Pass It On

Pass It On

By Marilyn Sadler

Blue Apple Books, 2012

Grades: PreK, K, 1, 2

Synopsis: When Cow gets stuck in the fence, Bee turns to the other farm animals for help. As the message gets passed along, however, it gets garbled and no one realizes that Cow is in trouble! Eventually the animals work out the message and help Cow, but not as soon as if they had been really listening to what their friends had to say.

Jump: Before reading the book, play a classic game of telephone where all participants sit in a circle and one starts by whispering a secret phrase to his/her neighbor and it continues around the circle until the message is said out loud at the end - usually completely mangled! After reading, discuss how the game of telephone was similar to what happened in the story. Create a list together of ways to be a better listener to use as an anchor chart. Play the game again, hopefully with better results. This story and game combination would be good for the first few days of school.

All in One Hour

All in One Hour

By Susan Stevens Crummel

Marshall Cavendish, 2003

Grades: K, 1, 2

Summary: At six o'clock in the morning, a mouse wakes up a cat, who runs past a dog, who catches the eye of a dog catcher and starts a town-wide ruckus that slowly builds through the hour. As the pattern of the text builds (similar to "The House that Jack Built") the time slowly ticks by on analog clocks hidden in the illustrations.

Jump: Because the clock in the background displays the time that each event happens and there is a digital clock at the beginning of the text, the two parts could be separated and then students could match the illustration and text using both the time clues and the content clues. The way each clock looks (in digital and analog) can be used to help students understand how the minute hand and hour hand move through an hour. A similar matching activity can be done with a classroom narrative - students can match 10:05 bathroom break with an analog clock stating the same time. These pictures and clocks could also be used to practice sequencing.

My Dog is as Smelly as Dirty Socks

My Dog is as Smelly as Dirty Socks

By Hanoch Piven

Schwartz & Wade Books, 2007

 

Grades: 1, 2, 3

Synopsis: When asked to draw a picture of her family, a young girl decides that just drawing them with a pencil is not enough - she needs to really make people understand what her family is all about. So for her very playful dad, she adds a top for a nose. Her big brother, who is sneaky, has a snake for a mouth. And of course, her smelly dog has tuna fish cans for feet and an onion for tail!

Jump: Students can be introduced to the similes that are everywhere in this book. Then, they can write about a family member or classmate and think of their characteristics, using a simile to describe each. If time allows, students can also emulate the illustrator to create 3-D portraits to match the writing.

The Shape of Things

The Shape of Things

By Dayle Ann Dodds

Candlewick Press, 1996

Grades: PreK, K

Synopsis: Each page starts with a shape and asks readers what it could become. The square turns into a house, the triangle into a boat, and the oval into an egg. At the end a carnival and beach scene are shown and readers are invited to find as many shapes as they can.

Jump: Aside from introducing the basic shapes and their names, students can be encouraged to look for shapes in their own environment. After looking around the room, the class can take go on a shape hunt and walk through the school or outside to find particular shapes or as many as they can. This activity correlates with the Common Core State Standard K.G.A.1.

The Hungry Thing

The Hungry Thing

By Jan Slepian

Scholastic, 2001

Grades: PreK, K

 

Synopsis: One day a strange creature comes to town, and the townspeople can tell it is hungry but cannot figure out what it wants to eat! As the creature asks for crazy, unheard of things someone realizes that the thing is rhyming! Finally able to understand, the town helps the hungry thing to feed its appetite.

Jump: This book, full of silly rhymes for words students will recognize, is a great way to introduce or practice rhyming skills. As the creature continues to ask for food, students may solve the problem before the town does. Students should be encouraged to guess the item aske for by the Hungry Thing. After reading, students could play as the Hungry Thing and provide rhymes for their favorite food as the others guess. Silly rhymes could also be given for student names - this is a favorite in my class!