Trains and Giants
My Story Corner was sparsely attended today---only about 5 kids showed up today. I'm really not sure why attendance was so small. I moved past the ocean and diving themes of last week. I thought I would try a train theme---which I'm not sure if it went over that well.
Books
1. Mailing May by Michael O. Tunnell, illustrated by Ted Rand
2. Roller Coaster by Marla Frazee
3. The Spiffiest Giant by Julia Donaldson, illustrated by Axel Scheffler
4. I Dream of Trains by Angela Johnson, illustrated by Loren Long
5. Diary of a Wombat by Jackie French, illustrated by Bruce Whatley (repeated from June 18)
I have about 50 books pre-selected for my Story Corners this summer. I usually spend about 30 minutes looking over my books and trying to pick 4 or 5 books to read for a particular day. I still am not sure what age group I am going to get any particular day. My group ranged in age from about 2 to 8 today...making it very difficult to find the "right" books. But I noticed that I had several books on my shelf related to trains (I consider a roller coaster in the train family).
Mailing May and Roller Coaster I knew would both be received well, but I Dream of Trains I wasn't sure. In fact at one point I put down I Dream of Trains and went right to The Spiffiest Giant. Well the kids were still eager for more stories so I tried I Dream of Trains, well I should have trusted my instincts--the kids weren't into it, I wasn't into it...so we were all bored and depressed by the end. The story is about a young black child picking cotton in the south and dreaming of riding the train with the legendary Casey Jones. Of course it talks about wanting to escape the fields and the death of Casey Jones. I need to read the book again, but on this particular day it just wasn't the right book. This book should probably be saved for children ages 8 and up.
Mailing May is a fun story about a girl being sent as a package to her grandmother in Idaho during the late 1800's. It is a fun story that paints an interesting picture of olden days and adults bending the rules to make something happen. This story can be understood by children 6 and up---but there are a few tricky vocabulary words that will need to be explained to children.
Roller Coaster is a fun and colorful book detailing a girl's first ride on a roller coaster. The book creates the feeling of actually being on a roller coaster as it zips and turns. It talks about fear and overcoming fear. This is a very fun read aloud book. Good for all ages.
The Spiffiest Giant is the story of a giant who is a slob and decides one day he should dress better. He is also a very kind giant who gives all his clothes away to help the various animals in the forest. In the end the giant decides he doesn't need the fancy clothes because he would rather be comfortable. There is lots of rhyming with animal names...makes it easy for children to participate as the story goes on. A fun read aloud especially for kids ages 3 to 7.
After the mistake of trying to close with I Dream of Trains, I brought out the book Diary of a Wombat again. I needed something that would allow all the children to leave on a positive note. The book worked as planned.
Books
1. Mailing May by Michael O. Tunnell, illustrated by Ted Rand
2. Roller Coaster by Marla Frazee
3. The Spiffiest Giant by Julia Donaldson, illustrated by Axel Scheffler
4. I Dream of Trains by Angela Johnson, illustrated by Loren Long
5. Diary of a Wombat by Jackie French, illustrated by Bruce Whatley (repeated from June 18)
I have about 50 books pre-selected for my Story Corners this summer. I usually spend about 30 minutes looking over my books and trying to pick 4 or 5 books to read for a particular day. I still am not sure what age group I am going to get any particular day. My group ranged in age from about 2 to 8 today...making it very difficult to find the "right" books. But I noticed that I had several books on my shelf related to trains (I consider a roller coaster in the train family).
Mailing May and Roller Coaster I knew would both be received well, but I Dream of Trains I wasn't sure. In fact at one point I put down I Dream of Trains and went right to The Spiffiest Giant. Well the kids were still eager for more stories so I tried I Dream of Trains, well I should have trusted my instincts--the kids weren't into it, I wasn't into it...so we were all bored and depressed by the end. The story is about a young black child picking cotton in the south and dreaming of riding the train with the legendary Casey Jones. Of course it talks about wanting to escape the fields and the death of Casey Jones. I need to read the book again, but on this particular day it just wasn't the right book. This book should probably be saved for children ages 8 and up.
Mailing May is a fun story about a girl being sent as a package to her grandmother in Idaho during the late 1800's. It is a fun story that paints an interesting picture of olden days and adults bending the rules to make something happen. This story can be understood by children 6 and up---but there are a few tricky vocabulary words that will need to be explained to children.
Roller Coaster is a fun and colorful book detailing a girl's first ride on a roller coaster. The book creates the feeling of actually being on a roller coaster as it zips and turns. It talks about fear and overcoming fear. This is a very fun read aloud book. Good for all ages.
The Spiffiest Giant is the story of a giant who is a slob and decides one day he should dress better. He is also a very kind giant who gives all his clothes away to help the various animals in the forest. In the end the giant decides he doesn't need the fancy clothes because he would rather be comfortable. There is lots of rhyming with animal names...makes it easy for children to participate as the story goes on. A fun read aloud especially for kids ages 3 to 7.
After the mistake of trying to close with I Dream of Trains, I brought out the book Diary of a Wombat again. I needed something that would allow all the children to leave on a positive note. The book worked as planned.
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