An original tall tale about Lil who was born with a book in her hand.    

Lesson Idea:

Writers Workshop: As part of a unit on tall tales, read aloud Library Lil and discuss the elements of exaggeration that exist.  After examining the elements of exaggeration through multiple mentor texts, ask students to write a tall tale about themselves.

©2012 by Dawn Little for Picture This! Teaching with Picture Books. All Amazon links are affiliate links and may result in my receiving a small commission. This is at no additional cost to you.

When the weatherman predicts an overnight snowfall, the narrator dreams of all the fun he can have on his day off from school.  Children will enjoy the surprise ending. 

Lesson Idea:

Six Traits: Organization: Read aloud Snow Day! Discuss the surprise ending.  Pair it with other books with surprise endings (First Day Jitters, I Want My Hat Back) as mentor texts.  Have students use the models to guide their own writing by encouraging students to write a piece with a surprise ending.

©2012 by Dawn Little for Picture This! Teaching with Picture Books. All Amazon links are affiliate links and may result in my receiving a small commission. This is at no additional cost to you.

A cute story of a slug who gives his top ten tips on how to teach a slug to read.  The tips mirror actual strategies that adults should use when teaching children to read. 

Lesson Idea:

Motivating Readers: Read aloud How to Teach a Slug to Read and discuss how the strategies are similar to strategies teachers or parents use with children.  Create a class list of strategies good readers use to post andrefer to as students are learning how to read.

©2012 by Dawn Little for Picture This! Teaching with Picture Books. All Amazon links are affiliate links and may result in my receiving a small commission. This is at no additional cost to you.

It was a normal summer night in the city. . . hot, noisy, busy.  Then the lights went out. The story of one family and what they do when the lights go out. 

Lesson Idea:

Making Inferences: Read aloud Blackoutand model for students how the pictures tell as much of the story as the text does (maybe more).  Model how to make inferences using the pictures as clues (Why might the lights have gone out? Why does the family continue to keep the lights out even when they are back on?)

©2012 by Dawn Little for Picture This! Teaching with Picture Books. All Amazon links are affiliate links and may result in my receiving a small commission. This is at no additional cost to you.

It was February 1, 1960.  They didn’t need menus.  Their order was simple.  A doughnut and coffee, with cream on the side.  The story of the sit-in at Woolworth’s during the WHITES ONLY edict of the era is poignantly told through this picture book. 

Note: This month, I will share several Black Eyed Susan nominees. Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down (Jane Addams Honor Book (Awards)) is a 2011-2012 nominee.

Lesson Idea:

History Connection: I love to read picture books with historical significance.  This is one such story.  Read aloud Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down (Jane Addams Honor Book (Awards)) and discuss the historical significance during a unit on civil rights. Pairing Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down (Jane Addams Honor Book (Awards)) with If A Bus Could Talk: The Story of Rosa Parks by Faith Ringgold or Rosa (Caldecott Honor Book) by Nikki Giovanni would make a great picture book unit on civil rights and perhaps make the concept easier for students to understand.

Writer’s Workshop: Use Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down (Jane Addams Honor Book (Awards)) as a mentor text for history based picture books.  Provide other models of history based picture books.  Then have students pick a specific historical event and write their own picture book.

©2011 by Dawn Little for Picture This! Teaching with Picture Books. All Amazon links are affiliate links and may result in my receiving a small commission. This is at no additional cost to you.

When the ant is invited to dinner with the King of the Jungle, she is mortified when the other party goers gobble up dessert (halving each piece for each party goer) leaving nothing but a crumb for the ant to share with the lion.  As a result, she offers to bake him a special dessert for the next night.  A lesson in manners and math, this book makes a great read aloud.    

Note: This month, I will share several Black Eyed Susan nominees. The Lion’s Share: A Tale of Halving Cake and Eating It, Too is a 2011-2012 nominee.

Lesson Idea:

Math Connection: Read aloud The Lion’s Share: A Tale of Halving Cake and Eating It, Too at the beginning of a math unit on multiplication and division.  Provide students with manipulatives and have them re-create the scenario when the animals halve the cake and then again when the animals double the cake.

©2011 by Dawn Little for Picture This! Teaching with Picture Books. All Amazon links are affiliate links and may result in my receiving a small commission. This is at no additional cost to you.

Like most children, you probably think a pig parade is a terrific idea. . . this book begins, but the author shows you exactly why a pig parade is a terrible idea. 

Note: This month, I will share several Black Eyed Susan nominees.  A Pig Parade is a Terrible Idea is a 2011-2012 nominee.

Lesson Idea:

Model Texts: I’ve written about model texts before, and this one is a great example of a model text to teach persuasive writing to students.  Read aloud A Pig Parade is a Terrible Idea and discuss the techniques the author uses to persuade the reader that the idea of a pig parade is a bad one.  The author also utilizes great sequencing words and a surprise wrap up that’s worth investigating.  Perhaps, use the ending as a starter for students to write their own persuasive piece.

©2011 by Dawn Little for Picture This! Teaching with Picture Books. All Amazon links are affiliate links and may result in my receiving a small commission. This is at no additional cost to you.

Dave was an important American artist.  Dave was a potter and a slave, who was gifted in the way of words.  Not only did Dave create pottery, he added a poem to each one.

Note: This month, I will share several Black Eyed Susan nominees.  The Black-Eyed Susan Committee of the Maryland Association of School Librarians nominates books each fall. Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave is a 2011-2012 nominee.

Lesson Idea:

Trait: Word Choice: After reading aloud Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave, discuss the author’s use of words to describe the life of Dave.  In the author’s note in the back, Hill describes how he began his own poem about Dave to create this intriguing picture book.  How does the author use poetry to describe Dave’s life?  How does he use descriptive words? Encourage students to work with words to create a writing piece that is descriptive and perhaps, poetic.

©2011 by Dawn Little for Picture This! Teaching with Picture Books. All Amazon links are affiliate links and may result in my receiving a small commission. This is at no additional cost to you.

A bear loses his hat and asks the other animals if they have seen it.  A surprise ending might catch the reader off guard. 

Note: I originally learned about this book on Twitter via my Professional Learning Network (PLN).  If you aren’t familiar with it already, Twitter is a fantastic professional development resource!

Lesson Idea:

Writer’s Workshop: Read aloud I Want My Hat Back and analyze the way the author indicated dialogue.  Provides students with other books in which the author uses dialogue in non-traditional ways. Have students analyze all books and choose one style to practice with in their own writing.  Disclaimer: This idea came from Donalyn Miller, a fantastic resource in all things reading!

Trait: Organization: After reading aloud I Want My Hat Back, discuss the surprise ending with students.  What direction did you think the author was going in?  How did the ending stand out? Analyze other picture books with surprise endings and have students practice using this technique in their own writing.

©2011 by Dawn Little for Picture This! Teaching with Picture Books. All Amazon links are affiliate links and may result in my receiving a small commission. This is at no additional cost to you.

A “how to write a book” book just for kids that shows how to plan, write, design, and illustrate your own book.   

Lesson Idea:

Writer’s Workshop: Read aloud Look at My Book: How Kids Can Write & Illustrate Terrific Books and use it as a guide when beginning a new writing piece in writer’s workshop.  Discus with students the different components to the writing process, chart student ideas to display in class, and have students create either individual or a class “how to” guide for writing and illustrating a book.

©2011 by Dawn Little for Picture This! Teaching with Picture Books. All Amazon links are affiliate links and may result in my receiving a small commission. This is at no additional cost to you.