Ellen Dewitt Reading File

Ellen DeWitt
Reading File
(Star ratings are based off of 5*****)
20 Caldecott
1. Title- Flotsam
Author- David Wiesner
Grade level- 2nd
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- A young boy is on the beach and an underwater camera appears on the shore.
He runs to the photo store because he wants to see the photos that are on the camera. Not only
are there incredible photos of sea creatures, but there are other photos of people who have also
found this underwater camera and thrown it back in the ocean. So, the young boy takes a photo
of himself and throws it back in the water for someone else to eventually find and share the
discovery with others.
Activity/skill- Buy one disposable camera for your whole class. Have every student take it home
one night and take one photo of something interesting they saw or did. Once every student has
had their night with the camera, take the photos to be printed and bring them back to class.
Have every student share their photo.
Personal Review- *****. This book had no words, but the illustrations told a really interesting
story. This is not your typical childrens book, but I really liked it. I would definitely like to keep
this book in my classroom since it is not something I could physically read out loud to my
students.
2. Title- Madeline
Author- Ludwig Bemelmans
Grade level- 1st
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- Madeline is a young, fearless girl who lives in a house in Paris with eleven other
girls and Miss Clavel. These young girls do everything together. One night, Madeline gets sick
and is rushed to the hospital. She has appendicitis and has to stay at the hospital for ten days.
Her eleven friends and Miss Clavel come and visit her at the hospital, and they are jealous of all
the toys and gifts she has received. Madeline shows them her scar. One night, Miss Clavel
suspects something is wrong again. She goes upstairs to the girls room and they are all whining
that they want to have their appendix out too. Miss Clavel tells them to thank to Lord they are
well and to go to sleep.
Activity/skill- Have students make a fold-out of all twelve girls that live in the house holding
hands. Have them decorate them with the blue dresses and yellow hats like Madeline.
Personal Review- *****. This was one of my favorite books growing up, and it still is to this day. I
like how the rhyming helps the book flow, and I like that it takes place in another country. I
almost wanted to read it with an accent.
3. Title- Stone Soup

Author- Marcia Brown
Grade level- 2nd
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- A group of three soldiers is walking back after fighting and they are finding
themselves very hungry and tired. They find a village full of peasants where they stop to see if
they have food or a place to sleep. They stop at every door, and they all tell them they have no
food or place to rest for the night. So, the soldiers decide to make stone soup. They get a giant
pot and fill it with water and put it over a fire. They tell the peasants they wish they had some
carrots, cabbage, barley, beef, etc. and they come bring it to them to put in the stone soup.
Soon enough, the soup is finished and the whole village eats it and has a celebration. They are
all amazed how this soup was made with stones and are thrilled that the whole village brought
what they had together to make a nice meal fit for a king.
Activity/skill- As the teacher, make giant pot out of butcher paper. Give your students
construction paper to create any food item they would want to put in their Ms. DeWitt Soup.
Paste all of these items in the giant pot and put it up on the wall.
Personal Review- ****. I like how this book shows that you can collaboratively bring what you
have together to make something great for everyone to enjoy. I think I would truly read this to
my first grade class. I remember having this book read to me in elementary school.
4. Title- Owen
Author- Kevin Henkes
Grade level- Pre-k-Kindergarten
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- Owen was a young mouse who had a blanked named Fuzzy. Fuzzy was his best
friend and he took it everywhere and did everything with it. His parents were trying to get Owen
to stop taking Fuzzy everywhere. His neighbor, Mrs. Tweezers thought he was too old for a
blanket, so she kept giving Owen and his parents suggestions for how to stop his Fuzzy
obsession. Owen either got around her suggestions or threw a fit, so finally his mom had the
answer. She got her scissors and sewing machine, and made Fuzzy into many different
handkerchiefs. Now Owen could have Fuzzy with him at all times and everyone would be happy.
Activity/skill- Have students bring in their favorite stuffed animal or blanket for one day, perhaps
on pajama day. Students can share with the class their animals name, memories, etc.
Personal Review- ***. This would be a good book to read to preschoolers or kindergarteners
that are having trouble letting go of something. This would not be a book I would read to my
students, but maybe one I would suggest for parents to read to their young children if they are
having a problem such as this.
5. Title- Blueberries for Sal

Author- Robert McCloskey
Grade level- Kindergarten
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- One day, Little Sal and her mother go to Blueberry Hill to pick blueberries to can
for the winter. Little Sal gets left behind her mother since she is eating every blueberry she picks
up. There is a mother bear and a baby bear who are also out eating blueberries to store for the
winter. The baby bear gets left behind his mom because he is eating so many. The two babies
end up walking behind the wrong mother picking blueberries and are switched up. Eventually
they find their own mothers and head their separate ways.
Activity/skill- Take a class field trip to the blueberry farm and pick blueberries. The students can
take whatever they pick home. The teacher will take some home and make blueberry cobbler to
bring back the next day for the class to eat.
Personal Review- ***. This was a cute story and was enjoyable to read. The pictures were not as
great as some other books that I have read. I think I would only read this story if we were going
to a blueberry farm or learning the color blue.
6. Title- Olivia
Author- Ian Falconer
Grade level- 1st-2nd
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- Olivia is a young pig, and we are told about her everyday life. Olivia has two
parents, a brother, a dog, and a cat. She likes to sing, dress up, sunbathe, wear people out, and
not take naps or go to sleep at night. She went to the museum on a rainy day and found a
splatter painting. When she gets home, she creates a similar version on the wall of her house.
Olivias mom reads her three books before bed, and tells her she loves her regardless of how
much she wears her out.
Activity/skill- Have Olivia patterns printed out and give your students fabric, markers, glitter, etc.
and have them dress Olivia up however they like.
Personal Review- **. This was the first time I have ever read this book, and I was highly
disappointed. There is so much hype over this book, but it has no plot whatsoever. I understand
that little girls like this book because she is a cute little pig who likes to dress up and rebel from
her parents, but I would never read this book to my class.
7. Title- Knuffle Bunny Too
Author- Mo Willems
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- A young girl named Trixie had a stuffed bunny named Knuffle that she got to
bring to her preschool class to show-and-tell one day. She got to school and soon realized that
someone in her class, Sonja, had the exact same bunny. The girls fought over it, so their teacher
took the bunnies away from them. At the end of the day, their teacher returned their bunnies
and suddenly Trixie was happy again. She went home, ate dinner, and went to bed with Knuffle.
She could not sleep because she realized that she had the wrong bunny. Sonjas dad called in
the middle of the night right before Trixies dad was about to call him. The four met up and
exchanged the bunnies and all was well!
Activity/skill- Have students bring in something for show-and-tell and for part of the day, let
them exchange their item with a friend to use and play with.
Personal Review- *****. This book was the first one I have read that actually made me laugh out
loud. In the whole book, every image was a black and white photograph with animated
characters. It was interesting seeing both real photos of places but animated people.
8. Title- Drummer Hoff

Author- Barbara & Ed Emberly
Grade level- 1st
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- This is a story about a cannon being built. Different sergeants, generals, etc.
keep bringing Drummer Hoff different materials to build the cannon such as the barrel, powder,
carriage, the order, etc. It is Drummer Hoff who finally fires it off in the end in an explosion of
color.
Activity/skill- Create a really colorful word wall where everyone puts their own words on the
wall when they learn it. This will be a class collaboration.
Personal Review- **. This book was very repetitive. You could avoid reading most of the words
since it just repeated itself so many times. The colors and illustrations were magnificent,
however.
9. Title- Why Mosquitoes Buzz in Peoples Ears

Author- Verna Aardema
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- A mosquito tells a lie to an iguana, which annoys him, so he puts sticks in his
ears. Next, a python tries to tell the iguana, good morning, but the iguana ignores him
because he cannot hear him. The python thinks iguana is plotting something, so he goes into a
rabbit hole, which sets of the rabbit, which startled the crow, who alarmed the monkey, who
killed an owlet, which made the mother owl mad and would not wake the sun for the day to
come. The King Lion finally realizes that it was the mosquitos fault in the beginning, which
heard the whole thing from a nearby bush. She still feels bad about this so she buzzes in
peoples ears asking if people are still angry with her.
Activity/skill- Have each of your students draw and cut out their favorite jungle animal and the
teacher will have created a jungle out of butcher paper. This would even be a cool classroom
theme or bulletin board.
Personal Review- **. This book was hard to pay attention to and was very repetitive, just like
Drummer Hoff. I could have read half the amount of words and gotten the same thing out of it. I
think little boys would like this book, but I personally did not.
10. Title- A Sick Day for Amos McGee

Author- Philip C. Stead
Grade level- 1st
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- Amos McGee is a zookeeper and every morning, he played chess with the
elephant, ran races with the tortoise, sat with the penguin, gave a handkerchief to the
rhinoceros, and read stories to the owl. One morning, Amos McGee woke up feeling ill, and the
animals were very sad. They decided to get on the bus and go visit Amos. This time, the
elephant set up the game of chess, he napped with the penguin, the rhino gave him a
handkerchief, he played hide-and-seek with the tortoise, and the owl read a book to him. They
all had tea and fell asleep together.
Activity/skill- Take a class field trip to the zoo! After the field trip, find a pattern of a zookeeper
or Amos Mcgee and have the students fill out If I was sick, I would want to be visited by ____
(insert favorite animals).
Personal Review- ****. This was a cute story about friends coming together to support each
other when their friend got sick. I really liked the illustrations in this book. It was not so
predictable as some of the other stories, which I liked as well.
11. Title- King Bidgoods in the Bathtub

Author- Audrey Wood
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- King Bidgood has been in the bathtub and he will not get out! The page calls for
help from the duke, the queen, the knight, and the whole court. No matter what anyone does,
King Bidgood wants to do their suggestion in the bathtub and refuses to get out. Finally, the
page has the answer for how to remove the king from the bathtub. He pulls the plug and all the
water drains out!
Activity/skill- Have students think of an activity they would try to convince King Bidgood to get
out of the bathtub with. Give them a pattern of a bathtub and instruct them to draw their
activity in the bathtub.
Personal Review- ***. This book had the most spectacular illustrations I have ever seen in my
life. The story was repetitive and very silly. I would not read this to my class, I do not believe.
12. Title- The Relatives Came

Author- Cynthia Rylant
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- A large family left their home and their growing grapes in Virginia and traveled
to visit their relatives. They left early in the morning and got there the next day. They all hugged,
ate, and slept. The relatives stayed for a few weeks while tending the garden and eating melons.
They left, and everyone was sad, but was hopeful because they got to see them again the next
summer.
Activity/skill- Have students draw a picture of their extended family and hang them up on the
wall.
Personal Review- *. This book had absolutely no point and no plot. I kept waiting for something
exciting to happen, but nothing did. The illustrations were not all that exceptional, as I have
seen in many of these Caldecott books.
13. Title- Tuesday

Author- David Wiesner
Grade level- 1st
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- One Tuesday night, a turtle sitting on a log in a pond sees many frogs floating on
Lily pads in the sky. These frogs take an adventure through the night, flying everywhere,
entering houses, etc. They seem to be having a great time. The next morning, they jump back
into their pond and leave their Lily pads behind. Ambulances and policemen investigate the Lily
pads and are extremely confused. The next Tuesday, pigs are the ones flying!
Activity/skill- Print out story maps of the photos from this book and have students write their
own plot to go along with the story. (simple words, beginning sentences)
Personal Review- *****. I really like this book because of how creative this is! This is something I
would never think of if I were told to use my imagination to write a story without words. I would
keep this book in my classroom because it gives children the opportunity to use their
imagination and be creative.
14. Title- When I was Young in the Mountains

Grade level- 1st
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- A young girl is at her grandparents house in the mountains. Her grandmother
made her warm cornbread and fried okra. They liked to go to the muddy swimming hole, and
occasionally baptisms took place there on Sundays. They liked to go to the Crawfords food
market to buy groceries because the storeowners smelled like sweet milk. This story just shares
sweet memories of her time in the mountains that she enjoys.
Activity/skill- Give students a piece of blank white paper. Have them draw their favorite vacation
or getaway spot, and write two short sentences about this place. Works on sentence structure
and vocabulary.
Personal Review- **. This book had absolutely no plot. It was a sweet story that shared the girls
love of her favorite place, but I prefer books with a plot. The illustrations were nice, but I have
seen much better.
15. Title- A Tree is Nice

Author- Janice May Udry
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- This book describes how nice trees are. They provide shade, fun for kids to play
in, woods, beauty, breezes, a home for birds, picnics, etc. You can even plant your own tree,
watch it grow, be proud of it, and inspire others to grow their own tree.
Activity/skill- Provide students with a pattern of a basic tree. Give them markers and colors to
make the trunk brown, but give them green tissue paper to ball up to make the leaves of the
tree. When sharing their creations, ask students their favorite thing to do in a tree (climb, swing,
etc.)
Personal Review- **. This story also had no plot at all. The illustrations were something I could
probably draw myself. I think I might read this to a preschool class to teach them about trees,
but this book really was not all that great.
16. Title- Lon PoPo

Author- Ed Young
Grade level- 2nd
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- This story is similar to Little Red Riding Hood. Three Chinese girls are left home
alone while their mother goes and visits their grandmother, Po Po, for her birthday. After the
mother leaves, a wolf shows up pretending to be their Po Po. The oldest daughter, Shang,
eventually realizes that the wolf is not their Po Po, so they devise a plan to get rid of the wolf.
The three daughters climb up a tree and try to get the wolf to come eat the gingko nuts they are
eating. They attempt to pull the wolf up in a basket, but drop him and he dies.
Activity/skill- Have students think of a way they would get rid of a wolf who intruded on them in
their house. Have them illustrate this way and hang up on the wall.
Personal Review- ****. I liked this book a lot and liked the twist on Little Red Riding Hood. The
illustrations were dark and mysterious. It was really sad and dramatic how the wolf died, so it
might be a little bit much for little ones.
17. Title- Jumanji

Author- Chris Van Allsburg
Grade level- 1st
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- Peter and Judy, two children, are left at home alone while their parents go to
the opera. They go to the park and come across a board game that they take home and play.
The instructions are simply to move the pieces along and to not stop the game until the first
player reaches the final spot and yells JUMANJI!. Whenever the landed on a spot, different
animals kept appearing doing strange things in their house. There was a rhinoceros, monkeys, a
python, a lost man, etc. This really freaked the children out, but they had to continue playing so
the animals would disappear before their parents got home. Judy reached Jumanji first and sure
enough, everything returned to normal before their parents got home!
Activity/skill- Have patterns for students to make different masks of the different animals in
Jumanji. (rhino, python, monkeys, etc.)
Personal Review- *****. This book was one of my favorites I have read so far. It is extremely
strange but very creative as well. The illustrations were spectacular.
18. Title- Red Sings from Treetops

Author- Joyce Sidman
Grade level- Kindergarten-1st
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- In this book, each season is described using different colors. Every color is used
differently for the seasons. For example, yellow in spring shouts with light, yellow in summer
melts everything it touches and smells like butter, and yellow in fall grows wheels and lumbers
down the block.
Activity/skill- Have students draw the four seasons on a piece of paper divided into fourths.
Have them describe what color they think fits best with each season. (fractions, seasons, color)
Personal Review- *. I think this book was supposed to have a plot, but it seemed to fail
miserably. The colors came alive to describe the different seasons, but it didnt even make
sense at all. I dont even know what I just read.
19. Title- In the Small, Small Pond

Author- Denise Fleming
Grade level- Pre-k
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- In a small, small pond in the summer, a frog jumps in, tadpoles swim around,
geese dance, dragonflies fly, turtles sleep, lobsters click clack, and herons plunge. The winter
comes and everyone goes to sleep in the small, small pond.
Activity/skill- Introduce rhyming; have students think of a word that rhymes with a word that
the teacher says out loud
Personal Review- *. This book had no plot whatsoever. I would not even keep this in my
classroom because it provides hardly any learning at all. The only good thing about this book
was that it rhymed.
20. Title- The Polar Express

Author- Chris Van Allsburg
Grade level- Kindergarten-2nd
Genre- Caldecott
Short synopsis- A young boy hears the sound of a train on Christmas Eve. He goes outside and
the conductor tells him to get in on the Polar Express and ride to the North Pole. When the train
arrives, they see all the elves in the center of the city waiting for Santa to give his first present of
Christmas out. Santa chooses the young boy to give any gift he wants to. The boy wants a bell
from Santas sleigh. Santa leaves for the night, and the boy rides the Polar Express back home,
realizing that his bell isnt in his pocket anymore. On Christmas morning, he finds a small box
where Santa left him the bell and instructs him to sew his pocket back. He rings the bell, and he
hears the sound it makes. People who do not believe in Santa Claus do not hear the bell, but
since the boy saw him and the North Pole, he is always a believer.
Activity/skill- Have sleigh bells and yarn for children to make fun ornaments for their Christmas
trees at home. This is a fun activity for young children around Christmas time.
Personal Review- *****. This book was beautifully written and helps children believe. This has
always been one of my favorite books. The illustrations, although simple, are beautiful. This
book gives children hope and describes the miracle of Christmas and Santa Claus wonderfully.
10 Seasonal/holiday
1. Title- Snow Pumpkin
Author- Carole Lexa Schaefer
Genre- Seasonal/holiday
Short synopsis- A young girl named Lily and her gram wake up to find that it has snowed in
October. Lily really wants to build a snowman, so she goes to the park with her friend Jesse.
There is only enough snow to build the body of the snowman, so Lily and Jesse go over to the
garden in the park where she and Gram have growing pumpkins. One of the pumpkins looks as if
it has a face on it, so they take that pumpkin and put it on the snowman for its head. The next
day, she takes Gram to see the snow pumpkin, but it has already melted. They decided to take
the pumpkin home and put cut-out snowflakes by it on the window sill, so it was always their
snow pumpkin.
Activity/Skill- On a field trip to the pumpkin patch, have every student pick out a small pumpkin.
When you get back to school, have them draw faces on their pumpkins. Teach your students
how to make paper snowflakes and hang them up around the pumpkin display.
Personal Review- ****. I enjoyed this cute story of two friends playing in the snow. I liked how it
brought two seasons (fall and winter) together. This book teaches children how to make the
best out of a bad situation.
2. Title- Rocking Horse Christmas

Author- Mary Pope Osborne
Grade level- 2nd
Short synopsis-A young boy receives a rocking horse for Christmas who he names Shadow. His
imagination took him everywhere with Shadow and he loved every minute he spent with him.
Over time as the boy ages, he spends less and less time with Shadow and eventually puts him up
in the attic and is forgotten about. One day, there is a snowstorm, which breaks the attic
window where Shadow lies. The boy (who is now a grown man) has a son who notices the
broken glass and sees the rocking horse. He asks his father what the horse was doing there, and
he explains that the horse was his best friend growing up. Now his son brings Shadows heart
back to life and makes it his own.
Activity/skill- Read this story right after Christmas break. Have your students draw a picture of
their favorite Christmas/holiday gift they received and ask them to share with the class the fun
they had playing with it.
Personal Review- ***. This book was well-written and very sentimental. There was not much
conflict or action going on, however. I would read this book more for fun than for a learning
experience to my students.
3. Title- Valentines Day

Author- Miriam Nerlove
Genre- Seasonal/Holiday
Short synopsis-This short book starts out explaining the history of Valentines Day. It jumps
straight to a young girl going to school and making valentines with her classmates. They pass out
their valentines to their classmates and have a party with cake. She goes home after school and
their family shares their valentines with each other.
Activity/skill- Read this book to introduce the holiday of Valentines Day. After reading the book,
cut out hearts and cards to make valentines with your class.
Personal Review- *. This book has absolutely no plot. It might be good to read with a preschool
class to introduce what Valentines Day is and how they might celebrate in the future. If I were
going to read a Valentines Book to my class, I would not choose this would; I would find one
with a conflict and resolution to introduce the holiday.
4. Title- Christmas Cricket

Author- Eve Bunting
Grade level- 2nd
Short synopsis- A cricket who felt worthless crept into a house during Christmastime and ended
up singing in the Christmas tree. The family heard the cricket chirping and the young boy
thought it was the angel singing. The dad explained that angels sing in the songs of birds, frogs,
people, and crickets. This made the cricket feel small, but not worthless. The father and son
sang, Joy to the World with the cricket.
Activity/skill- Make or find a pattern for an angel for students to cut out and put together and
hang up around the room.
Personal Review- **. This book did not seem to have much of a plot. The connection with the
angels singing in all voices was nice, but it seemed like a stretch. I would not recommend this
story to my students.
5. Title- Gingerbread Friends

Author- Jan Brett
Short synopsis- A young gingerbread man lives in a gingerbread house where his owner gives
him treats, but does not like to play with him. One day, the gingerbread man got lonely so he
goes on an adventure to a bakery where he tries to make friends. None of the characters on the
cakes and pastries budge when he tries to play with them. He decides to go back home and
different animals start to chase him! He finally makes it home where he is surprised with many
new gingerbread friends that his owner made for him.
Activity/skill- Print out a gingerbread man pattern for your students to make. Have your
students make them as well as make a class gingerbread house.
Personal Review- ***. This was a cute story about a gingerbread man making friends. The plot
was not too interesting, however. I probably would not read this book to my class.
6. Title- Pumpkin Heads

Author- Wendell Minor
Grade level- Pre-K- Kindergarten
Short synopsis- This book explains that every fall, children like to go to the pumpkin patch and
pick pumpkins. All of these pumpkins, big or small, turn into pumpkin heads with the faces we
carve on them. We make jack-o-lanterns, witches, cowboys, etc. No matter where we may find
them or however big or small they are, the author wishes us a happy Halloween at the end. This
story had no plot at all.
Activity/Skill- Go on a field trip to the pumpkin patch with your class around Halloween time.
Have every child pick out a pumpkin and create something different out of it. Instead of just
carving it, have decorations and arts and craft supplies so they can make their pumpkin look like
what they are going to be for Halloween.
Personal Review- *. This story had no plot. The point was that you can make anything out of a
pumpkin, but it was very boring. It would be good to read to preschoolers or possibly
kindergarteners to read before a fun Halloween or pumpkin decorating party. The illustrations
were beautiful, however.
7. Title- Thanksgiving for Emily Ann

Author- Teresa Johnston
Grade level- 1st
Short synopsis- Emily Ann is a young girl who does not seem very thankful on Thanksgiving Day.
Neither of her siblings will pay any attention to her and her parents are busy cooking. She
almost decides to rebel and hide the turkey, but her mom stops her. Once all of her family
arrives at her house, she begins to realize that she does, in fact, have her family to be thankful
for.
Activity/Skill- In this book, at one point it shows the Thanksgiving placemats Emily Ann made for
her family set around the dining room table. Before Thanksgiving, have students make their own
thanksgiving placemat. I still have my woven, construction paper Thanksgiving placemat that I
made in first or second grade, so perhaps something like that.
Personal Review- ***. This was a really cute story that shows what we should be thankful for
around Thanksgiving. This is a book I would actually read to my class. It had really cute
illustrations and rhymes.
8. Title- The Legend of the Candy Cane

Author- Lori Walburg
Grade level- 2nd
Short synopsis- A new man came into town and was opening up a new shop. No one knew what
the shop was going to be, but all of the children in the town were wishing it was going to be a
candy shop. A young girl named Lucy went into the shop and offered to help the man. She was
unpacking boxes and realized it was in fact going to be a candy store. She came across some
candy canes, and she asked the owner what they were. He explained that it was a candy cane. It
was shaped like a J for Jesus and like a shepherds staff if you turned it over. It was red
symbolizing Jesus blood and white for washing our sins away. This was the legend of the candy
cane, and they went out on Christmas Eve delivering candy canes and telling the legend.
Activity/skill- After reading this story, make candy cane ornaments out of construction paper,
cardstock, and glitter. Pass out candy canes to your students to eat while making the ornaments.
Personal Review- ****. I really liked this book and Im pretty sure I was read this story in
elementary school. It is not only a cute Christmas story with a good plot, but it brings in the true
meaning of Christmas as well. The illustrations also blew me away.
9. Title- Arthurs Christmas

Author- Marc Brown
Grade level- 1st
Genre- Holiday/seasonal
Short synopsis- Arthur and D.W. are out Christmas shopping and Arthur really wants to give
Santa something great. D.W. suggests that he just get everybody the same thing, but Arthur is
determined to get him something special. When he is out shopping, he sees a Santa ordering a
sundae at an ice cream parlor, a Santa eating Chinese food at a Chinese restaurant, and a Santa
eating pickled peppers. Arthur decided to combine all of Santas favorite foods into one, so he
made this disgusting dish for Santa. D.W. got rid of it during the night since she knew Santa
would not enjoy it, and left a note.
Activity/skill- Have students bring in one gift to donate to a charity such as Angel Tree. It is
important to realize that Christmas is about giving, not receiving.
Personal Review- ***. The point of this story was that giving is better than receiving, but it took
an interesting route to prove that. I thought I would like this book more since I loved watching
Arthur on TV growing up. It was difficult to stay focused while reading this book.
10. Title- Thanksgiving is Here!

Author- Diane Goode
Grade level- 1st
Short synopsis- On Thanksgiving morning, grandma wakes up early and puts the Turkey in the
oven. Maggie and her family all arrive as well as many other cousins, aunts, and uncles. They
have to move everything in the living room to make room for a big table and many chairs. They
all eat, some people take a nap, and then all come back for dessert. After dessert, people talk
and play music. Everyone leaves but no one is sad because they are all leaving.
Activity/skill- Have students make Thanksgiving placemats and after, share a Thanksgiving
tradition they have in their own family.
Personal Review- *. This book had absolutely no plot and was very boring to read. It amazes me
how many books I have read that have no plot. It didnt even rhyme or have amazing pictures to
make up for the plot-less story.
5 Math/number/counting
1. Title- 10 Easter Egg Hunters
Author- Janet Schullman
Grade level- Pre-K-Kindergarten
Genre- Math/number/counting
Short synopsis- An Easter bunny hides ten eggs in and outside of a large house. Ten different
named characters search for the eggs and they each find one. On the right side of every page,
the eggs are illustrated along with the number of eggs as more get added. The tenth and final
egg is a chocolate egg. Once this last egg is found, the children have a parade to welcome spring.
This book was simply written to help teach counting to young children.
Activity/Skill- Hide actual Easter eggs around the classroom. Have each student find one egg and
bring it to a basket in the center. Count out loud with your students to see how many eggs are in
the basket. Have candy at the end to celebrate.
Personal Review- ***. This book is the simplest counting book you could possibly find. The
illustrations were cute and the Easter theme went along nicely to make math seem fun. I would
not recommend my students to read this alone themselves, but maybe read it to them or have
their parents read it to them to help with math and counting.
2. Title- Hardworking Puppies

Author- Lynn Reiser
Grade level- 1st
Short synopsis- There were ten puppies who all wanted jobs. Different people kept coming
along needing a puppy to help them with their job (firefighter, clown, lifeguard, etc.). The idea
of the book is to subtract one dog each time a worker came along needing a puppy. In the end,
there was one dog leftover that ended up becoming the perfect pet to a young boy. After their
hard work, the puppies all played together.
Activity/Skill- While reading the story, have magnetic pictures of dogs up on the board. As the
story progresses, have students come up and take one dog away at a time to have a visual of
how many are leftover at the end.
Personal Review- ***. This book would be a good book to introduce subtraction to students. It is
a good visual instead of simply showing students numbers on a piece of paper. It also shows
many ways in which dogs can be used besides as pets.
3. Title- Counting Crocodiles
Author- Judy Sierra

Short synopsis- A monkey lives on the sea in a lemon tree. He spots a banana tree on another
island in the middle of the sea and wants to go get this delectable treat. However, there are
many crocodiles in the water that he does not want to eat him. One of the crocodiles dares him
to count all of them. He counts one crocodile with a big smile, two resting on rocks, three
rocking in a box, etc. all the way up to ten. At the end, the monkey realizes that this was the
perfect amount of crocodiles to jump across to the banana tree.
Activity/skill- Find a crocodile pattern online and print them out. Have students color and
decorate the crocodiles and assign each student a number to put on their crocodile. They will
count the crocodiles to see how many people are in the class.
Personal Review- ***. I like this better than some of the other math books I have read since it
actually had somewhat of a plot. It did a good job of incorporating math into a real story. I dont
know if I would actually read this to my class, but it was a cute story.
4. Title- Ten Little Caterpillars

Author- Bill Martin Jr.
Grade level- Pre-K
Short synopsis- One caterpillar crawled into a bower, the second one wriggled up a flower, the
third one climbed up a cabbage head, etc. It counts up to ten caterpillars, with the final one
becoming a butterfly.
Activity/skill- Have ten of your students make caterpillars from a pattern found online and write
their numbers 1-10 on them. The rest of the students will make and decorate butterfly patterns.
Hang up on the wall.
Personal Review- **. This book had no plot whatsoever. The only thing I liked about it was that it
incorporated both math and science in one book. Although the main focus was counting to 10, it
also taught that caterpillars become butterflies.
5. Title- Measuring Penny

Author- Loreen Leedy
Grade level- 2nd
Genre- Math/counting
Short synopsis- Lisa is a young student who is assigned to choose something around their home
to measure in many different ways, using standard and nonstandard units. She goes home and
decides to measure her dog, Penny. She measures Pennys nose with inches, and compares to
other dogs. She measures her tail with dog biscuits, measures her ears, paw prints, height, jump
height, weight, expenses, etc. She is sure that her teacher will give her a great grade on her
measuring project.
Activity/skill- I think this exact activity would be great for my students to do. I would probably
make a chart for them so they would have more instruction and guidance.
Personal Review- *****. This was a cute math story that had somewhat of a plot unlike many
others I have read. It was more in depth than simply counting to 10. It also provided an activity
for measuring that I would actually use with my class one day if I teach measurement.
10 Science/animal/nature/etc.
1. Title- A Storm Called Katrina
Author- Myron Uhlberg
Grade level- 4th
Genre- Science/animal/nature
Short synopsis- A young boy named Louis and his two parents are forced out of their home
because of Hurricane Katrina. The one thing Louis wants to bring is his horn so he brings it with
him. They float through the water on a wooden board, and on their way, they see a dog that is
as hopeless as they are. Louis wants to bring it with him but his parents say no. There seems to
be nowhere to even step on land at this point. They finally arrive at the Superdome where many
people are staying dry. Louiss father leaves him and his wife and goes to try and find food. He
does not return for a while, and Louis and his mom begin to worry. Louis goes out in the center
of the dome and plays his horn. Eventually, his father finds him and they make their way back to
the mother. When they are leaving the Superdome, they see the dog from earlier and decide to
walk back with it and make it their own.
Activity/Skill- Use this book to teach about hurricanes. Have students get in groups and make a
poster describing what a hurricane is and draw a picture of one.
Personal Review- ****. This book was well written, but very sad. It really showed what it would
be like to live in Louisiana during Hurricane Katrina. This is a book I actually would read to my
students to introduce the topic of hurricanes, but also to explain what Hurricane Katrina was,
since fourth graders would have been really little when it happened.
2. Title- Doctor DeSoto

Author- William Steig
Grade level- 2nd
Short synopsis- Dr. DeSoto and his wife (mice) run a dentist office in their home for animals.
They never like to treat threatening animals such as cats or foxes because they might get eaten.
A fox shows up to their door one morning in a whole lot of pain, so they decide to see him. They
extract a rotten tooth, and while he is under laughing gas, the fox says he wants to eat the two
mice. Hesitantly, the DeSotos tell him to come back the next day to get his new tooth. Afraid,
they decide to come up with a plan so they do not get eaten. When the fox returns the next day,
Dr. DeSoto puts some sort of glue on all of the foxs teeth, telling him he will never have to see
the dentist again with this new material. Now, the foxs mouth stays shut for a day or two and
the DeSotos send him on his way, happy they are still alive!
Activity/skill- Give students a pattern of a mouth and have them color in the teeth that they still
have in their mouth, as children in second grade are losing many teeth! Create a portion of the
wall or a bulletin board that says, How many teeth remain in Ms. DeWitts class?
Personal Review- ****. I dont know if this book should actually be worth a Newbery Honor, but
I personally thought it was a cute story. I work at an orthodontist office, so I enjoyed the story. I
liked that it actually had a thorough plot and was not so predictable as some of these books are.
3. Title- My Visit to the Aquarium

Author- Aliki
Grade level- 1st
Short synopsis- A young boy takes his little brother and sister to the aquarium one day. They
explore all different types of sea creatures. They see a tropical coral reef, penguins, anchovies, a
kelp forest, sharks, a tide pool, a tropical rain forest, alligators, a coastal stream, beach
environment, and dolphins. Each different place they visited, we were told about the types of
animals that lived their and their habitats.
Activity/skill- Have students draw a picture of their favorite sea creature, as well as the type of
habitat they live in
Personal Review- ***. This book at least attempted to add a plot with true scientific facts about
sea creatures. I even learned some things I didnt know before while reading this book. It also
did a great job of describing the different habitats with vivid details.
4. Title- Under the Snow

Author- Melissa Stewart
Short synopsis- Every winter, the snow covers fields, forests, water, etc. This book shows us all
different animals that live under the snow that are hidden from human sight. We see different
animals under rocks, fields, forests, ponds, and wetlands. These animals store their food and try
and keep warm under the snow. At the beginning of spring, the snow melts, so the animals
come out!
Activity/skill- Print out different pictures of animals and have students use this book to learn
about their habitat during the winter. Let them color the animal and write two simple sentences
about their habitat.
Personal Review- *. This book had no plot and was extremely boring. I think there couldve been
a way to make this story have a plot, but it did not. The illustrations were all right.
5. Title- The Sea, the Storm, and the Mangrove Tangle

Author- Lynne Cherry
Grade level- 1st
Short synopsis- The only kind of tree that can grow in salt water is a mangrove tree. A seed
drops from one and floats far out into the ocean, and another mangrove starts to grow. As it
grows and spreads, more and more animals start to live there and use it for survival. A hurricane
comes and damages some of the mangrove, but the animals hide in it for safety. At the end,
another seed falls off of the tree, and another mangrove grows.
Activity/skill- Have students draw a mangrove with different animals living in the tangle.
Personal Review- **. This story was slightly repetitive, but I liked that it was a science book that
actually had some sort of a plot. The illustrations were nice, and I liked how it incorporated the
sea and different animals. I do not think I would read this to my class, but I might keep in in my
classroom.
6. Title- My Visit to the Zoo

Author- Aliki
Short synopsis- A young boy goes with his cousin to the zoo, however he is hesitant at first.
Previous zoos he had been to, he had seen animals locked up with no room to move or roam. He
was surprised at this zoo to see animals roaming around freely, with excess room to live. He saw
bears, elephants, birds, lions, tigers, apes, monkeys, and many more. He had a great day at the
zoo and is glad he did not miss out on this opportunity to go to the zoo.
Activity/skill- Take a class field trip to the zoo. Have students write down three facts they
learned about different habitats the animals live in.
Personal Review- ***. I liked how this book had some sort of a plot, unlike other science books. I
learned a lot about different habitats these animals live in and food they eat. I would probably
only read this book to my class if we were going to the zoo.
7. Title- Over in the Jungle

Author- Marianne Berkes
Short synopsis- This is a rhyming and counting song about the rainforest. We see one marmoset
who swings, two butterflies who flit, three parrots that squawk, etc. At the end, we are given
music to go along with the rhyme if you want to have your class sing with the rhyme, as well as a
hide-and-seek page with all of the animals corresponding to their number.
Activity/skill- Have the class actually do the hide and seek page as well as sing the rhyming song.
Personal Review- ***. I like how this book incorporated science with math and with music. The
illustrations were immaculate; they looked like photos. This would be a fun book to read
possibly before a trip to the zoo.
8. Title- First the Egg

Author- Laura Vaccaro Seeger
Short synopsis- This book simply shows the transformations from the egg to the chicken,
tadpole to frog, seed to flower, caterpillar to butterfly, word to story, paint to picture, and
chicken to egg. It makes children wonder which came first: the chicken or the egg? It shows how
something begins and what it turns out to be in the end.
Activity/skill- Have students decide which they believe came first: the chicken or the egg. Create
a tally to see results of the class thoughts.
Personal Review- **. This would be a good book to introduce transformations and to have
students begin to think critically. I like the cut outs in the pages for the different
transformations. This book had no plot, but it would be a good teaching tool.
9. Title- Where Once There Was a Wood

Author- Denise Fleming
Short synopsis- Where there used to be woods, meadows, and creeks, there were foxes, ferns,
violets, woodchucks, owls, herons, berries, pheasants, and more. Now, however, these woods
have been plowed down and rows and rows of houses now sit. This story shows what is
currently happening to nature and wildlife. This is an everyday thing that is a problem in our
world.
Activity/skill- Have printouts/patterns for students to color and learn about different animals
and plants in nature.
Personal Review- ***. This book did not have much of a plot, but I like the message it gives. It
teaches children at a young age what is currently happening, and what used to be where their
current houses are. Children this young would not realize what used to be where their houses,
buildings, etc. are if it is not taught to them. The story was extremely repetitive, however.
10. Title- The Great Kapok Tree

Author- Lynne Cherry
Short synopsis- A man enters the Amazon Rainforest and begins to attempt to cut down a giant
tree (the Kapok tree) with an axe. He grows tired and falls asleep under the tree. While he was
asleep, parrots, toucans, cheetahs, porcupines, antelopes, and other rainforest animals came
and whispered in his ear, telling him not to cut down the tree because it gives them life, food, a
habitat, and oxygen. When he is awoken, he sees all the animals around him and decides not to
cut down the Kapok tree.
Activity/skill- Print out patterns of rainforest animals for students to color. Have them write two
simple sentences giving reasons why the animals want their Kapok tree to remain in the
rainforest.
Personal Review- *****. I really enjoyed this book because it discusses a real-world problem
that children need to be aware of. The colors and illustrations were immaculate. The story was a
bit repetitive, but it did talk about multiple reasons why the rainforest should be kept, which
was great.
10 Social Studies/historical fiction

1. Title- Freedom Song
Author- Sally M. Walker
Grade level- 4th
Genre- Social Studies/historical fiction
Short synopsis- A young boy named Henry grows up with his family working as a slave. He sings
different songs according to what in the fields he is working on. He sings a freedom song
because he wants freedom, but he does not want to be sold by his master and taken away from
his family. Eventually he is taken away and is forced to work at a factory. He meets a woman
named Nancy there and they get married and have children. Henry is separated from his family
and they are taken away. He hides in a box and sneaks onto the Underground Railroad and is
taken to freedom!
Activity/skill- Have children make signs welcoming others to know that they are safe. This
teaches them to be aware and accepting of all kinds of people. In the story, it is hard for Henry
to know who is actually helping him versus who will take him back to slavery.
Personal Review- ***. This book is a story that I would read while learning about slavery, but not
to introduce slavery. It does not focus on the harshness of the kinds of work they did, but more
talked about family. I enjoyed the flow of the words.
2. Title- Minnow and Rose

Author- Judy Young
Short synopsis-A young Indian girl (Minnow) and a young pioneer girl (Rose) meet when the
pioneer was on the Oregon Trail looking to settle. When the Indians were helping the pioneers
cross the river, Rose fell in the water and Minnow jumped in and saved her. The girls made each
other dolls resembling the other and they became friends.
Activity/skill- Create Indian headbands!
Personal Review- *****. I really like this book. I would definitely read this if we were doing a
pioneer or Indian unit. The illustrations were simple but beautiful.
3. Title- Dust for Dinner

Author- Ann Turner
Grade level- 3rd-4th
Short synopsis-A family got hit by the dust storm which meant no crops and no money. They
sold everything but their radio and decided to travel west to California like everyone else to get
jobs. After a long, hard, travel, the father eventually got a job as a manager at a store. The family
was happy, had food, and listened to music on their radio.
Activity/skill- Have students describe in a paragraph what they think a drought would be like.
Personal Review- ****. This story was a great representation of the great drought. It was a bit
repetitive, but it kept me intrigued. I would have my class read this book individually if we were
studying this.
4. Title- Moses
Author- Carole Boston Weatherford
Grade level- 4th-5th
Short synopsis- Harriet Tubman hated slavery so she escaped it and went to Philadelphia where
she was free. She called on God to tell her what to do. She went back to the south to lead more
people through the Underground Railroad, just like Moses led his people.
Activity/skill- Teach songs from the Underground Railroad.
Personal Review- ****. This would be a good story to read when learning about slavery and the
Underground Railroad. It might not be appropriate to read at a public school because of the
Christian references. If I taught at a private, Christian school, I would definitely read this.
5. Title- I Have Heard of a Land

Author- Joyce Carol Thomas
Grade level- 4-5
Short synopsis- This woman imagines the free land. She describes what it is like and all of the
luxuries. She wishes she could be free rather than in slavery.
Activity/skill- Teach songs from the Underground Railroad.

Personal Review- ****. This book was written beautifully. However, it had no plot whatsoever. I
might actually read this to my class since it does have historical information in it. I really do think
it really should have a plot!
6. Title- So You Want to Be an Explorer?

Author- Judith St. George and David Small
Grade level- 2nd-3rd
Short synopsis-This book describes what it is like to be an explorer. Explorers discover new
things. This book talks about many different explorers in the world and what they discovered.
Activity/skill- Have students invent something or write about what they would like to explore
more in the world.
Personal Review- **. This book was very repetitive and boring to me. I hadnt even heard of
most of the explorers, so I dont know why children should learn about them. I would not keep
these books in my classroom.
7. Title- Appalachia
Grade level- 3-4
Short synopsis- This book describes what life is like living around the Appalachian Mountains.
Life is simple, food is always available, and everyone is welcoming. If you leave Appalachia,
however, you will always return!
Activity/skill- Make trail mix!
Personal Review- ****. This story had no plot, but I actually really enjoyed reading it. It relaxed
me and made me want to go live in or visit Appalachia. The illustrations were beautiful, as well.
8. Title- Our Colonial Year

Author- Cheryl Harness
Short synopsis-This book goes through each month of one year and describes what living in the
colonial times would be like for that month. For example, in June, children work outside all day
until its time to run to the village green to play.
Activity/skill- Have girls in the class make colonial bonnets and boys make covered wagons.
Personal Review- **. This book provided very little quality information about colonial times. The
illustrations were wonderful. I would keep this in my classroom, but not read it to my class.
9. Title- Always Remember Me

Author- Marisabina Russo
Grade level- 3rd 4th
Short synopsis-A Jewish grandmother tells the story of how her family survived the Holocaust to
her granddaughter. Her grandmother kept a gold heart necklace from her grandmother the
whole time. This story shows the awful things the Nazis did to the Jews.
Activity/skill- Make gold heart necklaces.
Personal Review- *. This story was unnecessarily long. I think it would lose my students interest.
The story was informational, but I dont think I would read this to my class.
10. Title- El Chino

Author- Allen Say
Short synopsis- A Chinese man lived in America with his family, and his father told them they
could be anything they wanted to be there. When he was told he couldnt be a basketball player
because he was too short, he grew frustrated and moved to Spain. He fell in love with
bullfighting, but was denied everywhere when he wanted to learn how because he was not
Spanish. He put on his Chinese outfit and felt like himself again. Now, everyone wanted to teach
him bullfighting and he became known as El Chino and won his matches.
Activity/skill- Watch a YouTube video or documentary on bullfighting and matadors.
Personal Review- ****. I really enjoyed this multicultural book. It had an Asian in America and
also Spain (bringing three cultures together in one book). This story teaches children to never
give up and try as hard as you can.
10 Multicultural
1. Title- Jin Woo
Author- Eve Bunting
Grade level- 3rd
Genre- Multicultural
Short synopsis- An American family of three (a mom, dad, and son) are getting ready to adopt a
baby boy from Korea, Jin Woo, which means happy jewel. David, the son, is not so excited about
the new baby because he fears all the attention will be on him. When the family goes to the
airport to pick up Jin Woo, the father is given a piece of clothing he is to traditionally wear on his
first birthday and a ring that Jin Woo was given on his one hundredth day of life. Once they
leave the airport with Jin Woo, David begins to love the new baby and is really excited about
having him as a new member of their family. The mother wrote a letter to David from Jin Woo
explaining how much love they all felt for each other and how much fun the two boys will have
together. The whole family is happy.
Activity/Skill- This book would be good on the topic of families and adoptions. Have students
create a family tree on a poster board up to four generations. Students will bring in their family
tree and share with the class.
Personal Review- ***. This was a cute story about adoption and showed how emotional it can
be for every member of the family. My favorite part about this story were the illustrations. I
wish there had been more culture to learn about in this story, but I still enjoyed it.
2. Title- A Thirst for Home

Author- Christine Ieronimo
Grade level- 3rd
Short synopsis- A young girl named Alemitu lives in Ethiopia and she and her mom have to walk
miles barefoot every single day to get water from the stream. They have to have this water to
live and are hungry every day. Her mother will do anything to make life better for her daughter,
so she sends her to America to live with her family, where her name becomes Eva. Eva goes to
school close to her home and has unlimited water access everywhere she goes. When she sees
rain or a stream or even the water she drinks out of the tap, she is reminded of her mother and
remembers that water connects us everybody.
Activity/skill- Have students count how many trips to the water fountain they make at school
and how many glasses of water they drink per day. At the end of the week, read this story so
they realize that not everybody has as much easy access to water as we do.
Personal Review- ***. I really liked how this book truly was multicultural. It showed the one girl
in two different countries and her experience with water. The plot seemed to jump from one
place to another really quickly without transitions. I think I probably would read this book to my
class.
3. Title- Rechenkas Eggs

Author- Patricia Polacco
Grade level- 3rd-4th
Short synopsis- Babushka is an old woman who lives in Mosvka known for her beautiful handpainted eggs that she would take to the festival to try and win a competition. One winter,
Babushka comes across a hurt goose, so she takes it in, names it Rechenka, and lets it stay in her
house in a basket. Rechenka knocked over all of Babushkas paints and broke all of her eggs and
she was heartbroken because she would not have enough eggs to take to the festival. She wakes
up one morning and Rechenka has laid a beautiful egg, prettier than any she has ever painted
herself. Rechenka continues laying these eggs and eventually, Babushka has enough to take to
the festival. She wins and takes home a feather bed quilt as her prize. She returns home and
finds that Rechenka has laid a real egg and Babushka keeps the baby goose!
Activity/skill- Around Easter time, have your students paint eggs as decoratively as they like.
Provide paint, glitter, fabric, stickers, etc.
Personal Review- *****. This was a beautifully written story with stellar illustrations. I like how
it ties in a different culture rather than our own. Patricia Polacco has a knack for words and this
is definitely a book I would read to my class.
4. Title- The Keeping Quilt

Author- Patricia Polacco
Short synopsis- Patricia Polaccos great-grandmother came to America from Russia, and brought
with her an old babushka that would soon be made into a quilt. Other family members clothing
was also made into the quilt, and it soon became a family heirloom. Her great-grandmother,
grandmother, mother, and herself all used the quilt for many things, especially a huppa at
each of their weddings and a blanket when each new generational baby was born. When
Patricia was born, she played with the blanket and made forts out of it. Having this quilt in the
family was like having a part of backhome Russia with them at all times.
Activity/skill- Have each of your students bring in an old t-shirt or some type of cloth. Teach
them how to sew and make a class quilt.
Personal Review- *****. This book was beautifully written and I loved how creative it was,
showing all the generations uses of the quilt. I loved how the author herself was one of the
characters in the book, and made it seem like this couldve actually happened to her. I liked how
it tied in the culture of Russia and Judaism.
5. Title- Tree of Cranes

Author- Allen Say
Grade level- 1st
Short synopsis- A young boy who lives in Japan goes out in the cold to the pond to try and catch
fish; his mom does not like him doing this because he always comes home with a cold. When he
arrived home, he was sick, so she made him go to sleep. He heard someone outside in the
garden, and it was his mom digging up a tree. She brought the tree in and showed her son. This
was just like a Christmas tree she had when she lived in America, so she wanted to share the
tradition with her son. They decorated it with candles and cranes.
Activity/skill- Make paper cranes doing origami.
Personal Review- ****. I really enjoyed this story of bringing two traditions together. The
illustrations were not the most spectacular I have ever seen. This is a story I probably would
read to my class, however.
6. Title- Grandfathers Journey

Author- Allen Say
Grade level- 1st
Short synopsis- This is a story of a grandfather who left Japan to go visit North America. He loved
it, so he moved to California. He returned to Japan and continued moving back and forth from
America to Japan. He had a daughter, who then had the young boy. He visited America and
loved it as well. The moment these two enter a new country, they are homesick for the other.
Activity/skill- Assign each student a country to look up on the Internet to find three interesting
facts about their perspective country. Find a map of the country and the flag, and put these as
well as the facts on a poster.
Personal Review- ***. I like that this book actually has a plot, but the story was very repetitive. I
like that it brings in two cultures and includes learning with the story. The illustrations were
simple but beautiful.
7. Title- Mirette on the High Wire

Author- Emily Arnold McCully
Short synopsis- Mirette and her mother own a bed and breakfast in Paris where the finest
musicians, artists, and actors come to stay during their travels. A tightrope walker, Bellini, comes
to stay, and when Mirette sees him walking on the high wire, she is intrigued and wants to learn
how herself. She practices and eventually masters the high wire. Bellini sets up a wire over the
whole town, and they set off on tour to perform together.
Activity/skill- During recess one day, set up a slack line outside for children to play on.
Personal Review- *****. I really liked the plot of this story. I am amazed that the author ever
thought to write about a high wire. This story did not bring in much Parisian culture, but I still
really enjoyed it.
8. Title- Chinese New Years Dragon

Author- Rachel Sing
Short synopsis- A young Chinese girl lives in America but is still celebrating the Chinese New Year
with her family. This book describes what she and her family did to prepare for the New Year.
Everything in preparation was the same, except this year was the year of the dragon, so the girl
imagines herself riding a dragon in a huge Chinese New Year parade celebration.
Activity/skill- Teach students how to write their name in Chinese. Trace it for them first in pencil
and let them paint over it in black ink. Next, see if they can copy it and do it themselves.
Personal Review- **. This book really did not have much of a plot; there was no story to it. It
would be good to read to your students if you were teaching about Chinese culture to introduce
the Chinese New Year. I remember learning all about Chinese culture in kindergarten, so a book
like this would have been nice.
9. Title- The Quiet Place

Author- Sarah Stewart
Short synopsis- A young girl named Isabel is moving to America with her family. This is a story of
her letters she write to her Auntie Lupita talking about the things she misses back home in
Mexico. She wants a quiet place where she can write her letters and play, so her father and
brother give her boxes and help her create this happy place. She gets more and more boxes and
decorates them beautifully as her quiet place, where she feels the most at home.
Activity/skill- Give class a giant box for them to decorate and play in.
Personal Review- ****. I really liked this story of immigration to America. The letters were
written in the 1950s, but the plot and illustrations with the boxes and everything do not seem to
fit along with that time period. This is a story I would read to my class.
10. Title- A Million Fish More or Less

Author- Patricia C. McKissack
Short synopsis- A young boy named Hugh Thomas hears strange stories about 500 pound
turkeys on the Bayou Clapateaux from Papa-Daddy and Elder Abbajon and is quite skeptical.
When they leave, he is left alone and has his own strange story of catching a million fish more
or less and gets attacked and has fish stolen by monkeys, raccoons, crows, and a cat. Luckily, he
makes it home with some fish left.
Activity/skill- Have students decorate fish with different colored construction paper, similar to
rainbow fish. Make a million more or less sign around them on a bulletin board.
Personal Review- **. This story was more strange and confusing than anything. I had to read it
twice to even understand what it was talking about. It jumped around a lot and was difficult to
read. The illustrations were nice and colorful, though!
5 Issue
1. Title- The Berenstain Bears and Too Much Teasing
Author- Stan & Jan Berenstain
Genre- Issue
Short synopsis- This story deals with the issue of helping children cope with teasing. In the
beginning, Brother Bear likes to tease Sister Bear and she does not like it. One day at school,
Brother Bear is selected to be the principals personal messenger. He gets teased by the boys at
school for being the teachers pet. Brother Bear really does not like getting teased and realizes
how it makes others feel. The next day at school, there is a new farmer bear, and now the boys
at school are picking on him for being bad at sports. Instead of picking on him as well, Brother
Bear sticks up for the new bear and becomes his friend.
Activity/skill- Have students think of a time they were teased and what they did to cope with
their issue. Share with the class so others can learn how to manage this issue.
Personal Review- ****. I think this is a great book to teach children how to deal with teasing.
Not only does Brother Bear learn that teasing hurts, but he also shows how to stick up for a
friend when they are going through something hard. The only thing I did not like was how
quickly it jumped from scene to scene.
2. Title- The Berenstain Bears and the Trouble with Friends

Genre- Issue
Short synopsis- This story deals with the issue of fighting with friends. Brother Bear leaves Sister
Bear at home one day to play with his cousin Freddie because he does not like the things Sister
Bear likes to play. A new cub family moves in next door and they have a cub, named Lizzy, the
same age as Sister. The two become friends, but Lizzy becomes very bossy and braggy. The
two are playing school and they get in a big fight over who will be teacher. Mama Bear talks to
Sister Bear and tells her that it is much nicer having a friend along with you so she is not lonely.
She explains that they cant each get their own way. Lizzy comes back over and the two girls
apologize to each other and continue on with their friendship.
Activity/skill- Have children discuss a time when they got in a fight with a friend and what they
did to fix their issue and move on with their friendship.
Personal Review- ****. I personally really enjoyed the Berenstain Bear books growing up, and I
still like them reading back on them now. They are an entertaining way to teach lessons about
different issues children have to cope with. This particular book shows a good way for children
to learn how to settle a fight with a friend.
3. Title- Finders Keepers for Franklin

Author- Paulette Bourgeois
Genre- Issue
Short synopsis- Franklin the turtle found a camera in the park and decided to take it and take
some photos with his friends in the park. His friends asked him if he was going to keep it, but he
knew that wasnt right so he put it back where he found it but kept the roll of film. When he got
home, his dad asked him what the film was from. Franklin told him the whole story, and his dad
told him it wasnt right to use what was not his. They made signs to post to try and find the
owner of the camera. They got Franklins film developed and the first picture was of Raccoons
family. They had not seen the signs because they had been out of town, but when they got
home, Franklin took it to Raccoon. Raccoon was not mad at all!
Activity/skill- Have students share a time when they took something that was not theirs and the
lesson they learned.
Personal Review- *****. Franklin books are always a favorite of mine. I like how this one really
does teach children a lesson. I would definitely keep this in my classroom to teach a lesson
about stealing.
4. Title- Franklin Says Sorry

Genre- Issue
Short synopsis- Franklin the turtle and his friends were transforming Franklins tree house into a
pirate ship. Bear, Franklins best friend, brought a flag for the pirate ship from his house that he
had painted himself. He asked Franklin not to tell anyone because he wanted to keep it a
surprise. Franklin agreed, but he told Fox anyways. Bear found out, was very upset, and did not
want to participate in the pirate ship anymore. Franklin eventually told Bear he was sorry, and
they were all friends again. They named the ship the Friend Ship.
Activity/skill- Have students make a pirate ship flag. Have them share a time when they
apologized to a friend or family member.
Personal Review- *****. Franklin books are always a favorite of mine. I like how this one really
does teach children a lesson. I also liked how this book really had a true plot, unlike many of the
childrens books I have read.
5. Title- The Berenstain Bears and the In-Crowd

Genre- Issue
Short synopsis- Sister Bear went to the playground one summer day to play double-dutch with
her best friend, Lizzy. There was a new girl, Queenie, who was showing off her bike and began
making fun of Sister Bear. Sister Bear went home and cried to her family. They explained to her
that Queenie was in the in-crowd and enjoyed putting others down to bring herself up. Mama
Bear went and bought Sister some new clothes to try and fit in, but Sister didnt want to be
someone she wasnt. She went back to the playground for the double-dutch tournament and
beat Queenie out of the water.
Activity/skill- Have students draw a photo of their favorite Berenstain Bear. Share a time when
they have been put down, and what they did to bring themselves back up.
Personal Review- ****. I like the Berenstain Bears, but this one was not my favorite. It almost
seemed as if they tried to add too much to the plot, and it became unnecessary. This is a book I
would keep in my classroom, however.
10 Favorite character/series
1. Title- Franklins Baby Sister
Genre- Favorite character/series
Short synopsis- Franklin the turtle was very anxious for spring to come because his mother was
going to have a baby. He couldnt wait to be a big brother. He was very impatient and kept
looking for signs of spring. He knew that April showers brought May flowers, so he was excited
when he found out his mother said they were going to have a shower over the weekend.
Franklin was sad when he found out it was just a baby shower, but spring eventually came and
Franklin finally met the baby sister he had been waiting so long for. They named her Harriet
after Franklins great aunt Harriet.
Activity/skill- Have students make turtles out of white paper plates, green construction paper,
and brown and green paint.
Personal Review- *****. I have always loved Franklin books, and this is one of my favorites. I
love seeing how excited he is for his new baby sister. The Franklin books have great plots and
are entertaining to read.
2. Title- The Berenstain Bears Count their Blessings

Short synopsis- Whenever Sister Bear went over to her friend, Lizzys, house, she always came
home complaining that she did not have enough Bearbie dolls compared to Lizzy. Whenever
Brother Bear went over to Cousin Freddys house, he always came home complaining that
Freddy had way more video games than he did. Mama and Papa Bear were fed up with this and
tried to tell their children to count their blessings. There was a huge storm happening, so Mama
explained to them to be thankful that they had a nice house to keep them dry and warm, but
most importantly to be thankful they had each other. Brother and Sister Bear learned their
lesson and were thankful for the toys they did have.
Activity/skill- Have students count five of their blessings and write simple sentences,
numbering them as they go.
Personal Review- *****. This was one of the better Berenstain Bear books that I have read. I like
how the plot did not jump around too much like some of them. This book truly can teach kids to
count their blessings and be thankful for what they have.
3. Title- The Berenstain Bears Count and the Sitter

Short synopsis- Mama and Papa Bear had to go to a town meeting, so they got a sitter, Ms.
Grizzly, for Brother and Sister Bear. Ms. Grizzly was usually grumpy around Brother and Sister
Bear, so they were worried they would have a bad night. They ended up having a great night,
and Ms. Grizzly did everything just like their parents. She was now their favorite sitter.
Activity/skill- Have students draw a picture of either their favorite Berenstain Bear or the tree
house they live in.
Personal Review- ****. I have always loved the Berenstain Bear books, and this one was great. It
teaches kids to give everyone a chance. I dont know if I would read this to my class, but I would
definitely keep it in my classroom library.
4. Title- The Berenstain Bears Go to School

Short synopsis- Sister Bear was about to start Kindergarten. She was very nervous to go meet
her teacher with Mama Bear. However, after she left, she was excited. The morning school was
to begin, Sister became nervous again. She ended up having a great day and loved school, unlike
Brothers first day. Eventually, both of them realized that school was fun and enjoyed it.
Activity/skill- Have students create a readers theater about their feelings on their first day of
school.
Personal Review- *****. I have always loved the Berenstain Bear books. This one was great,
because it teaches kids not to worry about their first day of school. This would be a great story
to read to a kindergarten class on their first day of school.
5. Title- The Berenstain Bears and the Missing Honey

Short synopsis- Papa Bear had a jar of blackberry honey that was missing out of the jar when he
woke up. He had Cousin Freddys dog come over so he could help sniff out the clues. They
search and search and eventually realize that Papa Bear had slept walked the previous night and
eaten the honey.
Activity/skill- Make honey with your class! Or blackberry jam.
Personal Review- ***. I love the Berenstain Bear books, but this one was different. I didnt like
how it was a rhyme. It was more difficult to follow the plot this way and was just different from
their normal books.
6. Title- The Berenstain Bears and the Bad Habit

Short synopsis- Sister Bear had developed the bad habit of nail biting. Mama Bear put tape on all
her fingers to try and get Sister Bear to stop, but it didnt work. She had trouble using a pencil,
tuning the TV, and playing jacks. They ended up giving Sister Bear ten pennies at the beginning
of each day, one for each finger. At the end of the day, she had to give a penny back if she
nibbled her nails. She ended up breaking her habit and having ten fine nails.
Activity/skill- Assign each student a bad habit. Instruct them to think of a creative way to break
the habit and bring in anything necessary to class.
Personal Review- ****. I have always loved the Berenstain Bear books, and this one is great. It
not only has a great plot, but we truly get the definition of a habit from Mama Bear. It teaches
kids a lesson and how to cope with their habits.
7. Title- The Berenstain Bears Moving Day

Short synopsis- Papa Bear announced to Mama Bear and Brother Bear that they were going to
be moving houses because the trees were become sparse for Papas furniture making. Brother
was scared and sad to leave their cave home and his friends there. They moved into the tree
house, and when it finally became fixed up, they loved it! The neighbors came with gifts and
everyone was happy.
Activity/skill- Have students draw a picture of the old cave home and also the new tree house.
Personal Review- *****. Berenstain Bear books have always been a favorite of mine. This one
was close to home because my family owns a moving business! This one does not teach a lesson
like many of their books, but I still really enjoyed it.
8. Title- The Berenstain Bears Go Out for the Team

Short synopsis- Brother and Sister Bear always loved going over to their neighbors field to play
baseball with their friends. The field was not very nice, so one day Mama and Papa Bear drove
them over to the cub leagues real field. They admired the field and decided to try out for the
league. They practiced really hard and both made the team.
Activity/skill- Play a game of baseball with your class. It is important the involve motor skills in
school every day.
Personal Review- ****. I have always loved the Berenstain Bears, and this is one of my favorites.
I think it might have been nice if perhaps the bears didnt make the team. Then, it could teach
kids a lesson how to be a good loser.
9. Title- The Cat in the Hat

Author- Dr. Seuss
Short synopsis- Sally and her brother were left home alone, and suddenly a cat appears. He
stacks many things on top of each other and everything falls and makes a mess. Next, he brings
a big box with Thing 1 and Thing 2 in it. They also run around the house and make a mess. Sally
and her brother catch the Things and they leave with the cat. He comes back with a giant
machine and cleans the house and makes it look perfect by the time their mom comes home.
Activity/skill- Have students color a pattern of the cats hat.
Personal Review- ****. I enjoyed this book more now than when I was a child. I like the rhymes
and this would be a great book for children who are learning how to read. It is longer than most
beginner books but not too long where they would lose their attention span.
10. Title- Green Eggs and Ham

Short synopsis- Sam does not like green eggs and ham anywhere! Not in the dark, in a box, with
a fox, here, there, or anywhere! Eventually, he tries the green eggs and ham and likes them.
Activity/skill- Have different halves of eggs with different rhyming words on each half. Students
must match the two halves together to create a whole egg with rhyming words.
Personal Review- ***. This book is extremely repetitive. It is great for beginner readers. Many
rhyming lessons could be taught with this book.
10 Folktale/Fairytale
1. Title- The Talking Eggs
Author- D. San Souci
Grade level- 2nd
Genre- Folktale/Fairytale
Short synopsis- An old woman had two daughters, Rose and Blanche. Blanche was kind and
hardworking, while her mother and Rose were lazy, greedy, and spoiled. One day, Blanche
meets an old woman in the woods who takes her to her home. She goes to her home with her
and sees a cow with two heads, chickens that sang like birds, and the old woman took her head
off to fix her hair. Blanche never laughed at the old woman and did exactly what she said with a
good attitude. When she was about to go back home, the old woman told her to go take eggs
from the chickens, but only the ones who said, take me!, not the beautiful ones who said,
dont take me. She was to throw them over her shoulder on the way home, and beautiful
jewels, clothes, carriages, etc. appeared. When she got home, her mom and sister were jealous,
so Rose went and tried to do the same thing with the woman. She had a bad attitude and didnt
listen, so she took the beautiful eggs. When she threw them behind her, wolves and scary
animals chased her. Blanche had left for the city to live an extravagant lifestyle, but was still
kind.
Activity/skill- Have students paint faces on eggs and decorate them however they wish around
Easter time.
Personal Review- ****. This book was extremely strange, with the singing chickens, the
womans head, and the cow with two heads. It was written very creatively, however. I like how
this book teaches children that the way you act might come back around later not so well.
2. Title- Tikki Tikki Tembo

Author- Arlene Mosel
Short synopsis- A Chinese woman had two sons; her first-born and honored son was named
Tikki tikki tembo-no sa rembo-chari bari ruchi-pip peri pembo and her second-born son was
simply named Chang, meaning little or nothing. The two brothers liked playing in the well, but
one day Chang fell in. They went and got the old man with the ladder, and he helped him out,
pumped the water out of him and he was back to normal. A while later, Tikki tikki tembo-no sa
rembo-chari bari ruchi-pip peri pembo also fell down the well, and by the time the old man with
the ladder got there to help Tikki, he could not return to normal since it took him so long
because of his long name.
Activity/skill- Have students clap out the rhythm to Tikki tikki tembo-no sa rembo-char bari
ruchi-pip peri pembo to practice rhythm, intonation, and prosody.
Personal Review- ***. I remember loving this book as a child, but I did not enjoy it as much as I
thought I would. It was extremely repetitive. It essentially told the exact same story twice.
3. Title- Rapunzel
Author- Paul O. Zelinsky
Short synopsis-A woman becomes pregnant and has severe cravings for rapunzel, an herb, so
her husband goes into the sorcerers garden and gets some for her. The sorcerer sees the
husband stelaing the rapunzel, so she says if he wants the herb, she must take their baby away
from them when it is born. She takes the baby and names it Rapunzel, and puts her up to live
alone in a tower and her hair grows long and beautiful. The only person that visits her is the
sorcerer, and she climbs up Rapunzels long hair to visit. One day, a prince hears Rapunzels
beautiful voice, and becomes infatuated. He continues visiting and eventually calls for Rapunzel
and visits her. They fall in love and Rapunzel becomes pregnant. The sorcerer is so mad that she
cuts Rapunzels hair off and sends her to live alone in the country. The prince eventually finds
her and they live happily ever after.
Activity/skill- Have students make Rapunzel masks using yellow yarn for the hair. Give each child
a different amount of yarn. Have them measure the yarn in inches to see whose is the longest.
Have them write the length on the popsicle stick on the mask.
Personal Review- *****. I love this traditional fairytale. It has a real plot, even though it is not
realistic at all. The illustrations were beautiful and there are many activities that could go with
this story.
4. Title- A Pig Tale

Author- Olivia Newton-John and Seth Hurst
Short synopsis- The father of a family of three pigs, Ziggy, Iggy, and Pop, liked to save everything
and never throw anything away. He had tons of treasures and their house was a disaster. At
school, Ziggys friends made fun of him. One night, Pop told everyone to stay in the house while
he worked on something in the barn. Ziggy had all of his friends over to see Pops creation. He
opened the barn doors, and he made a hot air balloon out of all of his junk.
Activity/skill- Have students bring in 5 things around their house they would otherwise throw
away. Have them create something out of their junk.
Personal Review- *****. I remember reading this book as a child, and I still love it today. It is a
twist on different fairytales put together. I liked the way it rhymed, but also had a real plot. It
teaches children the value of recycling.
5. Title- Little Red Cap

Author- The Brothers Grimm and Lisbeth Zwerger
Short synopsis- A young girl who wears a red cap was sent to her grandmothers house by her
mother to bring her treats. On her way, she meets a wolf. The wolf goes ahead of the young girl
to her grandmothers house and eats her grandmother. When the girl arrives, she notices that
grandmother does not look the same. The wolf has dressed up in her clothes, and then eats the
girl. A hunter comes and finds the wolf, cuts it open, and takes out the grandmother and the girl.
The three celebrate and they kill the wolf.
Activity/skill- Have students dress up as the wolf, the grandmother, and Little Red Cap. Have a
readers theater!
Personal Review- ***. This was an interesting spin off Little Red Riding Hood. It was really creepy
how he cut open the wolf and took out two humans. I dont think I would keep this book in my
classroom.
6. Title- The Crane Wife

Author- Sumiko Yagawa
Short synopsis- A poor peasant who lives in the countryside of China once saw a wounded crane
come swooping down by his side, so he decided to take it in. Later, a beautiful woman came to
his door and asked to be his wife. She wanted to get a loom to weave fabric to bring in some
money, and she made the nicest cloths there were. The peasant sold the fabric and made a lot
of money. She continued making the fabric, and eventually he saw that the woman was in fact
the crane itself, plucking feathers from itself and putting it in the loom. The crane left and the
man was left alone.
Activity/skill- Make paper cranes out of origami paper.
Personal Review- ****. This book is written very beautifully, but it is incredibly strange. I was
extremely surprised at the ending! The illustrations were bleak.
7. Title- Johnny Appleseed

Author- Steven Kellogg
Short synopsis- Johnny Appleseed grew up a young boy who loved adventure. His family had an
apple tree, and eventually he left his home to go out and clear forests to plant apple orchards.
He wanted settlers coming into America to have a place to stay and be nourished with apples.
Johnny became a loved man and people told amazing stories about him everywhere. He covered
Ohio surrounding states with his apple orchards. He became ill and died in his seventies.
Activity/skill- Make applesauce! Use adjectives to describe apples (juicy, red, delicious, etc.)
Personal Review- *****. I enjoyed this book! This book has so many teaching opportunities. I
would definitely use this story as a theme for the fall and do many different apple activities.
8. Title- The Funny Little Woman

Author- Arlene Mosel
Short synopsis- A small dumpling-making Japanese woman lost one of her dumplings and it fell
in a hole in the ground. She followed in the hole to find her dumpling, and ran into some bad
creatures, the Oni. They took her captive and she cooked rice with a magic spoon for them every
day. She missed home, so she escaped and used the spoon to make dumplings. She became the
richest woman in Japan.
Activity/skill- Make rice! Or have students draw pictures of the Oni.
Personal Review- *****. I actually really enjoyed this folktale! I enjoyed the different culture
rather than American. I would definitely read this book if we were doing a unit on Asian culture.
9. Title- Pecos Bill

Author- Steven Kellogg
Short synopsis- Pecos Bill was raised in Texas and battled coyotes, rattlesnakes, and other
critters. He turned many people into ranchers. He met a horse named Lightning who he had
rodeos with. He met a woman named Slewfoot Sue and married her. They eventually found
Bills family again and were still searching for somewhere to settle in Texas.
Activity/skill- Make miniature horse-drawn buggies.
Personal Review- *. This book had way too much going on. It was way too fiction for me. I
would not read this story to my class.
9. Title- Beauty and the Beast

Author- Don Williams
Grade level- Pre-k
Short synopsis- Belles father is trapped in a scary castle, and a beast is the master of it. In order
to get her father out, she must go inside and look. She is entertained by candlesticks, teapots,
spoons the mantle clock, a butler, and Mrs. Potts and Chip. She searches the castle, but
eventually sees through the beast and falls in love with him. She sees that the beast is really a
kind and handsome prince. The castle becomes beautiful again and everyone lives happily ever
after.
Activity/skill- Have students color a printout of the cup and teapot.
Personal Review- ***. This book was an almost too brief version of the true Beauty and the
Beast. I like how it teaches kids to not judge based on the outside. I liked the pop outs! A very
interactive book that will engage students.
10 Fantasy/Other
1. Title- The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Author- Eric Carle
Genre- Fantasy/Other
Short synopsis- A caterpillar broke out of its egg and was very hungry! He ate through many
different fruits and also unhealthy cakes and junk food. The next day, he ate through a green
leaf and felt much better, but he was very fat! He built himself a cocoon and two weeks later, he
became a beautiful butterfly!
Activity/skill- Have students paint different circles green and red. Glue together to make a very
hungry caterpillar.
Personal Review- ****. This book could be used for preschoolers or kindergarteners to learn
how to count. It not only incorporates math, but also science when it teaches that a caterpillar
builds itself a cocoon to turn into a butterfly. I understand why this book is used so much
because it provides many teachable opportunities.
2. Title- Lillys Purple Plastic Purse

Author- Kevin Henkes
Genre- Fantasy/other
Short synopsis- Lilly, a young mouse, loved her teacher very much and even wanted to be a
teacher when she grew up. One day, Lilly came to school with a new purple plastic purse that
she and her grandmother had bought over the weekend. She wanted so badly to show it off, but
her teacher told her she could not yet. She didnt listen, and took it out when she was not
supposed to. She got in trouble and took her purse away, so she wrote her teacher a mean note
about him. She apologized the next day and brought him a nice note and yummy treats. She
finally got to share her purse with the class and she and her teacher were both happy again.
Activity/skill- Have a show and tell!
Personal Review- *****. This was my all time favorite book when I was a little girl, and I still
loved it reading back on it today. I like the cute mice and the fact that this book has a true plot.
This book even had a reoccurring phrase, which foreshadows to later reading strategies.
3. Title- Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?

Author- Bill Martin Jr. and Eric Carle
Short synopsis- Many different animals kept asking each other what they were hearing.
Eventually, they ask the zookeeper what he heard. He heard different children pretending to be
these animals.
Activity/skill- Have students draw pictures of animals.
Personal Review- **. This book had no plot. It was extremely repetitive. I would not read this
book to my class.
4. Title- If You Give a Mouse a Cookie

Author- Laura Joffe Numeroff
Short synopsis- If you give a mouse a cookie, he will probably ask for milk, then a straw, etc. This
mouse needs help with everything he needs! It circles back to him needing milk and a cookie
again.
Activity/skill- If you give a ____, this will happen: cause and effect exercise.
Personal Review- ****. I like how this book circles back to its original. I didnt expect that when I
was reading it. I am liking these mice books! There are so many!
5. Title- Doctor Dan the Bandage Man

Author- Helen Gaspard
Grade level- Pre-k
Short synopsis- A young boy named Dan was playing cowboys with his friends, and he scratched
himself on his toy gun. He went inside and his mom washed him up and gave him a bandage.
After this, whenever someone got hurt, Dan would bandage him or her up. He was soon called
Doctor Dan the Bandage Man.
Activity/skill- Have students practice helping their friends put bandages on if they get hurt.
Teach them how to wash using soap and water, too!
Personal Review- ***. This is not a book I would read to my class, but it was still a cute story.
Dan was always there to help his friends out, which is a lesson we can always teach our
students. It was a bit repetitive, too.
6. Title- The Little Engine that Could

Author- Watty Piper
Grade level- Pre-k
Short synopsis- A small train full of lots of toys for little boys and girls got stuck going up the
mountain and needed another train to help them get over before the children woke up.
Multiple trains passed and would not help, until finally a little blue engine agreed to help. They
made it with the help of the blue engine, as it said, I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.
Activity/skill- Given patterns of trains with lined paper on them, have students write, I think I
can., with something they think they can do.
Personal Review- *****. This story is a classic. It teaches students that with enough hard work
and enough tries, you can eventually get what you want. I would read this to my pre-k or
kindergarten class. There are many teaching opportunities with this book.
7. Title- Mr. Marbles Moose

Author- D.J. May
Grade level- 1st
Short synopsis- A man named Mr. Marble had a moose named Sam that loved to sing. Mr.
Marble didnt mind Sams singing when he had earplugs in. Then, Sam got loose and everyone
called Mr. Marble. Mr. Marble talked to Sam about it and then he only sang in the house or very
softly. Finally, Sam met a mean worm in the garden, but eventually they became friends.
Activity/skill- Teach students alliteration. Have each student write an adjective next to their
name on a piece of chart paper. Ellen is excellent. Alexander is amazing. Ivy is intelligent etc.
Personal Review- **. This book really had no point and jumped randomly from singing to a
worm. I think it was supposed to have a plot, but it didnt really work out. I might have this book
in my classroom, but I wouldnt read it for teaching purposes.
8. Title- Goodnight Moon

Author- Margaret Wise Brown
Grade level- Pre-kindergarten
Short synopsis- There was a brush, a woman saying hush, a bowl of mush, mittens, socks, etc. in
a room. They were all said goodnight to, including the moon.
Activity/skill- rhyming activity: have cards with each word on them from the room, and have
students match which ones rhyme with each other.
Personal Review- ***. I know this story is a classic, but it really had no plot. It is a sweet nursery
rhyme I would read to my baby when putting them to bed. As a teacher, I would not keep this in
my classroom or read it to them.
9. Title- Smoky Night

Author- Eve Bunting
Grade level- 2nd
Short synopsis- Daniel and his mom see a riot happening. They go to bed but are awoken by a
fire and are forced to leave their building. They have to bond with neighbors and their cats to
get through this hard time.
Activity/skill- Synthesizing a story: have students write what they thought the book was about at
the beginning, middle, and end of the story.
Personal Review- ***. I thought this book was very hard to follow along to. It was confusing and
the sentences were choppy. I would probably keep this in my classroom, but not read it as a
teaching opportunity.
10. Title- Westlandia

Author- Paul Fleischman
Short synopsis- Wesley had just learned in school that every civilization has its own staple crop.
When summer came around, he decided to create his own civilization, called Westlandia, out of
a crop he called swist. He made food, lotions, musical instruments, clothes, etc. out of the swist
and finally began to look happy and enjoy himself.
Activity/skill- If you give a ____, this will happen: cause and effect exercise.
Personal Review- *****. I really enjoyed this book. It teaches children that not everyone is the
same. The author must have been extremely creative to think of this plot.

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Ellen DeWitt

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10. Title- A Sick Day for Amos McGee

11. Title- King Bidgoods in the Bathtub

12. Title- The Relatives Came

13. Title- Tuesday

14. Title- When I was Young in the Mountains

15. Title- A Tree is Nice

16. Title- Lon PoPo

17. Title- Jumanji

18. Title- Red Sings from Treetops

19. Title- In the Small, Small Pond

20. Title- The Polar Express

2. Title- Rocking Horse Christmas

3. Title- Valentines Day

4. Title- Christmas Cricket

5. Title- Gingerbread Friends

6. Title- Pumpkin Heads

7. Title- Thanksgiving for Emily Ann

8. Title- The Legend of the Candy Cane

9. Title- Arthurs Christmas

10. Title- Thanksgiving is Here!

2. Title- Hardworking Puppies

3. Title- Counting Crocodiles

Author- Judy Sierra

4. Title- Ten Little Caterpillars

5. Title- Measuring Penny

2. Title- Doctor DeSoto

3. Title- My Visit to the Aquarium

4. Title- Under the Snow

5. Title- The Sea, the Storm, and the Mangrove Tangle

6. Title- My Visit to the Zoo

7. Title- Over in the Jungle

8. Title- First the Egg

9. Title- Where Once There Was a Wood

10. Title- The Great Kapok Tree

10 Social Studies/historical fiction

2. Title- Minnow and Rose

3. Title- Dust for Dinner

5. Title- I Have Heard of a Land

Activity/skill- Teach songs from the Underground Railroad.

6. Title- So You Want to Be an Explorer?

8. Title- Our Colonial Year

9. Title- Always Remember Me

10. Title- El Chino

2. Title- A Thirst for Home

3. Title- Rechenkas Eggs

4. Title- The Keeping Quilt

5. Title- Tree of Cranes

6. Title- Grandfathers Journey

7. Title- Mirette on the High Wire

8. Title- Chinese New Years Dragon

9. Title- The Quiet Place

10. Title- A Million Fish More or Less

2. Title- The Berenstain Bears and the Trouble with Friends

3. Title- Finders Keepers for Franklin

4. Title- Franklin Says Sorry

5. Title- The Berenstain Bears and the In-Crowd

2. Title- The Berenstain Bears Count their Blessings