You Can't Buy Happiness But You Can Buy Books!

This book would make a great fall book for a second grade class! First, this book covers sequencing. Also, we can make a character (the cat in the hat) by using a pumpkin. We would read the book in class and discuss it and then the students would be assigned a project (pumpkin character) with a rubric to complete at home. They must then bring the pumpkin character into class to receive a grade.

This book is optimal in a kindergarten/ first grade class. Let's use this book to make predictions based on inferences in the text. What animal is coming next? Also, let's use this book to discuss animals in the winter. We can even incorporate a fun activity by using a mitten template and drawing our own winter animals in our mittens!

This book is perfect for the first or second grade class. We would read this book together and then make our own giving trees using paper towel rolls, construction paper, paint, glue, and anything else that could be used. Fairly inexpensive and brilliant! The children would enjoy making their trees as we learn about the book along the way! I can even see us having a classroom giving tree!

I would use this book in a class of either kindergarteners or first graders to teach them the concept of using the illustrations to help tell the story! "Where the Wild Things Are" has great illustrations and tell the story through the pictures. The children can also learn about inferences using this book. They can infer what is about to happen by using the pictures! This book would also be great to use for a creative activity, such as having the children dress up as their favorite character, etc.

E.B. White's Stuart Little would be great for a 3rd grade classroom during guided reading. The children can pair up into groups and read the book together and discuss the book. I would be checking for fluency as the child read the book to me. We could also find an activity to add to this. For example, we could tell an adventure story of our own!

"Harold and the Purple Crayon" would be a great book for a 2nd grade class to learn about their creativity. We could incorporate writing by using a journal after reading the book. I would have the children write down what they would do with the purple crayon if they encountered given scenarios. I would use the journals as an informal assessment into comprehension and strategies.

This book is great for a kindergarten class for guided reading and comprehension. It is a leveled book. I would use this book in my classroom by providing support during our guided reading groups. Of course, I would make sure the book was appropriate for the child's reading level and then we would read it as a group. As for comprehension, I would ask questions for the children to answer or have them retell the story in their own words and that would cover assessment as well.

This book would be great to use in a 3rd grade class. The fact that it is in a story form, but gives us information about the constellations is a great way to get children engaged and learning about astronomy and mythology. Also, this is another great National Geographic book! I would find a graphic organizer that we could use or we could possibly map out our favorite constellations based on this book!

I would use this in my second grade classroom to teach them about animals. Every kid loves animals and it is a great way to learn about pandas (by the way, they are my favorite) and enhance our reading abilities! The National Geographic would be an awesome subscription to use in the classroom because they cover everything and it is great informational text put into a form that children enjoy!

I would use this book with a kindergarten class to teach about sequencing. We would read the book and then discuss what happened first, second, third, and then so on. At the same time, I would be listening for comprehension skills while they reply and retell the story.

I would use this book with a 2nd grade classroom. We could define what friendship means to each of us and then start the book. After reading the book, we could talk about ways to solve problems and what to do when someone needs help. This again is building on character traits but in a different way.

I would use this book to study our section on the human body but while doing so I would be incorporating reading to go along with the science and the children are none-the-wiser because they would gain information about science as well as learning new words. I grew up reading the Magic School Bus series and watching the show so I know how much fun it makes learning. My targeted audience would be 4th grade.

"A Bad Case of Stripes" would be an awesome book to do character traits on. My targeted audience would be 3rd graders. We would read the book as a class and then make a character trait poster using Camilla's traits. I would use this to clarify what character traits are and how to identify them.

This would is optimal for a first grade class during read aloud. It helps the teacher reinforce kindness and compassion toward other students. Also, this is a good book to touch on the topic of bullying. Chrysanthemum is being bullied by other classmates and we could identify those bullying behaviors and discuss how we could prevent this from happening in our classroom.

This book is great for first graders who have trouble expressing their emotions. It also helps children build empathy toward others. Who doesn't have  days where they feel silly, especially a child?? This would be a read aloud book and a discussion would follow on our different emotions and how we can respond to those emotions and how we can help others when they are feeling silly.

This book shows a true child's imagination at work. Only if us adults could have as much fun as Grace does, life would be awesome! Children will love the adventure in this book and would love to predict what Grace is going to do next. In unison of using this book for predictions, I could highlight that every child is different and unique in their own way. I think it is important for children to know that there is no such thing as "normal" and that we are all special and capable of doing whatever we set our minds to! My target audience would be 3rd grade!