Just Keep Walking Along

Recommended for grades PreK-2nd

If you have or educate preschoolers, kindergartners, 1^st or 2^nd graders and you don’t have the following lyrics stuck in your head, then you better listen up:

“I love my white shoes, I love my white shoes, I love my white shoes!”

That simple chorus is the hottest craze with the younger students at my school currently.  The rhythmic repetition, the singing, and the change up of one single word in the chorus have all the students nodding their heads and singing along.  The genius author behind this book, Eric Litwin, manages to teach students inference, colors, and self-control by counting with fingers the number of times one sings the chorus—1, 2, 3!. 

The picturebook is all about color and the illustrator, James Dean, does a wonderful job making each page POP.  Pete the Cat is just walking along when “Oh no!” he steps in piles of strawberries, blueberries, mud, etc. and finds his white shoes have changed colors.  Pete doesn’t get upset; instead he “kept walking along and singing his song.”  Litwin explicitly tells the audience the moral of the story, which also happens to be one of my best friend’s catch phrases, “It’s all good!”

And I’m also super excited because Eric Litwin and James Dean are coming to my school to perform for my students!  Hip-hip-HOORAY!  That’ll be a mighty fine day!

Did I mention they have a new Pete the Cat book?—Rocking in My School Shoes.  Visit the publisher’s website to download the songs and other activities associated with Pete the Cat. 

 

Litwin, E. (2010). Pete the cat: i love my white shoes. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

                (2011). Pete the cat: rocking in my school shoes. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

Which One Is The Real Ghost?

Recommended for ages K to 2^nd

Unique ghost story just in time for Halloween…

It should come as no surprise to people who know me that Jon Muth’s character, Stillwater, is one of my favorites…hint: on the cover, he’s the one who is black and white. Stillwater, aside from being a panda, is very wise and has managed to take siblings, Michael, Addy, and Karl through some wonderful Zen stories (Zen Shorts and Zen Ties). Muth’s most recent contribution is Zen Ghosts. Right away, several of my favorite things are combined into one story—picturebook with an enlightened purpose, pandas, and Halloween/ghost stories.

This time around—the excitement for siblings Michael, Addy, and Karl is all in the decision of what they get to be for Halloween. The youngest sibling, Karl has decided to be a monster, reminiscent of Godzilla—in the illustrations, his monster mask displays the same emotions that Karl feels or is acting out (quite delightful, actually). And even though Karl declares that Michael has to decide on one thing to be, Michael ends up being an “Owl-Pirate.”

Stillwater invites the siblings to his house to hear a ghost story after they are done trick-or-treating. The storyteller they meet, mysteriously enough, is another panda that resembles Stillwater. This panda tells them the Zen story called “Senjo and Her Soul Are Separated.” It is an old Chinese ghost story, called a “koan” or a story where you have to answer the question for yourself. The story would make a great discussion of how one acts different with different people.

At the end, the only panda left in the room is the storyteller (Stillwater) and where the other panda was, there is now only a mask. This is one picturebook that not only offers a wonderful story, but beautiful illustrations as well.

Muth, J. J. (2010). Zen ghosts. New York, NY: Scholastic.

Oh, Andy Shane...The Drama Of It All!

Andy Shane is NOT in Love by Jennifer Richard Jacobson

Recommended for K to 2

“…Why, you are in love, Andy Shane!”

From the mouth of Delores Starbuckle comes this declaration. Oh, to be in love and not over the age of 8. Wait, are you sure Andy’s in LOVE love? No, but Dolores is. She thinks Andy is in love with the new girl, Lark--why else would he write the initials “LAB” in a heart on his notebook? Why else would he spend more and more time with Lark and not with Delores? Uh oh…here comes trouble! Andy made a snow fort with Lark, a snow fort that Delores and he had been planning to make ALL year. Will this ruin their friendship? Not if Andy’s granny has anything to do with it.

Next thing you know, Granny is leading Delores, Andy and Lark back to Lark’s house. Lark leads Andy and Delores down to the basement to show Andy which puppy is his…LAB puppy, that is. “A lab?” said Delores. “L-A-B? Oh!” So, now Delores, Andy, and Lark are all friends.

This is a great addition to the series and works well for students who like Junie B. by Barbara Park, Ivy and Bean by Annie Barrows, and The Pain and the Great One by Judy Blume.