If you’re unfamiliar with Aesop or Aesop’s Fables, you might know some of his works such as; The Ant and the Grasshopper, The Tortoise and the Hare, or The Lion and the Mouse.
There is a large collection of fables that are credited to Aesop, a storyteller who lived in ancient Greece between 620 and 564 B.C. There are said to be over 700 fables and short stories that Aesop told. Each is different, and at every end of the story, there is a message or moral to learn.
Ant and The Grasshopper Activities
Short stories and fables also make fantastic language art lessons, especially for younger children, because of their length, ease of summary, and identifiable key points. That said, with every great lesson, there should always be a great activity to wrap it up. These are some of my favorite Ant and Grasshopper activities.
Fingerprint Ant Craft
This is one of our favorite ant crafts. It’s simple, not too messy, and creates a cute little time capsule for parents. Aesop’s fable, the Ant and the Grasshopper, is one of the more popular stories in his works. You will need black paint, paper, and tiny fingers for this activity. The end result is a very cute little ant.
Source: Glued to My Crafts Blog
Handprint Grasshopper Craft
Sticking with our last craft theme of fingerprint art and Aesop’s fable, the Ant and the Grasshopper, we present the grasshopper. The resource includes a free printable. All you’ll need after that is green paint and the same tiny hand washed, of course.
Source: Fun Hand Print Art
“A” Is For Ant Activity
If you’re looking for a very outside the box learning activity to do with ants, then look no further than this one. Not for anyone who may be creeped out by bugs, ants specifically. You’ll need some honey, a piece of paper, and know a spot outside where ants may be!
Source: Creative Little Explorers
Ant And The Grasshopper Coloring/Puppet Printable
Using the free printable, have students color and then cut out the ant and the grasshopper. Glue or tape them to a craft or popsicle stick. Then, have them reenact the story.
Source: 99 Worksheets
The Ant And The Grasshopper Play
There are many different takes on the story of the Ant and the Grasshopper. The resource here takes a different approach to the original story by expanding on each of the roles of both the ant and the grasshopper. This version of the fable really showcases the message of the story, which is a really good idea for little learners. It will really drive home the moral of the story, that hard work pays off and have fun when work is done.
Source: Really Good Stuff
Clothespin Grasshopper
Here’s a fun craft having to do with just the grasshopper that your kids and students will absolutely love creating. In the story of the Ant and Grasshopper, the ant does work while the grasshopper plays. This leads to the grasshopper not having food or shelter when the cold months come. You can easily parlay the moral of the story into the creation of this grasshopper in that your kids and students will have to work on building their grasshopper for this craft before they can play with it.
Source: Mom Unleashed
The Ant And The Grasshopper Jigsaw Puzzle Craft
For this fun craft, you’ll need the free printable found on the website, scissors, crayons or markers, glue, and cardboard. Children will color and cut a picture of the ant and the grasshopper with the message of the story on it. This could make a cute piece of playable art or even a neat poster they can hang to help keep them motivated.
Source: DLTK Teach
Ant Spoon Craft
Super fun and super easy ant craft idea. Your kids and students will absolutely love building an ant using spoons, pipe cleaners, and googly eyes. You can either purchase colored spoons or paint them to get the color you want.
Source: Super Mommy
Paper Towel Grasshopper Craft
Start saving those empty paper towel rolls now for this super awesome grasshopper craft. Although this grasshopper craft is a bit more involved and may be best for the older kids, the result is the absolute cutest little grasshopper. You’ll also need toilet paper rolls, green paint, a stapler, googly eyes, and pipe cleaners.
Source: The Craft Train
Grasshopper Construction Paper Headband
These grasshopper headbands are the perfect headwear to make before, during, or after reading the Ant and the Grasshopper. Especially if you’re going to do a play or read aloud with the story. This craft is so super easy to make and needs only a few craft items.
Start by printing the free template, get some green construction paper, glue, a stapler, googly eyes, pipe cleaners, and voilà, adorable little grasshopper headbands. Also, you can easily make an ant headband using the same directions just change the green construction paper to black.
Source: A Field Trip Life
Ant Snack
Using marshmallows and pretzels, make a delicious snack to remind you of the story.
Source: Hubbard’s Cupboard
Ant Sensory Bin
This ant sensory bin is easy to make and will provide hours of pretend play.
Source: News with Naylors
Ant and the Grasshopper Videos
Aesop’s Fables Read On Video
The resource below has a few different videos of some of Aesop’s more famous fables, like the Grasshopper and the Ant being read on video. At the bottom of the video, the fable is also typed in the short story version.
This is a great way to have students both hear and see the words to the story, especially during individual or group Language Arts lessons. The reader in the video also goes over the moral of the story as well.
Source: DLTK Kids
How Do Ants Find Food Video
If you’re looking to jump into a Science lesson after your Language Arts lesson is over that was about Aesop’s fable, the ant and the grasshopper, this ant video is the perfect segue into that. In the fable The Ant and the Grasshopper, the ant is too busy to play with the grasshopper because they were gathering food for the Winter. This video resource shows how ants find their food.
Source: Sci-Show Kids
Ant And The Grasshopper Interactive Video
This fun resource is perfect for checking comprehension. The narrator tells the story of the Ant and Grasshopper and asks questions about each part of the story to check for understanding. The questions are asked right there in the video, and students have the option to go back and re-listen for something they may have missed.
Source: Tiny Tap
Ant and the Grasshopper Printables
Aesop’s Fables Printable Activities
This resource is loaded with free printable activities for many of Aesop’s Fables. There are 10 different fables in total. They are great for use with younger kids, especially at the K-2 levels.
Source: 123 Homeschool 4 Me
The Ant and The Grasshopper Script Printable
One of the best ways to get children to connect with a story is to be a part of the story. This resource includes a free printable script with several different roles, which is great for small group work.
Source: Santa Paula USD
Whether you’re looking to add some ant and grasshopper activities into your classroom, homeschool curriculum, or just for some fun after school time, these activities will be perfect.