After reading one or two gingerbread men tales such as "The Gingerbread Man" by Karen Schmidt or "The Gingerbread Man" by Catherine McCaffery, invite preschoolers to use felt character cutouts to act out and retell the story on a felt board. Include an old man, old woman, little boy, gingerbread man, fox and other characters featured in the tales read aloud to students. Add felt clothes for the people and gingerbread decorations such as felt buttons and white felt trim for students to decorate their characters.
Set up a gingerbread hunt around the school and playground. Place a large gingerbread cutout in your classroom with a clue written on the back. The first clue might state, "Run, run as fast as you can. The gingerbread man was running to the office!" Have preschoolers go to the office and ask if anyone has seen the gingerbread man. Office staff replies, "We saw him and he left this clue." The staff hands preschoolers another gingerbread man cutout clue. End your hunt at the classroom where a plate of fresh gingerbread cookies awaits students.
Provide fresh-baked gingerbread cookies for preschoolers to decorate. Give each student a paper plate, craft stick, cookie and 2 tablespoons vanilla icing. Have preschoolers spread icing over cookies using the craft stick. Invite preschoolers to decorate their gingerbread men using chocolate candies, fruit flavored candies, gumdrops, licorice strings or other fun candy toppings.
Give preschoolers a large paper gingerbread-shape cutout. Have preschoolers use paints, markers, crayons, glitter, buttons, yarn, sequences and other craft supplies to decorate their gingerbread men. After gingerbread men have dried, hang on a bulletin board featuring a little house, rolling hills, a river and a crafty fox.
On the inside of a file folder, glue four to six gingerbread men cutouts. Photocopy a few buttons from a classroom button collection. Cut out button photocopies and glue the button images on the gingerbread men. Laminate the file folder. Invite preschoolers to sort through the button collection to find the matching buttons to place on each gingerbread man.