Fall is the perfect time to talk with students about scarecrows, farms, barns and animals. Primary aged children will enjoy themed read alouds and writing about the books by using creative writing prompts and other project ideas.
Barn Dance Read Aloud Book
Barn Dance by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault [Henry Holt and Company, 1986] is the delightful story of a young boy who sneaks out to the barn in the middle of the night when he hears the animals and scarecrow head out there for a hoedown. The scarecrow leads the way with his fiddle playing and the animals join in with a wild dance in the barn. This Reading Rainbow Book has fun language and entertaining illustrations that will appeal to young children.
Inside a Barn in the Country Fall Themed Rebus Story
Inside a Barn in the Country: A Rebus Read-Along Story by Alyssa Satin Capucilli [Scholastic, 1995] is a funny rebus story that allows even non-readers to participate in telling the story. Disaster strikes in the barn when the cat scares the mouse, who wakes up the horse, who wakes up the cow and so on. What does the farmer think of it all? One can only imagine he’s not terribly happy with the chaos in his barn. Young children will enjoy this predictable, humorously illustrated story.
Story Sequence Activity
Have students retell the most important parts of Barn Dance in a story sequence activity. Provide each student with a large piece of white paper folded into four sections. In the first section, have them draw a picture and write a sentence about something that happened at the beginning of the story. In the second section, have them tell about something that happened in the middle of the story. In the third section have them tell what happened at the end. In the last section, have them tell their favorite part of the story.
Students can write their own sentences or dictate to an adult if they are unable to write. Prior to writing the story, create a word bank on the board or a large sheet of chart paper so students can find the words they need.
Create a Rebus Story
After reading Inside a Barn in the Country, have students create their own rebus story. Have them select five characters that will be drawn as pictures and then write a story to share with the class.
Scarecrow Writing Prompts
- The Day Our Scarecrow Came to Life
- The Mystery of the Unstuffed Scarecrow
- If I Were a Scarecrow
- Why Scarecrows Have Patched Clothing
- The Scarecrow Family Moves to the Big City
Barn and Animal Writing Prompts
- A Secret Barn Hideout
- Enjoying Fall in the Barn
- The Haunted Barn
- The Best Way to Use a Barn
- Barn Sweet Barn
Fun read alouds, interesting writing prompts, and creative writing projects can be easy to prepare for kindergarten and first grade students. With a theme like scarecrows, barns and animals, the subject matter is sure to be a hit during the busy fall season. More easy ideas are available on topics such as Pumpkin Unit Ideas, Fall Unit Ideas, and October and Fall Classroom Ideas.
Sallie Schaaf Borrink - Sallie Borrink is a professional writer with extensive experience with business clients, the consumer market, and online destinations.
Join the Conversation