I recently pulled a gem of a book out of our book baskets as I was cleaning out our school room. My Father’s Dragon is a story I remember our oldest two daughters thoroughly enjoying, but, I had somehow failed to ever share it with our younger kids. After they looked at the cover and quickly glanced through the book, their eyes lit up! I knew we would have to embark on a summer reading adventure (AKA a boredom buster during the dog days of summer). Won’t you tag along on our adventure?
My Father’s Dragon: Chapter 1
Print out a map of both islands from the inside cover and an image of Elmer. Move Elmer as you read and follow him on his adventures!
My Father’s Dragon: Chapter 2
After reading the chapter, grab a paper sack and send the kids on a hunt around the house for items similar to those that Elmer packed for his journey. (We added a stick of gum, lollipop, rubber band, compass, toothbrush and toothpaste, magnifying glass, pocketknife, comb, brush, hair ribbon, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and an apple.) In each chapter, as Elmer encounters a problem, see if kids can predict which item from his knapsack he will use to form a solution!
My Father’s Dragon: Chapters 3 – 4
Let everyone peel and eat a tangerine (or clementine) as you read these chapters! Then, let your children try jumping on the ‘rocks’ (paper plates, paper, napkins. etc) to cross from one side of the yard to the other.
My Father’s Dragon: Chapters 5
After reading the chapter, learn more about gum or read a fun story involving gum such as Pop! The Invention of Bubble Gum by McCarthy or Lester Fizz: Bubble Gum Artist by Ruth Spiro. Then, encourage your children to make large tiger faces however they desire. Once their tigers are complete, cut a small round hole where the tiger’s mouth is. Let the children insert a balloon. And, there you have it, a tiger chewing bubble gum and blowing bubbles!
My Father’s Dragon: Chapter 6
The fun activity accompanying this chapter comes from Frugal Fun with Boys. Ahead of time, hard boil an egg for each child and then set it in a bowl filled with dark colored soda for an hour or more. This will discolor the shells. After reading, let the children use an old toothbrush and the toothpaste to scrub the egg (reenacting the cleaning of the rhino’s horn).
My Father’s Dragon: Chapter 7
Want to recreate the lion’s messy mane and then pretty it up? Have your kids paint a small paper plate to resemble a lion’s face. Then, they can hole punch all along the outer edge and attach strings of brown and yellow yarn. Finally, they can braid the strands and attach colorful ribbons.
My Father’s Dragon: Chapter 8
Using a magnifying glass, have your children go outside to explore! Encourage them to look under rocks, on a tree, in the grass, etc. What did they discover when they looked more closely at nature? Have them draw one or two things they found.
My Father’s Dragon: Chapter 9
You just can’t read this chapter without letting your kids enjoy a pink lollipop! After reading, encourage your kids to pretend to be Elmer and design/create a bridge any way they wish.
My Father’s Dragon: Chapter 10
Elmer finally meets and rescues the baby dragon! Celebrate by making and eating blue and yellow stripped cupcakes. Then, refer to the description of the dragon back in chapter 2 to draw or craft the dragon!
(printable pieces to trace and cut out onto your own stripped paper)
Our younger kids looked forward to reading My Father’s Dragon and doing the above activities each day. You could easily make this adventure even more educational by creating a lapbook and/or adding Vocabulary and Discussion Questions for each chapter as well.
And, now we are off to continue our summer reading adventure, learning about Elmer and the dragon, as we read through the next two books in this series…Elmer and the Dragon and The Dragons of Blueland!
