Paddle's Big Start!
Materials Needed:
- "Paddle-to-the-Sea" book by Holling C. Holling
- Map of North America or a globe
- Blue construction paper
- Brown construction paper or craft stick
- Crayons or markers
- Scissors (adult supervision recommended)
- Glue
Lesson Activities:
Hello adventurer! Today we're starting a very exciting journey with a little wooden canoe carved by a young boy. Let's read Chapter 1: "Paddle-to-the-Sea is Launched" together!
(Read Chapter 1 aloud with enthusiasm).
Wow! So, a boy carved a little canoe with an Indigenous figure inside. He named him Paddle-to-the-Sea! Where did the boy carve him? He was near a river in a place called the Nipigon country. Let's find that on our map!
(Guide the student to locate Canada on the map/globe).
This big country north of the United States is Canada. The Nipigon country is way up here, near a HUGE lake. Can you see this giant lake? It's called Lake Superior, one of the Great Lakes! The boy put Paddle near a river that flows into this giant lake. Imagine being a tiny canoe near such a big place!
What message did the boy carve on the bottom of the canoe? ("Please Put Me Back In Water. I Am Paddle-To-The-Sea.") Why do you think he wrote that? He wants Paddle to travel all the way through the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River to the big Atlantic Ocean!
Activity: Make Paddle's Starting Place!
- Let's take our blue paper. This will be Lake Superior and the Nipigon River flowing into it. You can draw some wavy lines for the river flowing into the big lake area.
- Now, let's make a little Paddle! You can draw a small canoe shape on brown paper and cut it out, or simply use a craft stick as your canoe. Draw a little figure inside if you like!
- Glue your Paddle onto the 'river' part of your blue paper, showing him starting his journey towards the big lake.
Great job! Our little Paddle is ready to start his long, long journey from the Nipigon River in Canada, heading towards Lake Superior. Next time, we'll see where the melting snow takes him!