The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and The Big Hungry Bear

By Don and Audrey Wood
illustrated by Don Wood 

How will a little mouse ever stop a big hungry bear from eating his delicious strawberry? In The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and The Big Hungry Bear, the clever little mouse has several very interesting ideas that require a little help from the reader and make for a highly entertaining, interactive book full of timeless fun. Be prepared for smiles and giggles galore as well as a sneaky lesson on the positive outcome of sharing with a friend.

Authored by husband and wife team Don and Audrey Wood, Mr. Wood illustrated the book as well. The text is chatty and light and the illustrations are bright, engaging, and just plain fun to look enjoy. By the end of the book the reader feels as if Mouse has become a new best friend who wants us to visit over and over again.

 

In this Issue

• Little Mouse Mask
• Red Ripe Strawberry Sandwiches with Whipped Cream Cheese

 

 

Little Mouse Mask

Add to the interactive element of this book by making a mouse mask with your young reader and then acting out the story! 

 

 

Little Mouse Mask

Supplies

• 1 paper plate per mask
• pipe cleaners
• scissors
• yarn or string
• markers, crayons, or colored pencils
• stapler

1. Cut paper plate in half.
2. On one half of the paper plate, use a hole punch to start two holes for eyes. Use scissors to make eye holes bigger.
3. Using hole punch, make holes on each side of mask. Tie one length of string through each hole. These will be used to tie the mask around your young reader's head.
4. Cut other half of paper plate in half (these two pieces will each be 1/4 of original plate).
5. Staple each ear to the top of the mask. To give the mask more dimension, have the rim of the face piece facing down, and the rim on each ear piece facing up.
6. Use crayons, markers or colored pencils to color the mask.
7. Staple two pipe cleaners to the bottom of the face piece to form whiskers. To protect little noses, place a piece of Scotch tape over the staples on the back of the mask. If you don't have pipe cleaners, strips of cut construction paper can be used instead.
8. Using a marker or crayon, add a nose to peek out over the whiskers. 

The basic form of the mask is easily adapted to other children's book. Try making a bear for We're Going on a Bear Hunt, or a dog for The Stray Dog. 

 

Red Ripe Strawberry Sandwiches with Whipped Cream Cheese

The Little Mouse tries several ways secure his Red Ripe Strawberry from the Big Hungry Bear, including locking it up with a heavy chain, burying it, and dressing it and inviting it to tea.

We've taken the extra precaution of hiding our own strawberries between two slices of lightly toasted bread spread with honey-sweetened and cinnamon-spiced whipped cream cheese. Surely a bear would never think of looking there! For extra precaution, we followed the example set in the book and consumed the sandwiches containing the precious berries posthaste after assembling!

 

Young Readers in the Kitchen

Depending on age and cooking skill-level, kids can help:

• Toast the bread slices
• Measure Whipped Cream Cheese ingredients into food processor
• Spread cream cheese onto bread slices
• Wash strawberries
• Arrange sliced strawberries on bread

 

Red Ripe Strawberry Sandwiches with Whipped Cream Cheese

Serves 2.

Ingredients

Whipped Cream Cheese

• 2 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 teaspoons milk
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon honey
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Sandwiches

• 4 slices whole wheat bread
• 4 strawberries

1. In a food processor combine cream cheese and milk. Whip about 30 seconds until smooth and light, scraping down sides to ensure the milk is well incorporated. Add cinnamon, honey, and vanilla and process until combined.
2. Lightly toast bread slices.
3. Wash strawberries and thinly slice.
4. Divide whipped cream cheese among the 4 sliced of bread.
5. Divide strawberries between two pieces of bread.
6. Top strawberries with a second slice of bread. For added ease in handling, sliced each sandwich in half. 

Have you and your reader made any of the Off the Shelf recipes or art projects? Let us know in the comments, on Facebook, or on Twitter!

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Comments

[susen @Dabbling Momma]

Another great book that I'm pinning from your blog!