Zoo Entrance Colouring Page

This page shows the entrance gate to a zoo, seen straight on. A thick stone arch curves over two tall pillars, and set into the top of the arch is an oval sign with a paw print on it, one big pad and four smaller toe pads. Underneath, two wooden gates stand open, each made of upright planks with a crossbar, their tops curved to match the arch above them. At the foot of each pillar sits a rounded, bumpy bush.

Most of this drawing is made up of big, calm spaces: the two pillars, the arch itself, and the bushes are all large enough for a young child to fill in without the crayon straying off the line. The gates are the trickier part, since the planks are narrow and sit close together, so a child who wants to slow down and pick a different colour for each strip can do that here, while still having the plainer shapes to fall back on if their patience runs out first. The paw print is a nice small detail to point to and count the toes on before naming which zoo animal might have left it.

As a colouring sheet it sits on the easier side, thanks to the wide open pillars and bushes, with the gate planks adding just enough detail to keep an older preschooler interested. It works well as a first page in a zoo-themed session, or as a simple way to start talking about what a trip to the zoo might involve before the animal pages come out.