Book Genre: Fiction, Rhyming
Publishing Info: Scholastic Inc. (24 pages)
Awards or Honors:
Summary: This is an entertaining story of how one different pumpkin, Spookley, saves the day. Spookley is a very different type of pumpkin. He is not round like the others in the pumpkin patch, he is in the shape of a square. He doesn't like being different and wishes he could be round to roll around like the rest of the pumpkins. Then one day a horrible storm passes over the pumpkin patch. The wind rolls the round pumpkins all over the patch. The storm even breaks the fence and some poor pumpkins roll down the hill to the sea. Suddenly Spookley slides over to the broken fence and blocks the hole. The other pumpkins begin piling up on him as the wind continues to blow. Poor Spookley is sure that he has gotten a crack in his shell, but he holds the others in and doesn't give up. Later after the storm has finished the pumpkin farmer comes out to check his crop. He moves the other pumpkins and finds Spookley, still in the hole, brave as could be. When the next planting season arrives, the farmer decides to plant a patch full of different shaped pumpkins. Some of them are square, rectangular, oval, and even triangular. But to top it off, they are also different colors as well! The children in the town love the new types of pumpkins and Spookley doesn't feel so different anymore.
Personal Rating & Reason: ****Great! I think the story has a catchy rhyming rhythm and beautiful illustrations. Children will enjoy the tale of a "Super Pumpkin" who saves the day. It also has a valuable lesson about diversity and accepting others as they are.
Reading Level: K-2 (2.4 AR)
Reading Interest: ages 4-8 years
Possible Uses: This book could be used in a multitude of ways.
Math: The book could be used to reinforce shapes with the children. You could have them name the different shapes and colors of the pumpkins. This could be especially handy when it came to lessons on 3-D shapes (cones, spheres, rectangular prisms, triangular prisms, cubes, cylinders, etc).
Art: You could have the children illustrate what they think would be the coolest looking pumpkin (any shape or color - their imagination). You could also create odd shaped pumpkins from play dough and let them dry for the children to keep.
Science: Possibly bring in a real pumpkin and list the how it is alike or different from Spookley. Maybe even have a class carving when you are done. Roast the pumpkin seeds for a tasty treat for the children. Make pumpkin pies or pumpkin rolls from the flesh you take from inside.
Another activity would be to take the seeds and conduct an experiment with them. Place one in a plastic bag with a moist towel for each child. Put or tape them to the window. Have the children chart the progress of the seeds......roots? sprouting? leaves? longest? etc. Create a Flow Map of the growth of the seeds and then write in their journals.
Writing: Write stories about the possible outcomes from the sprouting seeds. You could even have the children write an alternate ending to the story. Have them draw and write what would have happened if the storm didn't come, or if Spookley was a different color and not oddly shaped, etc.
Potential Problems: None at this time.
Showing posts with label Rhyming. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rhyming. Show all posts
Sunday, May 24, 2009
One Lonely Sea Horse by Saxton Freymann & Joost Elffers
Book Genre: Fiction, Counting, Rhyming
Publishing Info: Arthur A. Levine Books, Scholastic Press (28 pages)
Awards or Honors: IRA Children’s Choice 2001, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Medal
Summary: The story is a fabulous combination of a variety of vegetables and fruits disguised as sea animals. The tale begins with Bea. She is a sad lonely seahorse who is in search of friends. She finds many friends in the ocean. She meets 2 crabs, 3 puffer fish, 4 lobsters, 5 turtles, 6 dolphins, 7 eels, 8 octopus, 9 mackerel, and 10 angelfish. Bea eventually realizes that she is not alone because she is surrounded by many of her sea friends.
Personal Rating & Reasons: ****Great! This is book is just too cute! I love how the vegetables and fruits are manipulated into the sea creatures. My favorite are the banana dolphins and the pineapple turtles. Even the background corals are made of mushrooms, roots, kale, etc. As an adult I find it a fun book to just look at and try to name all the foods. For a child the book teaches counting in a colorful fun way. It also has a lesson that we are not all alone. We have friends where we least expect them.
Reading Level: K-2 (1.8 AR)
Interest Level: ages 4-8 years
Possible Uses: This book could be used across the curriculum in math, writing, art, and science.
Math: In math you could use the book to reinforce counting to 10. It has one to one ratios for each animal. You could also have the children play along with a some, some more game as you read the story. You could use teddy bear counters, m&m's, Skittles, linking cubes, carrot sticks, etc. Another math activity would be to create the children's own counting books. Have them illustrate the animals on each page from 1 to 10.
Writing: You could read the story and then talk to the children about the different types of animals Bea ran into. You and the children could create a Circle Map of the animals or you could create a Flow Map of the story. Later the children could draw and write from the thinking maps their own sentences.
Art: The children could create their own animals from fruit or vegetables. You could work in small groups and have the children create the animals with the foods and toothpicks. The children could draw an animal that the teacher has created from fruits or vegetables. You could even do some potato or lettuce art with paints.
Science: This book would be a great way to introduce sea creatures in science and how they interact with other animals and their environment. You could also use this book to introduce different types of fruits or vegetables to the children. Possilby holding a tasting party of the different food items (making sure no allergies of course).
Potential Problems & Difficulties: None at this time.
Publishing Info: Arthur A. Levine Books, Scholastic Press (28 pages)
Awards or Honors: IRA Children’s Choice 2001, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Medal
Summary: The story is a fabulous combination of a variety of vegetables and fruits disguised as sea animals. The tale begins with Bea. She is a sad lonely seahorse who is in search of friends. She finds many friends in the ocean. She meets 2 crabs, 3 puffer fish, 4 lobsters, 5 turtles, 6 dolphins, 7 eels, 8 octopus, 9 mackerel, and 10 angelfish. Bea eventually realizes that she is not alone because she is surrounded by many of her sea friends.
Personal Rating & Reasons: ****Great! This is book is just too cute! I love how the vegetables and fruits are manipulated into the sea creatures. My favorite are the banana dolphins and the pineapple turtles. Even the background corals are made of mushrooms, roots, kale, etc. As an adult I find it a fun book to just look at and try to name all the foods. For a child the book teaches counting in a colorful fun way. It also has a lesson that we are not all alone. We have friends where we least expect them.
Reading Level: K-2 (1.8 AR)
Interest Level: ages 4-8 years
Possible Uses: This book could be used across the curriculum in math, writing, art, and science.
Math: In math you could use the book to reinforce counting to 10. It has one to one ratios for each animal. You could also have the children play along with a some, some more game as you read the story. You could use teddy bear counters, m&m's, Skittles, linking cubes, carrot sticks, etc. Another math activity would be to create the children's own counting books. Have them illustrate the animals on each page from 1 to 10.
Writing: You could read the story and then talk to the children about the different types of animals Bea ran into. You and the children could create a Circle Map of the animals or you could create a Flow Map of the story. Later the children could draw and write from the thinking maps their own sentences.
Art: The children could create their own animals from fruit or vegetables. You could work in small groups and have the children create the animals with the foods and toothpicks. The children could draw an animal that the teacher has created from fruits or vegetables. You could even do some potato or lettuce art with paints.
Science: This book would be a great way to introduce sea creatures in science and how they interact with other animals and their environment. You could also use this book to introduce different types of fruits or vegetables to the children. Possilby holding a tasting party of the different food items (making sure no allergies of course).
Potential Problems & Difficulties: None at this time.
What Will I Be? by Wendy Lewison, Photographs by James Levin
Book Genre: Fiction, Rhyming, Career
Publishing Info: Cartwheel Books, Scholastic Inc.
Awards or Honors:
Summary: What Will I Be? is a cute book full of job descriptions and beautiful pictures. It takes many jobs such as: a baker, a director, a teacher, a police officer, a computer scientist, .......... ending with the president and introduces them to children with fun rhyming descriptions.
Personal Rating & Why: ****Great! This is an awesome book to introduce students to different types of careers they can have in the future. I love the photographs and the rhythm of the rhymes. It is a fun book to read and the children will love it too.
Reading Level: K-2 (1.8 AR)
Reading Interest: ages 4-8 years
Possible Uses: This book could be used to introduce Career Day or Community Helpers.
Writing: You could read the book to the children and then have them draw and write about which career they would want to be when they grow up.
Art: The children could have a dress up day. Maybe read it closer to Halloweeen and let them dress up as what they want to be when they grow up. That way you still get to dress up for Halloween and you bypass all the gory costumes.
Community: You could invite adults from the community or parents and let them give short descriptions of what their jobs require. Kind of like Show and Tell, but with people, not items.
Additional Activity: You could pick a career a day and have each child draw and write about that career. Have them make hats, badges, etc. to play the part. Let them really get a chance to get into the role of the career they have chosen.
After you have made the costumes, you could let the children do a small parade to the other classrooms to show off their hard work.
Potential Problems or Difficulties: None at this time.
Publishing Info: Cartwheel Books, Scholastic Inc.
Awards or Honors:
Summary: What Will I Be? is a cute book full of job descriptions and beautiful pictures. It takes many jobs such as: a baker, a director, a teacher, a police officer, a computer scientist, .......... ending with the president and introduces them to children with fun rhyming descriptions.
Personal Rating & Why: ****Great! This is an awesome book to introduce students to different types of careers they can have in the future. I love the photographs and the rhythm of the rhymes. It is a fun book to read and the children will love it too.
Reading Level: K-2 (1.8 AR)
Reading Interest: ages 4-8 years
Possible Uses: This book could be used to introduce Career Day or Community Helpers.
Writing: You could read the book to the children and then have them draw and write about which career they would want to be when they grow up.
Art: The children could have a dress up day. Maybe read it closer to Halloweeen and let them dress up as what they want to be when they grow up. That way you still get to dress up for Halloween and you bypass all the gory costumes.
Community: You could invite adults from the community or parents and let them give short descriptions of what their jobs require. Kind of like Show and Tell, but with people, not items.
Additional Activity: You could pick a career a day and have each child draw and write about that career. Have them make hats, badges, etc. to play the part. Let them really get a chance to get into the role of the career they have chosen.
After you have made the costumes, you could let the children do a small parade to the other classrooms to show off their hard work.
Potential Problems or Difficulties: None at this time.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)