real love: The Drawings for Sean by John Lennon (1999) is an example of the privilege that comes with being famous. John Lennon can publish his drawings. I suppose this book validates the imaginative drawings of any dad who experiences the joy of a young child. I wonder how Sean feels about the intimate relationship with his father is now on public display. This book is a collection of drawings labeled with single words and phrases. It may invite us all to draw.
I picked up Ahmed and the Feather Girl by Jane Ray (2010) because the cover illustration was so inviting. The dust jacket says, "This is a beautiful, multi-layered story in the fairytale tradition, with magical, glowing illustrations." The words "fairytale tradition" explains the fanciful continent. A young orphan named Ahmed lives a desperate life in a traveling circus. One day, while walking in a forest, he discovers a large egg. A girl hatches from the egg and she is also mistreated by the circus owner. Ahmed risks further abuse by rescuing the girl, and his reward is to be rescued from the circus, and from this earth, by the bird girl. The author writes,“ I am drawn to the fairytale because of its humanity and it’s universality. Many fairytales are parables dealing with deep emotions."
Chelsy Beverly has FairyTale PowerPoint. Raquel Fabian has a Fairy Tales Story Board. Terbet Lane has Fairy Tale Story Elements Creative Story Starter Writing Prompt Cards.
When Marion Sang by Pam Munoz Ryan (2002) is the story of Marion Anderson. She was blessed with a voice that people said could be heard only once in one hundred years. As a child “. . . her voice was distinct— strong and velvety and able to climb more than twenty-four notes." Despite prejudice, Marian Anderson found a path in life that shared her gift with the world. "With the help of friends, she was granted an audition with the fierce yet famous Giuseppe Boghetti" and later found success in Europe. Extensive notes at the back of the book add more detail to this biography. The final page has a list of notable dates in Marian Anderson‘s life and a selected discography. Several recordings of her performance at the Lincoln Memorial are accessible on YouTube. This is an inspiring biography. Brian Selznick's illustrations are dark and precise.
Miss Cookie's Music Room has Music Sub Plan for When Marion Sang. Jenna Ann Broderick has Sing-along Song Book.
First Painter by Kathryn Lasky (2000) is the kind of picture book that motivates you to learn more about a topic. One expects this quality from DK Publishing. The afterword states, “ First Painter is an imaginative reconstruction of the most elusive historical moment —the birth of the artistic imagination.” It is about artistic process. An adolescent girl's first drawing releases a horse from the rock: “ I trace the outline of the horse's head buried in the stone and follow the pale gray vein to draw the horses back.… I feel the strength of its pounding legs, it speed.… I make many legs, more than the horses really need. I paint them soft and misty. These are running legs. I feel the speed. I hear the hooves.” The paintings by Rocco Baviera give this story the necessary sense of mystery. This book inspired me to me to search for videos about the Chauvet cave in France. Discovered in December 1994, it's considered one of the most significant finds in Paleolithic art, painted about 30,000 years ago. This is a fabulous book for the young artist or archeologist.
Olivia Helps with Christmas by Ian Falconer (2007) is not at all fun for me. The illustrations are primarily in black, white, red, and green. The pages are full of empty space. The text is predictable. Fans of Olivia may welcome this story to help celebrate the holiday because it models a popular approach to Christmas Eve and Christmas Day that will appeal to some families. This book is for an audience that wants simple text and spare pictures.
Teacher Chip's School Store has a Quiz for this book. Fun With Books has an Easy Sequencing Activity. Summer Robertson has Book Activities.
Oh, how I love stories by Cynthia Rylant. In The Van Gogh Cafe (1995), she's woven several tales into a tapestry that makes me smile--again. This is why I always choose her titles from library book sales while trying hide my excitement from the other bargain hunters. "The Van Gosh Cafe is owned by a young man named Marc and his daughter, Clara. Clara is one reason for all of the magic in the cafe. She is ten and believes anything might happen." And things happen. Unexplained, good things. Things that brighten everyone's day and remind us that tomorrow is on its way with something new, something warm, and fuzzy, and hopeful. Yes, the rain falls. Actually, snow falls: "Kansas is hit with one of the all-time biggest snowstorms in its history." A bus carrying fourteen young children slides and hits a pole, fortunately only one-half mile from the cafe. Fortunately, because there's something magical waiting for them there. Do I hoard this marvelous story by slipping it into my bookshelf, or do I release it back into the world, just as someone did for me?
Individualized for Independence has Questions for Van Gogh Cafe. Classroom in the Middle has a Menu Activity.
I was thrilled to purchase a few copies of Welcome to the Hundred Acre Wood sticker book illustrated by Andrew Grey (2010) for only one dollar each at a retail store. I gave all but one of them away, and I can’t seem to part with the one I have left. This large paperback has a scene on each two-page spread. The scenes are empty because readers place stickers from the back of the book into each one to create a story. As a fan of Winnie the Pooh a I'm happy to have this unique book in my library.
Haley Gonzalez has a Winnie the Pooh rules sign. Yuliya Kryva has Winnie the Pooh Alphabet. The Children's Garden has How Many? Counting Worksheet.
Paddle-to-the-Sea by Holling Clancy Holling (1941, 1969) is Caldecott honor book that reads like historical fiction. The 1989 publication is a large paper back with each page of text labeled as a chapter. There's a corresponding full page color illustration as well black and white pictorial annotations for each chapter. Twenty-seven such chapters describe the journey of a wood carving. Carved by a young boy in the Canadian wilderness “it looked like his father‘s big birchbark loaded with packs and supplies for the journey. Underneath with a tin rotor to keep it head forward, and a lump of lead for ballast. This would keep the canoe low in the water, and turn it right side up after an upset. An Indian figure knelt just back of the middle, grasping a paddle. And along the bottom were carved these words: please put me back in water I AM PADDLE TO THE SEA.” The author takes us on a tour of brooks and ponds, rapids, industrialization, marsh, locks, and more. Surprisingly, we feel for this little wooden carving as it encounters both dangers and helping hands. The final pages have a fall color map of Paddle's journey from "The cabin near lake Nipigon through the great lakes to the sea."
Rebecca Metherel has a Paddle-to-the-Sea Blank Map. ESL and SPED Behavior Specialists have Reading Rockets Pack: Paddle-to-the-Sea in English Spanish. Paul Rheaume has a Word Search Puzzle.
Every page in I love you, mom By Iris Hiskey Arno (1997) features a mom in a different career. The child of a beautician says “What’s inside counts for more. For even if your outside's great, you still could be a bore.” The mom scientist has authored a book, the mom cabinet maker can build anything, the mom mechanic works on race cars, the mom surgeon operates on backs, the mom ballerina twirls and plies. Joan Holub's illustrations are light and airy giving this book a happy feel.
Freshline Illustration has Mother's Day Printable, Worksheet, Coloring Sheet, For Mom, I love Mom Because. Owl About Learning has 'Owl" About My Mom or Dad. Journals with Katie Clemmons has a Mother's Day Card.
On each page of Whose House is This: A Lift-and-Look ABC Book by Graham Percy (1998) capital letters lift and reveal an indoor scene with text. Lifting the B, we see the inside a two-story cottage and "Bill is a builder. He likes to build bird houses for his feathered friends.” These letters are decorated as cottages and homes within a landscape that varies from snowcapped mountains to fields to beach to railroad tracks etc. Each page is framed with colorful letters and objects. I love the complexity of each page. A child will spend long minutes taking in the details. This book is unique in that it is a large board book. It’s hard for me to give this book away, but I know the family receiving it will enjoy it.
LOL-Loving Our Learning has Alphabet Lift The Flap Books - Sample. Handy Teaching Tools has Alphabet Clip Art: Gumballs. Cathy Journey has Peek-a-Boo Windows.
Bunny Loves to Learn by Peter Bently illustrates how good social language skills promote pleasant and productive collaboration. The four students in this story demonstrate sustained attention to a class assignment, creating show-and-tell presentations. They take turns in conversation. They help one another and work on their individual projects. These students are learning to balance mutual support and personal responsibility. Max the mouse is having more difficulty than the others. He needs more assistance than they do. Notice that Max is not being lazy, disruptive, or defiant. He really does need extra peer support All learning requires some trial and error. When Max discovers that building a pyramid was not as intuitive as he thought, his friends find helpful instructions in a book. Group success is as important as individual to success in this class.
Creative Worksheets has Theme Based Learning: Knights and Castles Flashcards. No Fuss Teaching Phonics has Knights vs Dragons phonics word sorting. Aim Less Daze has Kingdom Cut, Color and Paste Story Telling Activity.
A Fine Mouse Band by Cindy Szekeres (1989) is a story of family harmony. As mother mouse paints a picture, father mouse engages the children in a creative activity. We wonder what they are making and gradually watch a collection of odds and ends transform into musical instruments. When mother mouse finishes her own painting, she shares her talent with the rest of the family. Szekeres's illustrations are full of content to complement her spare yet focused text. Two siblings start supper, and the berries, grains, acorns, and greens look appetizing. And while they start supper, father and another youngster take care of baby. This family works and plays together to create a joyous home.
Rachel Lovelidge has Making Instruments at Home. Musical Play Day has Musical Instruments Coloring Pages.
In Diary of a Spider (2005), by Doreen Cronin, we meet Spider. Spider is Worm’s friend, that is, Worm from the book Diary of a Worm. I liked Diary of a Worm but found that Spider was not as an appealing character. I couldn’t get used to all those legs, especially when multiple spiders crawled onto one page, which was often. Grandparent's Day at school has multiple little arachnids, show and tell day ditto, gym class has them lined up on a basketball hoop. Yes, Grampa Spider's story was amusing. He blew away in the wind and sent a post card that read, "I landed in Paris! French bugs are delicious!” Although I always like illustrations by Harry Bliss, this book wasn't for me. I expect kids to love it though.
Monkey Lady has Review Task Cards. Cherie Robichaux has a Vocabulary PowerPoint. Kids are my passion has a word search.
Linnea in Monet's Garden (1985) by Christina Björk illustrations by Lena Anderson is the story of a young girl named her elderly neighbor Mr. Bloom. “When I go visit him, I like to look in a book that Mr. Bloom has about the French artist Claude Monet.” Linnea and Mr. Bloom travel to Paris to see Monet paintings. They also visit Monet's home in Giverny. This book is a child-friendly biography of the famous artist. There are photographs of Monet, his family, and examples of Monet’s paintings. Lena Anderson’s drawings of Linnea and her traveling companion tie the narrative together with a youthful bow. This is a beautiful book for the school age art enthusiast.
Pink and Green Mama Marylea has Claude Money Art History and Art Lesson. Fine Art Smart has a Monet Coloring Page. Getting To Know Inc has Getting To Know Claude Monet.
Beethoven Lives Upstairs (1993) by Barbara Nichol is a correspondence between 10-year-old Christoph and his uncle Karl. It begins September 7, 1822. “A madman has moved into our house,” writes Christoph. “Every morning at dawn Mr. Beethoven begins to make his dreadful noise upstairs.” Beethoven startles Christoph with many unusual behaviors. He has four pianos in his room, some with no legs—“He takes the legs off to move them and so he can play them when he is sitting on the floor.” Uncle Karl's replies encourage Christoph to be patient and understanding. He writes, ". . . as strange as Mr. Beethoven seems, there are reasons for the way he acts. . . all day long, he is hearing music in his head. He doesn't think perhaps how very strange he sometimes seems to us." Letter writing is an effective strategy for teaching readers about Beethoven. Scott Cameron's illustrations portray Beethoven with dignity. After reading this story, we have heightened respect for this musical genius.
Teaching Music With Mr Rhine has Composer Specials: Beethoven Lives Upstairs. Karen Hultstrand has Beethoven Lives Upstairs Test. Music By Moonlight has Living With Beethoven Letter.
My lesson for this book is here.
Jamaica’s Find by Juanita Havill (1986), a Reading Rainbow Selection, is the antidote for the poisonous phrase “finders keepers losers weepers.” Jamaica finds a hat and dog plush at the park. She turns in the hat to the park office, but she takes the toy home. “But Jamaica, you should have returned the dog, too,” says her mother. Jamaica stares at the toy, contemplating her options. In the end, she feels badly about keeping it, and so brings it to the park office. Anne Sibley O’Brien's illustrations capture Jamaica's emotional expressions effectively. We can feel her joy at finding the dog, her inner conflict about giving it up, and her happiness with the results of her good deed.
I'll Second That has Jamaica's Find Sequencing Activity. Tales of a Second Grade Classroom has Jamaica's Find Questions, Test, and Writing Activity. Teacher Mom Power has Key Ideas and Details Packet.
Another Celebrated Dancing Bear (1991) by Gladys Scheffrin-Falk is a sweet tale of true friendship. Max is a dancer in the Moscow Circus. He enjoys his job. Boris, in contrast, grows tired of his job at the animal hospital. “All I do is walk around with a pencil behind my ear.” Boris works on a career change. He takes dancing lessons from his friend. “Boris bought records and played them as he danced. When he was too tired to practice, he read books about famous dancers.” And in time he became a celebrated dancing bear.The unusual illustrations drew me to this story of friendship. And I was grateful for the note about the pictures on the copyright page. The pictures are etchings by Barbara Garrison. Etchings are exacting works of art. I was thrilled to hold a book of etchings in my hands.
Trick, cheat, swindle, deceive—Tops & Bottoms, adapted and illustrated by Janet Stevens, introduces children to the scam. This theme never gets old. Modern day fraud employs robocalling, online hacking, and face-to-face fast talking. And children have probably been tricked by a sibling or peer at some time in their young lives. In this story, Bear is too lazy to learn the details of Hare's business proposals. Hare doesn't lie; he just doesn't tell the whole truth. Bear doesn't wake up and take notice, doesn't ask questions, and pays dearly for this neglect. Tops & Bottoms invites readers to learn more about business, vegetables, and the trickster trope. The paperback is 11 x 10 inches, and the spine is the head of the book. Pages turn from the bottom up instead of from right to left. Since the illustrations are two-page spreads, Stevens' pictures become poster size at nearly twenty inches tall.
Teaching Travels has Integrated Unit Plan - Tops and Bottoms. Stephanie Santinelli has Tops and Bottoms Story Map.