Storybook Week 12: The Snowy Day

The Snowy Day, by Ezra Jack Keats, is one of those books that resonates with my children. My toddler never gets tired of it.

                                     

It is challenging to write about The Snowy Day at the end of a southern summer when the high temperature today is 106 degrees Fahrenheit, but I think the current weather makes the story even more fascinating to children who have not seen snow in at least a few months. (I bet some people in the United States have seen snow this summer, but let's assume they're in the minority.)

If you are reading this post in the winter in a snowy region, this particular Storybook Week will be almost too easy. :)

1. Read The Snowy Day

Read-Aloud/Language Arts

You can choose from many versions of the book - we have the board book that I found at Goodwill one year -

                                    

or watch the storybook video


                                     

or both.

2. "Snow had fallen during the night."

Story Interest/Fine Motor Skills

How cool would it be if your child woke to snowflakes on the window panes? You could go crazy and cut out paper snowflakes to cover all your windows, or just choose one window. Or, if you have a child who sleeps heavily, you could tiptoe in and cover their bedroom window with snowflakes.

For those who haven't made paper snowflakes before, there are simple instructions here at Enchanted Learning.

So, now that you have a snow-covered window, point out the snowflakes to your children when they wake. Southern families may need to have a conversation about what snow is and what real snow feels like.

For advanced toddlers, preschoolers, and up:

Ask if they want to make more snowflakes. Follow the same procedures to help children fold and cut their own snowflake decorations.

Or, let children use a hole-punch on white paper to create small, falling snowflakes. Instructions: Punch, punch, punch that paper! They're guaranteed to love this activity; just make sure it is done in a place that makes for easy clean-up of tiny paper pieces.

3. Footprints

Story Interest/Gross Motor Skills

If you have a place that is easy to sweep up and you are willing to deal with lots of fine-ground stuff on the floor, then this activity is for you. I might even recommend the back yard for this.

 Lay down a walkway of flour, cornmeal, or a similar substance. Show children how to walk with their toes pointing out to make the kind of footprints Peter makes in the story.

Let them make tracks.

Lay down some more flour to make a new, track-free surface. Make sure they are finished looking at their great tracks first. Then have them walk with their toes pointed in to make the second type of tracks Peter makes.

The third time around, have them drag their feet to make straight lines. Add a walking stick they can drag to make a third line.

Ah, sticks. They make any activity better. In the mind of a small boy.

4. Snowy Ice Cream

Cooking/Sensory Activity

This recipe is from Merry Musical Treasury Pooh Christmas Stories, a favorite of my son's.

                                         

You will need:

1 large package fruit flavored gelatin
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 package frozen strawberries (or any frozen fruit)
1/2 gallon milk
shaved or crushed ice, about a half cup per serving - or snow!

Mix all the ingredients except the shaved or crushed ice. Pour the mixture until it fills a cup half full. Add shaved or crushed ice almost to the top, stir until it is thick and creamy, and enjoy.

If it is winter and you have (clean) snow available, you can use that instead of shaved or crushed ice.

5. Snowball Fight!

Story Interest/Sensory Activity/Gross Motor Skills

Crumple up paper. It's a satisfying yet harmless way for children to get out some energy or agrression through their hands. Aren't you glad you bought extra copy paper during the back-to-school sales? Oops, I didn't.

But any kind of paper, like leftover packing paper, newspaper, or wrapping paper works.

The rest of this activity is up to the discretion of you, the parent. Either you can all enjoy a mild "snowball" fight with your wadded-up balls of paper, or you can wisely redirect your children to trying to hit a target on the wall. (Just draw a big red-and-white target and tape it up.) Bulls-eye!

A Sensory Experience Craft

Aprile at The Steady Hand recently did a review of the Deluxe Textured Craft Kit from 1-2-3! Textured Products. If you have a child who would benefit from working with a variety of textures, this kit or something similar could be a great activity.

This kind of kit is also something that could be made at home after collecting a variety of materials from craft stores and around the house.

If you go to The Steady Hand's post, you can see how she and her daughter used the Hugs the Hippo kit.

Storybook Week 2: Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom was written by Bill Martin, Jr., and John Archambault and was illustrated by Lois Ehlert. This is another classic children's book, one that many people call the best storybook for children under six. It should be readily available at the library, on Amazon.com or Barnesandnoble.com, or in brick and mortar book shops. We have the DVD as part of the Scholastic Treasury of 100 Storybook Classics. (I do not get any benefit from recommending these sites, books, or DVDs - they are simply things that I have used and liked.)

1. Coconut Tree Craft

Arts and Crafts/Story Interest


Read the book or watch the DVD together. Use this simple Coconut Tree Craft from DLTK's Growing Together website.

Adjust for toddlers and younger preschoolers by cutting and/or pasting for them.


For older children or those who have an interest, look up coconut tree facts and pictures to learn more. Show them on the map where coconut trees mostly grow. Here at 4to40.com are some facts about coconuts.

2.  Letters Come Tumbling Down

Story Interest

For this activity, you will need a foam, magnet, or other set of letters of the alphabet. Use the coconut tree craft you made in Activity 1. With your child, play out the story with these letters. Have A ask B to go up the tree. March or skip the letters up the tree and set them in the branches or leaves or on the top of the tree. When they have all gotten up the tree, make them tumble down!

For a toddler: 

Make a big deal of the tumbling down part. Shake the paper tree until the letters fall down. Pick up the letters again and repeat the activity. This will be even more fun for a toddler if you get a box or container and tape or glue the picture of the tree inside the container. It will become another way for toddlers to play the clean-up-dump-out-clean-up-dump-out game. (I know my toddler loves this game!)

3. Be a Letter

Dramatizing/Sensory Activity

Use your own and your child's bodies to form letters of the alphabet on the floor. Your child may like to stand up and form the shape of a letter as best she can on her own in order to act out part of the story. It would be even better to have someone on hand to take pictures of this activity.

For a toddler:

Try forming the letter A by standing with legs apart and arms overhead with palms together. Say, "A! I'm the letter A!" See if your toddler can imitate you. Take pictures!

4.  Who Wrote the Book?
Language Arts

For this activity, you will need the book physically on hand. You may also want to have other books written by Bill Martin, Jr., or illustrated by Lois Ehlert to look at. There are many books by these two at the library.

For a preschooler or kindergartner: Open to the title page and tell your child that this is called the title page, and that every book has one. Show them what information is on the title page.

Tell them that the person who wrote the words in the book is the author. Give them the author's name. If you have other Bill Martin, Jr., books, show those to your child and point out his name on each of the title pages.

Explain how the person who drew (or created) the pictures in the book is called the illustrator. If you have other Lois Ehlert books on hand, show them to your child and point out her name on the title pages.

Ask, "Who is the author of this book?", pointing to Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.

Ask, "Who illustrated this book?"

For a toddler or baby: Read and show books by Bill Martin, Jr., or illustrated by Lois Ehlert. Continue as long as it holds your baby's or toddler's interest. Keep the books near to look at them and read from them throughout the next week or two.

5. Cook a Coconut

Cooking/Sensory Activity

CDKitchen has an Easiest Coconut Pie recipe that children can help with. Older children can help with all of the recipe; younger children can pour or toss in the shredded coconut. The Homemade Baby Food website says that coconuts are not a common allergenic food and has more information on babies and coconut. According to that site, coconuts are not related to peanut or tree nut allergies but are related to latex allergies. Please use your pediatrician's guidance to determine what your baby can safely eat.

If you can find one and have the money in your grocery budget, it would be very helpful to buy a real coconut so your child can handle it, look inside (once an adult cuts it for them), and compare the shredded coconut to the whole coconut. Chowhound has some readers' ideas for using a whole coconut.

Storybook Week 1: Chicka Chicka 1, 2, 3

Chicka Chicka 1, 2, 3 was written by Bill Martin Jr., and Michael Sampson. It was illustrated by Lois Ehlert. The very first step in the Chicka Chicka 1, 2, 3 Storybook Week is to get a copy of the book and/or the video (Weston Woods Scholastic, 2005). The book is readily available in libraries, on Amazon.com, and in bookstores. The DVD is available on Amazon as well, and as part of the Scholastic Treasury of 100 Storybook Classics.

1. The Numbers of Chicka Chicka 1, 2, 3

Read-Aloud/Story Interest

Read the book or watch the Weston Woods Scholastic story video. For the following activity, use a pack of number flashcards (about $2-$3 at a convenience store like Walgreens) or make them yourself.

To make number cards, simply type the numbers in a large font size in a word processing document, leaving spaces between each number. You may want to use different colors for each number or do every 10th number in the same color, or any other idea you think would be fun. Print on card stock. Cut the numbers out in squares.

Take from the pack the numbers 1-20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 99, and 100. Ask your child to put these numbers in the order that they appear in the story.

For a baby or toddler: Show the flashcards, one by one, and say the number out loud. 1-10 is probably plenty for this age group. For an older baby or toddler, hand the card to them so they can look at it more closely. Better yet, use the foam numbers you can find in grocery stores, Amazon.com, or the baby aisle of Target.

For an older child: After doing the above activity, have your child reverse the order and count backwards down to 1.

2. Counting by Tens

Sensory learning/Math concepts

Use this free ebook by Jim Erskine for Candy Math ideas to learn counting by tens with candy or colored cereals. It is part of the first activity in the ebook, titled Skip Counting.

3. Bumblebees!

Science concepts/Arts and crafts

Go on a bumblebee hunt outside. If the season or area is not a good one for bumblebees, read together a book or website about bumblebees, like this one. It is always fun to bring a magnifying glass or binoculars, if your preschooler has either of these.

For toddlers: Point to as many pictures of bumblebees as you can find and make the "bzzz, bzzz" sound. Together, pretend to be bumblebees and go buzzing around the house.

For babies: Make a bumblebee puppet and have it buzz over the pages of the book. If baby has older siblings, they could be in charge of making the puppet. This is a fun puppet that would be a good project for a preschooler. Be sure the baby is never left alone with it because the antennae, tape, and/or bag could be unsafe for babies. If you are a knitter, this is a cute bee knitting pattern that you could make with or without the cord.

4. Number Four

Fine motor skills/Number recognition

Ask your child to write a large block number 4. Or write it yourself or draw tracing guidelines for younger children. Have your child color it, then cut out the outline of the number. A child who needs an easier cutting activity can cut out the number in a square if you draw the guidelines.

5. What Happened?

Narration/Thinking about the story

Ask your child:
"Who was left out of the tree?"
"Why was zero crying?"
"What happened at the end?"

If your child needs more writing practice have him or her write out the answers. If your child is younger or does not yet write, write down the answers as he or she speaks to show the attention you are paying to their answers.