Add a dash of whimsy to your preschoolers’ learning with these Little Red Hen cutting strips! Be sure to check out more of my themed cutting strips once you’re done here.
Stories are a gateway to learning for young minds. Consider adding the Little Red Hen line tracing printables to your next Little Red Hen lesson plans. You can also add them to a farm unit or a theme about oviparous animals.
Whenever you try out the Little Red Hen cutting pages, your students will be practicing a wide variety of early learning skills! And the bonus is how versatile these low-prep printables are. You can use them in a multitude of ways, with so many different materials.
Related: Free Preschool Printables
Make sure to scroll to the bottom of this post to get your free copy of the Little Red Hen printable strips. Then, enjoy the way your students’ faces light up as their confidence grows through practice.
Little Red Hen Cutting Strips
Little Red Hen cutting strips are an easy and fun way to keep your preschoolers practicing foundational fine motor skills. Where to begin? Read on to learn more.
How to Prep the Red Hen Tracing Printables
First, you need to grab your supplies! As promised, there are just a few to gather before you set your preschoolers loose for fun and skill building. Below is a list of what I tend to use (I may get commissions for purchases made through the links in this post):
Those are the basics for prepping the Little Red Hen cutting strips. Here are some ideas for supplies the children can use with the printables:
This isn’t an exhaustive list, so don’t feel caged in by my suggestions. Perhaps you already have some of these items, so make sure to check your own supply closet for any items to use.
Related: Vegetable Cutting Strips
Once you have your materials, it’s time to prep the Little Red Hen cutting strips. Here’s what to do:
- Print the sheets, making as many copies as you’d like.
- Next, cut the pages apart into individual red hen fine motor strips.
- Finally, laminate them if you’d like them to be reusable. Otherwise, you can leave them as is.
How to Use the Little Red Hen Cutting Strips
The first use is right there in the name – to practice scissor skills. Begin by modeling the process of cutting the strips following the line from left to right. Review and practice how to hold the scissors, if need be.
Related: Goldilocks Cutting Strips
Is your preschooler struggling with traditional scissors? In this case you could try using auto-open scissors. These were a huge game changer for my students who were frustrated with this skill.
You can also be there next to the children who need some extra support. You can hold the paper strip while they focus on cutting, or you can model again if needed.
Other Ideas for the Little Red Hen Fine Motor Strips
My next suggestion for using the Little Red Hen cutting strips is to use dry erase markers on the laminated pages. Have the children connect the dots, again moving from left to right. Create excitement by offering different colors of dry erase markers and letting the kids choose their favorite.
A possible adaptation for those just starting with grip is to utilize grips on thin dry erase markers. Or break out the thicker markers! Whichever works best for you and your students.
It is important to acknowledge the short attention span of preschoolers and circle back to this skill many times. While keeping it fresh and interesting for them, of course. Here are a few ideas to try:
- Use farm-themed manipulatives to trace the lines on each Little Red Hen fine motor strip. If you have more than one type of manipulative, challenge the kids to make patterns along the way!
- Consider using small balls of brown playdough as “wheat” to trace over the lines on the Little Red Hen cutting strips.
- Add glitter glue on top of the lines on the printables. Once the glue is dry, have your students gently trace over it with their fingers, moving from left to right.
- Let the kids use colorful crayons or markers to trace the lines. Challenge them to use all the colors of the rainbow.
Are you impressed? The Little Red Hen fine motor printables may at first seem simple, but they’re seriously so versatile.
How will you use the Little Red Hen tracing printables? Please make sure to share your ideas in the comment section below!
Why Use the Little Red Hen Cutting Practice in the Classroom?
Hands-on, playful activities are fantastic when it comes to early learning. The Little Red Hen cutting strips fit that bill. So, specifically what skills are preschoolers learning with them? Here’s a non-exhaustive list:
- Scissor skills
- Fine motor skills
- Left-to-right directionality
- Counting
- Patterns
Each of these skills are important pre-writing, pre-reading, and math foundations for continued growth in kindergarten. Don’t forget to scroll to the bottom of this post and grab your copy of the free Little Red Hen cutting printable!
More Little Red Hen Activities for Kids
Here are some more Little Red Hen ideas to try with your students:
- Little Red Hen Printable Book
- Story Variations of The Little Red Hen
- Little Red Hen Sensory Bin
- Little Red Hen Craft
- Harvest Playdough Recipe
- Printable Little Red Hen Sequencing Cards
I think these activities are a great follow-up to the Little Red Hen cutting strips!
Folk Tales Tracing Strips Pack
Planning and preparing lessons and activities to keep your students’ little minds actively engaged can be exhausting. My sister site, Preschool Teacher 101, has got you covered! Our fully developed curriculum including lesson plans, activities, and other resources allow you to relax and focus on enjoying teaching again.
Click on the image below to get your copy of our Favorite Folk Tales tracing strips for fine motor practice:
Looking for more? Click on the images below for more information about each resource:
Dive into The Pack as a member of Preschool Teachers 101 and take full advantage of all the resources available to you. Our pack members get steep discounts on all of our products.
Get the Little Red Hen Cutting Strips
This free printable is available to members of Fun-A-Day’s free email community. If you’re a member, fill out the form below and the download links will be sent to your inbox. If you’re not a member, you can join us by entering your information in the form. Then you’ll receive the Little Red Hen fine motor printable as a welcome gift!
Be sure to check out my printing FAQ page if you run into any issues.
The post Little Red Hen Cutting Strips Free Printable appeared first on Fun-A-Day!.