gingerbread

summer activities for preschoolers #3

(the third in a weekly series of ideas for families with preschoolers...please feel free to share your own!)

3. extend the fun. After reading a favorite book, add a craft. 

Take the learning one step further with an activity such as

re-telling the story (the child dictates and you are the scribe), 

illustrating the story (using paints, crayons, even play-dough), 

cooking, 

singing,

or acting out the story. 

If you want inspiration, google (your book + activities or craft). 

*

On the bookshelf for our family this week is the fable The Gingerbread Man,

 illustrated by one of our favorite illustrators, Barbara McClintock.

After reading the story a couple of times, we extended the learning with a craft.

The craft from this book was obvious!

For me, one of the most fun parts of this time together was watching the kids, who waited with baited breath to discover if our gingerbread men would try to escape when we opened the oven.
*

Our kids created this one on their own:

Under the condition that they know when it's OK to play and when to stop,
they dramatize the story by acting like the Gingerbread Man:
putting their hands on their little hips and saying
"Run, run, as fast as you can!
You can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man!"
We chase them about until they are "caught" and "gobble" them up.