If You Ever Want to Bring an Alligator to School, Don’t! by Elise Parsley

Parsley, Elise. If You Ever Want to Bring an Alligator to School, Don’t! New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2015.

This funny book is about a girl, Magnolia, who brings an alligator to school for show and tell and lots of things do not go as planned. The alligator draws pictures of himself eating a kid and shows it to someone. He makes lots of origami too. Magnolia learns a valuable lesson that day!

This is a perfect book for teaching your students how to read with expression! You could use it to teach them how to write with proper punctuation too. It would be great for persuasive writing! This book would never get old to use during your animal units! 

By guest bloggers Jake and Parker, 4 Chaddock

Frog on a Log? by Kes Gray

Gray, Kes. Frog on a Log? New York: Scholastic Press, 2014. 32p.

In this humorous rhyming book, a frog does not want to sit on a log. A cat disagrees with him. The frog learns what each animal sits on, but he is most surprised to find out where the dog sits!

This book would help kids learn how to rhyme in a fun way. It would also help them learn that it is always okay to be curious about other things!

 

By guest bloggers Riyyan and Cooper

I’m My Own Dog by David Stein

Stein, David. I’m My Own Dog. Somerville: Candlewick Press, 2014. 32p.

In this book, a little dog is prideful and he thinks he can live without anyone. But there is something he notices that he can’t do all by himself. He is still prideful and acts like a boss, but something about him changes!

This is a highly recommended book for kids with a love of animals. It is a hilarious book for teacher read-alouds in kindergarten through first grade. It’s also great for teaching kids how to use punctuation as they read and write. It will give your students good writing ideas for their own stories too!   

By guest bloggers Carter and David, 4 Chaddock

Tap to Play! by Salina Yoon

Yoon, Salina. Tap To Play. New York: Balzer + Bray, 2014. 40p.

Blip needs to get to a number bar and win a game. If he wins, he will get a surprise- but he needs your assistance. Students can shake, tip, talk to, and tickle Blip and can make him grow to win.

This is a great book for teaching counting backwards from five to one. It's also a good book for teaching kids to read with expression and to use punctuation in their own writing.

By: Guest bloggers Jack V. and Michael, 4 Chaddock

The Watermelon Seed by Greg Pizzoli

Pizzoli, Greg. The Watermelon Seed. New York: Hyperion Books, 2013.

A crocodile who loves watermelon swallows a seed and begins imagining all of the frightening consequences. A humorous resolution puts an end to his worries...at least for a little while!

This highly enjoyable read-aloud is absolutely perfect for helping students learn to read with expression. It's also a great mentor text for teaching the deliberate use of punctuation cues in writing.

If You Were a Capital Letter by Trisha Shaskan

Shaskan, Trisha. If You Were a Capital Letter. Minneapolis: Picture Window Books, 2010. 32p.

Colorful two-page spreads, each beginning with the phrase, "If you were a capital letter," highlight important uses of capital letters in our world. 

This book could assist classes in developing a chart of instances in which capital letters should be used. Students could then refer to the chart throughout the year as they write. 

If you find this book helpful, check out other books in the Word Fun series! 

Aunt Ant Leaves Through the Leaves: A Story With Homophones and Homonyms by Nancy Coffelt

Coffelt, Nancy. Aunt Ant Leaves Through the Leaves: A Story With Homophones and Homonyms. New York: Holiday House, 2012. 32p.

Monkey is trying to make a pie and needs help getting bananas, but all of the other animals are too busy until the pie is made and it's time to eat. Students will learn both homophones and homonyms throughout this silly version of "The Little Red Hen." As an extension, they could then write and illustrate creative homophone or homonym sentences/ paragraphs of their own to share with the class!  

Whatever Says Mark: Knowing and Using Punctuation by Terry Collins

Collins, Terry. Whatever Says Mark: Knowing and Using Punctuation. North Mankato: Picture Window Books, 2014. 24p.

Mark's family has a hard time understanding him and his feelings because he never uses punctuation. They don't know if he is excited, angry, inquisitive, or bored. With the help of an inspirational teacher, Mark finally discovers that punctuation is necessary for expressing himself and for getting his point across. Watch out world...!

This book would provide much-needed inspiration for your own students who are not consistently incorporating punctuation into their writing.

Frog. Frog? Frog!: Understanding Sentence Types by Nancy Loewen

Loewen, Nancy. Frog. Frog? Frog!: Understanding Sentence Types. North Mankato: Picture Window Books, 2014. 24p.  

In this silly story, each family member uses only one type of sentence each time he/ she speaks. Interro (the father) uses interrogative sentences only, Imperatella (the mother) uses only imperative sentences, Exclamuel (the brother) speaks only in exclamations, and DeClara (the sister) speaks solely in declarative sentences.

Discover the excitement of a family picnic frog incident as you help your students learn the four major types of sentences! A guide at the end of the book further describes each type of sentence and its required punctuation.  

My Weird Writing Tips by Dan Gutman

Gutman, Dan. My Weird Writing Tips. New York: HarperCollins, 2013. 152p.  

Students will appreciate the humor in this writing guide while receiving valuable tips from one of their heroes. Dan Gutman's guide is broken into succinct chapters, each of which will help children develop an important writing skill. From his "Don't Be a Dumbhead" introduction (explaining why writing well is important) to his sections on developing story ideas, overcoming writer's block, revising, and learning writing conventions, he gives outstanding advice in a manner that will keep kids laughing as they learn.

This is a fantastic resource for aspiring writers!

 

Similes and Metaphors by Ann Heinrichs

Heinrichs, Ann. Similes and Metaphors. Mankato: The Child's World. 2011. 32p.  

Through animated cartoon figures and comical speech bubbles, students will learn about the different figures of speech.  Use these titles to introduce new parts of speech in an amusing, entertaining read-aloud sure to capture students' attention. Other titles include: Adjectives, Adverbs, Conjunctions, Interjections, Nouns, Prefixes & Suffixes, Preposition, Pronouns, Punctuation, Synonyms & Antonyms and Verbs.Each book has a table of contents, glossary, index and an author's note with additional links for teachers.

Memoirs of a Hamster by Devin Scillian

Scillian, Devin. Memoirs of a Hamster.  Ann Arbor: Sleeping Bear Press, 2013. 32p. 

Seymour shares his ideal life through a series of diary entries chronicling his days as a hamster. He proclaims proudly, "This hamster has it going on."  Despite his self proclaimed wonderful life in the hamster cage, a wily cat starts describing the beauty of a sunroom in the house filled with yogurt drops.  Seymour believes he is missing out on life, and he escapes his cage to investigate the rest of the world.  The beautiful artwork and expressions on the hamster's face will delight readers as they watch Seymour struggle with the outside world and work desperately to get back to the safety of his cage. Pair this story with Memoirs of a Goldfish to kick off a unit in journaling, writing diary entries or blogging.  This would also be a terrific creative writing assignment in which students could create their own memoirs for a day in the life of an animal that had previously researched. 

Moo! by David LaRochelle

LaRochelle, David. Moo! New York: Walker Books for Young Readers, 2013. 40p.  

The most important word in this bright, hilarious, comedic picture book is  "Moo."  As the reader turns the page, the word takes on a different meaning depending upon the situations occurring in the story. In the vivid illustrations, the word "moo" visually changes to match the emotion the cow is feeling at each turn of events. When she sees the farmer's car for sale she says, "Moo?" and when she starts driving the car down a hill she says, "MOO!" This would be a wonderful read aloud to introduce students to using tone while they are reading as well as the importance of using inflection and reading with expression.  Students could also identify the beginning, middle and end of this story and practice describing what took place after hearing only the word "moo."

I'm a Frog! by Mo Willems

Willems, Mo. I'm a Frog! New York: Hyperion Books, 2013. 32p.  

In the latest book of the Elephant & Piggie series, Piggie pretends to be a frog while Gerald (the elephant) looks on in confusion. When Gerald starts to worry about his friend's transformation, Piggie explains what it means to pretend. Will Gerald ever stop worrying and join the fun?

Like the other outstanding selections in this early reader series, this book is filled with humor that kids of all ages (and adults!) will love. It's an excellent choice for practicing fluency, expression and word recognition (due to the repetition of many words and phrases throughout the book). For upper elementary grades, books in the Elephant & Piggie series could be studied as mentor texts. Mo Willems makes many important decisions about punctuation, font size and the use of capitalized or italicized letters to direct readers to read his text a certain way.

Warning: Do Not Open This Book! by Adam Lehrhaupt

Lehrhaupt, Adam. Warning: Do Not Open This Book! New York: Simon & Schuster, 2013. 40p.  

Readers are warned not to open this book for fear that they might release monkeys. When tempted readers go against the repeated warnings to turn back and to close the book, hilarious mayhem ensues. Will readers be able to capture the monkeys and restore order before it's too late? Find out for yourself... If you dare!

This story is excellent for inducing laughter, demonstrating the fun of reading and modeling author's craft (including very deliberate use of punctuation, italics and capital letters to enhance meaning).  

The Little "Read" Hen by Dianne de Las Casas

de Las Casas, Dianne. The Little "Read" Hen.  Gretna: Pelican Publishing Company, 2013. 32p.  
 
This fractured version of the fairy tale The Little Red Hen is an entertaining read-aloud to kick off any writing unit! The story unfolds with the little red hen reading a copy of Where the Wild Hens Are. She decides she would like to write her own story and proceeds to Starbawks to ask her friends the Cat, the Dog and the Pig to help.  After receiving a chorus of "Not I's", she goes to the public library to ask for help and research the writing process.  Eventually she goes through the process of outlining, writing a draft, editing and proofreading her story all by herself. At the end, the other characters finally help the little red hen by listening to her story and they unanimously declare her book "egg-cellent." 

Students will want to pour over the creative elements covering each page of illustrations (i.e Don't Let the Chicken Drive the Tractor) over and over again. Use this delightful story as an addition to fractured fairy tale units or as a read-aloud to introduce the writing process.

Exclamation Mark by Amy Rosenthal

Rosenthal, Amy Krouse. Exclamation Mark. New York: Scholastic, 2013. 56p.  

An exclamation point realizes he's different from the periods around him and starts to feel alone. When a question mark arrives in town, the exclamation point finally discovers his own unique talents and learns how to "make his mark" in the world!

This book is sure to entertain your students as they learn the purpose of various punctuation marks. It also has a great message about being proud of who we are!

The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt

Daywalt, Drew. The Day the Crayons Quit. New York: Philomel Books, 2013. 40p.  

Duncan just wants to color. Unfortunately, when he opens his crayon box, he finds that his crayons have gone on strike! Each crayon has left behind a letter and an illustration to explain a reason for quitting. The combination of illustrations and text on each double-page spread perfectly exemplifies the personality of each crayon. Duncan eventually finds a creative way to bring all of his crayons back together by the end of the story. 

This would be a terrific read-aloud before a lesson on letter writing or before a creative writing exercise in creating unique characters. This picture book is also a clever story about feelings and learning to work together. Students will never look at the crayons they use in the classroom the same way again!

A Strange Place to Call Home: The World's Most Dangerous Habitats & the Animals That Call Them Home by Marilyn Singer

 Singer, Marilyn. A Strange Place to Call Home: The World's Most Dangerous Habitats & the Animals That Call Them Home. San Francisco: Chrionicle Books, 2012. 37p. 

Poet Marilyn Singer and illustrator Ed Young team up to create this exciting look at fourteen animals that live in strange and dangerous habitats.  Each unusual animal has its own spread that includes a poem and an accompanying textured paper collage illustration.  Endnotes give more information on each fascinating animal.  The "About Poetry Forms" highlights types of poems featured in the book.  A website link is also helpful for using this and other forms of poetry in your classroom.

Back to Front and Upside Down! by Claire Alexander

Alexander, Claire. Back to Front and Upside Down! Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing, 2012. 32p.  

When his class makes birthday cards for the school principal, Stan grows frustrated and embarrassed by his backwards, upside down letters. A friend encourages Stan to ask for help, and Stan finally finds the bravery he needs to speak up. With teacher guidance and lots of practice, Stan and his classmate Mimi make great strides.

This book will comfort students as they realize that everyone struggles at some point, and that by asking for help when needed and practicing, we can overcome any challenges.