Kindergarten celebrated the festive December season with a gingerbread theme! All month, students read gingerbread stories and examined the similarities and differences between each text in preparation for crafting gingerbread stories of their own. The unit wrapped up on the last afternoon before Winter Break as families joined their students in the classroom to build gingerbread houses together.

Kindergarten students enjoyed exploring the similarities and differences in gingerbread man stories from around the world, marveling that there could be so many variations of the same story. Students began with classic Gingerbread Man and Gingerbread Girl stories and then read other versions of the story, such as The Gingerbread Man Loose at the Zoo by Laura Murray. As they listened to the different stories, the kindergarteners pointed out the details that were the same in every story and those that weren’t. They noticed how each author used character and setting variations to put their own spin on the classic tale. This exploration of story elements helped students see the importance of character, setting, plot, conflict, and resolution. Students used this experience to work in small groups and create their own unique gingerbread characters, like a gingerbread princess or a gingerbread mermaid. After deciding on their character, the groups crafted their own version of a gingerbread tale. Using a gingerbread story planner to outline the common elements of their tale, they described their character, how it was made, the setting, the other characters that their gingerbread character encounters, and how the story ends. They dictated their story to be typed up by the teachers and created illustrations for each page.

Students have also been working in gingerbread-themed math centers this month. Building on the graphing skills they have been learning this term, the Kindergarten students graphed each type of candy used in a gingerbread house picture. They also played a gingerbread version of a favorite math game called Bump It!, where they roll a dice and can knock their partner off the board if they land on the same number. 

The highlight of the unit will be when families join students in the classrooms on the last day of classes before break to build gingerbread houses together. During that event, students will also share copies of the bound gingerbread stories they created in class!