any knife used to cut slits in the Jello. - Cream cheese is perishable. Don't leave the zoo out at room temperature for long before eating it, and throw away leftovers that sat out. ## Before you start - Make the blue Jello following the package directions and let it set fully (adult handles the hot water). - Wash the broccoli and separate it into small tops with flat stems. - Soften the cream cheese. ## Steps 1. Plan your zoo together: what do you need? Write the ideas down on paper. 2. Ask questions: What can be the animals? What can make trees? What color are trees? What fish live in the water? 3. Shop the pantry and set out each ingredient in its own bowl. 4. Move the Jello onto the tray to make the pond. 5. Sprinkle chocolate rice crispies all around the pond to cover the ground. 6. Dunk the flat stem of each broccoli top in cream cheese and stand it on the tray as a tree. 7. Dunk the animal crackers in cream cheese and stick them on the tray. 8. Make small slits in the Jello and tuck the goldfish crackers into them. 9. Add toy people and play out a zoo visit, like a show or the petting zoo. 10. Wash hands, take the toys out, and taste what you built. ## Tips - Keep it simple enough for little hands to do all the big work. Kids do a large part of the project while mom helps. - Asking questions is a big part of creative learning. Questioning the kids heightens their thinking and encourages them to look for answers. - Help your child write their ideas down on a piece of paper so you can save your thoughts. - Make sure the broccoli tops have a flat stem so the trees stand up in the cream cheese. - We shopped in our pantry and had everything we needed. That's the best part of this whole project. - Expect to hear 'Mommy, do it with me!' Give them the tools and see how they translate them. - The nice square Jello turns into a big blob on the pan. Irresistible temptation for sensory play! - A picky eater may eat because it is their own creation. - Inspired by Robin at Rustic Flavor's edible diorama. - Readers planned it for a 'Z is for Zoo' theme week and as a food creation challenge for a 6-year-old at school. (from readers) ## The original post by TurkeyMom (2012) Anytime we talk about animals I can see us making a trip to the zoo. A zoo visit is always an exciting one. Big S loves to learn about animals and their habitat. She loves the primate house , the bears, penguins and the puffins. Our little tip: start the day as early as you can- Everybody is fresh and the air is crisp and even the animals are in their best mood ! So, for the World Animal Day series its only fitting we pay an homage to our favourite summer spot - Zoo. Big S and I decided to build a zoo, but here comes a challenge - Can we make a zoo with things from the kitchen?. Inspired by [Robin at Rustic Flavor](http://rusticflavor.blogspot.com/2012/06/edible-diorama.html), we made our edible zoo. Now I am not talking about baking cakes and molding chocolates, though that's an awesome project itself. **We were going to keep this simple enough for the little hands to do all the big work. That's our motto here. Kids do a large part of the project while mom helps**. She caught on, I gave her just enough ideas to get her imagination going and after a brief discussion, she started to plan the project. We have built zoos for our tiny animal toys and with Lego and play doh, but this was indeed a challenge because it involved a lot of thinking. **Conceptualizing a vision and translating it into an edible sculpture is a mighty challenge for kids ( and for mom)** Me: Well, lets plan on what all we are going to make. **I helped her pen her ideas on a piece of paper, so we can save our thoughts.** Big S: We need animals, trees , dip'n'dots , train and stroller. Oh water too ! Now that's a tall order to fill. It was a ROFL moment for me to see dip'n'dots had become a big part of our zoo trips. We don't have very many stores that carry dip'n'dots and so, we treat ourselves to these yummy cold tiny ice cream balls every visit. **Lets figure it all out - Asking questions is a big part of creative learning.** Questioning the kids, heightens their thinking and encourages them to search/look for answers. It gets their creativity to vast places and runs their imagination wild. **What can we use to replicate animals ?- now remember they should be edible too. What can we use to make trees? What color are the trees ? What fish do you remember seeing at the aquarium?** - Jello Pan - BASE - Animals - - ANIMAL CRACKERS - Trees - - BROCCOLI TOPS - Pond- BLUE JELLO --( More like a water body in an animal park) - Fish - GOLD FISH CRACKERS - Ground - CHOCOLATE RICE CRISPIES - Glue - SOFTENED CREAM CHEESE We shopped in our pantry, and we had everything we needed. That's the best part of this whole project- when you have everything you need for a "project" Once you gather the essentials , you are all set. Mom stands by helping Big S go through the proces of setting up the zoo.It is great to give her the tools and see how she translates it. Of course - you are going to hear - Mommy do it with me ! We first transferred the jello to our tray and used the rice crispies to cover the ground around it. Next we placed out trees. Make sure the brocolli tops have a flat stem, dunk them in cream cheese and place them on the tray. Finally the animals, she used her favourites - camels, hippos, Rhinos, Elephant and Zebra . Same technique, dunk them in cheese and stick them on the tray. To get the fish into the jello, make a small slit and insert the goldfish in to it. Its pretty easy and we had so much fun making the scene. We even invited ourselves to the scene. Our lego people - Daddy , Mommy, Big S and Lil' S. We watched a show at the arena and went to the petting zoo to feed the camel. Oh did you notice how the nice square jello became this big blob of jello on our pan? **Irresistible temptation for sensory play.** So when we say - what you see is what the kids did,it is what the kids really did ! Whats better? the whole thing is edible , which in itself was a motivation to try some of the food on the tray. I was a very happy mom ! Where do I begin? The process of concept--> Planning---> Gathering essentials---> Implementation. Creative Thinking My favorite- getting a picky eater to eat because it is his/her own creation.