2010 Nominee: The Little Red Hen

A newly illustrated edition of the classic fable of the hen who is forced to do all of the work of baking bread and of the animals who learn a bitter lesson from it.

Author/Illustrator: Jerry Pinkney

• Author's biography and photo

Book Activities

• Discussion questions:  Why do you think all the other animals do not want to help the little red hen? Why does the hen say no to the other animals when it comes time to eat the bread? Why is the hen so determined to make bread?
• Reading/oral Language: The words are color coded to match the animals. Have the children join in on the repetitive parts of the story. Find a reader's theater version of the story.
• Writing: Create your own short story about not helping someone with the work but wanting the finished product.
  
• Social Studies: What countries or states grow the most wheat? Study kinds of bread in different cultures.
• Science: Learn about growing wheat. Study the process from wheat to flour to bread.
  
• Math: Find recipes for bread and practice measuring the ingredients. Double the recipe or halve it.
  
• Cooking/Snack: Make a loaf of bread with the students and then have it as a snack one day
  
• Art/Drama: Perform a play based on the book for the children's parents
• Music/Movement: Do the chicken dance. Make up dances for the other animals.
• Technology integration: in Kidspiration, find the animals in the story. Give them speech bubbles to retell the story. Learn to copy and past the NOT I bubble.
  

Related Books

• By Jerry Pinkney:
• The Ugly Duckling
• Little Red Riding Hood
• Noah's Ark
• John Henry
• The Talking Eggs by Robert San Souci,Jerry Pinkney (Illustrator)
• Mirandy and Brother Wind by Pat McKissack, Jerry Pinkney (Illustrator)
• Related books:
• Cock-a-doodle-doo by Janet Stevens
• The Little Red Hen Makes a Pizza by Philemon Sturges
• Bread, Bread, Bread by Ann Morris
• Bread Is for Eating by David Gershator (Also Reading Rainbow)

Websites

Monarch Home

2010 Nominee Resources