purposeful play
the very hungry caterpillar Activity
Book Extension Activity
purposeful literacy
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
This activity takes a bit more prep work but it’s a really fun way to extend the learning from this very popular book. This activity involves reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar book first and then enjoying the same foods that the caterpillar did!
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First gather the food items you will need-invite your child to help! Click here to see a photo of all the food the caterpillar ate. You can also see the list below.
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Cut up the food into bite sized pieces.
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Next, read the book together.
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Go back through the book and find the pages that describe what the caterpillar is eating.
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As you look at the food page be sure to highlight the number word and the word of the food item.
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Have your child count out the correct number of food pieces to put on the plate.
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After your plate is ready, re-read the book together and when you get to the food page, your child can enjoy eating along with the caterpillar!
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1 slice of apple
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2 chunks of pear
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3 chunks of plums
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4 chunks of strawberries
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5 chunks of oranges
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For the rest of the food items just pick out a few of the remainder food items to add-such as a piece of cheese and slice of deli meat. Add a piece of chocolate to represent the chocolate cake.
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One piece of lettuce or other leafy green
materials
The Very Hungry Caterpillar book
Food items from book
Purpose
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Reinforces letter and sound recognition and connections
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Promotes sight reading
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Reinforces print concepts-that print has a meaning
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Makes reading fun
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Reinforces the purpose of print
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Strengthens number sense
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Strengthens number recognition
