purposeful play
Hungry Caterpillar Word Puzzles
simple literacy activity for kids
Hungry Caterpillar Word Puzzles are easy to make and are meant to be used as an extension activity with the beloved book The Very Hungry Caterpillar.
Book extension activities are a powerful way to develop and strengthen a child’s early reading skills including phonemic awareness, reading comprehension and retell skills-all of which are vital building blocks to becoming a successful reader.
Continue for the step by step instructions and download the Hungry Caterpillar Word Cards below.
purpose
Reinforces phonological awareness
Fun with word play
Promotes sight reading
Strengthens decoding skills
Reinforces meaning of print
Promotes spelling skills
Increases comprehension skills
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directions
Hungry Caterpillar Popsicle Stick Word Puzzles
Start by stacking two craft sticks-one above the other.
Tape the sides of the sticks to the table or tray
Using a sharpie marker-write words used in the book The Very Hungry Caterpillar.
Place the craft sticks and picture cards in a bucket.
Introduce activity to child
Invite child to put together a word puzzle!
Have child match the correct picture card to the word they just created
Encourage child to continue putting the word puzzles together
Continue playing
This should be a fun activity so be sure to move on to something else before your child reaches the level of frustration.
To make this activity harder-try writing ALL the words using the same color of craft sticks
Another way to make this activity a little more challenging is to use 3-4 craft sticks per word instead of 2
Keep the cards and the sticks together in a bucket or container so your child can easily access the game and play independently
