Fall Writing Tray Activity with Cornmeal

Inside: Preschoolers can celebrate the harvest with this story-based cornmeal writing tray activity and free printable letter formation cards. Add this to your Little Red Hen unit!

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This week, I stumbled on a fun, multicultural companion story to read aloud after your kids hear The Little Red Hen. Then, I created a hand-on early literacy activity to go with it…

Little Red Hen Companion

Burro’s Tortillas (ad) by Terri Fields is a southwestern spin on The Little Red Hen. Rather than a hen growing wheat to make bread, with various barnyard animals refusing to help, this version features an industrious donkey growing corn to make tortillas. His lazy friends are a bobcat, a coyote, and a jackrabbit.

You can help your little learners see the parallels between the two stories as you discuss the characters and the two different settings. Hold up both books, and ask them leading questions such as:

“Which animal is like Little Red Hen?”

“What do the other animals do in both books?”

“What different crop are they growing in each book?”

“Where does each book take place?”

Just the story and discussion alone are valuable, but I want to share a more hands-on idea with you too…

Cornmeal Writing Tray

I created a writing tray activity that goes well with Burro’s Tortillas, or you can use it alone with another harvest or autumn unit. If you’re not familiar with writing trays, you may want to read about them first. I believe writing trays started in Montessori classrooms, but they are now found in a variety of settings.

For a fun story tie-in, I chose a tortilla warmer as a writing tray. I only wish I had a nice terracotta colored one instead of bright green!

Preparation & Materials

You’ll only need a few items to complete the activity:

• Tray or shallow container
• Cornmeal
• Wooden stylus (a chopstick works well)
• Printed letter formation cards (see the end of this post for the freebie pictured here)

If your cornmeal seems dusty, shake it through a fine mesh strainer. You’ll lose some volume but have a lot less mess!

How to Play

First, choose a card and lay it next to the writing tray.

Then, use a stylus to trace the letter in the cornmeal. Erase the letter by smoothing the cornmeal, and repeat with another card.

Extend the Learning

If you want to go all out, you could also make corn tortillas with your students. If you’ve never made them before, I recommend you try it out at home first or find a volunteer with experience. This would layer in two more skills:

• Making real-world connections to stories
• Hand strengthening and coordination

Happy Teaching!