The Baker's Dozen

In the classroom, adding example grocery lists and if available, plastic grocery food items, to dramatic play areas provide props for children to pretend and extend the story. (Be sure to add bananas!)  At home, children can assist with creating and checking off a grocery list when shopping with adults.  Ask children if they have ever tried banana bread.  It might be fun to follow a recipe together, and have a taste test of plain banana bread, or bread with walnuts, or another loaf with chocolate chips. Which one is their favorite?

After reading, children can create their own story using illustrations about a floating balloon.  Encourage them to share a little bit about their illustration by asking, “Where is your balloon going?” and “What is happening to the balloon in your illustration?”  Children can decide if they would like to add the text to their picture(s), or leave their creation open to interpretation and imagination. Another activity that extends this story is playing I Spy.  In the book, the child’s attention is drawn to objects with the same bright orange color of the lost balloon.  Children can choose a color or category (for example, the color orange, or an object they have to look up to see) to search for together in their environment with peers or an adult.

Dotted lines throughout the illustrations follow the path of the bike as it moves from one owner to the next.  Children may even trace the path with their fingers. When children have the opportunity to engage with books in this more tactile way, it shows their curiosity and understanding that print has meaning.  Following the bike’s journey also supports understanding that the same bike is perceived in unique ways by each owner.  To extend this idea through play. consider adding paths using paper, chalk, or tape to play areas where children can push or ride vehicles along the pathway. To have fun while boosting vocabulary, choose an object and ask children or family members to describe it with one word. The variety of responses is often surprising and delightful.

Adults can create a simple matching game using cut-up pictures from recycled materials such as magazines, flyers or catalogs. Adults and children can also use construction paper to draw a cracked cup and “mend” it with tape or glue. Children may also enjoy engaging in a scientific activity where they have the chance to observe a variety of broken objects (a deflated ball, a pencil with a snapped point, or a toy car with a wobbly wheel) and brainstorm ideas for whether they could be repaired. If yes, they can test their ideas and evaluate the outcomes!

Calling all inventors! Just like Emmie, children will find excitement in creating their own inventions or structures using recycled materials.  Adults can provide children with materials such as blocks, paper towel rolls, cardboard, fabric, wheels, tape, paint, markers, and more to inspire designing. Describe how, like Emmie, they may want to make a blueprint plan for their design before creating. If they choose to do so, adults can remind children that even with a plan, Emmie made changes to her finished product, so as fellow inventors they may need to make adaptations as well. Talk with children about their creations.  Is it a work of art? Is it designed to solve a problem? What do they feel is the most interesting part? How might a human use this invention? How might a mouse?

Trash collectors play a very important role in keeping communities clean.  Children can help by taking care of their own trash in the classroom or at home.  Using images or real-life, sanitary examples of different types of trash, such as cereal boxes, junk mail, plastic water bottles, or soup cans, children can practice sorting the garbage into categories (plastics, mixed paper, cardboard, aluminum). Composting, or using certain food and plant scraps to create rich soil in which new plants grow, is another method that can be introduced to young children. Children can partner with adults to determine whether examples of foods and plants can be composted, or if they need to be thrown away in the trash.

Giant Parsnip Soup lends itself to many extension activities. Adults can partner with children and conduct a parsnip taste test. Compare the taste of raw parsnips to cooked ones. Adults can also have carrots available, since parsnips have a similar shape and look to carrots. How are they similar? How are they different? Continue on the culinary path and invite children to help prepare parsnip soup, using the recipe from the book. The counting and measuring integrated into cooking will continue to reinforce numeracy skills.

Even adults will not be able to resist the urge to create some clay or playdough sculptures after reading about Henry.  Clay is a fun medium for open-ended art and also can be used in structured activities when forming letters, numbers, and shapes. This is also an opportunity to engage in nature-based learning. Children can work with adults to create their own “bug hotel,” using logs, bark, pine cones, and sticks to create a sturdy frame with lots of space for bugs to enter and crawl. The hotel can be placed in a dry, stable outdoor area and visited often to see if any guests have booked a stay!

When the little girl and her mother prepare for their expedition, they make a list of what they need to bring.  Decide on a destination for a real or imaginary expedition with children and work together to brainstorm a list of what is needed for the trip. While planning for an expedition, include conversation about how people move from place to place. If possible, provide pictures to talk about mobility supports, such as wheelchairs, strollers, walkers, scooters, bicycles, canes, etc. How do these mobility aids help with movement and trips from one place to another? 

Children love to move, and this book welcomes the reader to chant, sing, and move! Adults can provide a variety of instruments or sound makers, such as shakers, surfaces for drumming, or bells. Children and adults can try out the different sounds while listening to music, or while creating their own. It could also be fun to clap (or use sound makers, such as music sticks or maracas) to sound out the beats of the syllables in family names, whether it be first names, the unique names they call their family members, or the different examples for grandparent names highlighted in the story. When instruments are not available, invite each child to show a movement of their choice (e.g., head nod, foot tap, body stretch, spin) and lead others in trying out the movement, too. 

Have some fun with language together with children! The little baker in the story names her treats using playful vocabulary.  In this book, the treats were made of sand.  At a local sandy spot near water, in a sandbox, at a playground, or in a sensory bin, add a little water and some other natural ingredients to the sand to create some sandy treats of your own! Label the different products with names that the children create. 

Adults can hide stuffed animals or picture cards representing mama duck’s children around their classroom or home, and challenge children to find them. Together, keep a list of where they are found, calling attention to position words, such as, “on the bookshelf”, “under the table”, or “beside the plant.” Once the babies are found, children can take the lead in hiding them for adults to find. This game provides a great opportunity to frequently model counting to ensure all have been found, with the repetition reinforcing math and counting skills through play.

In the story, Pie shares a lot of reasons why Peggy is naughty and says that their family loves her anyway.  Brainstorm a list with children of all the things about Peggy that make her lovable. A fun classroom activity connected to our sense of smell is to fill a few covered jars with some safe scents, such as vanilla, cinnamon, coffee grounds, or peppermint.  Take time for children to smell each scent and guess what it might be.  Create a chart to graph whether each child finds the smell pleasing or not.