I always plan The Gingerbread
Man theme the week after Thanksgiving, its a nice way to lead into the
holiday season. It also gives my students their first look at comparisons
of the same story.
Books
The Gingerbread Man Jim Aylesworth |
The Stinky Cheese Man Jon Scieszka |
The Gingerbread Man Karen Lee Schmidt |
The Gingerbread Man Eric Kimmel |
The Gingerbread Baby Jan Brett |
Gingerbread Fred Nick and Claire Page |
The Gingerbread Man Katherine McCafferty |
The Cajun Gingerbread Boy Berthe Amoss |
The Gingerbread Cowboy Holly Berry |
The Gingerbread Girl Lisa Campbell Ernst |
The Gingerbread Kid Goes to School Joan Holub |
The Gingerbread Man Carol Jones |
The Gingerbread Man Mairi MacKinnon |
The Gingerbread Man Linda Jeffery |
The
pictures below are posters that small groups made about each gingerbread
man story we read.
Let the class vote on their favorite gingerbread man story. Through the years class favorites have been The Cajun Gingerbread Boy, The Stinky Cheese Man and TheGingerbread Baby.
Songs and Poems
The
Gingerbread Man
(sung to: Jimmy Crack Corn)
A baker
took some ginger dough
And
shaped a man from head to toe.
When
it baked, the cookie fled
Here
is what the cookie said:
CHORUS:
Run!
Run! As fast as you can!
You
can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man!
Run!
Run! As fast as you can!
I'm
the gingerbread man!
The cookie
man ran past a cow
Who
said, "I want to eat you now!"
The
cookie man just laughed and fled,
Here
is what the cookie said:
CHORUS
A farmer
saw the man go by,
He chased
him low, he chased him high,
The
cookie man just shook his head,
Here
is what the cookie said:
CHORUS
He finally
reached a river wide,
A fox
asked, "Would you like a ride?"
The cookie sat on
the fox's head
Here is what the sly
fox said,
"You can't run! That's
my plan!
I'm going to eat you,
gingerbread man!
You can't run! That's
my plan!"
And he ate the gingerbread
man!
The
Gingerbread Man Song
(sung to: The Muffin Man)
Oh, do you know the
Gingerbread Man?
The Gingerbread man,
the Gingerbread Man?
Oh, do you know the
Gingerbread Man?
Who ran and ran and
ran?
He said, "Catch me,
if you can,
If you can, if you
can."
He said, "Catch me,
if you can,"
The ran and ran and
ran.
I can run like the
Gingerbread Man,
The Gingerbread Man,
the Gingerbread Man
I can run like the
Gingerbread Man,
Now catch me if you
can.
Where
is My Gingerbread Man?
(sung to: Where, Oh Where has My Little Dog Gone?)
Oh, where oh where
is my Gingerbread Man?
Oh where oh where
can he be?
He popped out of the
oven and ran out the door.
Oh, where oh where
can he be?
Gingerbread Boy Song
Eat, Eat, Your Gingerbread Boy
(To the tune of "Row,
Row, Row, Your Boat)
Eat, eat, your Gingerbread
Boy,
Before he runs away.
Faster, faster, faster
please,
Don't let him get
away!
Catch, catch the Gingerbread
Boy,
Catch him, yes, today.
Faster, faster, faster
still,
For he has run away.
Say bye-bye to the
Gingerbread Boy.
Say good-bye today.
Say so long for he
is gone.
The fox ate him today.
Gingerbread Boy Song
Eat, Eat, Your Gingerbread Boy
(To the tune of "Row,
Row, Row, Your Boat)
Eat, eat, your Gingerbread
Boy,
Before he runs away.
Faster, faster, faster
please,
Don't let him get
away!
Catch, catch the Gingerbread
Boy,
Catch him, yes, today.
Faster, faster, faster
still,
For he has run away.
Say bye-bye to the
Gingerbread Boy.
Say good-bye today.
Say so long for he
is gone.
The fox ate him today.
Eat,
Eat, Your Gingerbread Boy
(To the tune of "Row, Row, Row, Your Boat)
Eat, eat, your Gingerbread
Boy,
Before he runs away.
Faster, faster, faster
please,
Don't let him get
away!
Catch, catch the Gingerbread
Boy,
Catch him, yes, today.
Faster, faster, faster
still,
For he has run away.
Say bye-bye to the
Gingerbread Boy.
Say good-bye today.
Say so long for he
is gone.
The fox ate him today.
Other
Gingerbread Man songs and poems may be found on the following web site:
http://www.kinderkorner.com/gingerbread.html
Language Arts
Read
a Gingerbread Man story each day and make a list of characters from each
story. After you have read several versions compare characters using a
Venn Diagram.
Compare
settings and conclusions in several of the stories.
Discuss
compound words.
Discuss
the an word family.
Find
rhyming words in the different versions of The Gingerbread Man.
Discuss
the two sounds that the letter G makes. Make a list of words for each of
the
beginning sounds.
Find
several high frequency words in The Gingerbread Man, Write the words on
two sets of gingerbread shaped cards and let students match them.
Classroom
Discussion Starters:
How would you catch
the Gingerbread Man?
Brainstorm ideas why
the Gingerbread Man should stay home.
At
the end of our Gingerbread Man unit the students are asked to pretend they are
the gingerbread man and write about where they would hide so they won't be
caught (You can download a rubric at the end of this page.)
A
wonderful kindergarten teacher (and my coworker), Cathy Dunn, had two great
ideas for our gingerbread man unit last year. She had her students brainstorm
things that would go in The Gingerbread Baby's house. She
also had the students draw and illustrate a map based on the story Gingerbread
Fred. Thanks Cathy for sharing all of your great ideas with us!!
Make
a pocket chart activity:
"Stop, stop, " said
(child's name),
"I want to eat you!"
But the Gingerbread
Man said,
"Run, run as fast
as you can,
You can't catch me,
I'm the Gingerbread
Man!"
Mathematics
Bring
in gingerbread cookies (one for each child). Have them take one bite and
lay their cookie back down. Graph the results of where each child
bit their gingerbread man. For example, head, arm, leg...
Use
five gingerbread man cutouts and label (1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th) Have students
put them in correct ordinal position. Prepare 5 large gingerbread men to
hang around children's necks. Have them line up and students will tell
who is 1st, 2nd....
Make
a gingerbread house and small gingerbread man. Practice positional words
using the gingerbread man.
Cut
out several gingerbread men that are different sizes, have students put
them in order smallest to largest.
Cut
out small gingerbread men from Ellison die cuts, make sets.
Cut
out small gingerbread men in different colors to pattern with.
Download
a gingerbread man sort (at the end of this page) and have students sort
in as many ways as possible. As a center
activity the children are given the black and white version and ask to
sort in 2 ways.
Collect
various plush gingerbread men and have students measure them with unifix
cubes.(recording sheet at the end of this page)
Art
Using
a large gingerbread man pattern, have students cut out gingerbread men
from brown construction paper and decorate with ribbon, buttons, sequins,
glitter, etc.
Make
applesauce/cinnamon gingerbread men ornaments using small gingerbread man
cookie cutters
Recipe:
Mix 1 cup cinnamon
and 1 cup applesauce with 1 Tablespoon of white glue. You want a
consistency that can be rolled with a rolling pin but not quite as sticky
or it will stick to your counter! Sprinkle counter with cinnamon
and roll out dough and cut with cookie cutters. Cut a hole in shape with
the straw so you will be able to hang them. Let dry about 24 hours.
They shrink as they dry. Cut lengths of gold thread, make loops and
hang. they will keep their scent for a few years. Refresh scent with
cinnamon fragrance oil.
Make gingerbread man playdough. Provide gingerbread man cookie cutters.
Gingerbread Play-Dough
1 Cup flour
1/2 Cup salt
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 cup water
1 tsp. vegetable oil
Spices--Cinnamon, Allspice, Ginger, Nutmeg
*Green and Red food coloring to make Brown (optional--the spices usually
give the dough a good Brown color.)
DIRECTIONS--
1. Mix the dry ingredients. Experiment with the spices until
you get
a scent and color that you like.
2. Mix water and oil together first and then add them to the dry
ingredients
and stir.
3. In a pot, cook the mixture for three to five minutes on low/medium,
stirring
constantly.
4. The dough will start to pull away from the sides of the pot and
stick together in a large ball. I take it out of the pan when I see
a VERY
faint
brown skin on the dough one each side when I flip it.
5. Take the dough out of the pan and knead the dough until it becomes
soft
and smooth.
6. Allow the dough to cool and then store it in an airtight container.
Total time to make dough: 10 minutes. This is a very quick
and easy recipe
and the dough turns out great! 1 batch makes about the same amount
as you
would find in one small tub of store bought playdough.
Make
a gingerbread man door display using a medium size gingerbread man that
has been decorated.
Cooking
Make
gingerbread houses or gingerbread men. Decorate with candies and colored
sugars, raisins, red hots,etc.
Gingerbread
Man Cookies
Ingredients
1/4 c butter
1/2 c white or brown sugar
1/2 c dark molasses
3 1/2 c flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 c water; up to 1/3
Instructions
Makes 12 medium sized cookies.
Preheat 350 degree oven.
Cream
butter, sugar, and molasses together. Add dry ingredients. Add water
as necessary.
Its easiest to mix with your hands.
Roll
out the dough to 1/4" thickness. Cut out gingerbread boys with cookie
cutter,
Roll scraps back into dough to make more cutouts. Make faces and
buttons
with the raisins. candied fruit, or red hots.
Bake on greased cookie sheet for 8-10 minutes. Let cool.
Gingerbread
Measuring Recording Sheet
Gingerbread
Man Writing Rubric
