My bloggy pal Hilary over at Raising Fairies and Knights started a fun new Monthly Crafting Book Club this year - a challenge to create activities to go along with some of the most beloved children's books out there.
Since the first installment focused on Sandra Boynton's Barnyard Dance, we were all set last month with our Animal Action Dice Game from earlier in the year.
This month's book selection was If You Give a Moose a Muffin, so I decided to create something similar to our Creation Box and focus on the cause and effect aspect of the story.
By the way, has anyone else out there ever noticed what an extreme case of ADD this moose has?
So, the basic idea for this little project is to grab a box and then go on a hunt around your house for objects to add in that represent each new thought that enters Mr. Moose's mind.
It's an easy introduction to the skill of cause and effect - and it's never too early to get little ones familiar with reading comprehension strategies!
What did we find to put in our box?
Well, if you give a moose a muffin...
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| We happened to have this set of toy cupcakes, but you could use muffin liners (or even real muffins) too! |
...he'll want some jam to go with it...
...and will want another muffin, and another...
...and you'll need muffin mix...
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| Yes, I realize this says "brownie mix" and not "muffin mix," but we don't even have any mix boxes in this house and this item from Gv's play kitchen was the closest we could get |
...then he'll ask to borrow a sweater...
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...and it will need a button...
...so he'll sew it on with a needle and some thread...
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| I realize this is a crochet hook and some yarn, but it was easier for Gv to handle than a tiny needle and some thread |
...which will remind him of his grandmother's puppets...
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| ...which, in true ADD-style, will lead to several minutes of puppet-play... |
...and then he'll ask for some socks...
...which he'll use to make sock puppets...
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| You could totally create adorable sock puppets at this stage. As you can see, we did not. |
...which will make him want cardboard and paints...
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| Wow, that's one disgusting paint tray... |
...and he'll ask for a sheet to hide his antlers...
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| A blanket. A sheet. Whatever's handy. |
...and then he'll spill the paint, so he'll ask for soap...
...and then he'll need to hang the sheet up to dry...
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| If it hadn't been raining, we might have actually gone outside and hung this on the clothesline, but I figured a clothespin would work. |
...where he'll notice the blackberry bushes...
...and ask for more muffins and jam!
After going through the entire book and collecting everything, Gv could pretty much retell the story by flipping through the pages of the book and using the box items as clues.
This activity provides a lot of bang for your buck (which, by the way, is zilch, since you're just collecting things from around your house) - part one of the fun involves the search for the stuff and part two is using the box to retell the story and review all the effects and their causes.
Although this activity isn't a craft, it still involves quite a bit of creativity since you have to come up with book associations from the things you already have. How many matching items do you think you could find? I'd love to hear! Either leave a comment below or email me at lisahealy (at) outlook (dot) com.
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