The Rainbow Fish

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Read the timeless story about “the most beautiful fish in the entire ocean” and teach students how friendship and sharing make him unique.

OBJECTIVE
Students will read The Rainbow Fish, by Marcus Pfister, review key words, and create paper fish.

MATERIALS
Fiskars scissors; colored and patterned paper; aluminum foil; white paper; glue; markers

REPRODUCIBLES
Fish Reproducible

SET UP AND PREPARE
1. Read The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister with students. Explain that today they will create their own Rainbow Fish with colorful paper for each scale.

2. As a class, discuss what it means to be a good friend. Create a list of vocabulary words that relate to friendship (e.g., love, sharing, happy, helping)

DIRECTIONS
1. Pass out Fish Reproducibles to students.

2. Ask students to make their own list of vocabulary words about friendship, circling the most important one.

3. Instruct students to write a vocabulary word inside each scale in the space provided on the reproducible. Place the most important word (the word that they’ve circled) in the center.

4. Next, have students cut out scale shapes from the colored or patterned paper provided. Paste the scales over each space on the reproducible so that when they lift the scale up, they can read the word.

5. Have students cut a scale out of aluminum foil and over the most important word.

6. Hang the fishes in the classroom. Have students lift the scales of their fish, and other students’ fishes, to practice vocabulary words.