
The activity continues until all the 10 rubber ducks are back in the teacher’s bag.
I hand out the rubber ducks to students and when I read “The 1 st rubber duck….”, the student who has the 1 st rubber duck hands it back to me. I read aloud the story and point out key words.
Bring 10 little rubber ducks to class and number them – then play Which rubber duck is missing? (take out one rubber duck at a time and students shout out the missing duck). Line up objects that students have around (students point to the 1 st, 2 nd, 3 rd object and name it). Line up students (line-up students then point to the 1 st, 2 nd,3 rd student, ask questions “Who is the 2 nd in line/3 rd in line etc.). Note that this edition does not include a squeaker at the end.Although ordinal numbers ( 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10 th) may seem quite abstract to little children, the story 10 little rubber ducks by Eric Carle helps children understand this concept way better than any other story. This board book edition with sturdy pages is perfect to share with toddlers. "Beautifully composed illustrations," said Booklist. "As sublimely simple and endearing as the playthings it portrays," agreed Publishers Weekly. It's a definite 10," commented School Library Journal in a starred review. "A wonderful read-aloud for storytimes or one-on-one sharing. Each creature the ducks meet is seen in its own habitat and behaves in a true-to-life manner, offering a very simple first view of biology and geography. Following the little ducks as they float to all parts of the globe, young explorers can see for themselves the meanings of directional words and learn simple math concepts, such as counting and the use of cardinal and ordinal numbers. In this poignant and funny story, illustrated with strikingly designed collages, Eric Carle takes readers on an exciting voyage of discovery. Small readers and listeners will empathize with the little duck's plight-and will rejoice at the heartwarming surprise ending.
But as the sun sets, the 10th little rubber duck is left all alone, bobbing helplessly on the big wide sea. One drifts west, where a friendly dolphin jumps over it. The ducks are swept away in various directions. "Ducks overboard!" shouts the captain, as a giant wave washes a box of 10 little rubber ducks off his cargo ship and into the sea.
All aboard for a world of learning and fun!