Fun Activities Inspired by "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" by Judi Barrett - Activity, Snack, and Printable
Let's kick off our first post for the Friendly Kids Book Club with one of the classics, "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs"! We didn't have this book for a long time, but Brandon noticed the error and requested it as a birthday present, so now it's ours. And it's oh-so-loved, as evidenced by the bent pages and cover, probably from the many times I've found it at the bottom of Aedan's blankets after he fell asleep reading it.
The Activity We Did
Pancake Flip
After being indoors for far too long, we needed to get outside and run around. It's been getting hot WAY too early in the day, so we headed outside right after breakfast to trial this game! The family eats pancakes in "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs," so we wanted to join along!
You Will Need:
- Small Frying Pan
- "Pancakes" - We used jar grippers we found in the kitchen (the stickiness of the material did make them cling to the pan, so they were more difficult to play with), but you could make some by cutting out some circles from cardboard, or making them from felt if you feel creatively inclined. Or even, make real pancakes, if you don't mind possibly making a mess! Our favorite pancake recipe is from "The Disney Princess Cookbook," and we make it at least every other week!
- Dinner Plate
Here are some toy pancake and frying pans options from Amazon: Breakfast Play Food, Pancake Playset
How to Play:
First, place the pancake in the frying pan. Then toss it into the air, and catch it back in the pan before it hits the ground. Remember, the higher you toss it, the more time you have to catch it. Give yourself 1 point for each catch in a minute.
If you have multiple players, expand the activity into a catch-style game! Have one player toss the pancake from the pan, while the second player attempts to catch it on the plate. Keep a good distance between the players so no one gets hit with a pan in the face! The kids traded roles after trying to toss four pancakes, and the winner was the one that caught the most out of four.
Movie-Time
While we were at it, we decided to watch the distantly-related movie, "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs". Faye was distressed and intrigued at the differences between the movie and the book, and kept running back and forth from the office to the couch to tell me all about it. We've seen the movie before, but I think the storyline differences finally hit her because we read the book more recently. Things like: It's not a Grandpa telling a story, the shark doesn't eat one of the bread boats, and the citizens of Chewandswallow don't actually return to the island. The book wins as her favorite though.
Watch here: Amazon
The Food We Ate
Sailboat Sandwiches
And it's never a party without some food. My favorite part of the book is when they escape the island, using pure genius and creativity to get out of there, using the supplies they have -- lots and lots of bread! And my kids only eat peanut butter sandwiches, so why not make it a little more adventurous at lunch time! I, however, wouldn't eat a peanut butter sandwich EVER, so I pulled out some leftover meatballs from the fridge and paid homage to "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" in another way by making their escape boats.
You Will Need:
- Bread
- Sandwich Fillings - Peanut Butter, Meatballs, Cheese
- Snacks... Empty your cupboards and let that creative energy flow, using what supplies you have to make sure you can get off the island to escape the storm!
How to Make:
Build a boat from your supplies, and then eat up! Our biggest hurdle in making our sandwich boats was how to get our string cheese masts upright. We dug a hole through the sandwich, so the cheese was supported further down in the bread. Then raisins and goldfish adorned the decks as passengers while other foods floated in the sea, transforming into sharks and coral.
Other Fun Ideas
Shopping List Strike
"The biggest change they had to make was getting used to buying food at a supermarket. They found it odd that the food was kept on shelves, packaged in boxes, cans and bottles... Nothing came down from the sky except rain and snow." - "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs"
So much food in "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs," so let's make a game about food!
You Will Need:
- "Shopping List Strike" Printable
How to Play:
Choose one player to read the grocery list, one item at a time. Read the name of one item, and the first person to touch/strike/hit the correct picture wins! Keep reading through the entire list. Make it more challenging by mixing up the order of the item names, or cut out the photos and mix them face-up on the tabletop. Another option is to cut out the photos and mix them UPSIDE DOWN so no one can see the photos right away.
Other Activities
Some other fun resources for the book, and some other crafty ideas that we didn't do... yet.
- Food Umbrella Mobile: Cut out photos of your favorite foods and hang them from a small umbrella, to protect yourself from the food storms ahead!
- Jell-O Castle: Build a glorious castle, ready to display on the highest hill in town. And throw in some extra surprises! Different color Jell-O, mix-ins like candy, fruit, or carrots, or even see how tall you can make it without it falling over!
- Sanitation Cleanup Race: Use a fork and spoon together like tongs, picking up small items on the ground (e.g. pom-poms, small toys, goldfish snacks). The end goal is to get them onto the "garbage truck" plate. Split into teams to see who can clean up their pile the fastest.
- Teaching Children Philosophy: If you want to change the topic from more fun and creative to something more mindful and thought provoking, there are some great questions on this page! Talk to your kids about migration, adaptation, and freedoms.
- A to Z Teacher Stuff: Maybe you need something a little more structured, like school-work? Here are some lesson plan ideas.
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