The Very Hungry Caterpillar

by Eric Carle

[Snack Time] [Circle Time] [Fine Motor] [Gross Motor] [Technology]

Snack Time

Make a fruit salad. Each child gets a PCS page with all the fruits we used. They color in each fruit on their paper as we cut up the fruits one at a time.--submitted by Wendy Gill

Have strawberries for snack. Make holes in the strawberries using a straw. Then give the children a gummy worm to put through the hole. --submitted by Jan Fitch

Make a caterpillar out of 5 styrofoam cups. Put a different fruit in each one. Allow the children to point to pictures or name the fruit that they want to try and serve it to them from one of the cups.--submitted by Susan Emery

Don't forget to make eyes and antennae on the first cup!

Circle Time

Here is a poem from the Under5's website. If you have internet access near your circle time area, you could view this poem at circle and let the children take turns clicking on the word "butterfly" to see a graphic of a butterfly at the end of each verse.

Use this communication board made by Jennifer Beck to help kids tell the story. This board is in Windows Boardmaker format and has just the right number of fruits in each box. Use it as is, or add more squares of your own.

Make 1 large apple, 2 pears, 3 plums, 4 strawberries, 5 oranges and 1 green leaf out of construction paper, laminate each one and cut a whole in the center of each. Make a pom pom caterpillar on a tongue depressor. Attach each of the fruits to a clothes line and as you read the story, have students take a turn to let the caterpillar eat the fruits. Students will be using their hands together (OT) to put the caterpillar through the hole of the fruit and take it out with their other hand on the other side of the fruit. --submitted by Wendy Gill

Tell the story using actual fruits that you hold up. When it is time for the caterpillar to make it's cocoon (actually it's a chrysallis), put your pom pom caterpillar in a bag, spin the bag a few times and when you open it instead of pulling out the caterpillar, pull out the butterfly you have previously hidden in the bag. You might also want to make 2 caterpillars, one smaller than the other (Big vs. Small concept).--submitted by Wendy Gill

Fine Motor Activities

Butterfly template from the Under5's website that you can print and use for art activities

Gross Motor Activities

Wrap kids (caterpillars) up in a blanket (cocoon) and roll them. When they come out, instruct them to fly like butterflies.--submitted by Wendy Gill

Use scarves during a movement activity to dance like butterflies.--submitted by Wendy Gill

Technology Links

Download this Very Hungry Caterpillar Intellipics game(for Windows)

Need help downloading? Click

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