In second grade, students learn about "how words and phrases (e.g., regular beats, alliteration, rhymes, repeated lines) supply rhythm and meaning in a story, poem, or song." (Durden, p. 174) A ballad has a rhyme and tells a story--it's both poetry and narrative. ClassroomPoems.com has an example here. Good Human Project has a lesson here.
In The Ballad of Booster Bogg,
"Booster Bogg
Is a rambling dog
Who wanders wild and free,
Through alleys and valleys
Over hill and dale
And down to the boundless sea."
Booster is a "mighty fine" dog, but four well-meaning adults fail to domesticate him. Young listeners will enjoy the poetry and large, colorful illustrations. A sprinkling of more difficult vocabulary and idiomatic expressions challenge the average reader. High potential learners can research wild dogs, many roam the world. (Written in 2016, it's kinda fun to see how my lessons have changed since then.)
Written by Ellen Jackson, illustrated by Christine Mannone
