Dancing with Dinosaurs
For our first week of storybook summer this year we’re looking at the Land before time and so far we’ve created some dinosaur feet, made our own dinosaur tracks with DIY stamps and explored how dinosaur predators attack in a fun science experiment and today we’re getting moving with some dancing with dinosaurs. Our guest blogger today is Ellen from Cutting Tiny Bites and she’s sharing a couple of fun activities for the book Saturday Night at the Dinosaur Stomp [affiliate link] by Carol Diggery Shields. So without further ado I welcome Ellen
Hey there! I’m Ellen from Cutting Tiny Bites and I’m thrilled to be here on Rainy Day Mum sharing a fun dinosaur activity with you!
For our Storybook Summer contribution, my daughters and I did 2 activities based on the book Saturday Night at the Dinosaur Stomp [affiliate link] by Carol Diggory Shields. The story is about a group of dinosaurs that gather together to dance. The text is rhyming with an upbeat bouncy feel to it. The illustrations are bright, colorful, and funny. It’s easy to see why this book tops many lists of favorite children’s books! There is no question that Saturday Night At The Dinosaur Stomp invites your children to get up and move. It’s the perfect book to encourage action.
We have included links to the products and books used in this activity. If you buy from these links we may earn a small commission.
We worked on one learning activity and one just-for-fun activity. Since my youngest daughter, Maggie, is working on letters and letter sounds, our learning activity was alphabet based. First, I went through the book and made a note of all the different dinosaur names mentioned.
Then, using alphabet craft foam stickers and craft sticks, I made little alphabet sticks for each of the letters that the names of the dinosaurs started with.
I set those out on trays and had the girls sit in front of me while I read the book. As I came to the name of each dinosaur, I emphasized the sound of the first letter and waited for the girls to find the correct letter stick and hold it up.
Maggie got some of them right away, and needed a little help from big sister Lena on others.
Next we moved to our fun and active activity. Since Saturday Night At The Dinosaur Stomp is so dancey, of course we had to get up and dance! I made dinosaur movement cards to inspire our dancing. You can print your own Dancing With Dinos cards right here . You’ll find a black and white version that you or your children can color in yourselves, and a color version. Cut them out and laminate them.
Put on some music, let your kids draw a card and call out the action. Let your kids boogie down! In the picture above, you’ll see both girls doing the Brontosaurus Bump, Lena doing some Troodon Twirls and Triceratops Tip Toe, and both of the girls attempting the Iguonadon Inchworm.
I can’t tell you how much fun your kids will have with this! My girls wanted to go through all of the cards several times. Maggie would find her favorite card, and then run and hide it, so that she could grab it again on her next turn. She loved doing the Brontosaurus Bump with her sister!
To make this activity even MORE fun, you could make your children some
- DIY Paper Dinosaur Hats
- Super Stompy Dinosaur Feet
- And to round out your dinosaur fun, how about some fun process art with Dinosaur Stomp Painting
Ellen is a former teacher, turned stay-at-home mom to 2 daughters. She gets her kicks from glue guns, yarn, and dried pasta crafts. She blogs at Cutting Tiny Bites where you’ll find weekly home preschool themes, book review lists, a smattering of vegetarian recipes, and super fun crafts and activities.
Connect with her on Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter