Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?

Author/Illustrator: Bill Martin Jr./Eric Carle

About the Author:

http://www.billmartinjr.com/bill_martin
Bill Martin wrote for almost 60 years and published his first book called The Little Squeegy Bug -- The Story of the Firefly in 1945. He is the famous author of the classic Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?, and many others. Martin passed away in 2004 but he will always be considered "America's favorite children's author!"

Genre: Fiction, Science

Grade Level: K-1
Theme: Animals, Colors

Synopsis:

This book is about different animals and what they see as well as learning about different colors.  The book includes a bear, a bird, a duck, a horse, a frog, a car, a dog, a sheep, a goldfish for animals but it also includes a teacher and children so when children read this book, they can see they are included.

Pre Reading Activity:

Activity:
Ask the students if they have ever read or have seen this book before.  If they haven't ask them to tell you what they see around the classroom.  If they have ask them if they notice any patterns in the book!

Post Reading Activity:

Activity:
After reading the story, create a graph with the class about the different characters in the story.  Have the children name off each of the characters in the story and use this to make a bar graph.  Use the colors from the story, (brown, red, yellow, blue, green, purple, white, black, and gold), and have these colors correspond to the construction paper each child will choose based on which was their favorite character.  They will then write their names on the construction paper color they chose and place it on the graph according to the animal it matched.  After the graph is finished, you can ask questions to engage them in thinking mathematically about which animal did students like the most, which had more, the Red Bird or the Blue Horse, which had less, the Brown Bear of the Purple Cat, etc. and have them use the graph to help them answer the questions.

Reflection:

I think this is a great book to use because it repeats and students will easily be able to continue the phrase starting with "Brown bear, brown bear, what do you see?" to "children, children, what do you see?"  This helps them listen to the story and get a better understanding of what they are reading.  I wish they could have had the colors match the actual color of the animal, but it shows the students different colors and animals they see in everyday life.  It is also a good book to use to introduce colors and there are multiple activites you can do after reading this book to make students familiar with colors.

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

Author/Illustrator: Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault/Lois Ehlert

About the Author:

http://www.billmartinjr.com/bill_martin

Bill Martin wrote for almost 60 years and published his first book called The Little Squeegy Bug -- The Story of the Firefly in 1945.  He is the famous author of the classic Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?, and many others.  Martin passed away in 2004 but he will always be considered "America's favorite children's author!"
http://www.johnarchambault.com/
John Archambault wrote this book and dedicated it to his son Arie Alexander Archambault when he was considered to be the "new baby boom boom."  Archambault is a modern day alchemist and is developing a series of Big Books for Childcraft Education Corporation.  These books will incorporate musical CDs with read-aloud and sing-along styles to aid in developing fluency and associations with print for early readers.  This will also make it fun and effective to listen and sing along.  Some of these will include I Love the Mountains, Turtle Song, Grandmother's Garden, The Birth of a Whale, and many others.

Genre: Fiction, English

Grade Level: K-1
Theme: The alphabet

Synopsis:

This book is about all the letters of the alphabet trying to make it up a coconut tree.  All the letters unfortunately fall out because there are too many in the tree and some are injured but in the end letter A dares everyone to climb up again!

Pre Reading Activity:

Activity:

Ask the students to write down the alphabet in their journals to see if they know it.  Then say the alphabet together to get them familiar with the letters before reading the book.

Post Reading Activity:

Activity:
After reading the story, have the students make their own coconut tree using the letters in their name!  Remember to tell them that the letters can be jumbled around the tree but they have to make sure they can tell what their name is! You can use brown construction paper to create a trunk with black X's going down the trunk, brown construction paper to create the coconuts, and green construction paper to make 4 leaves by rounding them at the ends so they look like an elongated oval.  You will also need foam letters or sticker letters for the children to use. 

Reflection:

I think this is a great book to use because it rhymes and repeats and students will easily be able to say the famous phrase "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom will there be enough room?"  They will have fun learning the alphabet in a creative way and be able to create their own coconut trees using different letters or even their names!

The Berenstain Bears' Moving Day

Author/Illustrator: Stan & Jan Berenstain

About the Author:

http://www.berenstainbears.com/

Stan and Jan Berenstain met in an art school in Philadelphia. They became good friends and when World War II began Stan went into the Army. After 3 years he returned and they married shortly after. They introduced their first Berenstain Bears book in 1962 and this book, New Baby, came in 1974 where Smal Bear becomes Brother Bear. They had two children, Leo and Michael, and Michael has become a writer/illustrator on his own and decided to join his parents in the 1980s. They Berenstain Bears books became a popular tv series as well. The Berenstain Bears are also on display in many children's museum exhibits including a permanent one at the Stong National Museum of Play in Rochester, New York. Unfortunately, Stan passed away in November, 2005 at age 82. However, Jan and her son Mike, continue to write and illustrat Berenstain Bears books in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. They consider this a beautiful region that looks like Berenstain Bear Country.

Genre: Fiction

Grade Level: K-2
Theme: New Adventures/Beginnings

Synopsis:

This book is about the Bear family moving from their cave to their new tree house in Bear Country.  It talks about how it is getting harder for Mama Bear to grow vegetables on the mountainside and the trees Papa Bear needed were starting to diminish in number and it was time to move.  Brother Bear was nervous they would have to leave all his things behind but they packed them up to bring with them.  He was upset he could not bring his friends but his parents assured him that he would make new friends and he would still be able to keep in touch with his old friends.  Sure enough when they arrive at their new home, their neighbors arrived with gifts to welcome them.

Pre Reading Activity:

Activity:

Have each student share with the class if they have ever moved to a different house.  If so, have them share what it was like for them.

Post Reading Activity:

Activity:
After reading the story, have students write in their journals what they would make sure would be packed to take to a new house if they ever had to move!  They can also talk about what it would be like if they had to change schools and be the new kid in school!

Reflection:

I think this is a great book to use because it has students think of what they would need/want to bring when they move into a new house.  They would also be able to share what they would have to leave behind and how they could keep in touch with friends they already have.  They could also branch out and say what they think it would be like if they were the new kid in school.

To Market...To Market

Author/Illustrator:  Vilma Zuliani/Kathy Morrissey

About the Author:

Vilma is a published author.  Another book she has written is Randy Robin Finds A Friend.  She is also has published credits with I Believe in Make Believe.

Genre: Historical fiction

Grade Level:  5-8
Theme: Life in the community/History

Synopsis:

This book is about a little boy named Johnny who lives in a little town just South of Boston.  It talks about how every weekend they go into Boston to the Haymarket to buy foods and see all the vendors they always see.  They notice that one of the vendors is not there and finally they find out he is sick with the flu and too weak to run his stand.  They go back the following weekend hoping he is there but again he is not.  So they visit him and find out he is still too weak but feeling better and Johnny offers to help Rico work his stand.  He has a job with Rico and works throughout the summer.  Once summer ends he has to stop working the weekends with Rico because of school but he would still help Rico every Saturday when he went to the market until summer started again.  Throughout the book there are references to different things located in Boston.  For example, the old North Church with its tall white steeple where laterns hung to warn the soldiers that the British were coming.  It references the Boston Tea Party as well as Faneuil Hall.

Pre Reading Activity:

Activity:

Ask students if they have ever been to the Boston Market or to Boston in general.  Have them write down things their families buy in their own markets before reading the story to see similarities and differences among each market once the story has been read.

Post Reading Activity:

Activity:
After reading the story, put students in groups and have them become researchers and use the computer to look up different information about the American Revolution.  Give each group a different part to look up such as where the idea for the latterns came up, Paul Revere's ride, the Boston Tea Party and other information related to the American Revolution.  Have students then become reporters and report their findings to the class.

Reflection:

I think this is a great book to use for older grades because of its reference to the American Revolution.  This book would help students learn about the Revolution in a way that is interesting for them by letting them use the computer instead of reading a textbook.  I thought this was also a good book because it gives a lot of background information about the market in Boston as well as historical references that students can further research!

Scotty's Way

Author/Illustrator:  Jennifer Fura/Samantha Smith and Matthew Ulrich

About the Author:

http://www.jacketflap.com/profile.asp?member=jen219
Jennifer lives in Syracuse, New York with her husband and two children, Scotty and Carly.  She spends an enormous amount of time with her family and created a book about Scotty and his accident to help others become aware and understanding and with challenges "anything is possible!"

Genre: Non-fiction, Special Needs/Disabilities

Grade Level: K-6
Theme: Understanding Differences/Disabilities

Synopsis:

This book is about Jennifer's son Scotty who was in an accident when he was two and a half years old and lost his right arm.  This book shows the challenges he faces everyday and how he is ready and willing to face each challenge as if their is nothing wrong!  Sometimes he gets frustrated but he knows anything is possible and you just have to work through it because there is ALWAYS a way!

Pre Reading Activity:

Activity:

Have each student write how people are different from each other and share with the class.

Post Reading Activity:

Activity:
After reading the story, have students write in their journals about how they can help someone like Scotty and have them share with the class.

Reflection:

I think this is a great book to use for any level because it helps students to see that anything is possible and there is always a way.  This would be a good book to help students realize that there are some challenges that we face everyday and some people's challenges are greater than others.  It will be a good book to use to explain disabilities to students and let them see that these children are just like us but sometimes they need a little extra help!

The Berenstain Bears' New Baby

Author/Illustrator:  Stan & Jan Berenstain

About the Author:

http://www.berenstainbears.com/

Stan and Jan Berenstain met in an art school in Philadelphia.  They became good friends and when World War II began Stan went into the Army.  After 3 years he returned and they married shortly after.  They introduced their first Berenstain Bears book in 1962 and this book, New Baby, came in 1974 where Smal Bear becomes Brother Bear.  They had two children, Leo and Michael, and Michael has become a writer/illustrator on his own and decided to join his parents in the 1980s.  They Berenstain Bears books became a popular tv series as well.  The Berenstain Bears are also on display in many children's museum exhibits including a permanent one at the Stong National Museum of Play in Rochester, New York.  Unfortunately, Stan passed away in November, 2005 at age 82.  However, Jan and her son Mike, continue to write and illustrat Berenstain Bears books in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.  They consider this a beautiful region that looks like Berenstain Bear Country.

Genre: Fiction

Grade Level: K-2
Theme: Responsibility

Synopsis:

This book is about Brother Bear outgrowing his bed and needing a new one.  He outgrows it just in time because Sister Bear is on her way and will be needing Brother Bear's bed to sleep in.  It shows how Father Bear takes wood and makes a new bed while Mother Bear is at home preparing for the arrival of Sister Bear and making sure the house is taken care of.  It shows different roles each play and when Brother Bear says he is excited to be a big brother, there will be responsibilities that lie ahead!

 

 

Pre Reading Activity:

Activity:

Have each student share what they think the word responsibility means and write it on the board.

Post Reading Activity:

Activity:
After reading the story, have students write in their journals what respsonsibilites they will take on around the house or what responsibilities they already have.  Also have them write down what responsibilities they have at school.

Reflection:

I think this is a great book to use because it has students think of what Brother Bear might have to start doing to help his parents because they have a new baby.  It also lets the students learn the meaning of the word responsibility and how they can be responsible at home and at school.

Barack Obama 44th President of the United States

Author/Illustrator:  Jill C. Wheeler

About the Author:

Jill C. Wheeler is a published author of children's books. She has wrote many other biographies about other authors including George Bush, Dr. Suess, Judy Blume, and R.L. Stine.

Genre: Social Studies

Grade Level: 3-6
Theme: Presidents of the United States

Synopsis:

This book is about Barack Obama and his life before he was president.  It talks about his family and schooling as well as his entrance into politics and his campaigns before becoming president.  It also discusses the 2008 election campaign and his way into presidency.

Pre Reading Activity:

Activity:

Have the class try and come up with all 44 presidents of the United States (they do not have to be in order) and write them on the board so the class can see how many they have, who they have and who they are missing.

Post Reading Activity:

Activity:

After reading the story, have students write letters to send to the president with any questions they may have for him! Even though they might not get a respond, you can also have them set up a topic to debate upon during class time.

Reflection:

I think this is a great book to use because it has a lot of helpful information in the back of the book about the line of succession, the different branches of government, the benefits of being a president, the qualifications of running for president, information on the electoral college, term of office, a complete list of the presidents as well as the party they are from, when they took and left office, how many terms they served and their vice president.  This is very helpful information when teaching students about the presidents of the United States in a social studies lesson.  There is also a section that has the mailing address and email address to contact the president!