FAMILY LITERACY
ACTIVITY CARDS
Workshop
Seven
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Fun Fact Cards
raven
ACTIVITY ROUTINE
1. Look through your Family Literacy Bag together with your child and
identify the books and materials included.
2. Follow the steps listed below when engaging in an activity with your
child:
a. Choose one activity to complete at a time (you do not need to do the
activities in any particular order).
b. Gather the book and necessary materials for completing the activity.
c. Allow your child to “play” with the items in the bag for a few moments
before expecting him/her to use the materials in a learning activity.
d. Read and talk about the chosen book with your child.
f. Engage in the chosen learning activity together.
g. Make note of yours and your child's reactions to the activity on your
at-home survey.
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
WHAT’S IN YOUR BAG? CHECKLIST
Materials included in this Family Literacy Bag
(Workshop Seven) include:
Books:
Down by the Bay by Raffi
Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar? by Bonnie Lass, Philemon
Sturges
Materials:
Activity cards for Down by the Bay and Who Took the Cookies from the
Cookie Jar?
Two book tags
At-home survey (last page of activity cards)
Pencil with animal top eraser
Fish toy
Fish-shaped notepad
Sea life stickers
Watermelon papers
Picture/word cards for whale, llama, moose, goose, raven, raccoon,
and beaver
Pumpkin bookmarks (two)
Pumpkin and spider tic-tac-toe
Writing paper
Fun fact cards for raven, raccoon, and beaver
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Ravens are large black
birds, and their feathers are
a blue-purple color.
Ravens are very social
animals and stay together
in their flocks all year.
FAMILY LITERACY BAG
Down by the Bay
a Raffie Song to Read book
As You Read
Activity Title: Down by the Question
Standard: Your child will answer detailed who,
what, when, where, and why questions about a
story using complete sentences.
Materials: Down by the Bay, pencil with animal top
eraser
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Workshop Seven
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Directions: Ask your child the following questions before, during, and after reading the story
Down by the Bay. Use the pencil with animal top eraser to direct your child’s attention to the
items in the question. Allow your child to look back through the book to help him/her find the
answer if needed.
Before Reading
1.
Say, “The title of the book is Down by the Bay. What do you think a bay is?”
2.
Say, “On the cover of the book we see watermelons. Tell about a time when you ate a
watermelon.”
3.
Say, “On the cover of the book, a little girl and a moose are looking out of the windows.
Why do you think they are doing this?”
During Reading
4.
Ask, “What grows down by the bay?”
5.
Read, “Did you ever see a whale with a polka-dot (tail)?” (Allow your child to complete the
sentence.)
6.
Ask, “Looking at the pictures in the book, what are some of the things the mother did
down by the bay?”
7.
Ask, “How do you think the mother felt when she saw a bear combing his hair in the
bathroom?” (Possible Answers: She felt shocked. She felt surprised.)
After Reading
8.
Ask, “After reading the story, do you think real animals could do any of the same silly
things that the animals did in the story?”
9.
Ask, “Have you ever been to a place like the bay? Tell me about it.”
10. Ask, “What animals in the story did you like best? Why?”
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Ravens measure 3 feet from
their beaks to their tails.
raccoon
FAMILY LITERACY BAG
Down by the Bay
Conversations About Books
Activity Title: Interview
Standard: Your child will engage in story
discussions and conversations
Materials: Down by the Bay, fish toy
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Workshop Seven
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Directions:
1. Read the story Down by the Bay with your child and talk with him/her about the
adventures enjoyed in the story.
2. Tell your child he/she is going to get a chance to talk about adventures he/she would
enjoy.
3. Take the fish toy out of your Family Literacy Bag.
4. Tell your child that whoever is holding the fish is the person allowed to talk.
5. Hold the fish while you ask your child one of the questions listed below.
Interview Questions:
The children in the story enjoyed watermelon. What is your favorite food to enjoy?
The children in the story lived in a house. Where do we live?
The mother in the story had many chores to do. What kinds of chores do you do at home?
The characters in the story saw animals. What kinds of animals have you seen?
The children in the story climbed a tree. Can you tell me about a time when you climbed a
tree?
6. Give your child the fish to hold as he/she answers the question. Encourage him/her to
answer in complete sentences.
7. Repeat the process for other questions and engage your child in further story discussion
and conversation.
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Raccoons nest in trees
and eat everything from
berries to fish.
Raccoons are nocturnal,
which means they come
out at night.
FAMILY LITERACY BAG
Down by the Bay
Oral Language
Activity Title: Ask and Answer
Standard: Your child will distinguish between
asking and telling, and participate in both types
of exchanges.
Materials: Down by the Bay, pencil, fish-shaped
notepad
3
Workshop Seven
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Directions:
1. Read the story Down by the Bay with your child.
2. Give your child the pencil and fish-shaped notepad from your Family Literacy Bag.
3. Ask your child to write a period on one sheet and a question mark on another sheet.
Provide assistance as needed.
4. Talk with your child about the difference between a sentence with a period (telling) and a
sentence with a question mark (asking).
5. Turn through the story Down by the Bay and talk about the different kinds of sentences
used in the story.
6. Take the period and question mark notepad pages and fold them two times so you
cannot see the punctuation marks.
7. Hold the two papers in your hand and invite your child to take one from you.
8. Ask your child to unfold the page, tell you what the punctuation mark is, and say a
sentence that would use the punctuation mark (either asking or telling).
9. Provide assistance to your child if he/she struggles with creating the matching sentence.
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Raccoons use their front
paws to open cans, latches,
and turn on faucets.
beaver
FAMILY LITERACY BAG
Down by the Bay
Emergent Writing
Activity Title: Rhyming Rebus
Standard: Your child will use letter-like
formations, pictures, and letters to represent
thoughts and ideas.
Materials: Down by the Bay, sea life stickers,
pencil, and watermelon papers
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Workshop Seven
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Directions:
1. Read the story Down by the Bay with your child.
2. After reading the story ask your child, “What did each rhyming sentence have in it?” (Each
rhyming sentence had an animal or creature in it.)
3. Show your child the sea life stickers and ask him/her to identify them. (fish, shark, octopus,
sea horse, crab, dolphin, turtle, seaweed)
4. Tell your child that he/she is going to write his/her own rhyme using the stickers.
5. Write an example for your child such as, “Did you ever see a fish eating from a dish down
by the bay?” Place the fish sticker on the page instead of writing the word fish.
6. Say to your child, “Fish and dish rhyme because they both end the same. They both end
with the -ish sound.”
7. Give your child a watermelon paper and ask him/her to use a sea life sticker on the first
blank so that it says, “Did you ever see a ________ ” with the sticker in the blank.
8. Ask your child to think of a word that rhymes with the chosen picture and make up a
rhyme to complete the sentence.
9. Allow your child to complete the rest of his/her rhyme.
10. Repeat steps 7–9 using a new watermelon paper and another sea life sticker. (Use the fish,
crab, shark, sea horse, and seaweed stickers because the are easier to rhyme.)
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
The beaver can live in
water or on land.
Beavers live in colonies
of four to eight family
members.
FAMILY LITERACY BAG
Down by the Bay
Vocabulary
Activity Title: Animal Clues
Standard: Your child will read words, sentences,
and short phrases.
Materials: Down by the Bay, picture/word cards
for whale, llama, moose, and goose
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Workshop Seven
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Directions:
1. Read the story Down by the Bay with your child.
2. Take the picture/word cards (whale, llama, moose, goose) from your Family Literacy Bag.
3. Review the four words and pictures on the cards with your child.
4. Place the four cards on the floor or table in front of your child. (Place the cards word side up
if your child can easily read the words, and picture side up if your child needs the picture clue to
recognize the animal.)
5. Read one of the clues listed below to your child.
Clues:
This is the animal with the polka-dot tail. (whale)
This is the animal that kissed the moose. (goose)
This is the animal that was wearing pajamas. (llama)
This is the animal that was kissed by the goose. (moose)
6. Challenge your child to solve the clue and point to the matching animal picture/word
card.
7. After the card has been identified, invite your child to read and spell the word, find the
word in the story, and read some of the words on the story page.
8. Repeat the process for other picture/word cards.
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Picture/Word Cards
Beavers are vegetarians.
They eat plants, such as
clover, grasses, and
raspberry canes.
FAMILY LITERACY BAG
Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar?
Authors: Bonnie Lass, Philemon Sturges
As You Read
Activity Title: Who Has the Answer to the Question?
Standard: Your child will answer detailed who,
what, when, where, and why questions about a
story using complete sentences.
Materials: Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie
Jar?, pumpkin bookmark
6
Workshop Seven
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Directions: Ask your child the following questions as you read the story Who Took the Cookies
from the Cookie Jar?. Use the pumpkin bookmark as a pointer to direct your child’s attention to the
items in the question. Allow your child to look back through the book to help him/her find the
answer if needed.
Before Reading
1.
Show your child the cover of the book Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar? Ask
your child to predict what the story will be about. Tell your child to use the pumpkin
bookmark as a pointer and point to the clues he/she saw that determined the
prediction.
2.
Ask your child to identify animals he/she recognizes on the cover of the book.
3.
Ask, “Who do you think took the cookies from the cookie jar?”
During Reading
4.
Ask, “Whose cookies were missing from the cookie jar?”
5.
Ask, “How did the skunk go about finding the animal that took the cookies?”
6.
Ask, “What does the squirrel munch for lunch?”
7.
On the last page of the story, ask your child to show you uppercase letters and lowercase
letters.
After Reading
8.
Ask, “Who took the cookies from the cookie jar?”
9.
Say, “In the story, the ants were eating the chocolate chip cookies. What kind of cookies
do you like to eat?”
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
whale
llama
FAMILY LITERACY BAG
Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar?
Conversations About Books
Activity Title: Something Is Missing
Standard: Your child will compare the thoughts
and feelings of a story character to his/her own
thoughts and feelings.
Materials: Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie
Jar?
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Workshop Seven
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Directions:
1. Read the story Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar? to your child.
2. Talk with your child about the different animal characters in the story. Ask your child to
name each animal.
3. Say to your child, “Describe what happened to the skunk in the story.” (his cookies were
missing)
4. Ask your child, “How would you feel if you were missing something?”
5. Ask your child, “Have you ever had something missing?” Use probing and guiding
questions to encourage your child to give more details about the situation and how he/she
felt.
6. Share with your child a story about a time when you had something missing. Explain to
your child how you felt and what you did about it.
7. Tell your child, “Thinking about story events that happen to story characters and comparing
them to our own lives is a positive strategy to use when reading.”
8. Challenge your child by asking, “How do you think the ants in the story felt?” Ask your child
if the ants felt guilty, proud, ashamed, or excited.
9. Allow your child to explain why he/she thinks the ants felt a certain way.
10. Repeat the process with other story characters.
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
moose
goose
FAMILY LITERACY BAG
Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar?
Vocabulary
Activity Title: Talking Tic-Tac-Toe
Standard: Your child will practice talking
extensively about topics of personal interest
and learn to take turns in conversation.
Materials: Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie
Jar?, pumpkin and spider tic-tac-toe, pencil,
writing paper
8
Workshop Seven
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Directions:
1. Read the story Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar? with your child.
2. Ask your child, “What was the shape of the cookie jar that skunk was using in the story?”
(pumpkin)
3. Take the pumpkin and spider tic-tac-toe game pieces out of your Family Literacy Bag.
4. Show your child that the pumpkins in the game match the pumpkin cookie jar from the
story.
5. Teach your child how to play tic-tac-toe using the pumpkin and spider game pieces.
6. Tell your child that this time your tic-tac-toe game is “Talking Tic-Tac-Toe.” In order to put a
spider or pumpkin on the game board, you must tell the other player (in a complete
sentence) something about yourself.
7. To begin the game, model for your child by placing one game piece on the board and
telling your child one thing about yourself. Be sure to speak in a complete sentence!
8. Continue with the game as each of you take turns placing a game piece on the board and
then telling something about yourself using a complete sentence.
9. Tell your child that just like in the game, it is important to take turns with others when
engaged in a conversation.
10. After one person wins the game, give the winner a pencil and piece of paper.
11. The winner should write one thing he/she learned about the other person during the game.
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
FAMILY LITERACY BAG
Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar?
Oral Language
Activity Title: Favorite Cookie
Standard: Your child will participate in
discussions that inform and persuade.
Materials: Who Took the Cookies from the
Cookie Jar?, cookies if available (not included)
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Workshop Seven
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Directions:
1. Read the story Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar? with your child.
2. Talk with your child about the cookies that were searched for during the story.
3. Say to your child, “Tell me what kind of cookies you think were lost in the story.”
4. Engage your child in a discussion about his/her favorite cookies.
5. Model for your child how to participate in a discussion that informs and persuades by telling
your child about your favorite cookie.
6. Tell your child the reason why your favorite cookie is the best cookie.
7. Challenge your child to tell you why his/her favorite cookie is the best cookie.
8. If cookies are available to you, participate in a taste test together and discuss which cookie is
the best.
9. Encourage your child to speak using complete sentences.
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
FAMILY LITERACY BAG
Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar?
Vocabulary
Activity Title: Animal Facts
Standard: Your child will identify unfamiliar
words and discuss possible definitions.
Materials: Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie
Jar?, fun fact cards (raven, raccoon, beaver),
picture/word cards (raven raccoon, beaver)
10
Workshop Seven
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
Directions:
1. Read the story Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar? with your child.
2. Turn back through the book and pause on the page with the raven.
3. Say to your child, “Point to the raven and describe the animal in your own words.”
4. Take the raven picture/word card and the raven fun fact cards from your Family Literacy Bag.
5. Allow your child to compare the raven picture card to the raven in the book. Say to your child,
“Tell me the things that are the same and the things that are different about the two raven
pictures.”
6. Turn the raven card over and show your child the word raven. Challenge your child to find the
word raven in the book.
7. Read the raven fun facts to your child. Pause and discuss each fact after it is mentioned.
8. Repeat the process for the raccoon and beaver as well.
9. Tell your child that learning new words will help him/her become a better reader and writer.
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida
FAMILY LITERACY BAG SONGS, POEMS, AND NURSERY RHYMES
Down by the Bay
Cookies, Cookies
Sung to the tune of
“Do You Know the Muffin Man?”
Hey, hey what do you say?
Cookies, cookies, big and round.
What do you see down by the bay?
Take one bite, can’t put them down.
A great big whale with a polka-dot tail.
They’re chewy, gooey, and fun to eat.
A big furry bear, combing his hair.
Oh, they make a wonderful treat!
A tiny little fly wearing a tie.
Cookies, cookies, I love them so.
There’s a whole lot to see.
When you eat them you can’t say no.
From the oven, nice and hot.
Won’t you come join me?
Pass them up? No, I will not!
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Workshop Seven
Florida Institute of Education at the University of North Florida