| Title
& Summary of Book |
Information
about Author & Illustrator |
Genre/Theme/ Grade Level |
Activities |
Common Core Standards |
| My
Dog is as Smelly as Dirty Socks: And Other Funny Family Portraits
(2004) The main character's teacher asks her to draw a picture of her family. Even though the teacher thinks her artwork is "Very Good!", the artist does not think the pictures really show her family's true characteristics. She uses everyday objects to complete her illustrations to capture who her family is. |
Author/Illustrator: Hanock Piven http://www.pivenworld.com/ Visit Hanock Piven's web site. He is an Israeli illustrator. He does workshops and lectures around the world. He shows children and adults how to create art using collage and everyday objects. You can even post a picture of your own artwork and see his art work and much, much more! He has written several children's books. His most recent book is My Best Friend is as Sharp as a Pencil. |
Fiction |
Activity: After the teacher has
finished reading the book, children create their own portrait using
everyday objects to represent their unique characteristics. The
students share their artwork with each other to better know their
peers. This book uses similes. The students create their portrait and
then write sentences describing themselves using similes. Teacher'sDomain: This is a video clip of the story being read. http://www.teachersdomain.org/resource/btl10.ela.early.mydogisassmellyasdirtysocks/ More ideas for integrating the book throughout the content areas: Handout |
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| You
Look Ridiculous said the Rhinoceros to the Hippopotamus (1973) A rhinoceros tells the hippopotamus that she looks ridiculous because she does not have a horn. The hipopotamus begins to worry about this and begins to ask other animals in the jungle if they think she looks ridiculous. Of course they all think she does because she does not have a feature that makes each animal look unique. For example, no spots like the leopard, no floppy ears like the elephant, etc. The hippo has a dream that she she has changed appearance so that she now has a long neck like the giraffe and a shell like the turtle, and so on. Ultimately she learns to be happy with who she is. |
Author/Illustrator: Bernard Waber http://www.hmhbooks.com/authors/waber/ Bernard Waber is most famous for his character Lyle the Crocodile. Lyle the Crocodile is 40 years old. This website includes Bernard Waber's biography, a list of books, information about Lyle's fortieth birthday celebration, and interview and articles about Bernard Waber. His book Courage was written after September 11. The book teaches children about bravery. |
Fiction |
Activity 1: This book makes a
great read aloud and fosters listening comprehension. Introduce the
book to the students, and then tell them that the hippopotamus is going
to meet lots of animals on her walk through the jungle and they need to
try to remember them all. As you read the story pause to let the
students figure out what each animal tells the hippopotamus she is
missing. Stop reading after the hippopotamus has her dream. Ask
the students who the animals were and what their special feature was?
Then have the students draw a picture that shows what the hippopotamus
looks like in her dream. When they have finished their drawings, finish
reading the book. What did the hippopotamus learn? Activity 2: This book contains a great deal of dialogue. Display one of the pages on the document camera. Ask the students how they know which words the animals are speaking. Create a list of guidelines for using quotation marks. Then have the students select an animal that wasn't in the book, and write a conversation between the hippopotamus and the new animal. Be sure to use correct punctuation. Another suggestion is to have students do this with a partner. One student writes the dialogue for the hippopotamus and the other student write the new animal's diaglogue. |
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