Photo credit: learningandexploringthroughplay.com

Eric Carle was a unique artist, illustrating his own books with collages made from tissue paper. They are super colorful, which has made his books a favorite with young children who are in their greatest stages of discovery.

Speaking of discovery, that Hungry Caterpillar crawled his way through leaves looking for bites of food to get his strength up and grow quickly into a big caterpillar before crawling into his cocoon. For those of you who haven't read the book, I won't give away the ending, but I'll just say it's unbelievably spectacular. You really have to see it to believe it, and you will see it when you come to THE VERY HUNGRY CATERPILLAR SHOW, which the New York Times says this show will "Mesmerize Audiences," and we can't wait to share it with you. Until then, we have an activity to share with your young artist which will let them work with color while developing those fine motor skills!


Photo credit: learningandexploringthroughplay.com

http://www.learningandexploringthroughplay.com/2016/05/fine-motor-caterpillar-craft.html?utm_content=bufferd54ce&utm_medium=social&utm_source=pinterest.com&utm_campaign=buffer

What you will need (these are small parts, so please do this with small children):
Twigs (or straws if it's too cold for a nature walk!)
Multi-colored pipe cleaners
Pom poms
Googly eyes
Glue

To create caterpillars, have your young artist wrap the pipe cleaner around the twig, tight enough to make the color somewhat solid. Glue on the pom poms and googly eyes to make the caterpillar face.
For more ideas, and to learn more about Eric Carle, visit his page on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/theworldofEricCarle


DCT Mom thoughts

When my kids were younger, The Very Hungry Caterpillar was one of those books that they wanted to read over and over. They were definitely mesmerized, spending time examining each shape on each page, soaking in the colors as if they were holding their own personal rainbow. Of course I was overjoyed by the way the book described the bits of food and how he felt much better when he took a bite of a nice green leaf. Perfect way to introduce salad, right? But it was all to help him grow, just like these kids who grow too fast. When I see the photos of the little dimpled hands doing these crafts, it reminds me of those days when things like grasping a spoon or holding a crayon took a great deal of concentration. Now we just take those simple tasks for granted, but I believe even my"big kids" will be mesmerized by this wondrously creative show. I know your kids will be too.

Of course we want you to enjoy your time at the theater, but these activities are for you to enjoy while you are at home, and hopefully bring a little DCT fun into your quality time together.

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