45th Anniversary of The Very Hungry Caterpillar


2014 marks the 45th anniversary of Eric Carle’s classic, The Very Hungry Caterpillar. The anniversary will be officially celebrated on the annual “Very Hungry Caterpillar Day” which takes place every year on the first day of spring (March 20th).

In a simply elegant tale of metamorphosis, Carle’s distinct artwork is colorful and child-centric and combines perfectly with innovative page cuts, familiar concepts (counting, days of the week, food) and natural curiosity of children. It’s no wonder that we are all “still hungry” for this classic, 45 years later!



Since its publication in 1969, 36 million copes of the book have sold worldwide and it has been published in 55 languages.  that year the book was also named one of the best children's books of the year by The New York Times, and it has since become a beloved, must-own classic.  Today, every 30 seconds, somehwere in the world, a copy of The Very Hungry Caterpillar is sold.  



Eric Carle is acclaimed and beloved as the creator of brilliantly illustrated and innovatively designed picture books for very young children. He has illustrated more than seventy books, many best sellers, and more than 100 million copies of his books have sold around the world. In 2002, Eric and his wife Barbara opened  




You can find out more by visiting the Official Site.  You’ll find free activity sheets and all sorts of goodies here so be sure to check it out!

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Caterpillar-That-Ate-All-Week-Freebie-Reader-1165233




I just love this book and more than thrilled when introducing the story during our life cycles unit.  To ensure my students gain continued practice when the book is checked out of the library, I created an interactive reader!  Grab your freebie copy by linking through the graphic above!



The fun hasn't stopped!  Enter the Rafflecopter giveaway below to win two limited edition anniversary totes and two copies of The Very Hungry Caterpillar board books.  That is one prize for you to keep and one to share with a friend.  Prizes courtesy of Penguin.  Giveaway open to US mailing addresses only!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

89 comments:

Unknown said...

My students love Eric Carle! I didn't even know March 20th was The very hungry caterpillar day! I am a brand new teacher! I would love to win this giveaway!

Anonymous said...

Love this book!

kinderpond said...

I have my sons VHC shirt and socks already to celebrate the day!!!!!!

Nappycookie said...

I had no idea that it was the 45th anniversary! We will have to have an Eric Carle day in Kindergarten!!

Maryann said...

I love this story and also any book that Eric Carle designs! We use alot of his stories in the kindergarten classroom. Thank you for reminding me of the 45th anniversary!
Maryann
brennemm@carlisleschools.org

murphmann said...

I love this book!

Miss P said...

I would love to win this book. This is one of the few Eric Carle books that I don't own. This would be great for me because I teach Literacy Through the Arts on the kindergarten level and this would be great for that.

tuffy2303 said...

Love this story! This is the first story my daughter "read" to me at 2.

tori. said...

The tote is adorable! I love Eric Carle!

EJ said...

This is my all-time favorite book! I would LOVE to win the tote/book!!!!!

Freshwater’s Firsties said...

My favorite book! Tote is too cute!

The Rette Family said...

One of my favorites to read!!! I read at least once a week to my daughter as well, would love to win this!!!

Unknown said...

This is one of my all time favorite stories!! Hope to win.

tinysmiles34@gmail.com

Unknown said...

Eric Carle is one of my favourite children's book authors, too!!! I absolutely ADORE the anniversary edition and totes!! My listening centre is jammed full of his books! I would LOVE to be the LUCKY recipient of the giveaway <3. Thank you for considering me...as always =). leafsgirl@rogers.com.

Unknown said...

I absolutely love, love, LOVE Eric Carle books!!! Would love to win this!!

Unknown said...

I absolutely LOVE Eric Carle. This is a great giveaway. Thanks for the opportunity!
Karen Rowland
Adventures With Firsties

karenrowland112677@yahoo.com

Lynn Montgomery said...

His books have ALWAYS been some of my favorites!!Fingers Crossed!
Lynn

Unknown said...

I absoutely love Eric Carle books. These are the books my students always want me to reread.

EcoLoveandLife said...

Thanks for the giveaway!

Jennifer K. said...

Thanks for the freebie and the chance to win! Love Eric Carle!

Jennifer @ Herding Kats in Kindergarten

Jessica Laurine said...

Thanks for the CUTE freebie!

Jessica
The Littlest Scholars

Mrs. Brown said...

Such a cute giveaway! I love the Hungry Caterpillar!

kellybrown28021@gmail.com

Unknown said...

Love the book and the totes are just too cute!

Anonymous said...

My favorite author by far. I love your things. So cute. marylin77@msn.com

Trish said...

TY for this great giveaway, I always loved this book and I would love to share it w/my son

Unknown said...

What interesting facts you've shared! Thank you!

Unknown said...

Thank you so much for sharing! I am SO excited to use these resources with my kiddos! Thank you so much!! : )

Heidi Reads... said...

One of my childhood favorites!

Unknown said...

Thank you for sharing! I LOVE this book!!

Brittney Ellis said...

One of my favs! I hope I win :)

Unknown said...

The best book ever! I've been teaching 30 years, and have had the priveledge of helping hundreds of young children fall in love with the caterpillar. Thank you, Eric Carle!

Unknown said...

What a happy coincidence! I just read this to my 1 yr. old grandson today-even better, his birthday party theme is The Very Hungry Caterpillar! How cool is that!

Kim Rogers said...

I can't wait to read this book to my Kinders this year! They always love it!

Shterna Z. said...

Would love to win!!

Terri said...

I know what I will do on the 20th! Yeah, Eric Carle.

Brenda said...

Wonderful book, cute totes!! I had no idea that March 20 is TVHC Day--will have to plan some fun activities. Thanks for the chance to win.

irbymd said...

These are cute totes!! Thank you for sharing the ideas!

Unknown said...

Thank you for the darling cards/printables. We always have a lot of fun doing our Eric Carle author study in first grade and I love turning my classroom into a complete minefield of painted papers as we replicate his collage style pictures. It's so fun to see even my 'veteran' readers sitting on the floor working a little stuffed caterpillar through The Very Hungry Caterpillar board book. His books really are a gift to children. laura.scheunemann@wrps.net

Sue Lattea said...

I love the totes!

Sue Lattea

Mrs. Tolbert said...

would love to win this! You can never have too many copies of the caterpillar!

jadawtolbert@gmail.com

Krista said...

This is one of the very first books I owned as a child. Still have that first copy, plus several others.

Sharon B said...

I love this book! In fact, all of his books are just great! Thanks for the chance to win!

Unknown said...

I had no idea that the book was that old. It is such a great book as so many Eric Carle books are.

Sara said...

My classes always love this book. What a great giveaway.

Unknown said...

We all love this book!

Cecilia said...

Love Eric Carle! Thanks for the chance.

Unknown said...

LOVE Eric Carle & so do my Kindergarten kiddos!

peggy27 said...

Love Eric Carle

Unknown said...

I love it! This is one of my favorite books!

meintc said...

Adorable! Thanks for the Chance!

BurykV said...

This is one of my daughters favorite books :)

R.Smith said...

Eric Carle is one of my favorite authors! I can't wait to celebrate the day in my classroom! Thanks for the chance to win!

Unknown said...

I love this book!! I started 7 years ago coming from Mexico and using this book helped me a lot as a first year teacher with days of the week, butterfly cycle and counting... SO IN LOVE WITH IT!!!!

Julie Davis said...

Amazing giveaway for an amazing story!!!!
Julie

Unknown said...

What a fun way to incorporate life cycles!

Tracy said...

Love the Hungry Caterpillar! Thanks for the chance to win.

Unknown said...

This is such a great giveaway! Would love to win this! Kids love this book!

Vicki said...

Love The Very Hungry Caterpillar! I read it with my students all the time and now sharing with grandbabies!

Unknown said...

My kinders and I love Eric Carle! Thanks for the opportunity to win!

susan said...

Eric Carle is such a beloved author! What a special milestone to reach. Thanks for highlighting it too!

Unknown said...

We love Eric Carle! His books are one of our favorite collections! The totes would be an absolute great addition. If they aren't won.....is they anyway to purchase?

dbednars said...

My students and I love Eric Carle. All of his books are colorful and engaging.

Karyn said...

My students absolutely love Eric Carle's books! The Very Hungry Caterpillar is always a favorite!

Markisha said...

Love his work.

Amanda Wright said...

Eric Carle is one of my favorite children's authors. I absolutely love his books. Winning this giveaway would come in handy for my classroom as we are doing a unit on Growing and Changing: Butterflies in a few weeks.

Kim said...

Eric Carle has so many great books! The Very Hungry Caterpillar is definitely a classic!

lorena said...

LOVE the totes!!! :)
lorepuckett at gmail dot com

Erin said...

I LOVE Eric Carel! The Very Hungry Caterpillar is one of his best! :) I love the totes as well!

Unknown said...

Eric Carle was my favorite author growing up. I especially like the Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See and The Hungry Caterpillar books. The totes are really cute too. Great to carry books in.

Unknown said...

I have been waiting for March 20th to celebrate this timeless book!!

abettes5985 said...

I love the very Hungry Caterpillar! It is such a cute book!

Tracey said...

My all time favorite Eric Carle book!

Anonymous said...

This one of my daughters favorite books growing up. We read it so many times, we had to buy a 2nd book for backup. She now reads the book to other children she mentors, babysits or at school. She is studying to be a teacher and hopes to continue the tradition with her students someday. Thank you so much.

Unknown said...

In love with Eric Carle's books!

Lauren @ Teaching in Stripes said...

The thing I love the most about Eric Carle's illustrations are the colors. His work is so beautiful!

Lori R said...

I love Eric Carle's books!

Jennifer Malia said...

Loved reading this to my 22 year old and now I enjoy reading it with my 5 year old! Would love to win this for our homeschool needs :)

Cherie said...

Love the freebie! Thank you!

Terri Paulson-Sasaki said...

This is my favorite book. Thanks for the freebies.

Terri

Julie Wiersma said...

I love this book and all his other books too!!!
Julie
wiersjul@gmail.com

msdora162 said...

I love this book. We have been working on an authorvstudy using Eric Carle. When we get back from Spring Break we will culminate with a hungry caterpillar activity.

Marianne B said...

always a class favorite..

Huskergirl said...

I love Eric Carle! Thanks for the freebie and the chance to win.

Renee Stewart said...

Would LOVE to win-
Eric Carle is my all time favorite children's author

LivinG To Learn said...

I love the bags and would love to have one!!! and I'm going to create my Very Hungry Caterpillar activities now to commemorate the 45th anniversary!

Carol T. said...

I collect bags and these are great! Love the book too, it's a classic!

emmecj said...

LOVE LOVE Eric Carle!

bethm said...

Best Book Ever.....that is all:)

Amy Mc said...

The tote is so cute!