The Mixed-Up Chameleon Snack Mix

Many years ago, we made a mixed up snack mix to go along with some “The Mixed Up Chameleon” activities that we were doing with a group of preschoolers. It’s a fun way to engage little minds using a colorful snack, and is inspired by Eric Carle’s beloved book, “The Mixed-Up Chameleon”. Whether you’re exploring chameleon activities for preschoolers or simply looking for a creative way to engage kids in snack time, this mix is sure to be a hit.

The Mixed Up Chameleon Activity

Just like the mixed-up chameleon changes its colors to blend in with its surroundings, our snack mix offers a variety of flavors and textures to tantalize young taste buds. From crunchy to chewy, sweet to savory, every bite is a delightful surprise!

You’ll want to check out all of our cooking with kids recipes and all of the benefits of getting kids involved in the kitchen. A cooking task as simple as this mixed up recipe is great for little ones!

 
 
We have been loving this Preschool Book Club Series!  This week’s book is The Mixed Up Chameleon by Eric Carle (affiliate link) and one of our favorites.  We decided to make a mixed up snack mix to go along with the story.  And what a fun time this was! 

 

 

 

Mixed-Up Chameleon Snack

 

 

To create your own Mixed-Up Chameleon Snack Mix, gather an assortment of colorful ingredients. Think vibrant green pretzel sticks, golden cereal squares, red and blue dried fruit, and perhaps even some chocolate candies for an extra treat. Encourage your little ones to mix and match the ingredients just like the chameleon mixes up its appearance.

You could actually use any ingredients that you prefer or have on hand. This could be fruit to make a mixed-up fruit cup, or a trail mix type of snack.

As you prepare the snack mix together, take the opportunity to engage in some mixed-up chameleon activities. Discuss the chameleon’s unique ability to change colors and blend in with its surroundings. Encourage your children to use their imaginations and pretend to be chameleons, adapting to different environments as they munch on their colorful snack mix.

For added fun, consider incorporating story time into your snack session by reading “The Mixed-Up Chameleon” aloud. As you enjoy the story together, point out how the chameleon’s adventures parallel the mixing and matching of ingredients in your snack mix.

 
This post contains affiliate links.

 

 

Have you read The Mixed-Up Chameleon (Amazon affiliate link)
by Eric Carle?   We love this story, just like we love all of Eric Carle books.  This was a great book to read with a little snack.   First, we needed to do a little cooking with the kids.
 
 Our snack mix used all of the colors for the different animals in the book.  As the chameleon decides he wants to be a different animal, we added the ingredient to go along with that animal, and mixed it up, of course…with a mixing spoon!

 

 

In the book, first the Chameleon wants to be like the Polar Bear.  We added coconut flakes to our bowl to represent the polar bear’s fur.  Not a fan of coconut?  Try marshmallows.

 

 

Next the Chameleon wants to be like the Flamingo.  We added pink sprinkles.  Because sprinkles make everyone happy 🙂
 
 
 

 

Next the Chameleon wants to be like the Fox, so we added red M&Ms.

 
Goldfish crackers are for the goldfish, of course.
 

 

When the Chameleon wanted to be like the Deer, we added pretzels for antlers.

 

 
For the Giraffe’s long neck, we used our imagination and added pretzel sticks to the snack mix.
 

 

Green Fruit Loops represented the Turtle in the book.

Next, the Chameleon wants to be like the Elephant and again we used our imagination to use dried banana chips for elephant ears.  It was a little stretch, but worked for us.  And was a tasty addition to our snack mix!

 
The Chameleon decides he wants to be like the seal and at that point, we added raisins to represent the seal’s flippers.

 

 

The final addition to our snack mix was the umbrellas for the people. 

 

The snack mix was stirred up and all done!  Ready to eat, while we read the book.  Again!

 

Have fun with your snack mix and the Mixed-Up Chameleon!

Mixed Up Chameleon Book Activities

We had so much fun creating this Mixed up Chameleon activity! 
Be sure to stop by the other bloggers in this series to see how they are playing and crafting with the Mixed-Up Chameleon:

 

Home Grown Friends Mixed Up Creatures 
 
 
Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails Sensory Bin 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Mama. Papa. Bubba. Camouflaged Chameleon Hunt

 

 

Here are more kids crafts based on children’s books.

This activity is one of our favorite ways to explore books through play! There are many more ideas in our resource: Exploring Books Through Play.
social emotional activities for kids

Colleen Beck, OTR/L has been an occupational therapist since 2000, working in school-based, hand therapy, outpatient peds, EI, and SNF. Colleen created The OT Toolbox to inspire therapists, teachers, and parents with easy and fun tools to help children thrive. Read her story about going from an OT making $3/hour (after paying for kids’ childcare) to a full-time OT resource creator for millions of readers. Want to collaborate? Send an email to contact@theottoolbox.com.

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