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Running From Whom?Writing

The Gingerbread Man runs away from an old couple and many

other story characters. Whom or what would your students like to see

the Gingerbread Man run away from? To find out, make this class

book! To make a cover, color and cut out a copy of a Gingerbread

Man pattern from page 5. Attach the cutout to a sheet of construction

paper and copy the poem shown. Give each child a sheet of paper

and encourage her to draw

the Gingerbread Man running

away from someone or

something. Have her write

(or dictate for you to write) a

sentence about her drawing.

Stack the completed pages

under the cover and bind

them together

as desired.The Gingerbread Man ran and ran,

Away from the little old woman and

the little old man.

He ran from others, one by one.

Who else might the Gingerbread Man

run from?The Gingerbread

Man is

running from a monster!

Cookie Sheet CountingCounting

There is only one Gingerbread Man in

this story, but plenty more can be found

at this math center! To prepare, cut out

the cookie patterns on page 7. Place the

cookies at a center along with a cookie

sheet and a set of number cards (up to

10). A child visits the center, chooses a

card, and places the corresponding number

of cookies on the cookie sheet. Then he

counts the cookies again to verify his work.

Have him repeat this process with different

number cards as time allows.

10

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Note to the teacher: Send a copy of this page home with each child. Encourage students to tell their parents about the story they’ve been reading

and the story-themed activities they’ve been doing at school.

We are reading the story

The freshly baked Gingerbread Man escapes from the oven and outruns all those who try to catch him. But will he be able to avoid the clever fox or end up as his tasty snack?

Fun things to do:• Have your child point to the Gingerbread Man in the picture. Point

out to your child that the Gingerbread Man is running, which is an

action. Then encourage your child to name other action words.

• Invite your child to assist you in making gingerbread man cookies.

Have your child help you measure the ingredients, mix and roll the

dough, cut out the cookies, and decorate them.

• Talk with your child about how the fox tricks the Gingerbread Man

in the story. Ask your child to tell about a time he or she has been

tricked. Encourage your child to describe what happened and how

it made him or her feel.

Fun for the FamilyThe Gingerbread Man

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The Gingerbread Man

Running Round and Round

Letter recognition

During this whole-group activity, the Gingerbread Man

stumbles upon a variety of letters as he runs around.

Gather students in a circle and give each child a letter card

to place in front of her. Give one child a gingerbread man

cutout (pattern on page 5). Play some music and have the

child holding the Gingerbread Man walk around the circle,

touching the Gingerbread Man to each letter as she passes.

Stop the music, have the child stop the Gingerbread Man on

a letter and lead the group in chanting, “The Gingerbread

Man runs round and round. Tell us which letter he has

found.” Ask the child holding the Gingerbread Man to name

the letter he is on. Then have her give the Gingerbread Man

to that child and sit down in her place. Restart the music for

another round of play.

L

MatthewName _______________________

Under the tree…

Where is the

Gingerbread Man?

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Where Is the Gingerbread Man?

Positional words

The Gingerbread Man runs away from many of the story’s

characters, but where does he go? Give your students an idea by

leading them in making these adorable booklets. Copy the booklet

cover, pages, and patterns on pages 5 and 6 to make a class

supply. Write each child’s name on a booklet cover, cut out the

cover and pages, and staple them in order along the left side.

After each child colors his booklet, have him color and cut out a

set of gingerbread man patterns. Then, beginning with the cover,

read the booklet text aloud. On booklet pages 1–4, have the child

glue a gingerbread man in the corresponding position. So that’s

where the Gingerbread Man goes when he runs off!

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Booklet Cover and Pages 1, 2, and 3Use with “Where Is the Gingerbread Man?” on page 2.

Beside the house…1

Next to the box…2

Under the tree…3

Where Is the Gingerbread Man?

Name _______________________

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Gingerbread BabyWritten and illustrated by Jan Brett

When Gingerbread Baby escapes from Matti’s oven, he

is chased around the countryside by a variety of people and

animals. Meanwhile, Matti remains at home cooking up a

way to catch this mischievous cookie.

oven wall barnwell wagon bridge river milk can house

From Place to PlaceLiteracy

This activity enlists youngsters’ help

in recalling the places Gingerbread Baby

visits as he avoids being captured. Draw

an oven on one end of a length of bulletin

board paper and glue a gingerbread house

cutout (pattern on page 11) to the opposite

end. To begin, attach a gingerbread baby

cutout (patterns on page 12) to the oven

with Sticky-Tac adhesive. Then revisit the

story and invite youngsters to recall, in order,

places Gingerbread Baby visits after leaving

the house. As a child names each loca-

tion, sketch it on the paper. Then encourage

students to retell the story by moving

Gingerbread Baby along the path until he is

safely in his home.

Home, Sweet HomeArt

With this activity, students make a gingerbread house—

just like Gingerbread Baby’s! Give each youngster a brown

construction paper house cutout (pattern on page 11) and

a few cotton balls. Have each child stretch the cotton balls

and glue them to the roof of the house so they resemble

frosting. Invite each child to use a variety of craft supplies

to decorate her house as desired. Then help her tape her

house to another sheet of construction paper so it makes

a flap like the gingerbread house in the story. Finally, have

her color a copy of the gingerbread baby on page 12 and

glue it behind the house.

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Draw

Sweet Fellow

Finish the gingerbread man.

Note to the teacher: If desired, copy the page onto brown paper. After students have finished their drawings, have them drizzle white

paint on their gingerbread men so it resembles frosting.

Name

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On the fox…

4Crunch!

5

Booklet Pages 4 and 5 and PatternsUse with “Where Is the Gingerbread Man?” on page 2.

Gingerbread Man PatternUse with “Running Round and Round” on page 2 and

“Running From Whom?” on page 3.

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The Gingerbread ManU

se with “C

ookie Sheet C

ounting” on page 3.

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Gingerbread Baby Patterns

Use with “From Place to Place” and “Home, Sweet Home” on page 9 and

“In, Out, and All Around” on page 10.

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Gingerbread House Pattern

Use with “From Place to Place” and “Home, Sweet Home” on page 9 and

“In, Out, and All Around” on page 10.

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Gingerbread Baby

In, Out, and All AroundMath

With this activity, youngsters name positional words to show where the Gingerbread Baby is in relationship to his beloved gingerbread house. To begin, cut out a copy of the ginger-bread house and one gingerbread baby pattern on pages 11 and 12 and ready each cutout for flannelboard use. Place the house on your flan-nelboard and place the gingerbread baby beside the house. Have students identify the baby’s location. Then repeat the process with other positional words, such as inside, outside, below, or on top of.

The gingerbread baby is beside house.

Can’t Catch Me!Gross motor

Invite your little ones to maneuver through obstacles similar to the ones Gingerbread Baby faced in the story. In a traffic-free area of the room, arrange a row of blocks (wall), a large hoop (well), and a line of tape (bridge). Each youngster, in turn, steps over the wall, hops in and out of the well, and walks along the bridge. No doubt youngsters will ask to repeat the actions of Gingerbread Baby again and again.