Who's Coming to Dinner?

Activity Overview
Planning and executing a task like writing out invitations requires children to access both cognitive and fine motor skills. This task is aimed at helping the student gain more control and coordination within their writing and drawing work. They are challenged to think of each person that will be attending their meal at the end of the week during our Weekly Household Job Challenge, and write or draw them an invitation. If your student can not yet write, have them tell you what they want the card to say, and write the words on the back of their work exactly as they say. Though their sentences may be fragmented, it is important for their work to be an accurate reflection of what they think and say.

What You Need

• A device to view May I Bring a Friend? by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers

• Paper

• Drawing materials

Steps

1. Decide who is coming to dinner! Is it just the people that live in your home or will other family members and friends come?

2. Together, watch the read aloud of May I Bring a Friend? This story offers many ways of inviting people (and animals) to a meal or event.

3. Draw or write an invitation to dinner. If your student is not yet writing, allow them to draw and ask them what they would like to say to the people you are inviting, and write their words on the back.

4. Deliver your invitations to the people. Do any need to be mailed or dropped off?

Guiding Questions

• Who would you like to come to your dinner?

• What do you think they like to eat?

• How do you make this card special for this person?

• Can you draw anything this person likes on the card?

Extensions

• Can you write a menu for your meal? What are you making? Can you make drawings or words about the food you are creating?

• Can you make place cards with everyone’s name on them? Cut 4" x 4" squares, cut them out and have the student practice writing names or letters in the names of people attending the dinner.

• Don't forget to lay out the tablecloth you made to prepare for your guests!