Author: Al Perkins
Illustrator: William O’Brian
Date of publication: 1968
Title: The Ear Book
ISBN#: 03-94481-199-2
Grade Level: Read Aloud
Topic: Sense of hearing
Storyline: It is about a boy and his dog describing the noises they hear with their ears.
Why I like it: The wording is clever and the illustrations are great.
How to integrate it in the classroom: This book would be great to begin a lesson about the sense of hearing, when the teacher teaches the five senses.
Author: Dandi
Illustrator: Terri Osborne
Date of publication:1995
Title: ABC’s of Lunch
ISBN#: 1-56987-333-x
Grade level- Read Aloud
Topic: ABC’s
Storyline: This book is about a dog getting is lunch box ready for school by filling it with foods starting with the letters from the alphabet.
Why I like it: I thought that this book was cleverly written and the illustrations are great.
How to integrate into the classroom: Every child loves food and I think this book would capture students’ attention. The book is a clever and fun way to help students learn their ABC’s.
Author: Amy Hest
Illustrator: Anita Jeram
Date of Publication: 2001
Title: Kiss Good Night
ISBN#: 0-439-38006-5
Grade level: Read Aloud
Topic: Bedtime story
Storyline: This book is about a little bear named Sam and he is getting ready to go to bed. His mother came in and puts him in bed and asks if he was ready and he said “Oh no, I’m waiting.” His mother tries several things to get him ready to go to be, she reads him a story, tucks him in, gives him all his toys that he sleeps with, gives him warm milk, but he is still saying that he is waiting on something. His mother thinks and thinks of what he could be waiting for and then she remembers, he is waiting for a good night kiss. She gives him good night kisses twice and Sam finally drifts off to sleep.
Why I liked it: I liked this story because all children have to have something in order to fall asleep, just like Sam. I also enjoyed the illustrations in the story.
How to integrate into the classroom: This book could be used to prompt a writing lesson. The students could write about something that they have to have in order to fall asleep and if there was ever a time that they have to go without it and what they did to fall asleep without it.
Author: K. Emily Hutta
Illustrator: Atelier Philippe Harchy
Date of publication: 2003
Title: Disney: Piglet’s Night Lights
ISBN#: 1-57973-127-9
Grade level: Read Aloud
Topic: Camping
Storyline: Pooh and his friends have decided to go camping. On his way to the campsite, Pooh stops by Piglet’s house to pick him up to going camping too. Piglet is a little indecisive about going because it was getting dark, however, Pooh talks him into going. Along the way they meet Owl and Owl helps lead the way because he can see in the dark. When they arrive at the campsite, Rabbit is having trouble putting up the tent because it is getting dark, however, he is helped out when Tigger shows up with a lantern. He is when Piglet remembers that he forgot his night-light and starts worrying about going to sleep without it. Tigger offers him the lantern that he brought but the light flickers out right when he offers it, they search Rabbits camp supplies and finds a flashlight but it does not work either. Next Eeyore shows up with firewood and the friends build a fire. As they talk and have fun, it starts getting late and they call it a night and goes to bed. However, Piglet cannot go to sleep because he does not have his night-light, so Pooh sits up with him to keep him company. While they are sitting there talking, fireflies start flying around and Pooh comes up with the idea that the fireflies could be Piglet’s night-light, which satisfies Piglet and he drifts off to sleep.
Why I like it: I like the illustrations and the storyline.
How to integrate into the classroom: This book could be good for a lesson about friendship because Pooh stays up with Piglet because Piglet could not go to sleep. This story represents what friend would do for another friend.
Author: Nancy Parent
Illustrator: Atelier Philippe Harchy
Date of publication: 2003
Title: Disney: A Surprise Garden
ISBN#: 1-57973-126-0
Grade level: Read Aloud
Topic: Growing a garden
Storyline: This story is about Winnie the Pooh and his friends planting a garden. Rabbit has his wonderful garden in full bloom and his friends are curious about how he grows such a great garden. Rabbit makes special packets of secret seeds for each friend to plant and take care of. After giving his friends their seeds, he tells them the rules that they have to follow in order to grow their seeds. The friends follow the instructions and then everyday they come by to see if their seeds are growing. After a few days they start to grow impatient and Roo comes up with the idea of doing something special for their seeds, so each friend does something special to their seeds, ex. Piglet puts a pink blanket on his to keep warm and Owl uses a feather to tickle his seeds. Finally, the friends seeds starts to grow, Piglet had pink pansies, Tiger had sunflowers, Owl had green beans, Roo had cherry tomatoes, however, Pooh’s seeds did not grow. The friends decided to pick their plants to share with Rabbit for helping them grow their gardens, when Tigger cuts down his flowers it allowed the sun to shine on Pooh’s patch of dirt. To Pooh’s surprise, his seeds had grown and he discovered that he had strawberries. At the end Rabbit acknowledged that he needed to add patience to his rules.
Why I like this story: I like the illustrations in the story and I enjoyed the storyline.
How I can integrate into the classroom: This would be a good book to use when planting plants for a science lesson, Rabbits rules could be used to teach the students how to care for their plants. This book could also be good to use on a lesson about being patient with something, Pooh and his friends show the students that by being patient, something good comes from it.
Author: Marc Brown
Date of Publication: 2001
Title: Arthur’s Promise
ISBN#: 1-57973-107-4
Grade level: Read aloud
Topic: A Promise
Story line: Arthur comes home, hoping to watch his favorite tv show, however, his younger sister, D.W., is watching a special show. Arthur asks D.W. what he can do to let him watch his tv show and she replies that she wants to go to his next Bionic Bunny Fan Club meeting. Arthur excepts the agreement through a promise, however, when it comes time for the meeting, he tries his best to keep her occupied so she would not show for the meeting. He asks his parents to take her to the zoo, he calls his grandmother to ask her to take D.W. to the park and then he puts on her favorite video and brings out all her favorite toys, but nothing worked. He goes to the treehouse, only to see D.W. there, before he could get rid of her, his friends shows up for the meeting. However, to Arthur’s surprise, D.W. makes the meeting the best one they have ever had. She brought brownies, sugar cookies, and punch. Later that evening, D.W. asks Arthur if she can continue coming to the meetings and he said maybe one or two more.
Why do I like it: I like it because it gives a good message about keeping promises and show students that sometimes having younger siblings are a good thing.
How to use it in the classroom: This could be used as a writing assignment. The students could write about a promise that they made and how they either kept or broke it. They could also write about a time their sibling made something more enjoyable, when they thought the sibling would ruin it.
Author: Alexis O’Neill
Illustrator: Laura Huliska-Beith
Date of Publication: 2002
Title: The Recess Queen
ISBN# 0-439-20637-5
Book level: Read aloud
Topic: Bullying
Story line: There is a girl named Mean Jean and at recess she does not allow any children play unless she does it first. One day a new girl comes to school and when it was time for recess, the new girl went outside and started playing before Mean Jean did. Well Mean Jean did not like this one bit and confronted the girl about how things worked at recess time. Well, this does not even scare the new girl, she asks Mean Jean why she is so bossy and continues playing. Finally, the new girl pulls out a jump rope and invites Mean Jean to jump with her, and Mean Jean did. After this, Mean Jean was no longer a bully and she was friends with everyone on the playground, especially the new girl.
Why I liked it: I love the colorful pictures and the clever words that the author used in describing things.
How to integrate it in a classroom: This book would be good for a lesson about bullying, to show students that even the meanest bullies can end up being your friend.
Author: Nancy Carlson
Date of publication: 1983
Title: Loudmouth George and the Sixth-Grade Bully
ISBN#: 0-14-050510-5
Grade level: Read aloud
Topic: A bully
Storyline: This story is about a bully that picks on a younger boy by taking his lunch every morning on the way to school. The boy did not tell anyone about the bully, until his good friend asks him why he has not had lunch for the entire week and he finally told her. His friend had him to come over to her house and together they fixed a lunch that would be horrible if you ate it. The following morning, the boy lets the bully take his lunch and afterwards the bully never bothered him again.
How to integrate into classroom: This could be used to teach students that sometimes the best way to deal with a bully is to out smart them. You could also tell them by being nice or ignoring their bully could work as well, but to never fight back physically because that is the wrong way to deal with the situation.
Author: Kevin Henkes
Date of Publication: 1987
Title: Sheila Rae, The Brave
ISBN#: 978-0-688-14738-9
Grade Level: Read Aloud
Topic: About a brave mouse.
Storyline: This story is about a mouse named Sheila Rae and she claims to be brave, not afraid of anything. However, one day she decides to take a different route and she finds herself lost. When she realizes that she is lost, she becomes afraid and starts to cry. Luckily her little sister, Louis, had followed her and remembered the way back home. When they reach their home, Sheila tells her sister that she is brave and her sister says that they both are.
How to integrate into the classroom: This book would be great in showing children that everyone gets scared sometimes, no matter how old they are. It also shows that it is all right to ask for help and receive help when you are afraid, or that it is all right to show your insecurities.
Author: Dr. Seuss
Date of Publication: 1937
Title: And to Think That I Saw it in Mulberry Street
ISBN#: 0-394-84494-7
Grade Level: Read Aloud
Topic: A boy’s imagination
Storyline: This story is about a boy walking down Mulberry Street and he sees a horse and buggy. Suddenly the boy starts coming up with stories about the horse and buggy, each one more extravagant than the one before. When he reaches home, his father asks what he saw on his way home and despite is imagination, he only claims the horse and buggy.
Why I like it: I have always thought Dr. Seuss books to be clever in their rhyming and wording and the illustrations are always great.
How to integrate it: This could be great to show kids how to rhyme, how to use their imagination when they begin writing their stories, and to help students to see how you can use your imagination but to not claim it to be real.
