The Little Red Hen

Illustrated by: Linda McQueen

Recommended for: Children Ages 4-8

Themes: Fiction, Folktales, Character Education

Summary:

     In this version of the folktale, the little red hen spends her days busy caring for the home which she shares with a goose, a cat, and a dog. Red Hen finds some wheat which she plants in the garden and tends to all on her own. She asks for help throughout the story but the goose is always too busy gossiping, and the cat is too vain and busy preening, and the dog is always to tired. Each time that the Red Hen asks for help the others refuse or ignored her. So on top of doing all the cooking and cleaning, little Red Hen ended up doing all of the work herself. However, after the Red Hen has finished making a cake out of the flour made from the wheat, the goose, the cat, and the dog all want a piece. The Red Hen tells them that she will eat it all herself since noone wanted to help to tend the wheat, or cut it, or hall it, make it into flour, or bake the cake. After this, the cat, the goose and the dog are all much more helpful in doing the chores.
     Children will enjoy this folktale and comparing the different characters. They will be able to follow the pattern of the story with the Red Hen asking for help and her friends always saying no. The illustrations are simple and help with understanding of the story. Children will enjoy how little Red Hen develops as a character and the lesson that she teaches her friends at the story's conclusion.

Suggestions for the Classroom:
     This book would be a wonderful selection to use when teaching children about folktales, in discussing ssequence of events, plot and character development. For my sample activities, I will discuss using this version of the folktale in comparison to another version of the same tale which is illustrated by Amy Rosenburg in order to show children that when stories are handed down from generation to generation they often change a little, a characteristic of folktales.
*Pre-Reading Activites: Remind children that folktales are stories that are passed down from generation to generation and sometimes the story changes depending on who is telling it. Demonstrate this quickly with the students by playing the game of telephone (works best if they are in a circle). Whisper a sentence to the first child and have them whisper it to the child on the right of them until the last child whispers the sentence back to you (for example: The gray bear had a bug in his hair). With any luck the sentence will have changed by the time it gets back to you (The bear had a bug on him). Write on the board/chart paper what sentence you started with and what you finished with. Discuss if the new sentence changed the meaning even though some of the words change (this will vary in your descriptions.
*During Reading: Read the version of The Little Red Hen illustrated by Linda McQueen to the students.
Point out as you read what the dog, the cat and the goose are doing in comparision to the Red Hen.
Read aloud the version of The Little Red Hen illustrated by Amye Rosenburg to the students. Point out as you read what the gog, the cat and the goosse are doing in comparison to the Red Hen.
*Post-Reading Activities: Have the students compare the characters in the first version of the story to those in the second version using a Venn Diagram. Point out to students that the differences in the story do not change the meaning or the ending to the story. Explain that often Folktales are told in different versions as they are told by one person and then to another and another just as we did before we read the book (when we said "The gray bear had a bug in his hair" and it changed to "The bear had a bug on him").

George Washington Carver: Teacher, Scientist, and Inventor

Written by: Lori Mortensen

Illustrated by: Niamh O'Connor

Recommended for: Children Ages 4-8

Themes: Non-Fiction, Science, Social Studies

Summary:

     A wonderful picture book that tells the life of young George Washington Carver, starting with his separation from his mother as a baby when they were both taken by slave steallers. This book shows children that since George was a boy he was always facinated with plants and helping people. Children are able to follow George's life through school and college and even as he bagan working at the Tuskeegee Institute in order to help poor black farmers. The book chronicles his reasons for making the peanut plant popular and what type of work he did testing out products to introduce all the ways that the peanut plant could benefit American farmers.

     Children will enjoy the opportunity to not only learn more about Carver's impact on the American society through his work with peanuts, but also in learning more about him as a man and why he chose to do the work that he has done. They will be sad to hear about how he how he was separated from his mother and how difficult it was for him to go to school. However, they will be very inspired by how he persevered to get the education that he always wanted and how he used his education to help other people. The illustrations in this book are beautiful and colorful. They are simple and follow the storyline, making it easier for the children to follow along with the story.

Suggestions for the Classroom:

     This book could be used in several different ways within the classroom: 1) as a resource when covering the achievements of famous African American's during Black History Month; 2) in discussing Plants, Peanuts, and Crops within a Science lesson; and 3) when discussing Slavery within America in conjunction with the Civil War.

*Pre-Reading Activities: Make a web with the class discussing all of the different things that you can eat that have peanuts in it (peanut butter, snickers bars, peanut brittle, etc.). Tell students that today we are going to read a stroy about George Washington Carver. He is the man who showed Americans all of the wonderful uses that a peanut has. Until he had invented it, peanut butter did not exist. People only used peanuts to feed their animals at the time. Review vocabulary on page 23 with the students before reading to introduce to them terms which they may not be familiar with.

*During Reading: Stop periodically to review with the students what is happening in George Washington Carver's life.Give them opportunities to give feedback about what is going on and how George may be feeling. Review the timeline and Did You Know? facts with the students which are on pages 22 and 23 in the back of the selection.

*Post-Reading Activities: Complete a Graphic Organizer with the students as you discuss the plot (StoryMan would work). Start with details about the main character. Make a new web with the students. Ask them this time to tell you character traits that they could associate with George Washington Carver. Them discuss the setting, and jot down ideas as the students provide them. Finally, add in the Problem and the Solution (farmer's crops weren't growing so George Washington Carver showed them that you could rotate crops and then the field's would produce plentiful crops again. Also, people could produce peanuts but there were not uses for them so George Washington Carver invented different uses for the peanut so that farmers would be able to get people to buy them).



About the Author:
     Lori Mortensen lives in Northern California with her husband, three children and her cat, Max. She graduated with her Bachlor of Science degree from Bringham Young University with a major in Dance and a minot in Art and she later received her Master's degree in Dance Education. However, Mortensen states that she has always been an avid reader enjoying the way that reading a book had helped her to escape into many different adventures. She adds that writing is her true passion and she enjoys writing both picture books and chapter books for children and juvenilles. She has also written stories and articles for popular children's magazines, such as : Highlights, Ladybug, and The Friend. Check out her website to learn more about her and her books.

 

I Know a Shy Fellow Who Swallowed a Cello

Written by: Barbara S. Garriel

Illustrated by: John O'Brien

Recommended for: Children in Grades Pre-K -2

Themes: Fiction, Music

Summary:

     The musical version of I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly, I Know a Shy Fellow Who Swallowed a Cello is an entertaining story about a young man who swallows instruments. However, in this version after swallowing several different instruments the young fellow does not die. Instead he begins to cough each up, one at a time, with the instruments playing each time he opens his mouth.

     Children will love the predictable pattern that the old fellow follows in swallowing the instruments as well as the alternative ending given. They will also enjoy the wonderful illustrations which show the fellows shape changing as he swallows each illustration.

Suggestions for the Classroom:

     This would be an excellent book to read in conjunction with I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly to add a musical component to your read alouds. Children will enjoy opportunities to act out the sounds that the instruments make or motions of playing them with you as you read.

*Pre-Reading Activities: Introduce some musical instruments to the students using pictures and musical clips (if available), demonstrating how they are played. Tell them that we will be reading a story today and when we read about each instrument we will stop and pretend that we are playing that instrument.

*During Reading: Throughout the story, as each instrument is introduced pause and have students mimic you as you make the motions of playing the instrument (as previously decided upon). Allow time to pause at the end of page for children to raise there hands and comment on the story (look at that picture, you can see the cello in his belly).

*Post-Reading Activities: Ask students to share with an elbow partner their favorite part of the story, one being the speaker and the other the listener. After about 45 seconds, ask them to switch roles and have the other partner share. After the second partner has shared, give some of the students an opportunity to share what was their partners favorite part of the story (students can mimic the instruments during this share time if it goes with their selection).

About the Author:

     Barbara S. Garriel writes books about music for elementary and middle school students. She maintains a website where you can read about her books and learn more about her. In addition to writing books, Garriel travels to schools, libraries and museums to teach children about writing. She has worked previously as a teacher in Long Island, New York and she enjoys writing because it gives her extended opportunities to share with children her passion for reading, writing and music.

About the Illustrator:

     John O'Brien has illustrated over 40 children's books, both fiction and non-fiction. His illustrations can be found in the Who Was... biography collection, such as:Who Was Thomas Alva Edison, Who Was Marco Polo, and Who Was Elvis Presley. He lives in New Jersey and his illustrations can also be found weekly in the New Jersey section of the New York Times. O'Brien can also be found working as a lifeguard for the North Wildwood Beach Patrol, lifeguarding is a job that he has had since 1970. In his free time he enjoys drawing, going out on his paddlewheel boat, playing the banjo and has even recently begun to play the bagpipes.

Buy or Read Review of This Book on Amazon.com

I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly

I Know and Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie

Amazing Grace

Written by: Mary Hoffman

Illustrated by: Caroline Binch

Recommended for: Children Ages 4-8

Themes: Fiction, Character Education

Summary:

     Grace is a young girl with a wonderfully creative imagination. She loves to read stories and make believe that she is the characters. Grace often will act out the parts of her favorite characters from these stories with her friends, family, and even while all alone. When Grace finds out that her class will be putting on the play Peter Pan she decides that she wants to play the part of Peter. However, Grace's classmates tease her that she cannot be Peter because she is a girl and she is black. Grace is very disheartened by their comments but continues to prepare for the auditions with the encouragement of her family that she can be anything that she wants to be. Grace ends up getting the part of Peter and the encouragement of her classmates after they she how perfect Grace is at playing the part of Peter.

     Children will love the wonderful illustrations included in this story which show Grace as a playful and happy child. They will be compelled to cheer her on when the other students doubt her ability to play Peter. The story and the pictures reflect a multicultural classroom which can be reflective of many public school systems in America at this time. Children will love to see Grace persevere despite the comments made to her by others putting her down. This story teaches children to believe that they can achieve anything with hard work and practice.

Suggestions for the Classroom:

     This book would be a wonderful selection to read to students as both a Character Education piece as well as for discussing Character and Plot.

*Pre-Reading Activities: Discuss with students that when we read stories, often the main character faces some kind of problem. What it is that they do to solve that problem is called the solution. For instance: If I came to school today and forgot my pencil that would be a problem. Ask the students, what could I do to fix this problem (borrow one from a friend, ask the teacher to borrow one, etc.) and record their answers on a t-chart (one side listing problems and on the other side solutions). Give them a second problem: I can't find my favorite eraser (ask a friend to help you look, use another one, borrow one from someone else). 

     Explain to children that today we are going to read a story and the main character is going to face a problem. Ask them to listen for what she does to solve her problem, that is called the solution.

*During Reading: Stop throughout the story to give students opportunities to express how they think Grace is feeling. Pay attention to: how she may feel when the other students are telling her that she can't play Peter in the play? when her Grandma takes her to the ballet? when she auditions for the play? when she finds out what part she got.

*Post-Reading Activities: Go back to the t-chart that you created with the students before you began reading. Ask the children to tell you what problem Grace had and record it on the left side of your chart. Then ask the students to tell you her solution, or how she solved her problem, and record it on the right side of your chart. Discuss with the students the character Grace, what about her makes her so special or Amazing as the title suggests. If time permits, give the students time to complete a character chart writing down Grace's character traits.

About the Author:

     Mary Hoffman currently lives in West Oxfordshire and enjoys writing books for children and teenagers, including picture books as well as fantasy and historical novels. She explains on her website that she grew up with two older sisters and even taught herself how to read before she began school herself. Hoffman also describes that like Grace she loved to act out the stories that she read and she even wrote plays for her and her friends to act out. I would imagine that her character Grace has much of the same characteristics as she did when she was a young child. Hoffman explains that her husband is half-Indian, likely a reason that she has chosen to write her books with a focus on many cultures.

About the Illustrator:

     Caroline Binch lives in West Cornwall with her two cats and a dog. She says that her illustrations are inspired by people and places around her. She likes to focus her writing and illustrations on the positive aspects of life rather than the negative ones. This is most likely why she chose to illustrate the book Amazing Grace as it portrays a positive message to young children to never give up and to work hard to accomplish their dreams. Binch states that she enjoys spending her free time relaxing doing yoga, taking walks, dancing with the music up loud, and laying in the grass enjoying the day.

The Zoo at Night

Written by: Martha Robinson

Illustrated by: Antonio Frasconi

Suggested for: Children Ages 4-8

Themes: Fiction, Poetry, Science

Summary:

     The Zoo at Night is a poetry picture book that explains to children what happens to the animals at the zoo at night. The book show children while some animals sleep at night, just as they do, others stay up howling at the moon, flying or playing. This book teaches children more about the sleeping patterns of animals, as some are nocturnal. The illustrations are dark, yet colorful, giving the children the perspective of what the animals would actually look like in a night sky.

     Children will enjoy learning more about these animals and on exploring the illustrations.

Suggestions for the Classroom:

     This book would be an excellent selection to read with children after visiting the zoo. This book can connect the experience with the Science curriculum in connection to the animals found at the zoo.

*Pre-Reading Activities: Give students an opportunity to share some of the experiences that they had on their visit to the zoo, such as: what types of animals did they see? (make a list on the board/chart paper for children to refer to during writing activity) what were the animals doing? and what is something that they learned about the animals? Point out that while we were there that some of the animals were sleeping. Ask the students why they think that the animals were sleeping (they are tired, they are taking a nap, etc.) Ask the students, "Have you ever wondered what the zoo animals do at night?" Give them some time to respond and make predictions.

*During Reading: Point out that some of the animals are awake during the night. When do you think they sleep? Do you remember seeing that animal at the zoo today? Was it awake or asleep? Why might this animal be awake at night instead of during the day? Point out that they may hunt their pray when the prey is sleeping, they play when temperatures are cooler, etc.

*Post-Reading Activities: Give students an opportunity to write in writing journals about their trip to the zoo. They can use the story starter: Today at the zoo I saw... Students will complete their journal entry with a picture.

About the Author:

     The Zoo at Night is the first children's book written by Martha Robinson. Robinson lives in Los Angeles, California with her husband and has two grown sons. She works as a Professor of Law and Loyola Law School.

About the Illustrator:

     Antonio Frasconi has illustrated over 100 books and is well-known for his woodcuts. He grew up in South America after his parents fled from Argentina during World War I. His mother always encouraged his artistic ability and said that it was a gift from God and that he was meant to do big things. Frasconi moved to the United States after World War II and has become a successful illustrator, artist, and professor here in America.

Purchase Book or Read Review at Amazon.com

Twimericks: The Book of Tongue-Twisting Limericks

Written and Illustrated by: Lou Brooks

Recommended for: Children Grades 2-4

Themes: Non-Fiction, Poetry

Summary:

     Twimericks is a wonderful collection of limerick poems that are designed to also be tongue-twisters. Brooks begins the book by first explaining what limericks, tongue-twisters, and twimericks are. The poems which he includes are wonderfully fun and tricky.

     Children will enjoy reading these poems and practicing them again and again outloud. Brooks' illustrations are fun and wonderfully match his poems. Several of the poems are also a wonderful mixture of fun and gross topics, such as: Frankly, Frank Fankley where Frank ends up with Hank's dirty hanky. Each poem has its own unique topic and word patterns.

Suggestions for the Classroom:

     This book can be used in the classroom in conjunction with a unit on Poetry as well as for fluency practice for the children. These limiricks with a tongue-twister spin help to teach children to slow down and think about what they are reading. They are almost impossible for readers to get right on the first try. Their light and jovial tone helps to draw in the interest of the children and will keep them from getting bored. Children will enjoy trying the several times in a challenge to get the who thing right. They are wonderfully creative and are a great inspiration for young writers.

*Pre-Reading Activity: Introduce Limericks to children. Explain the pattern that they follow using the song Hickory Dickory Dock. Display the song on a large piece of chart paper, board, or a SmartBoard. Read the song to them once and then read it all together. Have students pick out rhyming pairs. Use two different color highlighters to highlight rhyming pairs, in order to point out the AABBA pattern that Limericks follow. Explain to students that in one of their centers today, preferably a teacher led center, they will be practicing reading some Limericks today.

*During Reading: Give students the opportunity to pick out one of the limericks from the book to practice. Have copies of the poems ready for the students so that they do not have to share the book (photocopies or several copies of the book itself). I would let the students select a poem that they would like to practice, to give them more of a choice to pick out what seems interesting to them. As they read, have them circle words which they are having trouble with or find challenging. Individually conference with each child to help them with challenging words and to give them an opportunity to practice with you where you can give feedback early on.

Give students additional opportunities to practice reading their selection to a partner.

*Post-Reading: Ask students to come up with their very own limerick in their writing journals and to draw a picture to illustrate their poems. Students can later type up of write out a final draft of their poems which they can make into a new book for the classroom.

Twimericks Website

About the Author:

     Lou Brooks is a a self-taught writer and illustrator. He has done illustrations for books, magazines and newspapers and also enjoys writing books, playing in an all-cartoonist band, surfing, and has even worked previously as a stand up comic. Brooks is also famous for his redesign, in 1985, of the manolpoly character with the top hat and moustache. He maintains his own blog , a Twimericks website, and provides illustrations for many successful magaize companies, such as: Time and Newsweek, and illustrating for advertisements for companies such as: Coca-Cola, Verizon and CBS. His art has even been animated for TV by Nickelodeon, HBO, and MTV.

The Wise Woman And Her Secret

Written by: Eve Merriam

Illustrated by: Linda Graves

Recommended for: Children Ages 4-8

Themes: Fiction, Character Education

Summary:

     Townspeople travel a long distance to reach the wise old woman to learn her secret of what it is that makes her wise. They impatiently demand to know her secret so that they can get back home to their busy lives. Instead of telling them her secret, the wise old lady tells them that they must search to find out her secret. So the townspeople spend the day search, growing much more impatient as the day goes by. That is, except for little Jenny who admires the beauty of all that is around her. After searching the well, the townspeople throw a green coin on the ground and continue there search. Jenny becomes facinated with this coin and begins to ask the wise old woman all about the coin. With this, the wise old woman tells Jenny that she has discovered her secret: the secret of wisdom is to be curious.

     Children will enjoy this story because it keeps them guessing about what the wise old woman's secret could possibly be and why the townspeople want it so badly. The illustrations are very elaborate and show the emotions of the characters. The illustrator has done an excellent job in showing the wonderment in Jenny's eyes, and children will easily pick up on the fact that Jenny is not like the rest of the townspeople and instead has more in common with the wise old woman.

Suggestions for the Classroom:

     This is a wonderful story for analyzing a Character and comparing different characters within a story.

* Pre-Reading Activities: Discuss with students that sometimes when we read stories that their are characters that are a lot alike and others who are very different. For example, in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Happy is very kind and happy but Grumpy always seems to be in a bad mood. However, Snow White is very kind and the Seven Dwarfs are all very kind to her as well. Ask students to give you examples of other characters in stories who are very different. Now have them tell you about characters who are alike.

Tell them that today they are going to listen to you read a story and that you would like to think about the characters and in what ways they are alike and what was they are different.

* During Reading: Stop and ask the students to describe the characters and their actions throughout the story. Discuss how the characters actions may make the other characters feel: Why do you think that the woman told one of the townsmen to say please to the wise old woman? Why do we say please? How do you think the man felt when the wise old woman would not tell them her secret? How did Jenny feel when she found the feather and the twig? How did the townspeople feel about her discovery?...

* Post-Reading Activity: Depending on the students needs, you can either complete a Venn Diagram as a class comparing two of the characters or they could work on this activity independently. If you decide to do it as a class, I would compare The townspeople and Jenny. Dicuss with the students the way that the townspeople treated the wise old woman. Ask them to describe how the wise old woman treated the townspeople. Many students will probably choose to compare Jenny and the wise old woman as they have much in common. Fill in the information that they give you in the diagram, noting how the characters/groups are alike and how they are different.

About the Author:
     Eve Merriam grew up in Pennsylvania, raised by Russian parents who orignially named her Eva Moskovitz.She began writing poetry as a young child, seven years old, and never stopped. Besides being a published poet, Merriam also works as an author of books and articles for adults and children, aplaywriter and a teacher. She states that she has always been facinated with rhymes and word play and enjoyed reading and writing stories and poems all of her life.

 About the Illustrator:
     Linda Graves lives in Massachusetts with her husband and enjoys illustrating childrens books. She studied painting portraits under Daniel Green and her books often include elborate illustrations of people. She has her own website where you are able to view some of her book samples and learn a little more about her style as an illustrator.