A good friend of mine recently told me about a child’s birthday party that she attended at Habitot Children’s Discovery Museum where all of the kids dressed up, made crafts and learned about nature, ecology and farming—all in a fun way!

She was so impressed by Habitot that we started talking about all of the fun places a parent can host his or her child’s birthday party in a unique and educational way. Here are a few ideas for the perfect location for your little one’s next celebration:

The Planetarium

Solar System Birthday Party Invitation

The Zoo

Jungle Fun Birthday Party Invitation

The Kid’s Art Museum

Fun Frame Birthday Party Invitaiton

This adorable baby hippo isn’t your average cuddly little zoo creature. As a rare pygmy hippopotamus, Monfia (which means “I Am Lucky” in Nigerian) represents another important step toward the conservation of her endangered species!

If you’d like to donate to help preserve the habitats of endangered species like the pygmy hippo, visit the World Wildlife Fund.

You can also capture a bit of Monifa’s magic with some of these adorable hippo designs from Tiny Prints:

Many Tiny Talk readers might know that my significant other is an elephant trainer. As a part of his job, he gets to chat with park guests about the seven elephants under his care on a daily basis, but the topic of conversation often turns to his career. Everyone wants to know how he feels about his job, how he got into the industry and what they can do to follow in his footsteps.

The first answer is easy–he LOVES his job! Who wouldn’t? His coworkers are elephants, giraffes and lions! Everyday is an adventure.

The rest of the answers simply boil down to passion, persistence and a lot of hard work. If you would like to encourage your child to pursue a budding interest in animals, here are some tips he gives to aspiring zookeepers, animal trainers, scientists and researchers alike:

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

1. Love to learn. Many successful animal trainers started out spending hours on National Geographic Kids, checking out animal books from the library and paying extra attention in science class. Learning everything you can about the animals you want to work with is the first step towards understanding their habits and behaviors.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

2. Volunteer. The best way to get experience in an animal-related field is to volunteer! Ask if your local zoo has any programs, like these volunteer opportunities from the St. Louis Zoo. You can also donate your time to a local animal shelter or nature center. Check out PBS Kids for some great volunteering ideas for animal lovers.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

3. Research your favorite careers. As you learn more about animals and the various ways you can help them, look through sites like American Humane to find some cool jobs available for people with a passion for our furry friends.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

4. Stay active. Working with animals requires a lot of physical activity. Imagine trying to keep up with a 6,000 pound elephant! So get out an play your favorite sports, skateboard around the neighborhood, swim with your friends at a nearby pool–whatever fun physical activities you like to do!

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

5. Never give up. Don’t let anyone else discourage you from your dream. You don’t have to be a biology major to be in the animal care industry–this elephant trainer studied English and Writing! But you DO have to be smart, dedicated, hard working and passionate about what you do. So get out there, start volunteering and see what a difference you can make to an elephant or two!