At first, the toy was just a
pack of body parts. Kids stuck the parts into real potatoes or other vegetables.
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Student View
Danyelle Marie (Real Potato); HASBRO (Sister Yam & Brother Spud); Finnbarr Webster/Alamy Stock Photo (Mr. Potato Head); Eldad Carin/Alamy Stock Photo (Mrs. Potato Head); movies/Alamy Stock Photo (Toy Story 3); Pete Jenkins/Alamy Stock Photo (Darth Tater); iStockPhoto/Getty Images (Mr. Potato Head Cat)
The Story of Mr. Potato Head
This wacky toy has changed a lot over the years. Follow the path to see how.
From the February 2025 Issue
Learning Objective: Students will follow an infographic to understand how Mr. Potato Head has changed over time.
1. Real Potatoes
2. More Potato Heads
Next came Mrs. Potato Head and the kids. They were Brother Spud and Sister Yam.
3. Plastic Potatoes
Later, the toy came with a plastic potato. Parents were happy. They did not have to find old rotting potatoes in the house!
4. In the Movies
After that, Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head became movie stars. They were in the Toy Story movies!
5. Hello, Darth Tater
Today, there are all kinds of Potato Heads. You can play with a dog or a pirate. You can even play with Darth Tater!
Activities
(3)
Skills Activities
Answer Key
(1)
More About the Article
English Language Arts Focus
Sequencing
Nonfiction text features
Social Studies Focus
History and culture
Step-by-Step Lesson Plan
Implementation
- Whole group
- Small group
Pairings and Text Connections
- From the Storyworks 1 archive: “Past to Present: The True Story of Rubik’s Cube” (March/April 2024); “Past to Present: The Story of LEGO® People” (September 2022)
Before-Reading Resources
- Vocabulary slideshow (5 minutes) wacky, spud, rotting, movie stars
Suggested Reading Focus
How things change over time (20 minutes)
- Preview the article with students. Ask them what kind of article it is. (an infographic) Remind them that an infographic arranges pictures and text in a way that gives you information. Ask what they notice about the nonfiction features.
- Tell children that you will be learning about the history of Mr. Potato Head. Build excitement by asking what they know about the toy. Have they played with one before?
- Read the article, pausing to check comprehension after each section.
- After reading, ask students to recall how Mr. Potato Head has changed over time. Summarize their learning through discussion or on chart paper.
After-Reading Skills Practice
- Skills: editing fragments/sentence writing; sequencing; main idea (15 minutes each)
Text-to-Speech