Run, run, as fast as you can! The Gingerbread Man is a delicious fairy tale that invites us to move our bodies as we run to catch the Gingerbread Man!
We invite you to act out the steps of the story with real materials and then with your bodies! Check out the directions to the Gingerbread Man Chasing Game rules below.
Set up Time: 10 minutes
Directions
First, read the story many times. Then, act out the steps of the story with real materials. This might be a little playdough gingerbread man, a small oven, and even some of the animals in the story (if you have them!).
Gingerbread Man Chasing Game Instructions:
- Designate children to be the Gingerbread Man and others to be the other characters (the old lady, the old man, the animals, etc.). Everyone can have a turn to be different characters if you play the game multiple times.
- Gather in a circle, and start the story. Pretend to mix the dough together, roll it out, and then decorate the Gingerbread Man. Pretend to place it in an oven and then count down from 5, and then pretend to open the oven. When you open the oven, the children who are the Gingerbread Men run away, and the other characters chase them!
Materials
- Gingerbread man cookie cutters
- Play dough
- Collected Natural Materials (rocks, leaves)
Learning Through Play
Physical: Gross Motor – Chasing games are a great way to develop gross motor skills, as children start, stop, change directions and engage in fun big, body play. Some children may not like being chased, others might love it, and others might just run in circles—that’s okay! Enjoy the way that different children express themselves through movement.
Cognitive: Memory – Can children remember the animals from the story and what order they chase the Gingerbread Man? The order of steps to bake gingerbread cookies? Sequencing is a great cognitive skill that children will need later in school for reading comprehension, but this is a great way to practice it through movement, instead of a more traditional way (such as with a worksheet).
School Readiness: Love of Books – We invite you to think about what else you could do to learn about this story. Could you bake gingerbread men with children? Perhaps you could read a different version of the story, with different outcomes, characters, or settings. For example, one of our favorites is “La Tortilla Corredora/The Runaway Tortilla” by Laura Herrera, that is actually about a tortilla and not a gingerbread man. Or perhaps you can read “The Gingerbread Boy” by Richard Egielski, which portrays a gingerbread running through New York City. Reading different variations on the same classic is a wonderful way to invite critical thinking as children compare and contrast.
See this activity in the Rayz Kidz app, along with the other fun pretend play activities. Rayz Kidz is your trusted source for play-based activities featuring over 100 themes and 500+ hands-on activities and clear descriptions of the beautiful learning that is happening through play.
