The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt

Let’s spend a day with The Crayons from The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt (Illustrations by Oliver Jeffers).

The day might begin by reading the book, or watch it read to you here, and a breakfast of pancakes with a variety of syrups in different colors to choose from.

You can find some recipe ideas here:

Strawberry

Blueberry

Lemon 

Chocolate 

Or even, Blue Raspberry Kool-aid!

Begin lesson time with a discussion on the book’s theme, story order and emotional content.

Have your child sort their own crayons into the order they appear in the story.

What was each crayon’s complaint?

What similar situations can your child relate to that help them understand the crayon’s feelings?

Does your child feel that the crayons chose positive or negative ways to express their concerns?

Watch an additional clip about a crayon with a problem here and help your child discuss what he or she sees.

Create cone hats out of construction paper and turn the book into a play or short skit.

Count the number of crayons that were featured in the book.

Count and compare the number of crayons in your child’s own box.

Create simple math problems by asking the child questions about how many crayons they would have if all they’re blue crayons got mad and left the box, or if their orange crayon found two more friends to join the box.

Compare fractions.  What a whole crayon looks like next to half a crayon.

Practice writing the letters in each color name with the same color crayon.

Draw and write your own letter back to one of the crayons. Try this free printable from Peace, Love and Learning.

Make your own name letter out of crayons.

Sort your crayons by color grouping, order in the rainbow, or any other system that makes sense to your child.

Learn about the history of Crayola here.

Find out how crayons are made here.

Dig a little deeper into the psychology of color for your own enlightenment.

Have your child choose their favorite color and go on a scavenger hunt to find items that are that same color.  How many are they able to find?

Choose your own favorite color and eat foods of only that color for lunch.

Color!

Talk about why it might, or might not be important to color “inside the lines”.

Use those crayons in other creative ways.

Let your children help you plan a rainbow colored dinner and explore the ideas from Enchanted Home Schooling Mom for a complete set of decorations and ideas.

And, have edible crayons for desert.

And don't forget to check out some of the other crayon books and products we love!

My Many Colored Days by Dr. Seuss
My Crayons Talk by Patricia Hubbard
A Day with No Crayons by Elizabeth Rusch
Monsters Love Color by Mike Austin
Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson
Crayola Ultimate Crayon Case
The Little ABC Coloring Book by Anna Pomoska
Color Me Calm by Lacy Mucklow

And always remember: