The Glorious Mother Goose

Author: -Cooper Edens

Title: -The Glorious Mother Goose

Illustrator: -Various Artists

Publisher: -Atheneum

Year: -1998








Format: -Hardcover Book

Genre: -Mother Goose Books

Reading Level: -Assisted Reader

Interest Level: -Preschool, Elementary


Topics: -Mother Goose,

Summary: -Cooper Edens is known for his quirky plots and funny, witty stories. The colorful illustrations definitely helped the classic stories come to life. There are a collection of about forty-two stories that are descriptive with fun rhymes and interesting pictures.

Extension Activities:
-Pick your favorite story in the book. Add four rhyming lines along to tales and make illustrations that show the changes that you have made.
-Pick your favorite character in the stories. Why is it your favorite character? Why is it your favorite story? Write a paragraph on why you chose that one out of all of them.

Ten Dirty Pigs

Author: Carol Roth

Title: -Ten Dirty Pigs
Illustrator: -Pamela Paparone
Publisher: North-South Books

Year: -1999

Format: Softcover
Genre: - Counting
Reading Level: - Assisted Reader; Ages 4-8
Interest Level: - Preschool, Primary, Elementary School
Topics: -Counting, Concept,  Pictures


Summary: This book is an interactive way for children to learn counting.  The book has two books in it. One is called Ten Dirty Pigs. It goes through counting the pigs as they get into the bath.  The book rhymes as well so the students can feel involved. As you finish one part of the book it tells you to flip the book and when you do the title of the book reads Ten Clean Pigs. Then it counts and rhymes how the ten clean pigs got ready.  This book would be fun for children to read themselves as well.

Extension Activities:
Have children finger-paint with brown paint on a paper plate to make a mud puddle.  When it dries cut out a picture of a pig and have the children color the pig like it is in the mud.

The View from Saturday

Author: E.L. Konigsburg

Title: The View from Saturday

Publisher: Atheneum

Year: -1996

Format: Hardcover
Genre: - Contemporary Realistic Fiction
Reading Level: - Emergent Reader;Ages 9-12
Interest Level: Middle School
Topics: Newbery, Teamwork


Summary: Four members of Mrs. Olinski's sixth grade class at Epiphany Middle School in Epiphany, New York are chosen for participation in an Academic Bowl.  How these four were selected becomes the question of the day.  It is indeed the question of the book. Short descriptions of the teams surprising progression through several contests from local to state are highlighted.  Intertwined with these descriptions are delightful stories about each member. Other members of Mrs. Olinski's class are also important characters in the book. This book is something that any student can relate to.  There are also moments that they can learn and grow from as well.

Extension Activities:
Design a board game with questions similar to those asked in the Academic Bowl in the novel.  Include directions for the game as well as playing pieces.

Maniac Magee

Author: Jerry Spinelli

Title: Maniac Magee

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Year: -1990

Format: Paperback
Genre: - Contemporary Realistic Fiction
Reading Level: - Emergent  Reader
Interest Level: - Late Elementary, Middle School
Topics: -Newbery, Death, Racism


Summary: Jeffrey "Maniac" Magee is a young boy who had to deal with the horrific death of his parents.  After their death, he ran away from home and found himself in a small town plagued by racism. This town was literally divided in half by the main road.  The black people lived on one side, and the white people lived on the other. The two groups did not even imagine crossing the main road. Maniac, however, does not understand or believe in the racism that is felt by this town. So, he travels throughout the town to try to change the beliefs of the people who live there.

Extension Activities:
Make a line of house shapes and put into each the name of a place where Jeffrey Magee lived. You'll need a good many places. I came up with: his parents, his aunt and uncle, the Beales, the buffalo pen, the baseball room, the McNabs, the Beales again, the Pickwells, the buffalo pen again, backyard,s the buffalo pen again, and the Beales.  There may be more. Children could pick one of the dwellings, describe it, and tell what it did to Magee and what he did to it.

Do Lions Live on Lily Pads?

Author: -Melanie Walsh

Title: Do Lions Live on Lily Pads?
Illustrator: -Melanie Walsh
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children

Year: -2006

Format: Softcover
Genre: - Concept
Reading Level: - Assisted Reader
Interest Level: - Preschool, Primary, Elementary School
Topics:  Pictures, Animals


Summary: This book is a concept book that helps younger children connect where animals live.  For example, one of the phrases is "Do crocodiles live in shells?" "No, but snails do." It shows silly pictures of a crocodile in a shell but then it explains that crocodiles do not live in shells snails do.  It shows the children what animals live where and which ones don't in a fun way.

Extension Activities:
Set up a game that consists of all the animals in the story and their homes.  Have a matching game that the whole class can play.

The Neighborhood Mother Goose

Author: -Nina Crews

Title: -The Neighborhood Mother Goose

Illustrator: -Nina Crews

Publisher: -GreenWillow Books

Year: -2004











Format: -Hardcover Book

Genre: -Mother Goose Books

Reading Level: -Assisted Reader

Interest Level: -Preschool, Early Elementary

Topics: -Tales, Mother Goose, Animals,

Summary: -The neighborhood Mother Goose contained both very well known and lesser known tales. They also contain illustrations of the city at night. It is a much more modern version of Mother Goose tales than any I have ever seen. Preschoolers will enjoy seeing kids like them in these illustrations and rhyming that is imaginative and creative.

Extension Activities:
-Have each child chose one Mother goose story that is their favorite. Have them make new and more exciting illustrations that have to do with the poem but try to relate the illustrations even more to your life. Explain the picture you created to the class.
- Draw a picture of your favorite character in the book. Why is it your favorite character. Which is your favorite Mother Goose tale?

Color Zoo

Author: -Lois Ehlert

Title: -Color Zoo
Illustrator: Lois Ehlert
Publisher: HarperCollins

Year: -1989

Format: Softcover
Genre: - Concept Book

Reading Level: - Assisted Reader
Interest Level: - Baby-Preschool
Topics: -Caldecott, Concept, Shapes, Colors, Animals


Summary:This is a great book for preschool and kindergartners. It has a very creative way to show shapes, colors and animals.  There are different shapes that turn into animals.  And when you turn to the next page the same shapes make a new animal.  Then on the back of the pages it has the shapes and their names.  For example Tiger turns into Mouse then Fox and on the backs of those pages are circle, square and triangle.  Then it shows all the shapes used on the previous pages all on one page.  Children will love all the different animals that each different shapes make.

Extension Activities:
Have the construction paper cut into shapes and different colors.  Have the children make their own animals with the shapes.  Then have a big bulletin board that says "Color Zoo" and have a zoo of all their animals.

Where the Wild Things Are

Author: -Maurice Sendak

Title: Where the Wild Things Are
Illustrator: -Maurice Sendak
Publisher: Harper Collins

Year: -1963

Format: Ebook
Genre: - Caldecott
Reading Level: - Beginning Reader; Ages 4-8
Interest Level: - Preschool, Primary, Elementary School
Topics: -Caldecott, Pictures, Imagination, Adventure


Summary:This is the story of Max, a little boy who takes an imaginary journey to a land of the Wild Things. As Max's imagination unfolds, his bedroom is transformed into an entirely new world. When he sails to the land of the Wild Things, they quickly make him their ruler.  The Wild Things are tamed under Max's fearless leadership and enjoy a wild rumpus planned by Max.  Ultimately Max leaves the land of the Wild Things, despite their loving protests, to return home where he finds his dinner waiting for him.  This is one of the staple Caldecott books of all time.  Children will remember this book for the rest of their lives.  It is a book they will want to read over and over.

Extension Activities:
The children can make Wild Thing Masks.  All they will need is a paper plate paper, scissors, glue, crayons and whatever collage materials you can find, such as yarn and fabric scraps, buttons, cotton balls, pasta, tissue paper, wrapping paper, ribbon, etc. In advance, cut eye holes in the paper plate. Then encourage them to use the collage materials and his/her imagination to create a monster mask.

Flotsam

Author: -David Wiesner

Title: -Flotsam

Illustrator: -David Wiesner

Publisher: -Clarion Books

Year: -2006




Format: -Hardcover Book

Genre: -Picture Book (No Text)

Reading Level: -Assisted Reader

Interest Level: -Preschool, Early Elementary

Topics: -Sea, Underwater, Pictures, Beach.

Summary: -Flotsam is about a little boy who accidentally leaves his camera behind on a trip to the beach. It is an underwater camera, and the boy decides to develop the pictures once he gets it. He finds all these pictures of underwater creatures and is so interested in the underwater world, he even finds pictures of kids long ago who found the camera just like him. In the end, he decides to take a picture of himself on the beach and then throw the camera back for some new, lucky kid to find. The illustrations in this book are greatly detailed and show great descriptions of the underwater world you step into by each page you turn.

Extension Activities:
-Have each child draw a full page picture of any beach or ocean they have gone to, on the back side draw what they would see underwater. Have them make detailed illustrations just like David Wiesner does in Flotsam.
-Have each child make an illustration that has to do with a vacation they have been on, or a place they would like to go. Explain with the picture why they would be so intrigued with this certain place.

Free Fall

Author: -David Wiesner

Title: -Free Fall

Illustrator: -David Wiesner

Publisher: -Clarion Books

Year: -1990


Format: -Hardcover Book

Genre: -Picture Book (No Text)

Reading Level: -Assisted Reader

Interest Level: -Preschool, Early Elementary

Topics: -Imagination, Dreaming, Exploring.

Summary: -In this book the boy falls asleep and dives into his own fantasy. He is indulged into both real life things but they are made unrealistic. The imagination pushed into this book is amazing, Wiesner does a great job of never setting limits and using his amazing illustrations to detail the book so well.

Extension Activities:
-Draw an explicit picture/storyboard of your craziest dream ever. Make sure that their are NO words on one side, just illustrations. On the back of the paper make a detailed description about the same dream. Switch papers with a friend and see if they can explain your dream to you as well as you did with words on the back of it. This activity shows how hard it is to get a point across without using words, you have to be very specific with your pictures and everything must have a meaning to it.

Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears

Author: -Verna Aardema

Title: -Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears

Illustrator: -Leo and Diane Dillon

Publisher: -Dial Press

Year: -1975





Format: -Hardcover Book

Genre: -Picture Storybook

Reading Level: -Assisted Reader

Interest Level: -Elementary

Topics: -Tales, Animals, African, Stories.

Summary: -This book is a West African Tale in which one lie to one animal can cause a chain of reactions to a bunch of other animals. The story goes from a mosquito to an lizard and so on and so fourth until the animals hold court to find out who is responsible for all of the nonsense. The mosquito ultimately finds out but remains buzzing in everyone's ears to see if they are still mad at it.

Extension Activities:
-Draw a picture of your favorite animal in the story. Explain on the back what they did that cause and effected a new outcome, also, why they are your favorite.
-This is a Caldecott Awarded book, which means the illustrations are great. Ask the kids what they would think the book would be like without pictures. How would the book change, would it make it better or worse? What do they think would be the final outcome.