Here's another narration of the classic tale:

BOOKS

Here are some picture books featuring gingerbread:

Gingerbread Baby, by Jan Brett, G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1999— Cute twist on the original fairy tale with a boy saving the cookie by making it a gingerbread house.

The Gingerbread Bear, by Robert Denis and illustrated by Tammie Lyon, Cartwheel Books, 2012 – Very close to the original tale but takes place in Woodlands National park and has a clever Park Ranger instead of the fox.

The Gingerbread Boy, by Paul Galdone, Clarion Books, 1975, - The classic fairy tale with the wily fox but calling the cookie the Gingerbread Boy.

The Gingerbread Cowboy, by Janet Squires and illustrated by Holly berry, Laura Geringer Books, 2006—Much like the original but with cowboy and western touches.

The Gingerbread Doll, by Susan Tews and illustrated by Megan Lloyd, Clarion Books, 1993—a story full of the true Christmas Spirit as it shows how a gift made with love means more than any a store could offer.

The Gingerbread Girl Goes Animal Crackers, by Lisa Campbell Ernst, Dutton Children’s Books, 2011—In a previous book the gingerbread girl outsmarted the fox but now she has to try to save the animal crackers that have escaped from her birthday present.

The Gingerbread Man, retold by Eric A. Kimmel and illustrated by Megan Lloyd, Holiday house, 1993—The classic fairy-tale can be read in this book.

Gingerbread Mouse, written and illustrated by Katy Bratun, , Harper Collins Publishers, 2003 – A little mouse loses her house during a winter snow, when she journeys to find a new home she sees a gingerbread house that is just her size in the window of a big house. Santa comes to her aid with a better alternative.

The Gingerbread Pirate, by Kristin Kladstrup and illustrated by Matt Tavares, Candlewick Press, 2009 – When a boy and his mom bake pirate gingerbread men as snacks for Santa, he sets aside his favourite cookie which magically comes to life at night and tries to rescue the rest of his crew from being eaten by Santa.

Here are some nonfiction books about making gingerbread houses (most of these were found under adult cookbooks but my kids enjoyed looking at the photographs of the amazing and unique gingerbread buildings).

There are many versions of the classic Gingerbread Man story (in fact there is a type of folk tale about runaway food like fleeing pancakes, dumplings, bread etc. from many different cultures and countries around the world.). The 1875 story is the most common one with the rhyming and taunting gingerbread cookie. To learn more check here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gingerbread_Man.

JOURNALING

Question Prompt:
Write out one or more of the following questions in your Family Theme Day Scrapbook or on a piece of paper to glue in your scrapbook: Describe what the best Gingerbread house in the world would look like. Do you like to eat gingerbread? What candies would you use to decorate a gingerbread man or house?

How to encourage your child to write:

Choose the level of your child:

¨ Toddler – discuss the answer(s) out loud first and have your child draw a picture of the answer

¨ Preschooler/Kindergartener – discuss the answer(s) out loud first and write the answer down for him/her leaving one word for him/her to write out himself/herself with your help. You could also encourage him/her to draw a picture as well.

¨ Early Grade School – have your child either write out the answer himself/herself (encourage phonetic spelling) without your help, or offer to help with spelling each word out loud one word at a time.

¨ Grade School – have your child write a sentence or two on his/her own and then read over and discuss the response. (You decide whether to correct the spelling or not)

¨ Older Child – have your child write a longer response (paragraph).

¨ As A Challenge – instead of a question ask your older child to write a story about a gingerbread man or a gingerbread house. The story could be a sequel or a continuation of the Gingerbread Man fairy tale or Hansel and Gretel.

Gingerbread

Check here to watch the classic fairy tale being read out loud:

Raid your child’s bookshelves to find any books that feature Gingerbread! Or, go to the library with your child to find some sweet books.

WRITING AND READING

Here are some nonfiction books about making gingerbread houses (most of these were found under adult cookbooks but my kids enjoyed looking at the photographs of the amazing and unique gingerbread buildings).

Gingerbread for all Seasons, by Teresa Layman and photographs by Randy O’Rourke, Harry N. Abrams, Inc., publishers, 1997—This book offers eleven designs, but also includes gingerbread lanterns and ornaments, as well as recipes.

Making Gingerbread Houses, by Veronika Alice Gunter, Lark Books, 2004—This book highlights seventeen different designs.

No-Bake Gingerbread Houses for Kids, by Lisa Turner Anderson and photographs by Zac Williams, 2010—Using graham crackers cookies, ice cream cones, waffle bowls and candy kids can create their own holiday houses.