Watch A Caterpillar Learn And Grow
What Can A Kindergarten Year Change?
In Christina Boyer-Thompson’s The Kindergarten Caterpillar, a five-year-old green caterpillar walks into Kindergarten knowing little about what awaits. Month by month, new friends introduce the alphabet, math, phonics, friendship, reading, science, and writing. With every lesson, the caterpillar grows a little more, until one final school-day surprise changes everything.
Meet Christina Boyer-Thompson
From Her Classroom To Yours
For Christina Boyer-Thompson, The Kindergarten Caterpillar began in the classroom, not on a blank page. After 33 years in early education, including her current work as a Kindergarten teacher in a rural Massachusetts town, she knows that a school year is made up of much more than worksheets and lessons. It is made of small discoveries, new friendships, growing confidence, and the excitement of reaching the end together.
Inside The Kindergarten Year
Eight Friends Help One Caterpillar Grow
The story begins with a five-year-old green caterpillar entering Kindergarten. It soon discovers that school is full of unexpected friends, and each one has something important to teach.
The first is the Alphabet, helping the caterpillar begin its journey with letters. Next comes the Kindergarten math book, introducing numbers, shapes, counting, taking away, telling time, coins, patterns, sorting, and graphing. Then the Kindergarten phonics book shows how letters and sounds come together to form words.
In January, the caterpillar meets Kindergarten friendship and learns that growing also means working together, sharing, caring, and respecting friends. The Kindergarten reading library follows, bringing stories into the journey. Then comes the Kindergarten science center, where the caterpillar learns about seasons, weather, and growing and changing.
READERS ARE INSPIRED
A Story That Leaves a Lasting Impact
My students could connect each song with something they had learned. Christina Boyer-Thompson’s The Kindergarten Caterpillar gave our graduation celebration a story instead of simply marking the end of the year.
