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*Picture book for preschoolers through 2nd graders
*Mr. Tiger as the main character

*Rating: Mr. Tiger Goes Wild is a super, cute picture book that sends the message to children that they need to listen to their heart and become individuals. It’s also okay to miss your friends and love them for whom they are! I was lucky enough to see Peter Brown in person in St. Peters, MO, at a library presentation. He is a very funny speaker and a talented artist. It was a great night. Although my husband said to him at the book signing: “Now my daughter is going to want to take her clothes off and run wild in the jungle.” Oh, so not true–but Peter did apologize. My daughter is now in love with this very cute book.

Short, short summary: Mr. Tiger is bored and grumpy in his regular outfit and acting prim and proper in his village all the time. He decides to go WILD one day and walk on all four legs instead of on two legs. Then he decides to go swimming and shed the clothes–now he’s like a real tiger! So Mrs. Elephant tells him to go be wild in the wilderness, and off to the jungle he goes. At first, he is having a marvelous time, but he misses his friends-even the prim and proper ones. So, he goes back to his village, and he realizes that he can be an individual there, too, and his friends will still love him. And his uniqueness might just have worn off on an elephant or two.

Buy Mr. Tiger Goes Wild!

So, what do I do with this book?

1. What do children think about what Mr. Tiger did? Do they think he acted in the right way? How do they feel about Mr. Tiger’s friends? Why do they think he got lonely? These are the types of discussion questions you can have with young children when you are reading this book with them.

2. You can do an easy sequencing activity with this book. You or even children can draw Mr. Tiger at different stages of the book–each on a separate sheet of 8 1/2 “  x 11 ” paper. So, you would have a drawing of him at the beginning grumpy and bored, then on all fours with his clothes on, then swimming, then no clothes, then in the jungle, etc. As a whole group activity, mix up the order and have children come up and put the drawings in the right order to retell the story.

3. Ask children to draw an illustration of themselves “going wild” and write a sentence about it. You should probably discuss this first–so you don’t get too many naked pictures. HA! But you can make a list like: they could dress up in funny costumes, do a silly dance, wear clown makeup, etc.

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*Early, early chapter book (like Amelia Bedelia), realistic fiction
*6-year-old girl as main character
*Rating: Well, I’m in love with the character, Katie Woo–this is just one book in a series. Young girls will eat these up and want more and more. Love the illustrations, too!

Short, short summary:

In Katie Woo: Moving Day, Katie is moving to a new house, but she is worried about leaving her old house. She writes a note to the new girl who will have her room, and then she goes with her parents to her new abode. She is a bit worried about the “whirlpool” and especially the “sunken living room”–what if she falls in and can’t get out? Once she’s there, she starts to adjust and eventually feels right at home. This is a “chapter book” but there are pictures on every page–PERFECT for first or second graders who want a step-up from a picture book.

So, what do I do with this book?

1. Well, here’s a book where I didn’t have to do much brainstorming to show you how to use it because the authors/publisher did it for me! Love this. In the back of the book, there are discussion questions and writing prompts to use with kids. For example, one of the questions to discuss is: Do you think it would be fun to move? Why or why not? One of the writing prompts is: Make a list of ten words that describe your home. The activities are built right in!

2. And there’s more. In the back of the book, there’s also a step-by-step art activity to go with something that happens to Katie Woo in the story. She notices a bird’s nest outside her window, and the art activity is to create a next with a brown bag, glue, and dried leaves, grass, and flowers. This is an activity that kids would probably need help with–especially the part where you change the bag into a nest shape, but it’s a cute activity.

3. For those of you at home or doing this in a school with computer lab free time, it turns out that Katie Woo is ONLINE. (Who would have thought?) So you can go to www.capstonekids.com and click on the picture of Katie Woo. Once you do this, you will be taken to her section of the site where you watch short videos, learn more about her and her friends, and download color and activity sheets.

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Roses are Red, Your Feet Really Stink is one of my favorite Valentine books–especially when I was teaching. I read it to my class every year! Diana deGroat illustrated and wrote the book–such a talent. Here’s a summary of the story: “When Gilbert writes two not-so-nice valentines to his classmates, his prank quickly turns into pandemonium. But there’s always time for a change of heart on Valentine’s Day. This warm and funny book about a favorite holiday also provides a subtle message about forgiveness and being a good friend. Ages 5 up.” Besides using this book around Valentine’s Day, you can also use it to talk to children about how words can hurt and how to be a good friend. An activity you can do with this book is to exchange names among classmates and have students write a “nice” Valentine to the student whose name they received. You can talk to them about finding specific things, instead of general things, like, “I really like how you always help me with my math problems.” or “You are so good at kickball–you always kick a homerun.” Students can write their messages and decorate them before passing them out.

The Yuckiest, Stinkiest, Best Valentine Ever written by Illinois author Brenda Ferber and illustrated by Tedd Arnold is a new picture book that is a real treat! If you are familiar with Tedd Arnold (Parts), then you know he is an illustrative genius. Brenda is a wonderful writer, and the two together make a terrific team. Here’s a summary of the story: “Leon has a crush. A secret crush. A dreamy crush. A let-her-cut-in-line-at-the-water-fountain-crush. And he’s made the perfect valentine. But the valentine has other ideas. ‘Love is yucky, kid! Valentine’s Day is all about candy!’ The card yells before leaping out the window and running away, leaving Leon to chase it across town, collecting interested kids along the way. Saying ‘I love you’ has never been so yucky or so sweet.” Brenda provides all sorts of resources on her blog for how to USE her book. She has a Q and A with her about things like why she wrote the book, how she named her character, and more. She also has an ACTIVITY KIT you can download for free (love this!). You can find all of this at this link: http://www.brendaferber.com/yuckiest-stinkiest-best-valentine-ever.php

Here’s a link to both books on Amazon! Have fun this Valentine’s Day and hug someone you love!

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* Concept book (ABCs) for preschoolers through first graders
*Peas as the main characters
*Rating: LMNO Peas is a cute book, going through the ABCs with the peas doing different jobs is clever. Some of the jobs were a little strange, and I wanted more of a play on the LMNO Peas idea, but my 2-year-old loved it–that’s whom it’s for anyway!

Short, Short summary: Keith Baker has created little peas characters who have all sorts of jobs throughout this ABC book. For example, the first two pages state: “Acrobats, artists, and astronauts in space, builders, bathers, and bikers in a race.” Each letter of the alphabet is written in large, colorful font, and the peas use the letters as ramps, buildings, and more–the letters become a “stage” for the peas. This is a popular book if you haven’t heard of it before. There’s a sequel with numbers titled, 1-2-3-Peas, and it got all kinds of starred reviews! You can look inside both these books on Amazon. Use the link right here. . .

So what do I do with this book?

1. Come up with other professions that the PEAS could do starting with that letter that weren’t mentioned in the book. Ask students to create an illustration for that letter and word, in a similar style to Keith Baker’s.

2. Which pea (job, profession, hobby) does your child or your students relate to the best? What do they want to be when they grow up? Do they see your job in the book? Do they know what each job is? This is a great book for a career week/career day and to start talking about jobs/careers.

3. Each pea is different! Just like each child and grown-up are different. How are the peas different? How are they the same? Ask children if they are fond of any certain pea. Have fun with this concept while talking to students about how each of us being different helps the world to go around!

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*Picture book for preschoolers through second graders, fantasy
*A monster as the main character
*Rating: Monsters Aren’t Real is a cute picture book that will help children who are worried about monsters in the dark to see them as a little less scary. Children who love monster stories will also enjoy this. The illustrations are definitely the best part of this book!

Short, short summary:

The main character, pictured on the cover, is bombarded with the words, “Monsters aren’t real,” in the beginning of this darling picture book. But he feels like he is VERY real–isn’t he? He goes around trying to scare people and show that monsters are real, but nobody seems to notice him AT ALL (and he does some very funny and obvious things. . .). So, in the end, he decides that maybe he’s not real, until he meets another monster.

***To buy Monsters Aren’t Real, go here!

So, what do I do with this book?

1. This is a great book to introduce young readers to contractions and what these stand for. Monsters ARE real is written at one time, and then someone turns it in to: Monsters Aren’t Real–by adding the n’t. You can talk about what the n’t means and how it is added to many words to create contractions.

2. The illustrations in this story make it complete. Without them, readers would be lost. So to celebrate these drawings, allow students to draw and create their own monsters. If monsters are real, then what do they look like? To extend the activity, let them write a paragraph about the monster, describing him or her.

3. Start a discussion with children: what do you think? Are monsters real? Why or why not?

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Author Darcy Pattison drew my attention to this on Facebook. I know many of you would want to know about this event, so here you go–it will be great to share with your students and/or children!

Wildlife artist, KITTY HARVILL is offering a series of black and white, printable creative coloring pages for students to participate in Draw a Bird Day (dabday.com) on or about April 8. As the artist for Wisdom, the Midway Albatross: Surviving the Japanese Tsunami and Other Disasters for over 60 Years, Harvill is well-versed in bird art. The three creative coloring pages include a set-up for students :

Add a landscape for a soaring bird
Add a bird flying over a tsunami wave
Complete a drawing of a bird using a photo reference.

The Draw a Bird Day (http://www.dabday.com/) was created to honor the memory of Dorie Cooper. During World War II, she cheered up soldiers by encouraging them to draw birds. Soon the walls of the sick ward was covered with bird pictures. When ten-year old Dorie died in 1946, her coffin was covered with drawings from soldiers, nurses, and doctors. To remember her life and inspiration, Draw A Bird Day asks people to simply draw a bird and share it with someone on April 8.

Because April 8 falls on Easter this year, we are encouraging parents and teachers to do the Draw a Bird activities the week before or after.

To participate, download the creative coloring pages and use them to draw birds with kids.

To share, post pictures online, then email the location to [email protected]. We will PIN all submissions to the Draw a Bird Day: April 8, 2012 Board at http://pinterest.com/darcypattison/draw-a-bird-day-april-8-2012/

Download Coloring Pages:
http://albatross.darcypattison.com/albatross/draw-a-bird-day-coloring-pages/

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I am thrilled to share with you two super cute picture books by a TexHEN named Aunt Judy, who writes and illustrates (SO CUTE!) Chickens on the GO! and Chickens in the Know!. Aunt Judy was generous enough to send me both of her picture books, which I am sure any young reader will LOVE, and so I am keeping one for my daughter and giving one away to a lucky reader! To win Chickens in the Know!, please leave a comment below. You can either say, PICK ME! or SOUNDS GREAT! or tell us your favorite professHEN, such as constructHEN workers or librariHENS. That’s what this book is all about–how the world is full of people who have different jobs, and we need EACH ONE to make the world go around.

The book I am keeping, but one you can purchase from Aunt Judy is Chickens on the GO! It is the perfect classroom book for young children and the perfect home school book for your young readers. The premise is that the world is made up of people who are different nationalities such as: JapHENese, BritHENS, AfricHENS, and AmericHENS. (SO CUTE–I’m telling you!) Aunt Judy tells readers something about the people/culture in each country she covers–in a catchy rhyme. She makes the point that everyone is different, but that’s okay! (Perfect in this world of bullying–the old-fashioned and cyber way) The repeating phrase in the book is: “It doesn’t matter where we’re from. We’re all chickens–let’s have fun!”

You can use Chickens on the GO! to discuss with young children how differences make us unique and special and even how where we are from affects our lives, but that’s what also makes us special. You can do geography lessons with this book–showing students where each HEN comes from as well as have children do more research on each HEN’s culture. The possibilities with this book are endless. Aunt Judy has several resources on her website, too at http://www.chickensonthego.com/Lesson%20Plans.htm. Don’t miss the lesson plans and puzzles she has created.

If you are interested in finding out more and purchasing this book, Chickens on the GO!, or its companion about careers, Chickens in the Know!, please see Aunt Judy’s website at: http://www.chickensonthego.com/books.htm
.

Don’t forget, you can win a copy. On the back of the book, it says these books are for ages 1 to 99–no kidding! So, let me know your favorite professHEN or just say PICK ME! Contest ends on Sunday night, December 11 at 8:00 pm CST. Winner must have a U.S. or Canada mailing address.

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*Picture book, fantasy for preschoolers through second graders
*Bats (the animal) as main characters
*Rating: The strength in Bats at the Ballgame is definitely the illustrative talent of Brian Lies–cute concept and some clever text, like Cricket Jacks!

Short, short summary:

Told in rhymed verse, Bats at the Ballgame by Brian Lies is the story of the bats’ baseball game against a tough opponent. How could any bat forget?/In all the countless years we’ve met,/it seems the team we’ll play tonight/has beaten us in every fight./ With beautiful illustrations, the reader is treated to the bats preparing the playing field and the spectators buying Cricket Jack, mothdogs, and infield flies–all snacks suitable for bats. When the game begins, the narrator’s team is off to a slow start once again through the 6th inning. In the 7th inning, there’s finally some action, but it’s for the other team. So the rest of the story is about whether or not the bat ballplayers can overcome this action and win the game.

So, what do I do with this book?

1. This is a great book to share during summer school, in those warm spring months before school is out (or your home school children are ready to have a break), or even in the fall around World Series time. There is quite a bit of “baseball lingo” in here, which your boy and girl baseball players will appreciate. Ask students to make personal connections with the text, as they have all probably at least played baseball/softball in P.E. or at recess. Ask them to write a paragraph about what this book makes them think about in their own lives. (It could be any sporting event, actually.)

2. You can teach word choice and sentence fluency, two of the 6 + 1 traits of writing, with this book. Word choice is an obvious lesson since Lies has written descriptive text, and it rhymes. Don’t you love the way he chose to write Cricket Jacks instead of Cracker Jacks? Even that one simple word makes an entirely different book–this is word choice at its finest. As for sentence fluency, when you read a rhyming book like this out loud, your students can really hear how the text flows. Look at the punctuation, too, and/or transition words to see how these keep the text flowing.

3. Brian Lies has beautiful illustrations. Give your students a chance to study them. What do they notice? How do the illustrations and the text work together to tell the story? If your students really love his work, then share (and compare and contrast) one of his other books such as Bats in the Library.

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Looking for things for the kids to do this summer? Look in the back of a book you may already own: An Eye for Color: The Story of Josef Albers.

In the back matter are art activities that are simple, plus your kids can create their own piece of art in one sitting. Inside the book are color illusions that are fun to trick your eye with. So pull that book from your shelf and let it entertain you and your kids!

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*Chapter book, fantasy
*12-year-old boy as main character
*Rating: Both children and adults will love Walking Through Walls. For kids, it’s an exciting story that keeps them guessing to the end what’s going to happen and what decisions the main character is going to make. For adults? Well, we all love good writing, and Walking Through Walls is a perfect example of that! WillowRaven’s illustrations add class to the story. (The book is 62 pages–perfect for a summer read at summer school or at home!)

Short, short summary:

(Note: Walking Through Walls is based on an ancient Chinese tale.) Wang is tired of working in his father’s wheat field. It is too much work and not enough money. He wants to get rich and be powerful. So, he decides he’s going to find the magical Eternals because if he becomes one, he can get what he wants. He goes off in spite of making his parents sad, and he finds where other boys are training. He is anxious to learn magic and become rich; but the Eternals are very smart, and training is actually very hard work. Wang is impatient and only focused on greed. How will the Eternals train him? Will he learn what is actually important? Will he become an Eternal?

This book will be available on July 1 from Amazon or RV4 Publishing. You can find out more information here: http://walkingthroughwalls-kcioffi.blogspot.com/

So, what do I do with this book?

Besides being a terrific book, the author has included a lot of material in the back of the book for teachers, parents, homeschoolers, and her readers!

She has questions, activities, and more information about the time period of The Ming Dynasty.

Here are a couple of her sample activities:

1. Write a list of five qualities that you think give a person value.

2. Draw a picture of a dragon.

3. Continue the book–write a sequel of what happens to Wang after the book’s end.

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*Picture book for preschoolers through first graders, contemporary
*Young girl as a main character
*Rating: I Miss You Every Day by Caldecott winner Simms Taback is a sweet book with bright, colorful illustrations that kids will want to read over and over again.

Short, short summary:

In this book, a young girl is missing someone who lives far away. After telling the person how much she misses him/her, she decides to wrap herself up like a present and send herself through the mail. Then she discusses what will happen to her on her journey through the post office and once she gets to her loved one. It is told in rhyme with simple text and wonderful illustrations–a true picture book.

So, what do I do with this book?

1. Children will want to discuss someone they miss when reading this book. It will most likely be a family member that doesn’t live near them, such as a grandparent or maybe a parent that is in the military. They might also talk about someone that has died (just giving you a heads-up). Missing people is a complex issue, especially for children. It can be very heartbreaking, also, and this book opens up the lines of communication to talk about these emotions. Children can write letters or draw pictures for the person they are missing.

2. This is also a great book to discuss what happens to the mail after you put it in the mailbox. You could have a field trip to the post office as well as discuss the proper way to address an envelope and/or package. Write letters in class and send them on your post office field trip or even just take a walk to a mailbox on a beautiful spring (or fall) day!

3. In a shared writing time, children can write more lines of what the girl and her loved one can do together once they are reunited. Ask them to think about what they would like to do, and then you can decide whether or not you want to help them rhyme the lines or not. Children should write their part and illustrate it. Then you can put these together as a book.

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Hello Readers! I am holding a book giveaway contest for this super cute picture book, Pelly and Mr. Harrison Visit the Moon from Kane Miller Publishing. Please leave a comment below for your chance to win–it’s a perfect book for any kid who loves space or wants to explore. (Only U.S. or Canada mailing addresses, please.) Contest goes until Sunday, March 27 6:00 p.m. CST. Winner will be announced on Monday, March 28.

I also wanted to let you know who won the contest last week for WOW!’s blanket tour. Here’s the scoop from WOW!:

Kim G. who commented on A Ponderance of Things, http://rcponders.wordpress.com, won the Everybody’s Talking About Surprises Grand Prize! Her prize includes a personalized copy of Letters from Home by Kristina McMorris, a Big Band CD, Victory Garden seeds, and a few surprises (of course!).

Our Surprise blogger winner was Mason Canyon who wrote about her favorite surprise: envelopes of books being delivered to her mailbox at Thoughts in Progress. (http://www.masoncanyon.blogspot.com/)

We hope you’ll join us for our next mass blogging event and tell your readers about a chance to win The Literary Ladies Guide to the Writing Life by Nava Atlas on our latest WOW Blog Tour.

Now on to Pelly and Mr. Harrison Visit the Moon by Lindsay Ward.

*Picture book, science fiction for preschoolers through second graders
*Young girl as main character
*Rating: Every child will be looking at her/his bathtub differently after reading this book! It’ll spark imaginations for sure.

Short, short summary: Pelly is brushing her teeth, and she notices a rocket engine on her bathtub. So, her dog, Mr. Harrison, jumps into the tub, and they take off for the moon. When they land on the moon, they meet an alien who is very friendly. She takes them to her house, where another alien is making none other than–moon pies! They learn about gravity and about making s’moons. When they get back home, it’s like no time has passed at all–Mom wonders if Pelly is almost done brushing her teeth.

So what do I do with this book?

1. Pelly and Mr. Harrison Visit the Moon can really spark children’s imagination. Ask them, “What could you travel in to the moon from your house?” or “What could you attach a rocket engine to and take off?” Younger students can illustrate their response. Older students can write about it. This is a great home activity for parents and children, too.

2. Use this book to discuss the 6 + 1 traits of writing trait, word choice. Ask students what special words they notice while you read the book and make a class list. Encourage kids to use this list when they are writing.

3. Use this book to open up a science discussion about the moon. What do children know about the moon? Could this story really happen? For fun, bring in some moon pies!

Okay, leave a comment below for a chance to win this book. If you want, tell us what you would travel to space in (a bathtub?) and where you would go.

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*Picture book, realistic fiction, for preschoolers through third graders
*Young girl as main character
*Rating: Our Shadow Garden is a beautiful book for a beautiful cause. You don’t want to miss sharing it with children.

Short, short summary:

When Nana gets sick and can’t garden in the sun anymore, her granddaughter gets a marvelous idea. With the help of her Poppa, they create a shadow garden–plants that grow and bloom with the moonlight. They keep it a surprise until it’s already, and then they take Nana out to the garden. Of course, she loves it so much she tears up, and adults reading the book probably will, too. Besides this beautiful and touching story, the illustrations in this book are created by children who are in the Children’s Cancer Hospital at the M. D. Anderson Cancer Center. Proceeds from the sales of the book help to fund activities at the M. D. Anderson Cancer Center. Besides this, the book also has an extensive non-fiction section about shadow gardening–on the sidebars and at the back of the book. Love this book!

So what do I do with this book?

1. Children can draw their own illustrations to go with the words in the book like the children in the Children’s Art Project did. Compare and contrast the different artistic styles in the book. Talk to kids about why children drew the illustrations for this book and how buying a copy of the book helps them and other cancer patients. It is important for children to know about these type of issues in a positive light.

2. Try making a small class shadow garden by using information in the book or going to www.shadowgardenbook.com.

3. Poppa and his granddaughter are making this special surprise for Nana. Students could write about a variety of topics based on this: they could write about something they did for their grandparents, about a surprise they planned for someone, or about things they like to do with their grandparents. Any of these would be great topics and could turn into a descriptive or narrative paper.

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*Picture book for preschoolers through first graders
*Four small puppies as main characters
*Rating: Leslie Patricelli’s book will appeal to all those children who have trouble sleeping at night because of the monsters. Super cute illustrations accompany a fun text!

Short, short summary:

Petra had trouble sleeping at night. She was afraid of the dark, noises, and especially the monster. Her brothers and sister always slept through the night, and her parents told her everything was fine and that she should just go back to sleep. The four puppies decide to make the monster some cookies as a peace offering. One night, they write a note and leave the plate of cookies. When they hear the monster, they all get out of bed to go confront it. But are they in for a surprise. The monster is scared of them, and he does love cookies. The four puppies and the monster have a noisy party until Mom and Dad wake up and don’t see any monster. Everyone goes back to bed–even Petra.

So, what do I do with this book?

1. The other puppies try to help Petra solve her problem. This is a great book to talk with students about problem solving. What is Petra’s problem? What are some ways the puppies try to solve the problem? What does “solution” mean? What is the solution that finally works for Petra?

2. Many children will be able to relate to Petra’s problem as this is a common childhood problem. If students in your class or your own children have ever felt the same way as Petra, let them share their experiences with you, and compare and contrast them to what happened in the book. Making personal connections with the text helps students with their comprehension skills.

3. Have your own “Midnight Monster Party” at home or school. Children can create monsters out of paper plates, stuffed animals, or even construction paper. Each child can bring one monster and a treat to share. You can do some of the same activities the puppies do in the book during their party.

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*Picture book, fiction, for preschoolers through 2nd graders
*Two superhero boys as main characters
*Rating: Boys will L-O-V-E Michael Recycle Meets Litterbug Doug, which teaches the importance of recycling without preaching. Great idea!

Short, short summary:

A clean, little town has a big problem–Litterbug Doug, his rotten trash, and his rat friends. Litterbug Doug doesn’t care about his neighbors or the earth until Michael Recycle shows him the error of his ways. Once Litterbug Doug changes his habits, he becomes the litter police. Told with rhyme and bright illustrations, children will love listening to and looking at Michael Recycle Meets Litterbug Doug. The end of the book provides “green” tips for kids and facts about trash.

So, what do I do with this book?

1. After reading about Michael Recycle, allow students to create their own “green” superhero. Students should write about the superhero and draw a picture. Children should also make up a new name.

2. In so many classrooms and even at home, we talk a lot about recycling around Earth Day–but we shouldn’t wait until April to talk about this important subject. Children can take the green tips from the back of the book and create posters for the classroom. Then whenever a child or adult “catches someone being green,” shout it out. For example, you could shout out, “I just caught Alissa being green. She remembered to turn off our light switch on our way out of the classroom. Thanks, Alissa!”

3. Michael Recycle Meets Litterbug Doug is a great example of a picture book you can use to teach word choice, one of the six plus one traits of writing. Ellie Bethel’s word choice really sets the scene and shows readers just how gross Litterbug Doug is.

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*Picture book about volcanoes–found in non-fiction section–told in poem form
*Subject matter: A volcano erupting and how it affects life around it
*Rating: Volcano Wakes Up! is a wonderful book to teach kids about volcanoes and the life around them. Love it!

Short, short summary: In Volcano Wakes Up!, Lisa Westburg Peters uses poetry to tell the “story” of a small volcano. She follows the volcano’s activity throughout one day, and also includes the perspective of the ferns growing around the volcano, a lava flow cricket, a small black road on the active volcano, and the sun and moon. This book presents a very creative way to tell about an erupting volcano along with wonderful cut-paper illustrations by Steve Jenkins. Volcano Wakes Up! is a great book for use with science curriculum in the classroom or in a home school program.

So, what do I do with this book?

1. Let students research the facts they learn from the poems in the book to find out more facts about volcanoes, ferns, and so on. The author provides more detailed notes in the back of the book that you can share with your students. Students can create presentations of their facts with illustrations styled after Steve Jenkins work.

2. Not only can this book teach your students or children (if you home school) about volcanoes, but it also exposes them to different forms of poetry. What are the poems like in this book? Challenge your students to write a similar poem–maybe instead of a volcano, they can use a mountain as their subject. Instead of a fern–they can use a tree and so on.

3. Study with students what other effects volcanoes have on the land, plant life, animal life, and even human life when they erupt. You can do a lesson on cause and effect with this activity, also.

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*Picture book for preschoolers through 2nd graders, fantasy (fractured nursery rhyme)
*Dish and Spoon as main characters
*Rating: Kids love books like The Adventures of the Dish and the Spoon that play off an old nursery rhyme and have loads of fun stuff in the illustrations.

Short, short summary:

What happened after the dish ran away with the spoon? Well, this book will answer that question. From trying their luck in a vaudeville show to buying a car and shopping for jewelry and furs, the Dish and Spoon have quite an adventure. It’s all fun and games until the Dish meets a rock, and the Spoon meets jail. Will these two ever make it together again?

So, what do I do with this book?

1. Read the nursery rhyme to children, “Hey Diddle, Diddle!” Ask children to imagine other things about this nursery rhyme. For example, ask them, “Why do you think the cow jumped over the moon?” “Why did the little boy laugh?” “What are the cat and the fiddle doing?” You can record answers on a piece of chart paper and create a classroom display by asking students to illustrate their answers. Be creative! Mini Grey sure was.

2. Study the illustrations carefully, especially the ones on the sidebars. What else do the illustrations tell about the story of the Dish and the Spoon that the text doesn’t tell? Discuss with students how in the picture book genre illustrations are as important as the text, and both work together to tell the story.

3. This is a book about friendship. Spoon and Dish are friends, they trust each other, and they love each other. Talk to students or your children about being a good friend. What are the qualities of a good friend? How do Dish and Spoon show these qualities? How do you show these qualities in your everyday life?

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photo by nblumhardt www.flickr.com

*Picture book for preschoolers through first graders
*Animals as main characters
*Rating: A cute book with a lot of different animal descriptions that kids will love.

Short, short summary:

A Bunny is Funny takes a look at different animals you might find at the zoo. From crabs to skunks, from giraffes to lions, each animal has a rhyme and an illustration. Take for example the porcupine: “My quills act like a warning sign: Don’t mess with me. I’m a porcupine!”

So, what do I do with this book?

1. Let students or your children pick their favorite animal illustration and rhyme. Then ask them to draw their own illustration and write a sentence to go with it. You can then create your own class book: A Bunny is Funny 2.

2. Each of the lines about the animals rhymes. Ask children to put a thumbs up when they hear a rhyming word pair. When you are finished reading the book to them, make a list of rhyming words. You can also extend the activity by asking children to come up with more words that rhyme with the pairs.

3. Take a field trip to a farm or a zoo and see how many of the animals from the book that you see on your field trip. Take photographs on your field trip and compare these with the illustrations in A Bunny is Funny.

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zebra in Tanzania by wwarby www.flickr.com

*picture book, contemporary realistic fiction for preschoolers through third graders
*two adolescent boys as main characters
*Rating: Books like First Come the Zebra by Lynne Barasch are why I love to blog about children’s books. This book is beautifully done with a wonderful message and sharing an interesting place and event in our world.

Short, short summary:

In rural Kenya, Abaani, a Maasai boy, takes his family’s cattle to graze when he sees a new boy with a vegetable stand along the road. He learns this new boy’s name is Haki, and he is a Kikuyu boy. Abaani remembers all the things his elders have said about the way the Kikuyu ruin the land, and he tells Haki this. The boys, of course, quarrel. Then some women come along who want to trade their handmade baskets for vegetables. When one of the women is involved in her transaction, her toddler wanders into a field where some warthogs are feeding. Abaani sees this, and he knows the danger the toddler is in. He quickly figures out a plan that involves the help of Haki. Will the boys save the toddler? Will they learn to let go of their differences and get to know each other as people? Make sure to check out First Come the Zebra to learn more about this area of Kenya and how people can learn to get along with each other in spite of a history of conflict.

So, what do I do with this book?

1. The author’s note in the back of the book tells readers more about this area of Kenya and the tribes involved in the story. Lynne Barasch also lets readers know about the game the boys play–mancala. Make sure to share this information with your students or your children as well as the map of Kenya and Tanzania in the back of the book. If possible, try to find a mancala game for children to play. They have versions for sale at game stores in the United States and/or online. You can also assign students a topic to research and find out more about, depending on their age. Topics could range from: Kenya, Tanzania, Maasai, Kikuyu, The Great Migration, and animals such as zebras and warthogs.

2. The boys in this book do not get along at first because of their families. Once they get to know each other, they start to think differently. Ask your children or students if they can explain why this happens in the book. Also, ask them if they have ever had trouble getting along with someone but then worked out their differences. Use this book as a starting point for discussions on learning to know people as individuals, conflict resolution, and even prejudices.

3. First Come the Zebra doesn’t start with the two boys and their problem like most picture books do. Instead, it starts with The Great Migration. Talk about the first few pages of the book and the last page, and how they serve as a frame for the story. Discuss why the book is titled First Come the Zebra. Share other animals that come to graze during The Great Migration. Students can draw pictures of their favorite animals, and you can create a wall mural of this event in your classroom.

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photo by terren in Virginia

One of the cute Easter books for kids is The Easter Egg by Jan Brett. In my opinion, you can never go wrong with Jan Brett books!

*Picture book, fantasy for preschoolers through 2nd graders
*Hoppi the young bunny as the main character
*Rating: Say hello to one of the cute Easter books for kids this year–you won’t want to miss this touching story, The Easter Egg by Jan Brett, OR the marvelous illustrations.

Short, short summary:

Hoppi is ready to start on his first-ever Easter egg for the Easter Rabbit. The bunny who decorates the winning egg gets to hide eggs for girls and boys with the Easter Bunny! Hoppi goes out and sees all the beautiful, and I do mean amazingly beautiful, Easter eggs his bunny friends are creating. Once again, Jan Brett’s illustrations on the border of the book tell more of the story than the text and main illustrations do. Besides all the bunnies that Hoppi talks to about decorating eggs and who offer him advice, she also shows amazing rabbits creating all sorts of cool eggs that match each of their personalities. But the most important border picture to keep track of is at the top of each page and shows the robin in her nest. This robin becomes a very important part of Hoppi’s story when squirrels cause one of her beautiful blue robin eggs to fall out of the nest. Hoppi sees this, and he agrees to keep the egg warm for the mother robin. However, this gives him no time to prepare his egg for the Easter bunny. So, what will happen when the Easter bunny comes, and who will win the prize to help hide eggs on Easter morning? The Easter Egg by Jan Brett is one of the cute Easter books for kids this 2010 holiday season.

So, what do I do with this book?

1. Ask children to design their own Easter eggs based on their activities and interests. Give each child a cut out of a large Easter egg. If a child is interested in hunting, he could make a brown and green camo egg with maybe some splashes of orange. If she’s interested in dancing and baseball, she could make an Easter egg to reflect that. When reading the book to children, pay close attention to the illustrations and the different types of eggs, so children can see how the decorated eggs are unique and exemplifying each bunny’s personality.

2. Discuss why the Easter Bunny chose Hoppi as the winner even though he didn’t design an egg himself in this super cute Easter book for kids. Ask children why what Hoppi did for the robin was so special! Ask students to compare a time in their lives when someone did something special for them–even something like a parent cooking a favorite meal. Students can discuss how this made them feel and why people who do special things are worthy of awards. You can take this discussion one step further and make “Easter Bunny Awards” with students for people in their lives who have helped them. (This is a good home school activity, too.)

3. Pick four or five Easter eggs out of the book or out of Easter pictures from the Internet and let students be the Easter Bunny. Print, cut out, and line these Easter eggs up on the chalk board at the bottom, one next to each other at the same height. Give students a post-it note. Students write their names on the post-it note and hang it above the egg that they like the best. They hang the post-it notes one on top of another, so students are creating a type of bar graph. The top of one post-it note touches the bottom of the next post-it note, and so on. When the class has finished voting, the post-it note bar graph should show the

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photo by lel4nd www.flickr.com

*Picture book for preschoolers through second graders, contemporary fiction
*Little girl as main character
*Rating: Smile by Leigh Hodgkinson will make you smile. One of the cutest picture books I’ve seen recently–I think kids and adults will love it!

Short, short summary:

Sunny is usually happy! But today, she can’t find her smile. Where could it have gone? She can’t find it under her bed or in her room, so she cleans her room to look for it better. She wonders if somebody took it, but who would do that? Her goldfish? No way! The twins? Nope! Maybe she lost it in the big, wide world somewhere. So, she continues looking for it and gets caught up in having fun with her dog along the way. And then the twins point out–she found her smile!

So, what do I do with this book?

1. Ask students to draw a picture of what makes them smile. Then ask them to bring in a photo of them smiling. Attach the photo to the illustration, and post these on a bulletin board that says: “What Makes Us Smile!”

2. You can have a great discussion with young children about this book. Why does Sunny lose her smile? How does she find it again? Have children ever lost their smile like Sunny does? You can even get into discussions such as: “What does it mean to be happy or sad?”

3. One of the cutest illustrations in Smile! by Leigh Hodgkinson is when Sunny makes a wanted poster for her smile. Ask students to make a wanted poster for something–it can be Sunny’s smile, a friend, a pet, or so on. This activity can also be a bulletin board or classroom display.

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Easter books for preschool kids and primary students can be fun and give you several activity options to welcome spring!

*Picture book for preschool through second grade students
*Our favorite, old-eating-everything lady as the main character
*Rating: There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Chick is another fun book for young children in this wonderful series.

Short, short summary:

“There was an old lady who swallowed a chick. I don’t know why she swallowed that chick, but she didn’t get sick.” Of course, she didn’t get sick. This lady can swallow just about anything as we’ve learned from other books about her. In this Easter book for preschool kids and elementary students, the old lady swallows a chick, straw, Easter egg, jellybeans, Easter basket, and more. What finally does her in this time? Well, nothing really, she starts to hop, and she meets the Easter bunny!

So, what do I do with this book?

1. With this fun Easter book for preschool kids and primary children, you can either order felt board pieces for a retelling of There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Chick, or you can make your own. Children love to be a part of telling the story, and they can help you manipulate the felt board pieces and retell the story.

2. Lucille Colandro has written another great book that can help young children work on sequencing skills. After you have read the book a few times, ask students or your children what does the old lady swallow first, second, and so on. You can even ask students questions such as: “What happens first–the old lady swallows the straw or the candy?” or “What does she eat after she swallows the Easter egg?” You can extend this discussion by providing a worksheet with pictures of the different objects the old lady swallows out of order. Students would cut these objects out and glue them onto a separate sheet of paper in the correct order.

3. Students may want to write their own class version of this fun Easter book for preschoolers. As a shared writing activity, you could either stick with the Easter theme or switch to another theme such as summer or Independence Day. You will want to help students with the format, such as writing on chart paper ahead of time: “There was an old lady who swallowed a _______________. I don’t know why she swallowed a __________.” and so on. Once you have written a version as a class, you can assign different students to illustrate different parts of your class book. If you do this as a home school project, you and your children can work together to create the book.

Do you have a favorite There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed. . . book?

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photo by foxypar4 www.flickr.com

*Picture book for preschoolers through second graders
*Bea the sheep as the main character
*Rating: Be unique is the message in Bea Rocks the Flock, and this book’s illustration and cute sheep make it unique, too.

Short, short summary:

Bea is having a hard time in the flock. She just doesn’t do the same things as all the other sheep. One day, she gets fed up and decides to leave and go to New York City. In the city, she gets several ideas of how to spend her life, but none of them seem to work out so well. She enters a dog show and dyes herself pink. She wins the most unique sheep, and this gives her a great idea. Bea goes back to the flock and convinces them that being unique is not so bad after all. Bea Rocks the Flock by Victoria Jamieson will leave each child in your classroom or your home happy to be unique!

So, what do I do with this book?

1. Bea Rocks the Flock is all about being unique and following your own interests. Ask students to name one thing that makes them unique such as: they are a yellow belt in karate or they take ballet lessons or they have a rock collection. After each student has shared one thing that makes him unique and you have written it on a piece of chart paper, then children should draw an illustration of themselves doing the activity and copy down the sentence from the chart paper.

2. In the middle of the book, Bea is trying to figure out what she should do in New York City to pass her time. After the library scene, ask students to give their ideas on what she could do each day. You can even create a class book with these ideas called, Bea Rocks New York City. Students can illustrate the ideas for Bea in the city, and teachers can type the ideas and glue them to each page. Laminate the pages, connect them together with string or plastic binding, and you have a new class book for students to read based on Bea Rocks the Flock.

3. You can actually use this book with older elementary students to talk about one of the 6+1 traits of writing–word choice. Victoria Jamieson uses several specific nouns and verbs to make her story shine. For example, at the end of the book Flossie doesn’t just say she wants to grow flowers, she says she wants to start an organic daisy farm. Choosing the words “organic daisy farm” brings a different picture into readers’ minds than if the author chose to just write “flower garden.” Find several examples of specific word choice throughout the story and discuss them with your students.

And don’t forget the new Rule of Sheepdom. . . .BEEEEEEEEEEE yourself!

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Talk about timeless–how about this book from 1937? It’s Dr. Seuss’s first children’s book, and I thought I’d wrap up this week of celebrating his birthday with talking about one more of his classic books. And to Think that I Saw It on Mulberry Street is, of course, a fantastical version of an actual street from Ted Geisel’s childhood–Mulberry Street in Springfield, Massachusetts. I’m telling you, Dr. Seuss is one of those living-proof legends that wrote what he knew with great success!

So, if you’ve never read this classic Dr. Seuss tale, then here’s a quick summary: Marco’s dad always says to him, “Marco, keep your eyelids up and see what you can see.” So, Marco does, but he’s a bit frustrated because when he tells his dad the things that he has seen, his dad says, “Your eyesight’s much too keen. Stop telling outlandish tales.” So, what kind of outlandish things does Marco see on Mulberry Street? Well, there’s the zebra pulling a wagon–actually a chariot; and oh wait–it’s not a chariot with a zebra, it’s an elephant pulling a big brass band. Marco’s imagination (or keen eyesight) continues to see this wagon pulled by an animal in all sorts of ways, and he just can’t wait to tell his dad until he gets right there with him–and Marco winds up telling him that he saw “a plain horse and wagon on Mulberry Street.”

Children today will love Marco’s imagination and keep turning the page to see what he comes up with next. They’ll also want to see what he reports to his father. Since teachers and parents are often complaining that children don’t spend enough time imagining any more because they are playing video games and watching movies and TV, And to Think that I Saw It on Mulberry Street is an important book to share with children and celebrate imagination.

After reading this book to students or your children, discuss with them what they could turn the wagon and horse into in their imaginations. Ask them to draw their versions and write a sentence about them. You could even do this activity in an art class with older students–especially if you want to study Dr. Seuss’s illustration style.

And next time you and your children (or students) are outside looking at a street, what can you imagine that you see on South Street or Main Street or Green Street? Create your own version of Dr. Seuss’s celebration of imagination And to Think I Saw it On Mulberry Street!

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photo by mape_s www.flickr.com

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!

*Picture book for preschoolers through second graders, fantasy
*Young boy as main character
*Rating: Dr. Seuss is at his best in If I Ran the Zoo–from made-up creatures to fantastical places to those ever-clever rhymes.

Short, short summary: Gerald McGrew says that his local zoo is a “pretty good zoo.” But it just has the normal, old animals that all zoos have. So, if Gerald ran it. . .he would do things a little differently. For example, he would travel up past the North Pole in his Skeegle-mobile and bring back a family of “What-do-you-know!” He would hunt in the mountains of Zomba-ma-Tant and even brave the blistering sands of the Desert of Zind. People from all over, of course, will want to see these amazing animals at the McGrew Zoo. And as he points out at the end, Gerald would just make a few changes to the zoo. (BTW, did you know that Dr. Seuss’s father actually ran a zoo in Springfield, Massachusetts for thirty years? Write what you know, everyone. )

So, what do I do with this book?

1. If I Ran the Zoo is full of Dr. Seuss’s wonderful illustrations. You can do two activities with illustrations. You can read the descriptions of a creature to your students and ask them to draw what they imagine. You can also ask them to create an animal for McGrew’s Zoo, name it, and even write a description–depending on their age and ability levels.

2. Students can write their own versions of If I Ran the Zoo by writing about what they would do with a zoo, or they can also change the place: If I Ran the School or If I Ran a Pizza Parlor. If you have young students, you can do this as a shared writing activity with the repeating sentence: “If I ran the zoo, I would have a ____________________.” If you have older students, they can create their stories themselves.

3. Some of the places such as the North Pole, Africa, and North Dakota are real (of course). Other places, it is clear that Dr. Seuss made them up. Ask your students to give you a thumbs-up if the place you are reading about is a real place (with made-up creatures) or a made-up place. You can also make a list of both on chart paper in a T-table. This can also lead to a discussion of what makes If I Ran the Zoo a fantasy even though parts of it are real.

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