Engage their imagination with an exercise in exaggeration. Read one of Paul's tall tales. Ask the children to expound upon the story. Have them change the setting. Let each child have a turn. Do this with each of the Paul Bunyan myths, and congratulate the children for their lively imagination.
At the art table, give each child a blank piece of construction paper and access to washable markers or crayons. Tell them a Paul Bunyan myth, like the story of his kitchen, and have them illustrate it. Remind them to draw the kitchen stove, a plate full of flapjacks, some milk to drink, and a hungry Paul Bunyan. If they aren't sure what to draw, give them free reign to create their own imaginative drawing. On the back of the papers, glue a copy of the story for further enjoyment at home.
Put a new spin on pin the tail on the donkey by changing the donkey to his blue ox, Babe. Have the children pin Babe's blue tail onto his blue body. For safety, don't use pins to attach the tail, use double-sided tape. Introduce the game by telling the kids about the mythical baby ox found by Bunyan. Tell them that Babe was blue because he was almost frozen, and that later Babe fell in love with Bessie the Yeller Cow.
Do a version of the Red Light, Green Light game with Bessie and Babe as the lights. Boys are allowed to move forward on blue, girls on yellow. Red still means stop for both. When all of the children have made it to the finish line, have them yell "yee-haw" and start the game again.
Plan a puppet craft using Paul, Babe, and Bessie as your subjects. Using small paper lunch bags as the body, have the children color cutouts of the faces of each character. Let them glue one of the colored cutouts onto the bottom of a small paper lunch bag. When complete, each child will have three puppets. Encourage them to pair off into groups and act out different parts of the story.
Create several Paul Bunyan puzzles, using one of the many Paul Bunyan printouts available online. Print onto card stock, laminate, and cut into jigsaw pieces. Number the backs of each puzzle so that the puzzle pieces won't get mixed in with other puzzles. Store in small plastic sandwich bags.
Make up a song to celebrate one of Paul's adventures. Use a familiar tune, like :Mary Had a Little Lamb" or "London Bridge is Falling Down." Change a popular children's song to give homage to Paul. "Ten Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed" could become "Ten Big Logs Rolling Down the River." "Old MacDonald Had a Farm" could become "Big Paul Bunyan had a Cabin." Have the children help you come up with lyrics and encourage them to clap along as you all sing.