Chopsticks And Spoon

Hi, it's Barbara at The Corner on Character!  Can you believe the 4th has come and gone already?  I hope that you're enJOYing some summertime R and R! Looking through some new literacy resources, I recently came across these two treasures by author 

Amy Krouse Rosenthal:

In Chopsticks, the two fast friends come to a fork in the road and, for the very first time ever, they must learn how to navigate their way through life apart. Is that even possible?

Spoon finds himself wondering what good being a spoon is and wishing he were more like Knife, Fork, or Chopsticks. Do we really need spoons? Just try eating cereal with a fork or knife!


Both of these simple stories serve up gourmet food for thought for our littlest learners. In Chopsticks, celebrate with students not only the bonds of friendship but also their budding independence. How does it feel to be separated from someone you love? And how do you handle that experience? With Spoon, focus them on why it's important to celebrate our individuality and uniqueness. Have you ever wished you were someone or something you're not?


Use Chopsticks as a chance to study China. Pull up Google Earth and show your sprouts where it is. Find out what animals call China home and what kids do in their spare time there. Call your local Chinese food restaurant and ask them to donate some chopsticks. Work on your students' fine motor skills by having them manipulate the sticks and pick up classroom stuff with them: a piece of paper, a grain of rice, a crayon. Then take away one of the sticks and talk about what happens to the usefulness of the utensil. This is also a wonderful metaphor for the importance of everyone working together on a team.

Make a Venn Diagram out of paper plates
to compare and contrast these books.

Use Spoon to talk about the different utensils on the table. Get some plasticware and ask them to describe the spoon, the fork, the knife. What is each one used for? Have them draw pictures of them. Take out some paper plates and teach your students to set the table.  Where does the fork go? How about the knife? And the spoon? Then let them practice. Move the utensils around, turn them the wrong way, leave one out; let your little chefs arrange them correctly over and over again. Once they've mastered table setting, use it as an opportunity to invite parents in for an afternoon tea. Have students glue a tea bag to a spoon and tie it up with a ribbon with the message, "Spoons suit me to a T!" as a memento for their caregivers. 
The fun awaits . . . 


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