"Rain Came Down" Family Book Sheet
DOWNLOAD FILEMarch 1, 2020 - Author: Michigan State University Extension
This clever book of cause-and-effect explores what happens during a horrible rain storm. Beautiful multi-cultural illustrations help children predict what will happen next.
BEFORE READING:
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Show the children the front of the book. Ask them to guess what the book is about.
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Ask the children what is happening to the people and animals on the cover.
WHILE READING:
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Stop at any time if there is something you or the children would like to talk about.
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Ask them questions so that they can connect what is happening in the book to things they already know about. Try some of these ideas:
- What do you do when it rains?
- How does a rainy day make you feel?
- What do you like to do on a sunny day?
AFTER READING:
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Spend some time talking about the story. Ask the children things like:
- What did the little boy do to make the little girl upset?
- Why was everyone honking their horns?
- How did the children get ice cream?
Read this book several times to the children. Hearing the same story again and again helps them learn new words and understand the ideas they hear better. Each day, pick a different activity to do with the children after reading “The Rain Came Down.”
MATH AND SCIENCE
Show the children how water can be in different forms. Take out an ice cube and place it in a bowl. As it melts, talk about how ice is water in a solid form, but water is a liquid.
Next, put some water in a pot on the stove. As it boils, point out the steam to the children, ex- plaining that steam is water in a different form too (vapor). Talk about the different ways they can see water — in solid, liquid, and vapor.
THINKING SKILLS
Ask the children what they would need in a rainstorm to keep dry. Ask them what order they would need to put things on in order to keep from getting soaked by the rain.
MUSIC AND MOVEMENT
Sing, “Rain, rain go away, come again some other day” together as you hold hands and dance in a circle.
MOTOR SKILLS
Have the children help you clean up the room after an activity. Give each child a specific job to help clean up the room and put things away in their proper places.
PRETEND PLAY
Have a picnic inside. Pack a basket or grocery bag with the food for your picnic. Include picnic foods, such as sandwiches, fruit (like bananas or apples), carrot sticks and a yummy dessert. Don’t forget something to drink! Spread out a blanket on the floor too!
READING READINESS
See how many different words you can come up with together that mean the same thing. First, try thinking of many different words for arguing, like bickering, fighting or disagreeing. Then, think of words for happy, like joyful, glad or cheerful. Take turns coming up with a word to find more words for.
ART
Turn a pizza into art. Help the children roll out the crust and let them spoon pizza sauce on using their artistic talents. Offer them different toppings to place however they want and don’t forget the cheese. While the pizza is baking, ask them to draw a picture of their pizza art!
For more information, visit the MSU Extension early childhood development site.
