Mrs. Wade's Bundle of Books

The Loopy Coop Hens: Letting Go by Janet Morgan Stoeke

The Loopy Coop Hens: Letting Go - Janet Morgan Stoeke

Why do apples fall?  Pip, Midge, and Dot, three hens, set out to see just what is making apples fall from the tree.  They think the very worst and are fearful of what might be waiting for them at the top of the tree.  They get their friend Rooster Sam to come help them, but turns out he is just afraid!  With much perseverance and bravery, the hens manage to get to the top of the tree and discover that the apples are falling on their own.  Because of the friends courage, they enjoy being perched at the top of the tree with a view they had never before seen.  Students in the primary grades will laugh all the way through this humorous story.  It is a great story that teaches students to overcome fears, follow curiosity, while teaching kids a little science behind apples.  This is a great fictional book to read to the students at the beginning of a unit on apples.  The teacher can also add a fun taste testing lesson on all the many different apples and even incorporate some math graphs and tallying skills.

Stick and Stone by Beth Ferry

Stick and Stone - Beth Ferry, Tom Lichtenheld

We all need a friend.  Stick and Stone is an inspiring story about a stick referred to as "1" and a stone referred to as "0".  They  come together to make a perfect "10" friendship and stick up for each other when they come across a bully pinecone.  This simple and fun illustrated book will capture the attention of young students in the primary grades while teaching them a lesson on how to be a good friend and what happens when you are not a good friend.  Students can use this story to discuss friendships and bullies and participate in a writing activity "I Can Stick Up for My friends by...".  The students can share these with their class and afterwards the teacher can decorate a bulletin board. This activity would be a great addition to the first week of school.

Rooster Can't Cock-a-Doodle-Doo by Karen Roster-Gruber

Rooster Can't Cock-a-Doodle-Doo - Karen Rostoker-Gruber, Paul Ratz de Tagyos

Rooster wakes up one morning with a sore throat and unable to cock-a-doodle-doo to wake up his friends.  As it got later and later, the chores got more and more behind on the farm. With the help of his animal friends, they scurry around the farm waking up all the animals who were still sound asleep.  The animals work together to devise a plan to wake up Farmer Ted before it gets too late in the day. This book is a great example of how friends work together to help each other out in a time of need.  Primary grades would enjoy this humorous story while learning a lesson on friendship and farm animals.  

Wemberly Worried by Kevin Henkes

— feeling big smile
Wemberly Worried - Kevin Henkes

We all have moments when we find ourselves worrying about something.  This is a book about a little mouse named Wemberly, who finds herself worrying all the time, especially as the first day of school approaches.  Even though her mom and dad tell her not to worry, she finds it very hard to quit.  However on the first day of school, her teacher Mrs. Peachum, helps her overcome some of her worries by introducing her to another quiet mouse who shared some of the same emotions.  By the end of the day, Wemberly had forgotten her worries and felt much more confident about starting a new school year.  This is a perfect book to read on the first day of school to the primary grades, as many of our students are dealing with the jitters.  This story can help them make connections with their own feelings and lets them know that it is normal to worry and feel nervous before starting something new.