An Integrated Unit

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THE GINGERBREAD MAN

The Gingerbread Man Theme

The classic story of the Gingerbread Man can serve as a child-centered theme to build a total curriculum around. Appropriate any time of the year, use these activities to teach, practice and apply concepts in language arts through reading, writing, phonics, and children's literature. This is a collection of activities shared by teachers with teachers. Some are original and many have been passed down from teacher to teacher. I thank teachers everywhere for sharing and am happy to be able to pass the ideas on to you for use in your classroom. I know these ideas will inspire additional games and activities as you use them.

Many of the activities are designed in a game format, played either by partners or in small groups. Others are designed to be used in a whole class arrangement while some are for independent practice. Many of the activities are also appropriate for homework to give the students additional review of basic skills. This unit is filled with Blackline Masters to make it easy for you to use these activities tomorrow and then again and again year after year. It is recommended that you duplicate many of the games on heavy duty card stock, and laminate for repeated use.

Addresses and phone numbers for additional resources pertaining to the Gingerbread Man theme and a bibliography are included.

Three books are highlighted here, one on basic skills in Language Arts, one on Basic Skills in MATH, and another on Science Experiments for young learners. Each unit include additional Fine Arts and writing exeriences as well. Using the books together gives the classroom an integrated unit using the theme of The Gingerbread Man. Honey Pot Press also has a collection of Center Games for practicing basic skills in Math and Language Arts. Games include the Zip Around format, Bingo format, and Board Game formats. These are available in English and Spanish for further practice of counting, addition, rhyming, letter/sound matching, shape naming, position words, clock reading, coins, color naming, and more, using a Gingerbread Man theme.

The Gingerbread Man theme is the vehicle you will be using to teach basic skills. This thematic format provides child-centered experiences to introduce and teach the young child basic skills in language arts and math. This format can be applied to other themes as well, instead of the Gingerbread Man, simply use a snowman, a favorite character from a literature book, a bear, etc.

Curriculum correlations to classroom cooking experiences found at Gingerbread Man Muffins, round out this unit as a truly integrated study of basic skills in Kindergarten through First Grade classrooms.

A Focus on LANGUAGE ARTS - The Gingerbread Man

The Activities

• THE PRACTICE A critical element in this course is to put the research and guiding documents into practice in your classroom. The following unit is intended to serve as a Sample lesson format for K-1 teachers to use with their students. Each teacher will need to make decisions as to which activities are appropriate for their students and which are not. The lessons are intended to be taught over and over. Children need repeated experiences with each lesson. Once through will not teach reading. Adaptations can be made to this unit by changing the character theme of the Gingerbread Man to other themes such as a snowman, another character from a favorite children's literature selection, etc. This unit is meant to be used as a format that can be transferred to other themes used by teachers in early childhood classrooms.

  *Please Note, this unit includes over 100 blackline masters for repeated use in your classroom. It is intentionally not bound in a book format so that your blacklines will remain free of unsightly hole marks from binders and other bindings. I would like to suggest that you store these masters in clear plastic sheet protectors inside a three ring binder. This will keep your unit organized, protected, and easy to reference.

A PARTIAL LOOK AT THE UNIT . . .

SHARED AND GROUP READING . . . Reading/Thinking Skills

• KWL - Find out what the children already know about the Gingerbread Man - Before you share any of the Gingerbread Man literature books, find out what your students already know about the Gingerbread Man. If they have had little to no exposure to the story, read one version and then ask again . . .

• EXPLORE DIFFERENT VERSIONS - Through the years, various authors have written many different versions of the Gingerbread Man story. Visit the children's section of your local library, and children's book stores to find a nice variety. Invite your students to bring in Gingerbread Man books to share as well. While teaching this unit, . . .

• GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS AND STORY MAPS - Use a variety of graphic organizers and story maps to display information gathered about the different versions of the Gingerbread Man.

• QAR's - QAR's stands for Question-Answer Relationships. In QAR, children will learn that there are three types of answers to questions that can be found: Right There, Think and Search, On My Own. Guide the students through different literature selections of the Gingerbread Man to discover answers to questions that will require the children to . . .

• POEMS AND CHARTS - Use simple rhymes on sentence strips for pocket chart experiences. Run, run, run, as fast as you can. You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man. OR ask the children to make up their own rhymes about the Gingerbread Man.

• MINI STUDENT BOOKS - Using (blackline master LA-2) have the students complete the mini books. Write the words on sentence strips to use in pocket charts. There are three formats included in the blackline masters. Choose the format most appropriate for your students. Use the completely written book for beginning readers, the non-illustrated format for beginning readers, and the partially written format for advanced readers and writers. A Gingerbread Man has raisin eyes, red buttons, a chocolate chip nose, a big smile, and tastes good! This type of format helps the students recognize context clues from their drawings, and left to right tracking.

SHARED AND GROUP WRITING . . . Writing/Thinking Skills

• SHARED WRITING - Record what the children dictate about the story. Use large chart paper, sentence strips in pocket charts, labels, etc. to add to the classroom environment. Make your classroom Print Rich with . . .

• STUDYING THE CHARACTERS OF THE STORY - While reading and sharing the different versions of the story, keep a listing on a class chart of the different characters in the story. As each version is read, add additional characters which were not present in previous versions. Keep track of characters present in more than one version. Each author took the liberty to adapt the story to either a Gingerbread Man or a Gingerbread Boy and used . . .

• TRACKING THE SETTING AND PLOT - Most versions of the story begin with a little old lady and man making cookies in the kitchen. The Gingerbread Man/Boy escapes from the oven or off the table, and various animals and people chase the Gingerbread Man/Boy through the countryside. The story usually finds the Gingerbread Man/Boy at a river with the Gingerbread Man/Boy being "out-foxed" by a fox . The story usually ends with the fox enjoying a Gingerbread Cookie treat! The plot, in all versions I have read, except for the Cajun Gingerbread Man, consists of everyone wanting to catch the Gingerbread Man/Boy in order to eat him. In the Cajun Gingerbread Man, everyone tell him they want to talk to him. This version also has a completely different setting and list of characters. (see blackline master LA-1) for a bibliography.

• SEQUENCE THE STORY- After each version is read, review the story and ask the students to think about the sequence of the story. Make picture cards to display in a pocket chart to depict some of the main events and keep track of each version to compare the sequence between stories. Introduce the ordinal numbers of 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc., when . . . Each student can make a story map that shows the beginning, middle and ending of the story. See (blackline master LA-3) for a few of the character pictures.

• REAL-THINGS WRITING EXPERIENCES - Give the students the opportunity to use their writing in real life situations - give them a Cookie Shop order form and ask them to order a Gingerbread Man cookie. How many raisins, chocolate chips, candy buttons, etc. would they like on their cookie? Have them take their order to the cooking center and have . . .Give the students ten pennies and a price list from which to order the decorations to decorate their cookie. (blackline master LA-4)

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS

• VOCABULARY - The reading level or difficulty varies in the different versions of the story. Most of the versions are best for a shared reading experience. Prior to reading each version, check for vocabulary words that will need explanation. (Also see Figurative Language Below) Print these words on word cards or sentence strips and . . .

• LETTER RECOGNITION - Using the large letter Gingerbread Man cards, (blackline master LA-5) practice letter recognition, naming and alphabetical order. Pass out one card to each of five to ten students and ask them to arrange themselves in the correct alphabetical order, to name the letter on their card, or make a duplicate set for them to simply direct match the same letter.

• DIRECT MATCH LETTERS - Using the large letter Gingerbread Man cards (blackline master LA-5) play a game of direct match. Pass out two sets of duplicate letter cards, one to each student in the class. Chant the following: . . .

• LETTER PRACTICE - Using the Gingerbread Man T-Scope (blackline master LA-6) give the students practice in naming their letters. This is a good center game, or can be used for homework practice.

• RHYMING FAMILIES - THE "AN" WORDS - Most of the versions of the story feature a Gingerbread Man rather than the Gingerbread Boy. Rhyming families include such combinations as "an", "at", "ad", etc. Help the children discover and make "an" words using the large letter cards. (blackline master LA-5) Direct two children to spell "an" by . . . The T-scopes are great for partner lessons, centers, or homework.

• THE GINGERBREAD MAN CAN . . . When the children have practiced forming lots of "an" words, make a class book that shows things that the Gingerbread Man can and cannot do. "The gingerbread man can _______. The gingerbread man can _______. But the gingerbread man can't ________. Use the student book The Gingerbread Man Can . . . (blackline master LA-8) as a blackline master for the students to fill in the blanks. These can be used in different formats. For example; . . .

• THE GINGERBREAD MAN RAN STUDENT BOOK - This student book (blackline master LA-10) is meant to be used as a review of beginning sounds. Each page has a patterned sentence; The Gingerbread Man ran past a (blank). Write the words on sentence strips and use in a pocket chart to introduce the pattern of the book. Use the picture cards to place in the pocket chart to vary the responses each time the strips are read with the group. The students can then make their own books by either cutting and pasting a picture from clip art, which is included or to find appropriate pictures in magazines or other sources, onto each page of the book to match the initial sound as the letter clue. Students can practice left to right tracking, beginning sounds, and oral reading and vocabulary.

• FUN WITH LETTERS AND SOUNDS - Relate actions to beginning sounds and letter recognition using the Gingerbread Man as a starting point. For example: The Gingerbread Man Can B - bounce, C - catch, D - dance, F - fall, G - gallop, H - hop, J - jump, K - kick, L - laugh, M - march, N - nod, P - paint, R - run, S - sneeze, T - talk, V - vacuum, W - walk, Y - yawn, Z - zip. Ask the students to come up with a list of action words for each letter. Use the (blackline master LA-8) and adopt this format to the student book for another exercise in reading and writing.

  Relate foods in the same format. For example: The Gingerbread Man likes to eat A - apples, B - bananas, C- carrots, D - donuts, F - fish, G - gumdrops, etc..

• COUNTING WORDS - Ask the students to keep track of how many words are spoken in a sentence. This will help the children separate out words in speech and to begin to construct their understanding of the structure of a sentence. For example: . .

• SYLLABLES - Ask the students to clap out the number of syllables they hear in different words from the Gingerbread Man stories: Gin/ger/bread - three claps. Man - one clap, etc. Use a pocket chart to sort words from their word wall, charts, etc. according to the number of syllables in each word..

• ADJECTIVES AND THE CHARACTERS - As the class studies the various characters in the stories, introduce the use of adjectives to further describe the characters. An example might be; . . .

• SYNONYMS AND THE CHARACTERS - Ask the students to try to think of words the authors could have used to describe the characters which would mean the same thing, using different words. For example, . . .

LISTENING/READING TRANSFER LESSONS

• FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE - Point out the use of figurative language in the stories. For example: In the version, The Cajun Gingerbread Boy, you may need to explain the meaning of Ç "it was hot as blue blazes in there" OR "and the folks kicking up their heels" OR "they all ran lickety-split", etc. Read with a literal translation, the students will miss out on the true meaning of the figurative language!

• ACTING OUT THE STORY - Large brown grocery bags can serve as a basic costume for any character of any story. Enlarge a pattern of each character you want to depict, . . .

• THE GINGERBREAD MAN ON A STRING - This book format can be used as a spin off from several different children's literature books. I first used this format with the book, Rosie's Walk. The text can serve as an application or practice of prepositional words. Students can illustrate their own pictures or cut them out from construction paper scraps (blackline master LA-11) to complete the book. The text is as follows: . . .

• THE NAME GAME - Show a picture or say a word from the Gingerbread Man word wall or bank. Tell the students that if their name has the same beginning sound to stand up, . . .

• FAMILY LITERATURE BAGS - A home link I have used for many years is a literature bag. Include a children's literature book on the Gingerbread Man, a Gingerbread Man doll, and a math or letter game in the bag. Include a note to the family (Blackline Master LA-12) asking them to read the story to and with the child. Give suggestions for discussion of the book such as; What is your favorite part of the story? . . .

INTEGRATING CURRICULUM LESSONS

• HOMEWORK - CLASSWORK - Send home a brown 81/2 inch X 11 inch gingerbread man with each child. (blackline master LA-13) Direct each child to work with a family member to decorate their Gingerbread Boy or Girl using a variety of scraps from home including; ribbon, buttons, fabric, glitter, rice, macaroni, etc. Discourage the use of anything that might attract ants. Suggest that they attach the pattern to cardboard to give it extra strength.

Display these Gingerbread People on a bulletin board. I usually make a large, paper Gingerbread House with a tree next to it, displaying a Gingerbread scene. Each day I would rearrange the Gingerbread People so that they changed positions. I ask the students to describe the location of their Gingerbread Person. Typical student responses are: "Today my Gingerbread girl is inside the house. Yesterday my Gingerbread girl was next to the tree." Another student may respond, "Today my Gingerbread boy is under the tree. Yesterday my Gingerbread boy was on top of the house." I also use these Gingerbread People in several sorting and graphing experiences during math time . . .

• PAPER BAG PUPPETS - The students make a gingerbread man paper bag puppet and other characters in the story. The children can act out the story and add in their own versions of the sequence as well.

• PAPER BAG PUPPET STAGE - Color, cut, and paste the Gingerbread Theater (blackline master LA-14) to the front of a lunch sized paper bag. Follow directions on the template. Mount the characters of the story on craft sticks and let the students retell the story to the class.

• SAND-PAPER GINGERBREAD MAN - Using sandpaper (medium grit), cut out a gingerbread man for each student. Direct the students to rub a cinnamon stick over the sandpaper Gingerbread Man over and over. Decorate with wiggle eyes, buttons, pom poms, fabric paint, rick-rack, etc. Attach a pin back to wear as a decorative pin or attach a ribbon to hang as an ornament or to use in the closet for a nice fragrance.

• GINGERBREAD HOUSE - Use either lunch size or grocery sized brown paper bags for this project. Duplicate the pattern sheet (in the appropriate size - you will need to reduce this blackline if you use on a lunch sized bag) (blackline master LA-15) .or have the students paint their bags If using the blacklines, direct the students to color and cut out the front, back, and roof for their houses They will need to fill the paper bag with newspaper and . . . The finished project makes a wonderful centerpiece for the dining room table at home!

• CINNAMON ORNAMENTS - The children will read recipe cards and follow directions to make cinnamon gingerbread people. They will be using and applying their reading skills. For a class of 32 students, you will need about 32 ounces of cinnamon. (Price Club or Costo, Smart 'n Final, or restaurant supply stores sell in bulk for about $10.00) Using the following recipe each student will be able to make one large Gingerbread person ornament and one small Gingerbread person. I mount the smaller Gingerbread people to pin backs (available through craft stores) to wear as a lapel pin. Use (Blackline masters LA-16) individual student recipe cards at a center so that each child can make their own dough and gingerbread man people from start to finish. . . .

• GINGERBREAD MAN QUILTS - Each child will need a piece of sandpaper (medium grit) cut to 4 1/2" X 5 1/2". Most sandpaper is sold in 9X12 sheets so you can get four pieces from each sheet. Instruct the children to press down very hard on the sandpaper with a dark colored crayon to draw a gingerbread person. I give the students different shades of brown crayons to use. Tell the students to write their names on the back of the sandpaper. It is best if the children draw the Gingerbread Person large enough to fill up the entire piece of sandpaper. Using eight inch square pieces of muslin, ask the students to place their sandpaper, rough-side down, on their square cloth. Place a towel and scrap paper under the cloth . . .

Click here for the second unit: Integrating Language Arts, Math and Fine Arts With A Focus on MATH

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