My Reflection of Creating This Book Review Blog

It has been so beneficial for me to create this blog of my reviews of children's books. As a teacher student it is very important that I know about as much children's literature as possible so that I can introduce my students to stories that they will love and books that will help teach them reading strategies and lead to great writing opportunities. Along this process I have discovered some really great books, series, and authors that I will be sure to keep in my personal library and in my class rooms in the future. I am inspired to continue reviewing as many books as I can from now on, continuously through out my career as an educator.
Some of the books I have included in this blog I discovered in the library, and others I found while researching different genres on the Internet. I made it a point to put a lot of thought into the books I selected, paying attention to genres and ways to integrate language arts into other subjects such as science, social studies, and math.
Now that I have discovered new authors that I like there will be many other books that I will look for from those writers, and I will continue to explore new ones. I believe that having my students create a blog like this would be a great way for them to discover new authors and genres as well. Hopefully it will lead them to find authors and/or series that they especially like and will stick with so that they continue to enjoy reading.

My Father's Dragon

My Father's Dragon is an adorable story told by a girl about her father. When her father was a boy he met a cat and they became friends. When they were talking one day the boy told the cat that he wanted to learn to fly planes when he grew up so that he could fly all over the world. The cat told the boy that he knew a way for him to start flying now. Thus began the boy's journey to Wild Island where he would find a baby dragon. The wild animals on the island kept the dragon prisoner so that he could fly them back and forth across the river. If the boy would save him then the dragon would be so grateful he'd fly the boy anywhere he wanted to go. The boy finds the island and some very angry animals that do not want him there. But the boy's quick thinking gets him out of some close calls. Finally he finds the dragon, frees him, and they fly away together to safety.

My Father's Dragon was written in the 1940's by Ruth Stiles Gannett. Her story has stood the test of time and it is still loved by many children who read about the boy's adventure to find the baby dragon.

Fred and Anthony Escape from the Netherworld

Fred and Anthony Escape from the Netherworld is hilarious chapter book by Elise Primavera. It is a graphic novel/fiction hybrid, meaning parts of it are in a comic strip form and other parts are just written as a story. I love this book especially because it attracts many boys to read, that may otherwise avoid reading. The story introduces readers to ten year olds Fred and Anthony. They are horror movie fanatics, and they always make it a point to pay someone else to do their homework. Now they have a big history project due, but no money to pay anyone to do it. They decide to venture out looking for old people to do "stuff" for to make some dough. While wandering around the out skirts of town they come upon a creepy house. Once in the house, that has oozing walls, ghosts, and a mummy, they accidentally fall into the netherworld where they meet a crazy dentist and his assistant. The guide to the netherworld book they found makes them realize that the crazy doc is doctor Frankenstein, and his assistant Igor. The doctor wants the boys' brains so he can bring his monster to life. But his bigger plans are to get many boy brains to create many monsters that will take over the world! Read Fred and Anthony Escape the Netherworld to find out if the boys escaped or if they're hanging around with no brains in the Netherworld.

The Shivers in the Fridge

The Shivers in the Fridge is an imaginative story by author Fran Manushkin, and illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky. This story is about a little family that lives in a cold dark place surrounded by Cheesy Square, Jolly Whip, Egg Valley, Orange Hills, Ketchup Mountain, and Buttery Cliff. Every once in a while a blinding light appears and a horrible monster hand comes in to snatch something out. One by one, as each family member bravely sets off to find a warmer place, they are taken by the monster and don't return. When little Sonny is the last of his family left in the cold dark place he decides to be brave and face the monster and save his family. Soon, Sonny too is taken out by the monster, on purple boulders (grapes). To his surprise the monster smiles, announces to his mother that he has found the last magnet, and places him on the fridge where he is reunited with his mama, papa, grandpa, and grandma. Finally the shivering family was in a bright, warm place where they would live together from then on.

This story is adorable and creative. The illustrator has created an imaginative refrigerator city where the little magnet family lives until they are discovered one by one.

Twenty-One Elephants and Still Standing

Twenty-One Elephants and Still Standing is an incredible story about the Brooklyn Bridge. Author April Jones Prince heard about the story and further researched the facts. Apparently, once the Brooklyn Bridge was completed many people had their doubts about the safety of the bridge, since in the past other bridges had collapsed. Entertainer P.T. Barnum decided that he would use those doubts as an opportunity to advertise for his circus. He took twenty-one elephants across the bridge from Manhattan to Brooklyn as people watched in amazement. The next day many of those doubters walked across the Brooklyn Bridge to go see Barnum's circus and his famous elephants.

For me, as a New Yorker, this story is so meaningful. For New Yorkers the Brooklyn Bridge is a sight that says home. Children will love reading a story about something so significant in their own state.

This book is not only great for social studies lessons about New York, but it could be used for math as well. Each elephant weighed about 10,000 pounds. There were twenty-one elephants on that bridge. How much weight was the bridge holding that day? This story can also lead to a research project about the Brooklyn Bridge, how bridges in general are built, or how it was typical to use elephants to test the safety of newly built bridges.

The Patchwork Path

The Patchwork Path, A Quilt Map to Freedom is an inspirational story of a little African-American girl and her father. The two are slaves on a Georgia plantation. Hannah's mother has died, and her sister has been taken and resold. One night Hannah and her father decide to run to freedom. The little girl carries the quilt her mother helped her make, that carries secrets of how to get to freedom. One square tells them to follow the bear prints, another tells them the church to find where there will be people who can help them, yet another tells them how to find Quakers that will hide them and bring them to Lake Eerie. Once across the lake, Hannah and her papa make it to Canada where they are free. The journey took months. Many times they were freezing, starving, and tired.

Hannah makes a new quilt just like the one her mama taught her to make, but she leaves one square blank in honor of her sister who she hopes and prays will find freedom also, and come back to them.

The Patchwork Path is a great story to incorporate into social studies. This fictional story includes an accurate historical account of the slaves journey to find freedom. It is based on the true story of African-American quilt makers who hid secrets in the patchwork. The students can have fun making their own quilt squares that can be pieced together to create a class room quilt.

Full House

Full House written by Dayle Ann Dodds and illustrated by Abby Carter is a math literacy story. As it reads on the cover it is "an invitation to fractions". It is important to integrate subject areas and find new ways to teach subjects such as math, rather than having students just memorize math rules. This story is great for read aloud during a lesson on fractions. But it's not only a good resource for a math lesson, the story is told in a repetitive, rhyming style that also is beneficial for teaching reading with fluency. Young readers will love the flow and repetitiveness of the story about Miss Bloom's Inn and the visitors that come to stay there. Each of 5 guests fill 5 of the 6 rooms, and Miss Bloom's is the 6th room filled making the Inn 6/6 full that night. Then, in the middle of the night, her 5 guests sneak down into the kitchen and each eat 1/6 of the strawberry cake on the counter, leaving the last 6th for Miss Bloom. The story and the illustrations make this book special because many other books that incorporate math are not as creative. Students will love reading this book with the teacher, rather than just sitting quietly with paper and pencil doing math problems.

The Napping House

The Napping House is a big board book for young readers. The story is written by Audrey wood and the beautiful, pastel illustrations have been done by Don Wood. It is about a granny who is sleeping in a cozy bed. Then a child gets on top of the sleeping granny and falls asleep, then a dog, a cat, a mouse, and a flea! By the end they have all done something to startle each other awake and they break the bed.

This story is written in the style of There was an Old Woman Who Swallowed a Fly. The repetitive nature of the text is great for young readers. The Napping House is perfect for a read aloud and should be read a couple of times before the children catch on to the 'tune' of the story and can join in to recite the words as they read along.

A Light in the Attic

A Light in the Attic is a classic book of poems by Shel Silverstein. There are tons of silly poems in this book to read. Some are about strange people, animals, or objects. Some of them rhyme, and some not so much. Children will be amused and at the same time learn many different styles of poem writing. Poems are also a great way to work with students on fluency in reading.

The illustrations are in black and white, but that doesn't take away from their humor, such as the drawing of the little girl holding a cow over her head and shaking it, or the walrus that just got braces around his two big tusks.

The Hare and the Tortoise

The Hare and the Tortoise is a classic folktale from Aesop's fables. The hare and the tortoise agree to have a race to see who will make it to town first. Common sense might say that of course the hare will easily beat the slow moving tortoise. On the contrary, the hare is so cocky and arrogant that his over confidence causes him to lose the race, and allows the tortoise to win the prize of a big, yummy cabbage. In folktale style, the story teaches readers a lesson about not being conceited and obnoxious. This story is a great introduction to folktales. Children can read many other classic folktales also and decide what lesson of morals or respect the stories are teaching. They can also write their own.

The unique characteristic about this version of The Hare and the Tortoise is that it is one of a series of bilingual books. The story is written in both English and Spanish, and therefore great for ESL students or even English speaking students that are beginning to learn Spanish.

Chaucer's Canterbury Tales

Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales are retold and illustrated in this book by Marcia Williams. The original stories have been rewritten by Williams in a more simple way so that children can enjoy them. The illustrations are shown like a comic strip. They depict hilarious pictures of the story's character's and events. For those that are not familiar, the story is about a group of pilgrims in the middle ages that are going on a trip to Canterbury to visit the shrine of a martyr. On the way the men and women tell each other tales to pass the time. The tales give us a glimpse into what life was like for some in the middle ages and what people found entertaining and amusing. The stories include the knight's tale about two men in Athens fighting over one woman, the miller's tale about a man married to a much younger, beautiful girl, and how his jealousy and obsession with her brings him troubles, and the pardoner's tale of greed and murder, among other classics.

This book is great for introducing children to one of history's classic pieces of literature. It could be fun for students to write their own tales about something in their lives that can be embellished and made to be humorous. Then the stories can be bound together as The

Class's Tales.

Arthur and the Sword

Arthur and the Sword retold and illustrated by Robert Sabuda is the classic story of how Arthur pulled the sword from the stone to become king. The story of the least likely boy achieving greatness is inspiring. The illustrations by Sabuda are so incredible. The pictures are made to look like stained glass, and it is amazing how much they really do look like real stained glass. So much so that I used this book for a stained glass art lesson with third graders. It is also a good story to read during a unit that focuses on the middle ages, or when concentrating on fairy tales in literature. It is also a good resource for teaching readers how to use illustrations in a book to help them envision the text in the story. The pictures on each page of Arthur and the Sword depict the scene that the author is describing, just as the French used stained glass pictures in cathedrals to tell stories to the illiterate community about the Bible.

Fantastic Mr. Fox

Fantastic Mr. Fox is another of Roald Dahl's classics. The clever and handsome Mr. Fox goes out every evening to fetch chickens, or ducks, or turkeys for dinner for him, his wife Mrs. Fox, and there children. He gets their dinner from the farms of three mean, rich farmers. But those farmers have had enough of Fox stealing their animals, and they get together to catch and kill Mr. Fox. Unfortunately for those mean farmers Fox is too clever for them. After days and days of being trapped under ground, Fox comes up with a plan to find food for his starving wife and children. His plan is more successful than anyone could of predicted. Not only did he save his family, but also the badgers family, the rabbit family, and the weasel family. All the animals celebrate with a great feast and decide they never have to come out from under ground again. The mean farmers are still sitting outside the hole waiting for Mr. Fox to come out looking for food.

This is a great chapter book for third and fourth graders. It is also a good resource for teaching, questioning the author. At the end there is an interview with Rohld Dahl that asks questions such as, "what is like to write a book?", "How do you get the ideas for your stories?", in which Dahl talks about seed ideas, and "how did you get the idea for James and the Giant Peach?". Readers can read other Roald Dahl books to explore similarities in the author's writing.

This Time, Tempe Wick?

This Time, Tempe Wick? by Patricia Lee Gauch, illustrated by Margot Tomes, is a heroic story of a young girl. Tempe lives in New Jersey in the 1700's during the Revolutionary War. Her and her family feed and help George Washington's soldiers, but there is not enough food and clothing for all of them in that town and the soldiers react with a mutiny. With her father dead, and mother ill, Tempe has to be brave and protect their little home and all they have. She even hides her horse in her bedroom so that the soldiers that want to take it to ride to Pennsylvania won't be able to find it. In the end, Tempe's courage and wit save her home, her mother, and their horse Bon.

This book is a great addition to a fourth grade social studies unit on the colonists battle for freedom in America from the English. The story of Tempe helps readers understand what life was like for young people in those hard times. Better yet, the author's note at the end explains that the story is based on a real event and a real girl. Her house still stands near Morristown, New Jersey, complete with hoof prints on the bedroom floor. That would be a great field trip!

Monet

Monet by Mike Venezia is a book from a series titled Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists. As the title suggests, this is a non-fiction biography all about the artist Claude Monet. The pictures include some of Monet's works, and some illustrations by the author. Readers will learn about Monet's life, his inspirations, and his impressionist style of painting. This book is a great introduction to history's fine artists and/or the impressionist style. It could be used for an art lesson, a language arts lesson that includes biographies, or even a social studies unit that is focusing on France. For an art activity, students can use the images of Monet's work as a reference to create their own impressionist painting using water colors. To give the students a choice of different artists, gather the other books from the series on Van Gogh, Picasso, Andy Warhol, and others.

Beluga Whales

Beluga Whales by Ann O. Squire is a non-fiction book from Scholastic. It is a good resource for children that need to research about marine life, sea creatures, mammals, or just animals in general. The book is filled with many beautiful, clear, and up close photographs of different types of whales. As the text explains specific characteristics of a certain type of whale, the reader can refer to the photograph to see exactly what is being described. Words in bold print are listed at the end of the book on an "important words" list. Researchers can use the table of contents to decide what chapter they want to explore to find the information they are looking for. This book is more beneficial for students that have experience with non-fiction.

Fossils Tell of Long Ago

Fossils Tell of Long Ago is a non-fiction/fiction hybrid by Aliki. This book is an incredible resource for teaching many reading strategies, such as reading dialogue bubbles, observing diagrams, and using illustrations to clarify the meaning of the text. There are also great science vocabulary words in the book, such as fossils, minerals, dissolved, swampy, imprint, ancient, and preserved. Students can learn how to use the characteristics of a non-fiction book to research a topic such as fossils. In the 'story' a group of young students go on an exploration of artifacts that teach them about what fossils are, what they tell scientists, and why they are important. This book can be the introduction of a science unit, followed by a trip to a museum and examining fossils in the class room. Aliki gives a fun activity idea at the end of the book for creating fossils by making a hand imprint in clay, then burying it outside for future scientists to dig up and examine.

The Van Gogh Cafe

The Van Gogh Cafe is a magical place run by Marc and his daughter in Kansas. They both know the magic that happens around them in the cafe, and they have come to expect the unexpected.

From day to day you never know what new stranger will go in for a cup of coffee, or what unexplainable things will happen right outside the cafe window. But you can bet no matter who comes in, or what goes on, magic is going to happen.

The Van Gogh Cafe is perfect for children just starting to read chapter books. The chapters and the sentences are short, and the words are big and clear. Every chapter leads to the next with the expectation that something new and exciting is going to happen. Young readers should use sticky notes to keep track of all of the events that happen at the cafe. When they finish the book, students can do a story sequence activity by putting all the events in order, first trying without the help of notes, then referring back to check their answers.

Constellations

Constellations by Chris Sasaki, illustrated by Alan Flinn is a beautiful guide to the stars. Each page tells the story behind a constellation of stars such as Ursa Minor, the little bear that holds the North Star. The stories are taken from ancient history at a time when people stared up at the sky and imagined the meaning of it all.

This book is great to incorporate into science as students learn about the universe beyond our planet Earth. As an extra special touch the stars in every illustration glow in the dark! Better yet, the last section of the book titled A Constellation of Activities provides three different crafts including, inventing a new constellation with black construction paper and a pencil, creating your own constellation with tracing paper and a pencil to trace one of the constellations from the book then drawing a new picture with the stars as a guide, and my personal favorite, building a box of stars with a shoe box, tracing paper, pencil, kitchen foil, pin, tape, and scissors.

After reading Constellations, the students will see a sky full of stories.

The Best Birthday Parties Ever!

The Best Birthday Parties Ever! A Kids Do-It-Yourself-Guide is the most fun book I have found thus far. There are twelve different party ideas including, a Three Bears Party, an Artist Party, a Bug Party, and an Outer Space Party. For each celebration there are step by step instructions on how to put together an awesome party using creativity and simple craft supplies. Author Kathy Ross gives clear, easy to follow instructions for making invitations, party hats, decorations, party favors, party crafts, and games.

This book is perfect for incorporating language arts into math because the instructions for every party include measurements such as, "cut green construction paper in 9 by 12 inch pieces" (15). Students can practice their math and organizational skills by writing their own how-to for anything they can think of doing. As an art extension students can vote on which party they would like to have in class, then follow the instructions to create all the items for their celebration! Parents will love this book as well. It can save them tons of money by making birthday party supplies rather than buy them.

The One Eyed Giant and other Monsters

The One Eyed Giant and other Monsters from Greek Myths by Anne Rockwell is a collection of ten myths about monsters and Greek gods. This book is especially interesting for boys who are attracted to the hideous illustrations of the monsters and intrigued by the tales of heroes who defeat them. The stories are written simply enough for students in third grade and above. The only difficulty is the hard to pronounce names. Teachers must explain to the students that the names of the gods and monsters can be sounded out without much effort because they usually sound just like they are spelled. If this book were used for a lesson the teacher and the students can sound out the names together before reading the story so that the students can read the myths without too much distraction.

The One Eyed Giant and other Monsters is a great book to get children motivated for creative writing. After reading the myths students can create their own monsters to write about. They will also have fun drawing illustrations of their monsters. The book is also a great introduction to a new genre in the class room; myths.

Goin' Someplace Special

Goin' Someplace Special is an inspiring book and a perfect resource to get children to view something from another person's perspective. The main character is 'Tricia Ann. She is an African-American girl living in the 1950's at a time when segregation was still common practice. 'Tricia Ann's grandmother allows her to venture out on her own for the first time to go to a place she only calls someplace special. But along the way 'Tricia Ann is confronted with prejudice as she sees signs everywhere stating "whites only". She almost turns around to go back home, until she remembers her grandmother's words; "You are somebody, a human being, no better, no worse than anybody else in this world" (25). 'Tricia Ann found the strength to continue her trip to that special place; the library, that displays a sign reading, "Public Library: all are welcome" (31).

The author of Goin' Someplace Special is Patricia Mckissack. On the last page she has written an author's note explaining that the story has been taken from her own life as a little girl in Nashville, Tennessee during the 1950's when Jim Crowe was the loud voice of segregation. The author's note makes this story all the more important for children. It gives them the opportunity to understand that many stories are inspired by an author's real life, and this particular story creates a feeling of empathy.

This book is perfect to have in a classroom library as one of many which should motivate multi-cultural education. Of course, it is also a good resource during Black History month, to break away from the old routine of just Martin Luther King and Harriet Tubman stories. But Goin' Someplace Special should be accessible to students through out the year. It is brief enough to use for a read aloud and students can discuss and write about how the author's note at the end changed how they thought and felt about the story.

Midsummer Knight

Midsummer Knight by Gregory Rogers is an illustrated story. Another words, there aren't any words, just pictures. One might wonder why I would include a book with no words to a reading list. The reason is because this book is an incredible resource for letting the kids become the authors. It beneficial for both reading and writing lessons. The main character in Midsummer Knight is a big, cuddly, brown bear. Bear is shown riding in a little wooden boat flowing lazily down a calm river until, BAM! He crashes into land. Being curious, Bear gets out of the boat and wanders into the woods where he discovers a bee hive in a tree. As expected from a big, hungry bear he sticks his hand in to retrieve some honey. But the bees weren't too happy about that. They chase him until he reaches a huge tree with a door on it. Bear goes in the door, down a long hall, and comes out a door on the other end. He finds himself in magical woods where everything, trees, flowers, animals, are humongous. Then a giant bird snatches him up and drops him in her nest. Bear falls out and is saved in the nick of time by a fairy boy. The fairy takes Bear to the fairy village and on to the fairy Kingdom to meet the king and queen. But the king and queen are missing! Come to find out they've been betrayed by one of their own men and the knights. The king, queen, fairies, and Bear devise a plan to get the kingdom back. There is a huge battle, and in the end Bear captures the traitor. The king then knights Bear and gives him a medallion. After all the excitement the fairy boy brings Bear back to the big tree with the door on it. They hug goodbye and Bear goes home with a giant smile as he looks upon his gold medallion.

Midsummer Knight allows for a creative and fun writing opportunity. The students can use the pictures and their imaginations to write the story in their own words. First, they must decide on character names, plot, and descriptions of the settings. Then they can begin to write the story, complete with dialogue. Students who do well artistically can make a whole new illustrated story by drawing pictures. Also, the children can put on a dramatic production to reenact the story of Midsummer Knight.

The pictures in the book are adorable, and will catch the eyes of children. The illustrations make it easy to understand exactly what is going on in the story. This lesson could be done with any grade from kindergarten through fifth. Of course younger students will not be writing a full story to accompany the pictures in the book, but the lesson can be adjusted for any age group.

A Big Quiet House

A Big Quiet House is a Yiddish folktale which derived from Eastern Europe. Yiddish is a type of Hebrew slang spoken by the Jews. It is a mixture of German, Polish, Russian, and Hebrew. Although most of the Yiddish communities in Eastern Europe were destroyed during WWII, the elders have passed down some of their culture by telling the folktales. The author, Heather Forest, has published this folktale that she heard as a child from her immigrant relatives, to share and preserve her culture.

This book would be a valuable contribution to a social studies lesson focusing on Jewish history and culture. Also, the dialogue between the characters is spoken in a rhyming fashion which assists readers with fluency. The repetitive characteristic of the story is great for having students predict what will happen next, and for joining in during shared reading. The illustrations by Susan Greenstein really embrace the feeling of another time and culture in a far away place. Many of the pictures include the star of David, a menorah, or hebrew writing.

A Big Quiet House is a story with an important lesson. A man lives in a small house with his wife and children. He can not sleep with his snoring wife next to him and giggling kids in ear shot. The man decides to seek the advice of the village's old wise woman. After several visits to her, a house full of farm animals, and more sleepless nights, she finally gives the man her last suggestion. It is then that he realizes that he should not complain and be ungrateful because things could always be worse. Among the many ways this book can be implemented into a lesson, it teaches the children a very valuable lesson through an amusing story.

This book is suitable for grades 3-5.

Caps for Sale

Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina has been featured on Reading Rainbow and is currently on their website book list (pbskids.org/readingrainbow/). This story was one of my favorites as a child. I used to read it over and over. When I saw it on the library shelf I just had to take it home and review it from a teacher's point of view. Caps for Sale is a picture book about a peddler who sells caps. One day, when sales are slow, he decides to take a nap under a big tree. He wakes up to find that a bunch of mischievous monkeys have stolen his caps and put them on their heads. The peddler becomes angry and demands that they return his caps at once. After taunting the man for a bit the monkeys finally give them back. The peddler piles the caps back on top of his head and walks back into town calling, "caps for sale!"

This book is perfect for early readers and is level K on the Fountas and Pinnell leveled reading book list. The words are in large print and there are few sentences on each page. The pictures are simple but cute, especially the one showing the monkeys in the tree wearing the caps. Caps for Sale would work great for a drama activity. Two or three students can volunteer to narrate, two students could share the role of the peddler, and the rest of the class can be the monkeys. As the narrator reads, the peddler and the monkeys will act out the story. For example the narrator reads, "You monkeys, you, he said, shaking a finger at them, you give me back my caps. But the monkeys only shook their fingers back at him and said, Tsz, tsz, tsz." The class can also have fun making the caps for their presentation using construction paper in the colors specified in the story: gray, brown, blue, and red, to integrate art. This story is also useful for conducting a sequence lesson. Give the students construction paper cut into the shape of caps. They will glue story strips, in sequence order, onto the caps.

I loved Caps for Sale when I was a child and I know the students will as well.

Rainbow Bird Book Review

Rainbow Bird: An Aboriginal Folktale from Northern Australia by Eric Maddern is a pourquoi (por-kwa) tale about how humans attained fire. Pourquoi is a french word which means why? They are stories which answer questions that young children may ask such as, "why does a leopard have spots?" Rainbow Bird is a picture book with beautiful water color illustrations on every page by Adrienn Kennaway. In this story a mean crocodile is the only living being who possesses fire. He refuses to share it with any of the other animals or humans, claiming that he is the, "boss of fire". Bird Woman seizes the opportunity to snatch one of the crocodile's fire sticks. She flies through the forest implanting the magical fire into the trees so that humans can use dry branches to rub together and start fires. After placing the fire stick in her tail, Bird Woman becomes a beautiful rainbow bird. With her new found power she banishes Crocodile Man to live in the swamp forever. Actually, this story answers two questions. One, how did humans come to have fire? and two, how did crocodiles come to live in swamps? This book would work great for a read aloud. The story is brief enough and the pictures are large and colorful. After reading students the tale they can create their own pourquoi story. Simply have the students think of a why question, then write a story to answer the question. You can also incorporate art by having the students create their own rainbow birds using colorful feathers from a craft store. In addition, this book is a great compliment to social studies. You can devise a whole plan about Australia's Aboriginal tribe.
The author, Eric Maddern, has wrote many other pourqui tales as well. His works would be very useful when introducing students to folktales and pourqui stories. Also, most of his tales are derived from different countries and would be a great addition to social studies lessons on different cultures and beliefs.