Savanna Habitat Diorama Printable for Kids
This savanna habitat diorama gives kids a warm, golden backdrop and floor to fill with African animals. They color and cut out a lion, an elephant, a giraffe, a zebra and a hippo, plus an acacia tree, bushes, rocks and strips of tall grass, then stand everything up to make a 3D scene.
It is a natural fit for a safari, Africa or habitats unit, and the animals are big and easy to cut.
What Kids Learn Building a Savanna
The savanna is wide open grassland with only a few trees, and building one helps kids picture that. The tall grass strips run across the scene, the flat-topped acacia tree stands on its own, and the animals spread out across the plain.
It is a good chance to talk about how each animal fits its home: the giraffe’s long neck reaches the leaves of the acacia, the zebra eats the grass, the hippo stays near water, and the lion watches from the shade.
Coloring big animals, cutting around the elephant’s trunk and the giraffe’s legs, and folding tabs all build fine motor skills.
How the Diorama Goes Together
There are only a few steps, and each one is a small job kids can do on their own:
- Color the pieces. Crayons, colored pencils or markers all work.
- Cut out each piece along the dashed line, leaving the white tab at the bottom attached.
- Fold the tab back so the piece can stand up.
- Join the backdrop and the ground at the fold. Tape or glue the extra white edge on each page together, or glue both pages to a piece of cardboard so the scene stays sturdy.
- Stand the animals on the savanna floor and set the grass strips in rows to add depth.
Some pieces glue flat against the backdrop. Others stand up on their tabs, which is what gives the scene its depth.
Setting Kids Up to Succeed
- Color before cutting so kids are not holding small pieces.
- Start with the hippo and the elephant, which have big, smooth outlines. The giraffe’s legs and the acacia branches take more care.
- Keep the paste tab attached and fold it straight back.
- Glue the grass strips first, then add the animals in front of and behind them.
Making It Easier or Harder
For younger kids, choose three or four animals and one grass strip. You can cut out the acacia tree ahead of time.
For older kids, have them research one animal and write a short fact card about what it eats and how it stays safe on the open savanna.
Ways to Use It
- A safari or Africa theme.
- A habitats or biomes unit with each group building a different habitat.
- A zoo animals unit, talking about where each zoo animal comes from in the wild.
- Pretend play. Kids can move the animals around their scene.
What’s in the Set
- A color backdrop with rocky hills and birds, and a savanna floor page
- Animals: a lion, an elephant, a giraffe, a zebra and a hippo
- Scenery: an acacia tree, bushes, rocks and four strips of tall grass
- Black-and-white pieces with paste tabs, ready to color
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