Yesterday I Had the Blues

Title: Yesterday I Had the Blues

Jeron Ashford Frame (Author), 
R. Gregory Christie (Illustrator)

Comprehension Strategy: Inferring                   
Art Modality: Poetry

Summary: Ever had the blues? Yesterday one boy had them bad—not just the ordinary blues, the "deep down in my shoes" blues, the "go away Mr. Sun quit smilin' at me" blues. But today he's traded in those blues for greens, the "runnin' my hands along the hedges" greens, the kind of greens that make him want to be SOMEBODY. With text that begs to be read aloud, and bold, colorful paintings, this book will have readers big and small pondering the spectrum of moods and how they can change from day to day. (Summary from Random House, Inc.)

Materials:

Yesterday I Had the Blues

chart paper

markers

Lesson:

Trying to teach your students to infer? Don’t let it give you the blues! First, read aloud this jazzy story. Follow up the reading with a discussion about each character’s emotions. Encourage students to use their background knowledge, the text clues, and the illustrations to explain the reasons for the feelings. Here’s the chart we made from our class discussion:

On another day, reread the story and review the chart. Use this poetry frame to encourage your students to think about their own feelings.

Yesterday I had the _________________.

The ________________________________________.

Today I got the ___________________.

The ________________________________________.

Tomorrow I hope I have the _____________.

The ________________________________________.

This poetry by my second graders gives me the pinks...the oh-so-happy, lips smilin’, tickled-pink pinks!

    

Do your kids have the blues? Let them watch this animated clip of the story. They’re sure to want to read along, and before you know it they’ll feel golden!

http://pbskids.org/lions/stories/feelings.html

Little Mama Forgets

Title:  Little Mama Forgets

Robin Cruise (author), Stacey Dressen-McQueen (Illustrator)

Comprehension Strategy: Synthesizing                                   

Art Modality:  Poetry

Summary:

Although her Mexican-American grandmother now forgets many things, Lucy finds that she still remembers the things that are important to the two of them. (Summary from the book.)

Materials:

Little Mama Forgets

chart paper, markers

Lesson:

Your students are sure to remember this poetry lessons that is a follow-up for Little Mama Forgets. After reading the story aloud, invite the students to think about the things that Mama forgets and the things that she remembers. On a chart, list the things that Lucy, the granddaughter who tells the story, says that Mama forgets. Then list the things that Lucy says that Mama remembers. What do the things have in common? What types of things are on the "forgets" list as compared to the types of things on the "remembers" list? You may wish to lead students in a discussion about the relationship between Lucy and her grandmother. In addition, you might also want to discuss the things that Mama remembers from her youth and about her culture.

To prepare your students for a poetry follow-up, ask them to think about what they might remember when they grow old. Who are the people that are most important to them? What things do they do with those special people? What celebrations are important to their families? What are their favorite things to do? Is it easier to remember things that you have strong feelings about? Provide the following poetry frame to assist your students in writing free-verse poetry.

I might forget…

I could forget…

but I'll always remember…


Here are some sweet poems that my second graders wrote!


Mom        (by James, age 8)
I might forget what she wore.
I could forget when she fell down the steps.
But I'll always remember how she makes me cinnamon rolls.


Great Grandpa    (by Madeline, age 8)
I might forget how he sounded.
I could forget how he used to play the piano.
But I'll always remember when he held me in the hospital.


My Sister, Stella    (by Marlie, age 8)
I might forget that she slaps me in the eye.
I could forget when she first punched me.
But I'll always remember her smile and when she was born.


Grandma      (by Jake, age 8)
I might forget what she wore.
I might forget what she sounded like.
But I'll always remember that it may have been the loveliest voice anyone heard.


Learn more about the author: http://robincruise.com

The Boy Who Grew Flowers

Title: The Boy Who Grew Flowers

Jennifer Wojtowicz (author)

Steve Adams (Illustrator)
(To purchase, use the Barefoot Books link on the right.)

Comprehension Strategies: Questioning, Inferring       

Art Modalities: Drama, Visual Art

Summary: Shunned at school because he sprouts flowers every full moon, Rink Bowagon makes a special pair of shoes for a classmate who is able to appreciate his unique abilities.

(Summary from book.)

Materials:

The Boy Who Grew Flowers

Class supply of white art paper, pencils, permanent black markers, watercolor paints

Lesson:

Introduce the book by inviting the students to look closely at the cover. What questions do they have about the story just from looking at the illustration? You might want to lead the students in asking questions such as:

Why is the boy holding flowers?

Why is the boy holding green shoes?

Is it important that there is a full moon?

How did the boy grow flowers?

Why is his house on a hill?

Next read aloud the first several pages of the text. Stop after you read Angelina's question to the class, "Why won't anyone talk to him?" Since the "question rattled in their minds," allow students time to think about, discuss, or journal their own answer to this question. Then invite students to pretend that they are Rink's classmates. Have students answer Angelina's question out loud.

For Older Students:

Reread the part of the story that explains that the Bowagons lived on Lonesome Mountain. Remind the students that the "townspeople argued as to whether it was because they were such strange folk that they lived there, or whether it was because they lived there that they were such strange folk." After discussing these two ideas, invite students to divide into two groups of townspeople based on which idea they agree with. Encourage the two groups of townspeople to "argue" about which opinion is true.

Visual Arts Follow-up:

Invite students to discuss why Rink sprouts flowers when it is not a full moon. Then invite them to close their eyes and think thoughts so pleasant, that they, too, could spout  flowers. Next lead students through the process of drawing a self portrait. Direct the children to draw flowers sprouting from their heads. A sentence about their happy thought can also be added to the paper. Each child should draw his portrait with pencil, trace the lines with permanent marker, and then watercolor paint the image.

 

Personal note: 

My students' discussions made me so happy, I thought I would sprout flowers from my head! Also, I found lesson plans about drawing portraits on www.artsonia.com. (Just create an account and then login to see lesson plans.) I believe that seeing the images in lesson #2711 really helped my artists. Enjoy!

http://www.artsonia.com/

Mind Your Manners, B.B. Wolf

Title:  Mind Your Manners, B.B. Wolf

Judy Sierra (Author), Jotto Seibold (Illustrator)

Comprehension Strategy: Making Connections (using Prior Knowledge)                       

Art Modalities:  drama, music

Summary:

When B. B. Wolf, who now lives in the Villain Villa Retirement Residence, is invited to the library for a storybook tea, he is careful to follow the advice of this crocodile friend and impresses everyone with how polite he can be. (Summary from book.)

Materials:

Mind Your Manners, B. B. Wolf

optional: The Three Little Pigs

Little Red Riding Hood

The Gingerbread Man

(Choose versions of these stories most appropriate for the listening skills of your students.)

Lesson:

Who's afraid of the Big Bad Wolf? None of your students will be scared of B. B. Wolf—or good manners—after listening to this story about his excellent etiquette lesson. To prepare students to make text-to-text connections, you might want to first read several classic tales of wolf mischief, such as The Three Little Pigs and Little Red Riding Hood. Even though it is most often a fox and not a wolf that is the danger in The Gingerbread Man, you might also want to read this story because a gingerbread man is featured in the illustrations of this book. Finally, you might also wish to discuss why Little Bo Peep, in the traditional nursery rhyme, would need to be afraid of wolves since they were a danger to her sheep.

Prior to reading the story, invite students to choose characters from these classic tales to portray. Options include any of the three pigs, Little Red Riding Hood, her grandmother, the woodsman, and the Gingerbread Man. Group students by their chosen characters, or have them label themselves with nametags. Using a toy microphone, and perhaps even a video camera, interview the characters to find out what they already know about our main character: B. B. Wolf. How have their previous experiences with the wolf affected their opinion of him? What words best describe his personality? What are his motives in most stories? What advice would these characters give to other storybook characters about the wolf?

In the story, B. B. Wolf makes up a song to help himself remember the etiquette advice provided by his friend the crocodile. Following your read aloud of the story, invite students to help you create a tune for the crocodile's advice. Perhaps you could try the words to the tune of popular songs that the students already know. Or challenge older students to create their own tunes to perform for the class. If desired, sing the text to the tune of "Bingo."

Sip your tea and never slurp,

Say, "Excuse me" if you burp.

Use good manners, please!

Use good manners, please!

Use good manners, please!

When you go to the library.

Smile and have a lot of fun,

but don't go biting anyone!

Use good manners, please!

Use good manners, please!

Use good manners, please!

When you go to the library.


For more information about the author, visit: 
http://www.judysierra.net/index.htm

Red Sings from Treetops: A Year in Colors

Title:  Red Sings from Treetops: A Year in Colors

2010 Caldecott Honor Book

Joyce Sidman (author), Pamela Zagarenski (Illustrator)

Comprehension Strategy:  Visualizing                        

Art Modalities:  Visual Arts, Poetry

Summary: Color comes alive in this whimsical, innovative book: blue dances on summer lakes, green drips from spring leaves, black wafts mysteriously through autumn evenings. Together, an award-winning poet and a brilliant painter inspire us to look closer at the thrilling colors of the seasons. (Summary from the book.)

Materials:

white art paper

crayons, markers, oil pastels or other art supplies for creating illustrations

Lesson:

Read aloud one page of the book at a time. Encourage students to visualize the objects described in the text. After the students offer guesses to identify the objects, reveal the illustrations and reread the text for the page. Be sure to provide plenty of time for the students to observe and discuss the illustrations and poetic elements in the text. (My students had fun finding the windows and following the white dog through each scene. They also enjoyed finding the crowns on the animals. The more we studied the illustrations under the document camera, the more they noticed. In fact, I discovered many more details with them than I had seen on my own!)

As a poetry writing extension, invite students to create pages for a class seasons book. Lead the group in brainstorming lists of items and animals that are associated with each season. For example, your chart might look like this:

Winter	Spring	Summer	Fall
hot chocolate	Easter egg	suntan lotion	football
gloves	cherry blossoms	lemonade	apple

Model the poetry writing by choosing an item from the list. Have the class help you write a poem describing the item using a style similar to the text of the book. (I found that modeling the poetry writing was important to the success of the students when writing their own poetry.)

Next encourage each child to choose an item. Have each child write a short, free-verse poem describing the item. Type each child's poem so that it fills a page. Then have the child use the appropriate color of marker to write the color of the item on an index card. Tape the index card over the name of the item on the paper to create a flap. (See photos below.) After writing her poem, have each child create an illustration on a separate piece of paper. Mount the poems and illustrations onto construction paper; then bind the pages to create a book. 

For more poetry writing ideas for use with this book, just click this link to visit Joyce Sidman's web page: http://www.joycesidman.com/redsingsTG.html

If your kids enjoy this book, you might want to leave a note from the class in the author's guest book. Here's the link:
http://www.joycesidman.com/guestbook.html

The Cheese

Title: The Cheese 

(Click this title for the Amazon.com link:
The Cheese)

Margie Palatini (Author)

Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher (Illustrators)

Comprehension Strategies: Inferring, Questioning, 

Prior Knowledge (Connections)

Art Modalities: Creative Movement, Music

Summary: In this hilarious riff on the favorite nursery rhyme "The Farmer in the Dell," readers will discover what really happened to that hunk of cheddar. (Summary from HarperCollinsChildrens.com.)

Materials: The Cheese

Lesson:

So why does the cheese stand alone? Hi-ho the dairy-o, students will want to know before and after reading this funny version of the folk song, "The Farmer in the Dell." Before reading the book, lead children in playing a version of the singing game. To play, the children hold hands to form a group circle. One child—the farmer—stands in the center of the circle. The group moves around the farmer while singing the first verse. When the verse ends, the "farmer" closes his eyes, spins around and points to a child in the group. This child joins the farmer in the center and becomes the "wife." The singing game continues until the "wife" has chosen a "child," the "child" has chosen a "dog," the "dog" has chosen a "cat," the "cat" has chosen a "rat" and the "rat" has chosen the "cheese." At this point, all of the characters return to the circle except for the cheese, who stands alone as the group sings the final verse.

Following the game, ask children, "Why does the cheese stand alone?" Invite children to turn and talk with partners, record their responses in journals, or write their answers on self-adhesive notes to create a chart.

Read the story aloud stopping often to observe the rat's changing emotions. Invite students to copy the rat's facial expressions and body positions to help them infer the rat's thoughts and feelings throughout the story. When looking at the illustration of the "cat's evidence," you may want to remind the children that an inference is made when a person combines clues with background knowledge. How did the clues and the cat's background knowledge help her discover the rat's motives? Finally, pause after the rat is left alone with the cheese. Encourage predictions about the rat's next move. Will he eat the cheese, move the cheese, or use good manners and wait to share the cheese? Hi-ho the dairy-o, read the book so you'll know!

Hear it for yourself! Use this link to enjoy listening to the story read aloud by the author, Margie Palatini. You'll also hear some of her thoughts about the book. Audio clip of The Cheese