Activities for Kids on "The Ant and the Grasshopper"

Being able to sequence events that occurred in a story is a necessary part of reading comprehension. After reading the story "The Ant and the Grasshopper," have the students arrange the story events in the correct order. Draw pictures that represent the key events that happened in the beginning, middle and end of the story. Or, write sentences from the beginning, middle and end of the story. Place the pictures or the sentences in jumbled-up order on a table and instruct the students to arrange them in the correct order.

Discuss the moral of the story and ask the students if they’ve ever experienced when preparing in advance benefited them. Ask them to write a short story -- or their own version of a fable -- to illustrate the idea that preparing for something in advance is helpful. Ask the students to share what they wrote, which will encourage participation and also will further their comprehension of the fable.

Create a list of questions to ask the ant and the grasshopper. Examples of questions for the ant may include, "How did you feel preparing for the winter while the grasshopper played?" "Why did you decide to prepare for winter in advance?" and "What did you think when the grasshopper asked for food?" Questions for the grasshopper may include, "How did you feel when you realized you had no food?" "Did you enjoy the summer?" and "Will you prepare for the winter in the future?" Present these questions to the students and ask them to answer the questions as if they are the characters, further driving home the importance of the moral of the story.

Children can make ant and grasshopper puppets. Provide the students with poster board and crayons and encourage them to draw a picture of an ant and a grasshopper. Instruct them to cut their pictures out and then glue them onto craft sticks. The students can use the puppets they have made to retell the story.