Have you read the book, The Little Red Hen? There are many variations but the main moral of the story is the same: you reap what you sow. Hard work pays off while being lazy and unhelpful typically doesn't. The kids made a fun book-themed art activity to go along with it! Inspired by the book cover, the kids made a little red hen handprint craft, coloring page style.
About The Little Read Hen Book
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We read the retelling by author Bryon Barton. You may already be familiar with the Little Golden Book version
which is also a good read.
The little red hen and the baby chicks do all kinds of work without the help of her three friends. They plant the seeds, and do the cutting, threshing, grinding. and baking. In the end they get to eat the bread they worked hard to make while the three friends volunteer to help eat it, but instead learn that 'You reap what you sow,' work hard to enjoy the rewards instead of taking advantage of the hard work of others.
How to make the Little Red Hen Handprint Craft
Have the child trace their hand or trace it for the child if they are younger and then color it red. Show them the black dashes and have them make some on their hen using a black marker or crayon.
Add legs, a beak, eye, wing. I quickly drew a few of the items on the cover for my 3 year old to color in. My son liked this idea and also chose a few items to recreate on his artwork. The top drawing is by him and the bottom one is my 3 year olds hand-y work (tee, hee!).
Do you remember Mr. Sketch Scented Markers
? My kids love using them to color! They used them for this art project and had fun guessing what the scents were that they were coloring with.
Variations: This would look great as a painted handprint!
Stop by our Story + Art Pinterest board for more book-inspired activities!
Follow Amanda @artsy_momma's board Story + Art {Book Crafts for Kids} on Pinterest.
You may also like our book-themed category made with handprints and our Story + Art category on our craft blog.
Natasha says
This is so cute! I like how they both participated and to see the end result in working together just like the book suggests.
Amanda says
Hi Natasha! Thank you! If only that was all the time 😉
ChristyM says
It is really fun how he took your original project and made his own creative extension.
Amanda says
Thanks Christy! He loves doing handprint drawings. You should see how many turkeys he has drawn throughout the years (all year long...LOL!)
jill says
I adore your hand print art idea for the Little Red Hen!
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