• Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Activity, Change, Progress

  • HOME
  • How to
    • Preschool
    • Kindergarten
    • Middle School
    • High School
  • Planner
  • Lapbooks
    • Trioramas
    • History Games
  • Shop
  • GET STARTED NOW!
    • Learning Styles
  • 7 Step Planner
    • DIY Best Student Planner
    • Free & Easy DIY Home Management Binder
  • Unit Studies
    • Creation to Ancients
    • Middle Ages to Reform
    • Exploring to Revolution
    • World Wars to Today
    • Science
    • Free Art Curriculum Grades 1 – 8
  • Curriculum
    • More Unit Studies
    • Geography
    • Writing PreK to 12th
    • Geronimo Stilton
  • BootCamp
    • Resources
      • Dynamic Subscriber Freebies
      • Exclusive Subscribers Library
      • Ultimate Unit Study Planner

8 Facts about African Elephants and a Cute Paper Plate Elephant

July 14, 2023 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Share This!

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Today, I have 8 facts about African elephants and a cute paper plate elephant. Also, look at my pages Free Africa Unit Study for Kids Who Love Hands-on Learning | Free Continent & Country Reports and 6 World Wildlife Day Activities to Learn About African Lions for more ideas.

Do you need a great activity to go along with a study of Africa and its animals?

This simple paper plate elephant can be used for display and learning.

8 Facts about African Elephants and a Cute Paper Plate Elephant

I enjoy a craft that is inexpensive and can be used as an effective learning tool.

With this one, we can learn about the different parts of the African elephant.

For example, you can learn about why their ears are so large, why they have tusks, and compare them to Asian elephants.

Table of Contents

Toggle
  • Comparing African To Asian Elephants
  • 8 Facts About African Elephants
  • Resources to Go Along With the Paper Plate Elephant
  • African Elephant – Paper Plate Elephant

Comparing African To Asian Elephants

African elephants are giant creatures that roam the savannas of sub-Saharan Africa and the rainforests of Central and West Africa in herds.

Their hide is much more wrinkled than that of their Asian counterpart.

And they have two “fingers” on their trunk while Asians only have one.

Another distinction between the two is the length of the tusks.

While African elephants have long tusks on both males and females, Asian elephants have short tusks that are generally only visible on the males.

8 Facts about African Elephants and a Cute Paper Plate Elephant

Next, look at these facts about African elephants.

8 Facts About African Elephants

  1. The African Savanna elephant is the world’s largest land animal. The word “elephant” is actually Latin for “huge Arch”.
  2. August 12th is World Elephant Day; a day created to educate and bring attention to the plight of African and Asian Elephants.
  3. A baby elephant can stand within just 20 minutes of being born, a baby African Elephant weighs almost 200 pounds at birth.
  4. Elephant tusks are enlarged incisor teeth and show when elephants are around 2 years old. These tusks will continue to grow throughout their lives.
  5. 90% of the African elephant populations have been wiped out in the last century.
  6. African elephants live in sub-Saharan Africa, the rain forests of Central and West Africa, and the Sahel desert in Mali.
  7. African elephants are made up of two living elephant species, the African bush elephant, and the smaller African forest elephant.
  8. African elephants live in a sunnier, hotter climate than Asian elephants do which is why their larger ears are better suited to them. Take a closer look at them, they also resemble the shape of the continent of Africa.
8 Facts about African Elephants and a Cute Paper Plate Elephant

Look at more paper plate elephant activities.

Resources to Go Along With the Paper Plate Elephant

  •  Easy How to Draw an African Elephant for Kids Tutorial Video 
  • This elephant word search is a great simple activity for kids.
  • Grab a map, atlas, or globe, and have your child find locations where African Elephants live. We used a small plastic elephant to mark them as we went along. You can find the largest groups in Botswana, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Kenya, Namibia, Zambia, and South Africa.

8 Facts about African Elephants and a Cute Paper Plate Elephant
  • Fold an origami elephant, glue on long paper tusks and you have an African Elephant.
  • Need a good read-aloud? The Magician’s Elephant is a great option for the whole family to keep with the elephant theme.
  • Watch African Elephants from Amazing Animals on YouTube to learn more about them.
  • Add this African elephant family to your collection. Use for dramatic small-world play, in dioramas, sensory bins, and as inspiration for drawings and paintings.
  • Elephants of Africa by Gail Gibbons, a shorter living science book, makes a great resource book as well.
  • Peek in on the live elephant cam at Tembe Elephant Park in South Africa.

African Elephant – Paper Plate Elephant

You will need:

  • 2 paper plates
  • Grey craft paint
  • Black marker/pen
  • Scissors
8 Facts about African Elephants and a Cute Paper Plate Elephant

Cut out 2 tusks and 2 ears from the smooth center of one plate and a trunk from the ridged edge.

When the body is done, trim to size.

8 Facts about African Elephants and a Cute Paper Plate Elephant

Paint the other plate, the trunk, and the ears entirely gray and allow them to dry.

8 Facts about African Elephants and a Cute Paper Plate Elephant

Flip and paint the other sides, as you will be able to see some of both sides in the final result.

Once your plate is dry, fold it in half, creasing it gently in the center.

8 Facts about African Elephants and a Cute Paper Plate Elephant

Cut out the general shape of the legs, head (minus the trunk), and tail from both sides at the same time.

8 Facts about African Elephants and a Cute Paper Plate Elephant

Add details to your elephant’s body, ears, and trunk like wrinkles and eyes with a fine-tipped black pen or marker.

Glue the tusk and trunk in between the fold of the paper plate.

Attach the ears to either side of the head.

You can now open your elephant and put it on display. It will stand nicely and look great as part of your collection.

8 Facts about African Elephants and a Cute Paper Plate Elephant

Leave a CommentFiled Under: Hands-On Activities Tagged With: Africa, crafts, elephants, hands-on, hands-on activities, handson, handsonhomeschooling, life science, science

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CommentLuv badgeShow more posts

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Footer

Privacy Policy | About Me | Reviews | Contact | Advertise

Categories

Archives

Tina Robertson is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Copyright © 2025 · 5 TNT LLC · Log in · Privacy Policy