1. FOR CHILDREN
Turkey Pox by Laurie Halse Anderson
ill. by Dorothy Donohue
Albert Whitman & Company, 1996
Words: 816, Level: 3.1
Summary: Charity has the chicken pox, there's a terrible snowstorm outside, and it looks like the Chatfields will have to spend Thanksgiving without Nana and her wonderful roast turkey stuffing and cranberries.
Read for Luck: This book is clever enough that parents won't mind reading it over and over again.
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2. FOR PARENTSWould I Trade My Parents by Laura Numeroff
ill. by James Bernardin
Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2009
Words: 616, Level: 2.5
Summary: A young boy considers what is special about all his friends' parents and realizes that his own are the most wonderful of all.
Read for Luck: Will make parents feel warm and fuzzy inside. We all need to feel appreciated and this book will help. Kids will see how other parents are and that it's okay to be different. They'll love the pancakes, too! And what better time than Thanksgiving to read this one, when lots of family may be around.
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3. FOR TEACHERS
The Littlest Pilgrim by Brandi Dougherty
ill. by Kirsten Richards
Cartwheel, 2008
Words: 471, Level: 2.2
Summary: All the other villagers tell Mini that she is too small to help them with their chores, but she is not too small to be kind to another girl she meets.
Read for Luck: Anyone can find a book about the first Thanksgiving and teach about the pilgrims eating with the Native Americans, but this book will teach values: hard work, kindness, acceptance, and more.
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4. FOR WRITERS (two books, this time)
A. The Night Before Thanksgiving by Natasha Wing
ill. by Tammie Lyon
Grosset & Dunlap, 2001
Words: 504, Level: 3.1
Summary: In the tradition of "The Night Before Christmas," these rhymes describe the celebration of Thanksgiving with family and friends.
Read for Luck: Check out the rhyme scheme. Study the meter. Think about the plot. Now come up with your own "night before" book - purely as an exercise.
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B. 'Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving by Dav Pilkey
Orchard Books, 1990
Words: 485, Level: 4.0Summary: School children on a field trip to Mack Nugget's farm save the lives of eight turkeys in this poem based on THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS.
Read for Luck: Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to compare these two books by very different authors. Publication is eleven years apart. See how they are different and how they are alike. See if you can come up with your own lines to add to their stories. Could be a great learning activity!
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Great Thanksgiving post Christie. I look forward to reading some of these.
ReplyDeleteCatherine, You are the only one who ever comments on my Read for Luck posts. Thanks so much. They usually take me about an hour, and I sometimes wonder if it's worth it. But surely it is, right? If nothing else, I'll have my own record.
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