For the Love of the Gingerbread Man

Here are some fun ways to make an exploration of The Gingerbread Man a motivating experience.

By Rachel D

Gingerbread Man
The Gingerbread Man is a holiday favorite during this time of year. Besides taking a bite out of this popular cookie, try incorporating these gingerbread-related activities into your lesson plans. Students will surely enjoy this cute little character in all different parts of the curriculum!

The Gingerbread Man

There is nothing more amusing than the image of a little cookie shouting, “Run, run, run, as fast as you can! You can’t catch me, I’m the gingerbread man!” Start your themed unit by reading a version of The Gingerbread Man out loud to your class. If you don’t have the book handy, or want something different for your students, check out this site with a colorful flip book slideshow of The Gingerbread Man. If you have a projector and computer in your classroom, you could watch this story unfold on the big screen. Or, you can print out each slide of the story to read as a book. There are also many animated videos available on the Internet on sites such as YouTube or Speakaboos. Here is a fantastic animation of The Gingerbread Man story on Speakaboos.com, narrated by actor John Krasinski.

A New Ending for The Gingerbread Man

After reading the story and finding out about the gingerbread man’s unfortunate end, allow your students to get innovative and create their own ending to The Gingerbread Man. There are many ways to execute this activity. You can choose one of the suggestions below, or have your students decide which option they would like to do.
  • Write a paragraph
  • Create a comic strip
  • Make a PowerPoint
  • Do a puppet show
  • Act in a skit with other classmates
  • Write a letter to the author

Gingerbread Man Math

Here's one way to use The Gingerbread Man with math. Using a gingerbread man template, duplicate and print the outline on light brown or white paper. Print at least four copies so that students can make a pattern with ABAB, ABBA, ABCABC, etc. Have your students color and add details to make the gingerbread man come alive! After deciding on their pattern and coloring in their gingerbread men, have your students cut and paste them on a piece of colorful construction paper. If you do not have much time, or want to avoid the mess of scraps and glue, copy and paste the gingerbread man outline multiple times on one piece of paper. Students can make their pattern on the paper, without having to cut and paste onto another paper.

The Science of Ginger

The ginger plant produces beautiful yellow flowers and is often used for landscaping. The most important part of the ginger plant, however, is the root. The oddly shaped brown root is usually gathered once the ginger plant is finally wilted. Ginger can be broken down and used in many ways, including tea, soda, candy, as a snack, or ground up as a spice, like it is used in gingerbread cookies. In science, students can learn about the process of how the ginger plant grows, then cultivated for culinary use. Afterward, students can create a timeline of that process, with diagrams and descriptions of each step. What follows are more activities that go with The Gingerbread Man story.

Gingerbread-related Lessons:

The Gingerbread Man "Erase-a-Rhyme"

In this lesson plan, students practice their rhyming skills, and fill in the missing word from The Gingerbread Man. This is an easy way to have students practice how to rhyme. It can also help students practice comprehension skills.


Class Book - Gingerbread Man

This kindergarten lesson gives students the opportunity to collaborate and work as a community to create their own class rendition of The Gingerbread Man. This idea could be used in various grade levels as a way to incorporate reading, writing, and listening skills.


Gingerbread Men

This math lesson introduces primary students to graphing. Students learn basic graphing techniques with gingerbread men. They can then practice graphing various holiday-related items.