Harold and the Purple Crayon tells the story of a little boy, Harold, on a moonlit walk with his favorite purple crayon. The story’s path is entirely created through the shapes of the lines Harold draws. This module invites children to sketch their own paths, explore the color purple, and investigate the moon and shadows. The lessons are rich with visual art, drama, and dance experiences that will spark the imaginations of young learners to create stories of their own.
Before you begin...
Each Artful Reading Module is flexibly designed for a 2-3 week duration. Lessons are marked for Before-, During-, or After-Reading to guide your planning. We have added a sample of a Before Reading lesson entitled The Color Purple for you to preview. Each lesson is designed in an easy to read format, with standards, materials needed, and step-by-step directions to ensure you are fully prepared when it’s time to deliver.
This module contains the following lessons:
- The Color Purple
- Let’s Make Purple!
- Purple Pouring Place
- The Moon is Peeking Through
- Harold and the Purple Crayon
- Painting Colored Pictures
- Purple Connections
- Purple Line Sculpture
- Moonbear’s Shadow
- Purple Moon Houses
At the end of the module, you will find options for summative writing tasks and optional extensions that can stretch the module further.
Standards Matrix
For your reference, we have added images of the literacy standards matrix for this module.
Key Vocabulary
Primary Colors, Secondary Colors, Purple, Magenta, Lavender, Lilac, Peek,
Moon, Shadow, Fiction, Non-Fiction, Realistic, Fantasy
Note: This module is part of Kindergarten: Series 2. The four modules in Series 2 collectively address all National ELA and Core Arts Standards.