Eric Carle is a genius. Honestly, they don’t come any better. His books seamlessly weave together so many big ideas, they are a teacher’s dream. Top it off with the fact that they are approachable, timeless, and feel effortless. It’s no surprise that many of his books are considered classics.
With my obvious author crush, it was clear I’d pick an Eric Carle book for my first book club post. But which book? Any one would make a stellar book club base – The Grouchy Ladybug, 10 Little Rubber Ducks, The Very Busy Spider. All are much loved in this house. I landed on The Very Hungry Caterpillar, mostly because I believe it’s something a lot of you will already have sitting on your shelf. If not, please rectify that situation immediately.
So without further ado, I give you all the connecting activities that I came up with for The Very Hungry Caterpillar. You will not find many worksheets on any of my book club posts. That’s because I kinda sorta hate worksheets. If worksheets are your jam, then there are tons of resources that support this particular book. The activities I have included are grouped by age range, and I have identified the subject area to help you pick good fits for your child. If there is a learning resource out there that I think is particularly stellar, you will see it linked.
YOUNG TODDLER (Under 2)
Matching:
Math Concepts
Guiding Question: How do we match similar items?
At around 15 months, your toddler can start matching items. At first, this is matching items that are pretty much identical. You can create a matching game with printouts of some of the items found in the book. When you get to a page with one of the items, ask your child to make a match. While they are matching, you can hit them with the vocabulary. Older children, or those ahead of the curve verbally, may say the vocabulary word while matching.
Color Scanning:
Guiding Question: What colors are in The Very Hungry Caterpillar?
Carle’s illustrations are full of rich color, so sitting down and pointing out the different colors is pretty easy. Rémy and I are in the middle of color work, and we have been using his wooden rainbow to support us when we scan books for color. Whenever we point to a color on a page, he picks up a wooden stacker. He isn’t accurate at this point, but he loves trying!
Counting:
Math Concepts
Guiding Question: How can we count things in life?
The book lends itself to counting exercises. Each time you hit a new fruit, be sure to count out loud while pointing. When you hit the page with all the tummy-ache-inducing foods, be sure to count those as well.
If you have introduced an abacus, this would be great practice in sliding the beads over as you count.
Fruit Salad:
Practical Life Skills
Guiding Question: How can we eat like the caterpillar?
Use the fruit pages as a recipe of sorts and whip up a fruit salad. First show the whole fruits to the child and let them inspect the food. Then set up a chopping exercise where the child helps prep the salad. For very young children, a little wooden knife works great. If you are interested in what an introduction to chopping looks like, check out our video:
Changes:
Social Emotional
Guiding Question: How have I changed?
After reading through the book, point out that the caterpillar went through a lot of changes. Point out the life stages of a caterpillar. During your discussion, if you are looking for an extra resource, I think these stick puppets are very cute.
Then point out all the changes that you’ve seen with your child. This is a time to print out, or pull up some pictures that will illustrate the point. You may also want to pull up pictures of yourself at different points in your life. While you are looking, you can explain that all things, caterpillars and people alike, grow and change.
Book Ballet:
Dance
Guiding Question: How do we tell a story with dance?
You may feel quite silly, but I promise that your toddler will find this captivating. Turn on some music (I recommend The Sugar Plum Fairy Suite from The Nutcracker – it’s too short, but on repeat, it sets the perfect mood). Then create a little ballet based on the actions in the book. Do this type of thing enough and your little one will recognize the connection between dance, music, and storytelling. It’s also a great way to introduce some classical music into the mix.
OLDER TODDLER (2, 2.5+)
All of the activities listed for younger toddlers will work for this range, and…
Food Sorting:
Health, Math Concepts
Guiding Question: How can we sort foods into different categories?
Take time to talk about the types of foods the caterpillar is eating on his way to becoming a butterfly. It’s a perfect opportunity to talk about how not all foods are created equal, and that overeating can make you feel not-so-great. You can then ask your child to sort the food into two categories: healthy, and unhealthy. When they hit a food that doesn’t quite fit into either category (I’m looking at you salami), then you can explain that there are some foods that are okay to eat in moderation.
Butterfly Lifecycle:
Science
Guiding Question: What is the life cycle of a butterfly?
This is something I covered with my second graders, but a watered down version can work with older toddlers. You can also go as big or as little as you want. You may read the book as a launch to an entire unit of study that includes feeding, observing, and ultimately releasing butterflies. If this is too much, then you could go with cutouts, or even puppets. Below I’ve included some resources that may lead you in several different directions:
Book Ballet:
Dance
Guiding Question: What movements can we create to tell a story?
Above I discussed how you can dance for your child, now it’s time for your child to dance for you. After reading the book, discuss options for movements that might illustrate plot points in the story. Then turn on that music (you still have Sugar Plum on repeat), and read while your child dances. Make sure to be a great audience member!
SCHOOL AGE: (4+)
There’s a wide range of activities here depending on the ability of the child. It’s important to know where your child is, and reinforce the things that he or she is working on.
Butterfly Life Cycle:
Science
Guiding Question: How does a biologist study the life cycle of butterflies?
I laid this out in the previous age group, but here you want to get much more into the scientific process. Ask them to make predictions, make observations, record their observations, and in the end report out their conclusions. This unit of study has very little to do with caterpillars or butterflies, and more to do with how to think and act like a biologist. So break out the books on biology and biologists. Also check out the books on other insects and plants that caterpillars may feast upon. All the resources from the older toddler section apply here. Also…
Life cycle books:
Caterpillar Word Problems:
Math Concepts
Guiding Questions: How can we answer addition/subtraction/algebra questions from The Very Hungry Caterpillar?
Getting kids used to doing word problems was always a big deal when I was teaching. A lot of kids stumble as they try to connect the math concepts they see on paper or games to real life problems they are presented with. The book offers a low stakes way to introduce word problems of different kinds. It also provides kids with visuals that they can count when needed.
If the child is working on adding, you can ask them to add different combinations of fruit. The same goes with subtraction. You could even start algebraic thinking patterns (this should start much earlier than most people think), by simply creating equations with fruit that represent values presented in the book.
Data Collection and Graphing:
Math Concepts
Guiding Question: How can we display data presented in The Very Hungry Caterpillar?
When introducing the basics of data collection (I’m talking tally sheets here, nothing crazy), and how to create different types of graphs, it’s wise to start small and approachable. This book is perfect for a child’s first stab at a bar graph, or even a pie chart.
Retelling:
Reading
Guiding Question: How does a reader retell a story?
Because the book is very much linked to a clear cycle, it’s the perfect opportunity to teach about how to retell. Retelling is an important literacy skill that is often used as the measure of reading comprehension, so getting kids to do it well is important. Print out visual aids to help scaffold the experience and make sure that kids can be successful. Guide them to use words like then, after that, next, second, third, last, and because. These are words that move retelling along. Use a sequencing resource to support the learning.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar: Part Deux
Writing
Guiding Question: How do I continue the story of The Very Hungry Caterpillar?
Start by discussing the character of the caterpillar. What are his motivations? What does he learn? Then use that information to create a second book. Given his new wings, what would the caterpillar do? Where does he go? What sorts of things is he up to?
Move through a clear writing process – brainstorm ideas, create a rough draft, revise, edit, and then publish the story. Don’t forget the illustrations!
Collage
Art
Guiding Question: What is collage?
Eric Carle uses a paper collage technique to illustrate his books. Dive into the world of collage and collage artists before helping your child to master things like good scissor and glue technique.
Some collage artists worth checking out:
Hannah Hoch, Kurt Schwitters, Man Ray, Eileen Agar
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