Folktales

Welcome to Blue Bird Day’s Weekly Lesson Plans. This week we’re working on the theme Folktales! Read below for more themed lesson plans and activities.

Table Time Activity: 3 Little Pig Houses

Materials:

Straw.

Popsicle sticks.

Red construction paper.

Glue.

House Template.

Skill Check

The goal of this activity to to focus on story recall and/or tactile exploration.

Growing My Skills

To grow skills, do this craft while you read the 3 little pigs book and make the houses as you read.

Floortime Play Activity: Lets Make a House!

Materials:

Legos/blocks and pig figurines (make or buy pig animals).

Skill Check

The goal of this activity to promote engagement, functional play and/or pretend play. Sit on the floor and build houses out of legos or blocks.

Growing My Skills

Downgrade: pretend to be the big bad wolf and blow the tower down with your child! Support your child to build a tower and when you are done say “I’m going to huff and puff and blow your house down!” Wait for your child to respond and blow/knock it down!

Upgrade: Make the three little pigs houses and reenact the story with little pig and wolf figurines.

Relaxation Time Activity: Folktale Bed Time/Naptime Story

Materials:

Three Little Pigs book or audio.

Skill Check

The goal of this activity is to help your child connect the theme(s) of the month, the book, and the craft together! While working on a healthy and relaxing sleep time routine.

Growing My Skills

Work on literacy skills during story time! Ask your child questions during the book, have them turn the pages, and see if they can make any connections from the days crafts/activities they worked on!

Creative Time Activity: Three Little Pigs Craft

Build the three little pigs house!

Materials:

Glue.

Scissors.

Construction paper in brown and red.

Straws.

Sticks.

Skill Check

The goal of this activity is to help your child follow directions and build their creativity and fine motor skills.

Growing My Skills

1) Cut construction paper into squares and triangles.

2) Glue the square and triangle together to make a house (3 houses total).

3) Cut “bricks” out of red construction paper, glue onto one house.

4) Glue straw and sticks onto the other two houses.

Movement Time Activity: Tortoise and the Hare

Materials:

No materials needed!

Optional: tape, jump rope, or any thing to mark the “start” and “finish” of your race. You can also lay tape down along the path of your racetrack to make a clear path to follow.

Skill Check

The goal of this week is to work on motor planning and body awareness by moving fast and slow.

Growing My Skills

Set up a race with your child around the house: see who can run the race fastest, and then who can “run” the race slowest! Running fast will get your heart rate up, while moving in slow motion works on motor control, balance, and strength.

You can add different obstacles in your way to add an extra challenge.

Complete your race while walking, or try completing animal walks fast vs. slow (e.g., hop like a bunny, crawl like a tortoise, etc.).

Mealtime Activity: Goldilocks and the 3 Bears Oatmeal

Materials:

Listen to the story about Goldilocks and the 3 Little Bears

Gather oatmeal materials:
2 cups milk
2 cups water
1 cup steel cut oats
1 1/2 cups mixed berries, fresh or frozen
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup almonds

Skill Check

The goal of this activity is to consume or explore similar foods to characters in the story and practice blowing on food that is too hot.

Growing My Skills

Recipe.

To Do: wash hands and prepare oatmeal as follows, combine milk and water in medium sauce pan, bring to boil, pour in oats, stir. Reduce to low heat, cook for 20 – 30 mins until thick and creamy. Stir in berries (cut if too large), stir in chopped almonds and honey. Plate and serve!

TIP: find a large, small and medium bowl and prepare them like the story – big for Papa, medium for mama, small for baby bear.

Language Time Activity: Three Little Pigs

Watch or read Three Little Pigs with your child, and have fun being the “Big Bad Wolf!” Create 3 different “houses” with popsicle sticks/toothpicks, cotton balls, and blocks. Try to blow them down utilizing the language in the book!

Materials:

Three Little Pigs book or audio.

Popsicle sticks or tooth picks.

Cotton balls.

Block toys or legos.

Skill Check

The goal of this activity is to improve your child’s expressive and receptive language skills by following directions and utilizing describing words while playing.

Growing My Skills

Work on following 1-step directions with prepositional and qualitative concepts (e.g., “Put red lego on yellow”).

Work on improving descriptive vocabulary by describing the different materials, what blows down vs. what doesn’t.

Work on problem solving skills to identify what materials are strong vs. which will fall.

Expand your child’s vocabulary by using the story’s narrative as a model for what he/she can say while pretending to be the wolf.