Get ready for giggles, rhymes, and a little holiday mischief with How to Catch an Elf by Adam Wallace! This classroom favorite is perfect for adding some festive fun to your December plans. With Simply Kinder’s How to Catch an Elf Book Companion, you can turn this read-aloud into a week of engaging activities your students will love. Pure holiday magic and learning!

Check out these related posts:

• Christmas Crafts for the Classroom
• Winter Theme Days in Kindergarten
• Holidays Around the World Activities in Kindergarten

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Inside the How to Catch an Elf Book Companion

Our How to Catch an Elf Book Companion makes lesson planning a festive breeze. It’s full of ready-to-use printables and activities that connect directly to the story while strengthening core kindergarten literacy skills.

Reading Comprehension Activities

Help students retell and understand the story with:

• Sequencing cards to put the events in order
• Story response pages and graphic organizers for characters, setting, and events
• Sequencing Wheel to practice story retelling
• Story vocabulary cards to introduce key words before reading
• Interactive Story Map for retelling and creative play

These pages make it easy to talk through the story together and guide your students in comprehension.

Literacy and Math Printables

Keep the learning going with these phonics, math, and fine motor add-ons included in the companion:

• Phonics pages to practice letter formation, CVC words, and blends
• Math Printables to practice number identification, counting, addition, and subtraction
• Fine Motor Activities to strengthen cutting and handwriting

These no-prep literacy pages are perfect for small groups, centers, homework, or morning bins.

Jolly Elf Crafts

Bring the story to life with elf crafts!

Elf Writing Craft

After reading the story, invite your students to plan their own way to catch an elf! Using the writing templates from the book companion, students write about their idea, then create a matching elf craft to display with their writing.

Teacher Tip: Display these as a hallway or bulletin board titled “How We Would Catch an Elf!”

Trap an Elf Craft

This activity lets kids use their imaginations to design a trap on paper – no building supplies needed.

Students use a printable elf trap template to color and design a box trap. These make the cutest holiday display!

How to Catch an Elf Hat

Students will love building a scene showing how they would trap an elf on a wearable hat.

Math and Literacy Centers

The fun doesn’t stop with the story! The How to Catch an Elf Book Companion also includes a variety of holiday-themed math and literacy centers that are perfect for keeping your students learning through all the excitement of December.

Literacy Centers

• CVC Word Matching: Match pictures and words to make a festive scene while strengthening decoding and blending.
• Rhyming Spin & Cover: Be the first to cover your card with this partner rhyming game.

Math Centers

• Counting Cards: Practice counting and number formation with How to Catch an Elf counting cards.
• Addition Board Game: Build addition fact fluency pby laying this fun game with a partner or independently.

The How to Catch an Elf Book Companion is your one-stop resource for turning this beloved holiday story into a classroom favorite. It’s simple to prep, easy to differentiate, and guaranteed to keep your students smiling through December.

🎉 Grab it now inside Simply Kinder + HERE and make your holiday lesson planning stress-free!