My twins love animals so the San Diego is one of our favorite places to visit. My kids love watching the sleepy pandas, climbing like the koalas, and quizzing zookeepers wherever they find them perched.

It is a frequent after school adventure for us and I love finding ways to mix it up and re-engage them in things so this time I had a surprise scavenger hunt.

affiliate links may be included below.

Field Trip to San Diego Zoo

The San Diego Zoo is located inside Balboa Park and is a massive 100 acres in size. There are over 600 species of animals and among those are some more rare animals, such as the two Giant Pandas my kids adore.

The zoo is known for it’s beauty and it is a lovely place to walk around but be prepared – it is quite hilly and you will get a good work out. This is especially true if you intend to see the whole zoo which can take at least four hours.

For afternoons we usually pick a couple parts and focus on those – the benefits of an annual membership 🙂

Visit: San Diego Zoo Website

Although my kids are in public school, their second grade teachers sent home a letter at the beginning of the year explaining that they would not be assigning homework (cue happy dance) which frees up our afternoons for more project based learning that follows their interests and field trips – like this one to the zoo.

I think these experiences are so vital to supporting and extending their learning.

Related curriculum or projects

This field trip was planned, primarily, because of their current interest in animals. It also worked on the following second grade standards:

• Ask and answer questions about what a speaker says help, get information, or clarify something says in order to gather additional information or in order to clarify comprehension, gather additional that is not understood, or deepen understanding of a topic or issue. My kids are NOT shy about asking “experts” to clarify signs, presentations, or any questions my kids might have. They love finding zookeepers and volunteers because they know their knowledge base is deep. 
• Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems: Plants depend on animals for pollination or to move their seeds around. There is a lot of discussion about endangered animals at the San Diego Zoo and we talked a lot about the reasons different animals are endangered – some relating to habitats and food. 

Before the Field Trip

Before a field trip, I always find it helpful to prep my kids.

Some ways we have prepared for various trips include:

• Reading books about animals they are most excited about
• Looking at the zoo map online and plotting our route
• Thinking of questions we want to try to find answers for at the zoo

If you’re going with a full class or as part of a homeschooling project, the San Diego Zoo website has an extraordinary amount of curriculum materials and resources for all ages on their website.

For this most recent trip to the San Diego Zoo I made a scavenger hunt for my kids of the portions of the zoo we hadn’t explored much yet.

Note: The San Diego Zoo does have a scavenger hunt program that we’ve done in the past. If you haven’t done this already I highly suggest asking at the Guest Services desk for this hunt that will have you circling around Australia, Africa and into the Asian part of the zoo and if you turn it in at the gift shop you get a little prize.

Our Scavenger Hunt took us to the Lost Forest, Wegeforth Bowl, and Discovery Outpost at the San Diego Zoo. I created it knowing we’d use it at the San Diego Zoo but it’s not an “official” San Diego Zoo scavenger hunt and not necessarily San Diego Zoo specific. I think it would work at a lot of larger zoos around the country.

Download our FREE Scavenger Hunt

What to Pack for a Trip to the San Diego Zoo

• Scavenger Hunt (download)
• Clipboard(s)
• Pen or Pencil
• Snacks
• Water Bottle(s)

Also Read: Adventure Supplies I Can’t Live Without

During the Field Trip

We started our afternoon at the San Diego Zoo with a sky glider ride. My kids always love the Skyfari and if the lines aren’t long at the front of the zoo we usually do this first.

The sky glider drops you off by the Polar Bears and if you head west down the hill towards the Hippo Trail you can begin this hunt.

We also stopped to visit the Pandas before hopping on the Hippo Trail.

Also Read: 52+ Kid Friendly Things to do in San Diego

I love scavenger hunts at places like the zoo because they encourage my kids to slow down a little and look more closely at the animals. Otherwise I often feel like we’re just running from animal to animal and while my FitBit and lungs thank me for that, it doesn’t do much for actually learning about animals.

Even though we’ve been to the zoo a ton of times already, the Scavenger Hunt helped us poke into areas we hadn’t seen much or look more closely at animals we had breezed past before. Just the act of doing the scavenger hunt seems to slow my kids down for the entire zoo – even animals that aren’t on the hunt were more closely observed.

On this trip my kids particularly enjoyed exploring the Reptile House. They looked in every single window hunting for the creatures living inside long after they answered the question on their Scavenger Hunt.

We ended the afternoon by the turtles. At the end of the day I think we spent about 2 1/2 hours at the zoo and saw a little less than half of it, but we looked really carefully at the animals we did see and learned a lot.

Good things to know about the San Diego Zoo

If you haven’t been to the San Diego Zoo before, it is helpful to know a few things:

• It’s huge and hilly so be prepared to walk a lot.
• The zoo operates on several different levels which can be a little confusing on the map. Look at it carefully at the map and don’t be afraid to ask for directions.
• Food stands with soda machines will refill your water with nice cool water if you ask nicely. We always bring a water bottles and stop to get more water frequently.
• San Diego Zoo is FREE for kids in October!

after the field trip

After the field trip don’t let the learning stop! Explore more about your favorite zoo animals or the new animal you discovered that fascinated you. This collection of Zoo Animal Activities for All Ages is a great starting place.

GET THESE PRINTABLE PHOTO CARDS

We love the San Diego Zoo and can’t wait to spend another afternoon exploring, learning, and having fun.

Don’t Forget: Download FREE Scavenger Hunt

You May Also Like:
Zookeeper Training Unit Pack