Retell The Story With Pictures Activity and Over The River and Through the Woods Book Review

by Kathy Porter

My copy of this book is well-worn and much loved. It was a November storytime favorite in my library for years. The poem by Childs is a classic: Over the river and through the woods to Grandfather’s house we go. If you don’t know the song about the poem, look it up on YouTube. David Catrow’s hilarious illustrations carry a different subplot from the poem. The pictures create a wordless story you and your child could discuss.

Ask, what is happening to the baby? A family drives their van to go to Grandma’s house for Thanksgiving. As they drive by the Macy’s Parade in New York City, the baby is blown out of the van by the wind. He lands on a horse but is bucked off head-first into a tuba. The tuba player blows him into the hand of a gorilla/ape carrying a giant alligator balloon. The gorilla tries to soothe the crying baby by giving him the balloon string, which carries the baby high into the sky. The balloon nearly crashes into an airplane but the baby uses his blanket as a parachute and floats his way to Grandma’s house. The family arrives at the same time and frantically runs to the falling baby but Grandma saves the day, and the baby, by catching him in her baseball cap. The last scene shows the family enjoying Thanksgiving dinner with the baby happily chewing a spoonful of pumpkin pie.

Another fun thing to do is search, “Images of Macy Parade Balloons.”. You and your child can compare the various giant parade balloons that are featured in the book.

To buy this book on Amazon, click here.

Objective: I can retell a story with pictures in sequential order.

Supplies:

Free Activity Page, Scissors, Color Printer (optional).

Directions:

1. Print the Activity Page with either a color printer or in black and white.
2. Cut out each picture square and place it in a pile.
3. Review the pictures in the book. Which similar picture from the pile would go first? (Is it the wind blowing in the baby’s face out the van window, or is it the picture of the van?)
4. Place each picture in a row according to the order of events. Ask questions using sequence words. Example: What happened first? (second, third, next, then, after that, last, or finally)

Different Variations:

• For Younger Children: A teacher or caregiver can guide the child by asking questions such as, “Is there an alligator balloon in the story? Which picture in the pile looks like an alligator?