Hugs From Pearl
by Paul Schmid
Pearl is a lovely little porcupine who loves to hug her friends. Her non-porcupine animal friends don't always love her hugs because Pearl is a porcupine. Will she ever be able to hug her friends without hurting them?
This book is great for copycat writing. Students could choose an animal and write about a problem the animal is facing due to one of its physical characteristics. For example a snail might have trouble hanging out with his faster friends. Another one might be a dog who can't figure out a way to visit his mouse friends in their mouse hole.
For each story I would ask students to introduce the character and the problem, attempt at least two failed solutions, and finally have a happy resolution.
This could be done at any time of the year or after an animal research project.
Published: 2011
Locations: Public library
Me and My Dragon
by David Biedrzycki
In Me and My Dragon, a young boy describes what would happen if he had a pet dragon.
This story is a list of what the boy imagines doing with his dragon. I could see using this book as an inspiration for writing at any time of the year or after my students complete their animal research project. Students could list what they would do with their animal. I would ask them to explode one moment in their story (see Falcon by Tim Jessell for an example).
Published: 2011
Locations: Public library
Falcon
by Tim Jesssell
In Falcon, a young boy imagines he is a falcon. He lists a lot of his actions but really blows up the final moment of the story.
After reading this story, I would ask my students to imagine they are an animal. They could list a few actions but would need to explode one moment just like Tim Jessell did.
Published: 2012
Location: Public Library
Dinosaur Thunder
by Marion Dane Bauer
Illustrated by Margaret Chodos-Irvine
In Dinosaur Thunder, Brannon's family tries to help him get over his fear of thunderstorms.
After reading this story and Thundercake by Patricia Polacco, I will have my students compare the two stories. Their are a lot of similarities and differences to discover.
Published: 2012
Locations: Public library
