Smoky Night

Author: Eve Bunting

Title: Smoky Night

Illustrator: David Diaz

Publisher: Harcourt Brace & Company

Year: 1994

Format: Hardcover

Genre: Caldecott

Reading Level: Emergent

Interest-Level: Elementary

Topics: Fire, Neighborliness, Interpersonal Relations, Riots

Summary: A boy and his mother watch from their window as a riot begins in their street. During the night, the boy gets waken up by his mother because the rioters have set the building on fire. As all the neighbors are brought together during this tragic time they soon find out they may find happiness in one another on this Smoky Night.

Extension Activities:

*Talk to the students about the danger of fire and what to do when there is one. You can demonstrate the stop, drop and roll technique and have the students take turns practicing.

*Discuss the important of relations between neighbors, friends, family etc. and how everyone should be kind to each other.

*The pictures in the book are very different. Have the students discuss how they are different from other books they have read. Let them take their own picture on a camera and print it out.

Smoky Night

Author- Eve Bunting

Title- Smokey Night

Illustrator- David Diaz

Year-1994

Genre- Caldecott

Format- Hardcover

Publisher- Harcourt Brace and Company

Reading Level- Early Elementary-assisted

Interest Level- Elementary

Topics- Fires, cats, story picture book, caldecott

Summary- This book is about a young boy who lives with his mother and his cat named Jasmine. He loves the cat very much. One day there is a lot of fighting going on outside their house. Mama makes the little boy go to bed and tells him not to worry about anything. In the middle of the night they are waken because of a fire. The little boy cannot find the cat anywhere. He is very sad. They are escorted out of the house and to a shelter. A little bit later a firefighter walks in with his cat and even found him a friend.

Extension Activity- For this extension activity you could have the students write about a special animal or friend that they are/were close with. Have them talk about all the things they do together and how sad they would be if something happened to them.