Hi there!

As a lifelong bookworm turned homeschool mom, I will admit: I am always looking for engaging homeschool activities involving children’s literature. {I’m also always on the hunt for vintage children’s books at thrift stores, much to my husband’s chagrin!}

This week, my preschooler and I checked out Treehouse Schoolhouse’s free sample from their preschool curriculum. The owner & founder is an incredible homeschooling mom and makes incredible, engaging homeschool activities. The week featured is the classic storybook Blueberries for Sal, by Robert McCloskey. If you’ve ever tried the Five In A Row curriculum, this sample is very similar! (I am a proud affiliate of Treehouse Schoolhouse-you can get 10% off your cart shopping with this link, or the code at the end of this post!)

I have always loved the book Blueberries for Sal, and remember reading it as a child myself! My kids and I also enjoy Make Way for Ducklings, Lentil, and One Morning in Maine by the same author. We have done some awesome geography, art and cooking-related activities with these.

This week as I was doing some activities with my preschooler, my brain was spinning with some options for my older two kids! See the end of this post for some great extension ideas for mid to upper elementary students.

I printed out these sweet drawings (provided in the free download) of mama bear, baby bear, Mother and Sal. I laminated them, and hot glued them to popsicle sticks to make simple puppets. My son and I acted out the parts as we read through the story.

Years ago I bought these counting teddies to use as math manipulatives for my older two. They have proven to be a great investment, as we reuse them frequently! I decided to put them to use again for this mini-unit (they are bears, after all! :))

My preschooler loved dropping teddies into the mug. I had him do this each time I read the words “kuplink, kuplank, kuplunk” so that he felt engaged with the story. We talked about the word onomatopoeia, which is a pretty big word for a preschooler–but he got the idea! If you want to teach this concept a bit more, especially with lower-to-mid elementary, a favorite book of ours is: Crunch and Crack, Oink and Whack!: An Onomatopoeia Story, by Brian Cleary. We found a copy at our local library. Brian Cleary is definitely a favorite author in our house!

The THSH free download we used includes lots of other engaging activities as well, including songs and recipes! We tried out the Blueberry Cobbler recipe, and here is our gorgeous result:

It was easy to make, with fresh blueberries plus ingredients that were already in the pantry! My preschooler gave the dessert “five stars,” especially with some vanilla ice cream on top!

I’m a huge of fan of Treehouse Schoolhouse; her preschool curriculum reminds me of the classic Five In A Row curriculum. Five in A Row, Volume 1 was my first impulse purchase as a brand new homeschool mom a few years ago. I saw the teacher’s manual on Facebook Marketplace for $7, and after a bit of Googling, it piqued my interest. Once I got it, I never looked back! I now have the first three volumes and have interchanged the books throughout the years. (“Volumes” and “teacher’s manual” makes them sound lengthy and dry–they’re anything but. They’re short, easy to follow and pack a lot of punch!) I typically order the children’s books themselves from Thriftbooks, where you can still find almost all of them. I actually love that they’re all a bit older–I often find that I prefer older children’s literature.

Anyway-I use quite a bit of material from Treehouse Schoolhouse. She has incredible freebies, and I adore her Connected Christmas curriculum. We also are part of a Kid Book Club with her book club kits, and just did My Father’s Dragon last week with friends!

As we went through Blueberries For Sal together this week, I couldn’t help but think of a few more extension activities that I could do with my older two kids. Here are a few ideas; perhaps they will be helpful if you have a range of learners, as well!

Take your learning a step further!

1. Compare & Contrast Bear Species: In this book, both the bears and the humans understand the danger of being around one another. (They have an encounter, but it’s an accident!) Depending on where you live (both within the U.S., and around the world), you may know there are different “rules” when it comes to bear encounters. For example: in the Midwest, we have mainly black bears. They are small, and typically avoid humans. The Minnesota DNR website has information on what to do if you encounter one. A second species, grizzly bears, frequent Yellowstone National Park, and require different precautions, while unique Kodiak bears inhabit a specific archipelago in Alaska! Have your students complete a Venn Diagram, or research each species of bear and write a compare/contrast essay.
2. Onomatopoeia: Check out Brian Cleary’s book Crunch and Crack, Oink and Whack!: An Onomatopoeia Story for more details about this literary device. Have your students write a short comic or story, that takes place in your own house, about what types of sounds/onomatopoeia you may hear during the day! You could do an indoor version and/or an outdoor version, depending on which is more interesting! My kids and I love the free comic strip templates on Teachers Pay Teachers.
3. Canning & Nutrition: Sal and her Mother are gathering blueberries to save for the winter. They are going to can them. Our family does not have experience with this, but my maternal grandparents used to can fruit, so it was fun to talk about! The THSH download includes a recipe for Blueberry Jam. You could make this, and/or try to can your own fruit! Another option is to talk about the process and advantages of canning–especially nutritionally! Grab a can of blueberry syrup from the store, and check out the added ingredients. The “pro” may be that it is quicker and more convenient to pick up a can for $3. The “con” may be that it is significantly less healthy for your body.

I bet many of you remember this classic story, Blueberries for Sal. I would love to hear your thoughts on these engaging, elementary homeschool activities! Shoot me a message if you love the book, or tried out any of these ideas!

With love,

Cait

(Note: My Treehouse Schoolhouse links are affiliate links. I will never recommend anything I have not personally used and loved with my own kids. Use this link to shop, or use code: EDELWEISSHOMESCHOOLRESOURCES at checkout, to receive 10% off your order.)