Children ask a lot of questions about giraffes. The neck always comes first. Here are the answers we give, in plain words, so you can share them at bedtime or on the way to the park.
The tallest animal on land
The giraffe is the tallest mammal in the world. Its legs are long, and so is its neck. It can reach high into the branches of a tree.
Show your child a picture of a giraffe. Ask them to point to the longest part. Most children point to the neck. Then ask about the legs, and let them look again.
Seven bones in a long neck
A giraffe has seven bones in its neck. You have seven in yours. Touch the back of your own neck and you can feel them.
The number is the same, but the size is not. Each bone in a giraffe's neck is very long. That is why the neck stretches so high.
This is an easy fact for a child to keep. Say it together: seven bones, just like me.
What a giraffe eats
Giraffes eat leaves. They like acacia trees best. With a long neck, a giraffe reaches leaves that shorter animals cannot.
A giraffe spends many hours of each day eating. It is careful about what it picks. Next time you walk past a tree, ask your child which leaves a giraffe could reach.
Giraffes in Kenya
The Maasai giraffe lives mainly in Kenya and Tanzania. In 2019 the International Union for Conservation of Nature, or IUCN, listed it as Endangered. That word means the animal could disappear if nothing changes.
The main causes are illegal hunting and the loss of land. Experts also say giraffes get less attention than elephants, rhinos and lions. Telling a child about giraffes is a small way to change that.
You can keep it simple. Say that there are fewer giraffes than there used to be, and that people are working to protect them. Children do not need every number.
Our crocheted giraffes
Our giraffes are crocheted by hand in Nairobi from recycled acrylic yarn. They have brown spots, two small horns and a round nose. The colours are yellow, cream, caramel tan and orange.
Plain giraffes have zero plastic and nothing detachable. They are easy to clean. Please follow our care guide, and stay near when a young child plays.
A reaching game for home
You need paper, tape and a giraffe. Keep both feet on the floor for the whole game.
- Cut out five paper leaves.
- Tape one leaf low on a wall, at your child's eye level.
- Tape a second leaf higher, at the top of your child's reach.
- Tape a third leaf higher still, out of reach.
- Hold the giraffe up to the highest leaf and say, this one is for the giraffe.
Let your child choose which leaf comes next. Then swap, so the giraffe goes first.
Choosing a size
A small giraffe fits on a shelf or in a bag. A large giraffe can sit beside a child on the sofa. If you cannot decide, the Size Finder asks a few questions and suggests a size.
Then open the giraffe page and look at each colour in the photos. The pictures show what we have made.
