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Happy Birthday Moon is a classic story by Frank Asch about a bear who wants to celebrate the Moon’s birthday. He travels up to the mountains to talk to the moon and when he hears his voice echoing back to him, he thinks it is the moon answering back. This leads to a sweet story about buying the moon a birthday present.
Echoes
Teach kids about echoes. What is Bear hearing? If you can, take kids to a place where they can hear their voice echoing back to them. There are lots of videos online showing echoes if you cannot find a place.
Moon Sand
Make a batch of moon sand for use in your sensory table. Kids will love the odd texture and building with the new substance. Mix 8 cups of flour with 1 cup of baby oil. It creates a very soft powdery sand that is durable enough to mold, and is easy to clean up.
Moon Paint
Let kids paint the moon on black or dark blue paper with flour and white paint. It will thicken up and give a different texture to the painting. The blog Mrs. Russell’s Class used water bottle caps to create moon craters in the paint before it dried.
Make snacks for the moon’s birthday!
Moon Snacks
There are a variety of yummy desserts with Moon in the name. Two of the most popular are Moon Pies from the Southern United States and Half Moon Cookies from the Northern states (also called Black and White Cookies). Create some moon-themed concoctions in the kitchen with your kids and bake up some memories! The Cooking Bride has a good recipe for Homemade Moon Pies, while Home in the Finger Lakes has a good Half Moon Cookie recipe.
Discussion
Ask your child what he would buy the moon for a birthday present. What is something that he would like for his birthday?
Happy Birthday Moon is a sweet story about a bear with the best intentions who wants to celebrate the moon’s birthday and give him a gift. It is a good read aloud which can be adapted into fun activities and can teach kids about thinking of others!
Did your kids enjoy the story? What types of moon snacks would you make? Let me know in the comments!
