The Very Hungry Caterpillar Tasks

Literacy

- Discuss the events of the story including the main story settings, events and principal characters. Talk about the food the caterpillar ate and discuss which foods you like and don’t like. Draw and write about your food items ‘I’m so hungry I could eat…’ e.g. 3 crisps, 2 eggs, 1 jam, 4 chips etc.

- Writing a shopping list for The Very Hungry Caterpillar!

- Practise writing the days of the week in a variety of mediums; sand, paint, shaving foam etc.

Maths

- Make a repeating pattern fruit kebab caterpillar.

- Read how much food the caterpillar eats each day and count and sort the food into sets. Can you count how many items of food he ate altogether?

- Can you name all of the days of the week in the correct order?

- Use chalk to draw and measure caterpillars of different lengths on the pavement, paper or a fence etc.

Understanding the world

- Discuss/investigate the life cycle of a caterpillar. Can you make cocoons around a family member using toilet tissue? Talk about the changes that happen before and after a caterpillar makes a cocoon.

- Go on a minibeast hunt! Observe and discuss the minibeasts you find! Look at new life around. Discuss the different life cycles of various animals.

- Make a bug hotel.

Art

- Use playdough, salt dough or clay etc. to make models of the caterpillar in all stages of its life!

- Create a symmetrical butterfly painting by folding a caterpillar outline in half, dabbing some colour paint onto one wing and then pressing the sides together. Talk about the different colours you can see.

- Explore printing circles to create caterpillar pictures. Cardboard tubes and pom-poms or cotton wool balls make lovely circles!

Lost and Found Tasks

English

• Write a story which explains how the penguin got to the boy's front door.

• Create an alternative story using different characters, e.g. Zazu from the Lion King arrives on a boy's doorstep and he has to take him back to Africa (suggested by Loui White).

• The boy was delighted when they first arrived at the South Pole... Think of synonyms for 'delighted'.

• Make a list of things that the boy and penguin might pack in their suitcase.

Science

• Find out about penguins... Where can you find them? How are they adapted to living in that environment? What do they eat?

• Think about floating and sinking... Why does the row boat float?

Geography

• Find out about the South Pole... Try to find it on a globe. Where is in relation to where you live? How far away is it? If you wanted to go there, how would you travel?

PSHE

• Discuss how the boy might be feeling when the penguin first arrives at his door.

• Explore why the penguin follows the boy. What does he want?

• The boy made a mistake leaving the penguin at the South Pole. Discuss mistakes that the children might have made in the past. How did they resolve them?

• The penguin was lonely... Discuss what is means to be lonely and how we can help others when they are feeling lonely. What can we do when we feel lonely ourselves?

Greta and the Giants Tasks

• Why don't you have a go at creating a poster or a video to encourage people to be more eco-friendly? You can include the tips from the story on how to look after the planet and explain to people how we can become better as human beings at saving animals and looking after our health.

• Research facts about David Attenborough. He is a very well respected man who has devoted his whole life to looking after animals and the planet. You could design a poster to say thank you to David and include some facts about his life.

Beware of the Bears Tasks

Check out these links to ideas based on the original story... Goldilocks and the 3 Bears. You will find a video of the story here which little children are bound to enjoy.

1. Story, activity sheet, answers and transcript: ‘Goldilocks and the three bears’ https://learnenglishkids.britishcouncil.org/en/short-stories/goldilocks-and-the-three-bears 

2. Craft activity: ‘Goldilocks play’ https://learnenglishkids.britishcouncil.org/en/crafts/goldilocks-play

3. Song, activity sheet, answers and lyrics: ‘The Goldilocks song’ https://learnenglishkids.britishcouncil.org/en/songs/the-goldilocks-song

4. Game: ‘Porridge puzzle’ https://learnenglishkids.britishcouncil.org/en/games/porridge-puzzle

5. Story maker https://learnenglishkids.britishcouncil.org/en/games/story-maker

Giraffes Can't Dance Tasks

English

• Find the rhyming words in the story. Could you make a new page for the book that includes rhyming?
• The first page includes a number of words used to describe a giraffe. Can you think of any more?
• Retell the story from Gerald's point of view.
• 'Warthogs' and 'waltzing' are examples of alliteration. Can you think of other alliterative phrases that feature an animal doing something unusual, e.g. 'koalas doing karate, hopping hedgehogs).
• When the cricket plays his violin, Gerald starts 'shuffling', 'swaying' and 'swishing'. Can you think of other words that might describe how he moves?
• Could you narrate the story and perform it to an audience, using expression, accents and sound effects. 

Maths

• Make a shopping list of items that might be needed for the Jungle Dance. How many of each item might be needed? How much would it all cost?
• Carry out a survey in your class to find out which animal your friends think would be the best dancers.
• How tall are the different animals in the story (e.g. cricket, warthog, lion, giraffe). Find out, or make a sensible estimate of, their height and make a graph to show the results.

Science

• Write a report about giraffes. Where do they live in the wild? What do they eat? Do they have any special adaptations?

Design Technology

• Use split pins to make animal pictures with moving body parts.
• Can you make page for a pop-up book in which an animal might move, e.g. when you open the page, a giraffe's neck bends? 

Art

• Use photos of real giraffes as a starting point for drawing your own illustrations?
• Make some decorations that the animals could put on display at the Jungle Dance.
• Draw your own pictures of animals doing different types of dances.

Geography

• The author wrote 'Giraffes Can't Dance' after a trip to Kenya. Can you find Kenya on a map / globe? How is it similar / different to where you live?

PSHE

• The animals think that Gerald can't dance. Sometimes people say 'there is no such word as can't'. What does this mean?
• How might Gerald feel when the other animals are laughing and waiting for him to dance? How should they behave instead?
• Discuss what the difference is between laughing at someone and laughing with someone.

The Scarecrow’s Wedding Tasks
 

English

• Find all of the rhyming words in the story. Use them to make your own rhyming dictionary.
• Write your own story about the adventures of a scarecrow.
• Write a prequel to the story in which Betty and Harry meet for the first time.
• Create some captions, speech bubbles and thought bubbles for each illustration.
• Create a new page for the story, in which a different group of animals contribute something to the scarecrows' wedding.
• Create a newspaper report about 'the wedding that no one will ever forget'.
• Retell the story from Harry's, Betty's or Reginald's point of view.
• Make a list of questions that you could ask the characters in the story. How might they reply?
• Make a list of words / phrases to describe each character in the story. 
• Create a set of instructions that teach others how to make a scarecrow.

Geography

• Create a story map that shows the locations on the farm and the events that took place there.
• Plan a honeymoon for the scarecrow couple. Where should they go on holiday? How will they get there? What will they need to take?
• Scarecrow trails take place in lots of places around the UK. Can you find the location of your nearest one?

PSHE

• Make a list of the ways that the animals helped Betty and Harry. Make a list of ways that you can help others each day.
• Find out how smoking can affect the body.
• Make a poster to teach others how to stay fit and healthy.

Room on the Broom Tasks

English

• Look at the rhyming words in the book. Is there a pattern to the rhyming? Can you think of other words that rhyme?
• Draw your own character and create a rhyme to describe them.
• Look at the use of punctuation within the story. Can you explain why each type of punctuation has been used?
• The dog 'bounded' with a hat in his jaws. Think of other words to describe how a dog moves.
• Create another page for the book, on which a new animal finds something else that the witch has dropped.
• The 'horrible beast' that rises from the ditch makes lots of strange noises. Can you think of other animal noises? Can you find other examples of onomatopoeia?
• Could you plan and record a puppet show based on the story, like these?

Art

• Draw or paint a picture of the witch and her animals, or the dragon that they encounter.
• Read the description of the 'horrible beast' that rises from the ditch and use it to draw the creature.

Geography

• Look at how the weather changes throughout the story.
• Find out about how wind strength is measured.
• Draw a map showing where the witch and the animals travelled to.
• Look at the different types of landscape the witch flies over.Can you find similar landscapes near your local area using a map or an atlas?

PSHE

• Look at the expressions of each of the characters in the illustrations. Can you describe how they are feeling? Could you draw your own pictures which show different people's emotions?
• The witch is grateful to the animals for saving her life. Think of things that you are grateful for. How could you say 'thank you' for these?

Five Minutes Peace Tasks

Here you can find some EYFS friendly ideas and a copy of the story to show the children and to help you remember what happens...

Beast Feast Tasks

• Design your own beast. What will they look like? What will your beast be called? What kind of food do they like? Why not get creative and use different materials to make your own 2D or 3D beast? You could use mixed media and materials such as collage, paint, pens, paper etc.
• Write a letter to the Beast thanking him for the invite to the party. Will you be able to attend and do you have any demands? When was the last time you saw the Beast? Are you looking forward to it?
• Write your own disgusting recipe for dinner. Do you have something that you would particularly like to eat?
• Set up a role play 'Beast Feast' dinner. You could use role play tins and toy food if you have any at home? 
• Why not try your hand at some baking? You could make your own food for the party such as chocolate biscuit fingers or make some scary party food like spider cupcakes or spaghetti worms?! The scarier the better!