Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus

Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus is the story of Junie's first day of kindergarten. But oh no... this year she will have to ride THE BUS. Oh the horror she has heard of the kids who ride the bus. She is terrified to take the smelly bus filled with bullies. So she takes matters into her own hands and decides not to take the bus home.

This story is a fiction chapter book part of the Junie B. Jones series. The book has minimal illustrations but they are done in black ink.

Activities: 

Just like the story take students on a tour of the school inside and out. Show them important offices they should know in case they have questions or get lost. Show them bathrooms, nurses office, play areas, library, ect. to get them more familiar with their new school or just as a refresher for the new school year. (Educator's Guides)

Junie is nervous about meeting new classmates in kindergarten. Have your students get to know each other better by pairing up and doing this fun activity. Have students outline their partner on a large piece of roll paper. Then have them fill in the picture with clothes and faces. Around the border of the picture have them write fun facts about their partner... favorite things and special facts. (Educator's Guides)

Reader Response Questions:

Why do you think Junie was really afraid of the bus?

Do you think it was a bad idea for her to hide at school?

Why do you think Junie made such negative judgements about her classmates?

I have loved this series since I was in elementary school. I think most students who read these books can connect on a personal level because Junie deals with real life school issues in a funny way. This book was written by Barbara Park. She created the Junie B. book series in 1992 and the series grew to over thirty books! All the books are illustrated by Denise Brunkus. 

Some other books in the series are:

Junie B. Jones Is Not a Crook

Junie B. Jones Has a Monster Under Her Bed

Junie B. Jones Is a Party Animal

Park, B. (1992). Junie b. jones and the stupid smelly bus. New York, NY: Random House 

Educator's guides. Teachers' club. Retrieved from http://juniebjones.com/teachers/stupid-smelly-bus/

Good Morning Yoga

Good Morning Yoga: A Pose-by-Pose Wake Up Story is a fun book showing kids how to take on the day in a positive and relaxing way. It introduces yoga poses easy for any kid to do and is a great way to remind kids to stay active.

This is a picture book that would be a fun read for kids K-3. The bright illustrations show a variety of kids doing the poses surrounded by nature. 

Activities:

Yoga of course! Have students go through all the poses from the book. You could start each Monday morning by having students do their poses. 

Focus on ways that kids can de-stress when they are feeling overwhelmed. Go on a guided journey with the class. Read a passage that helps students relax. They will close their eyes, relax all the muscles in their body starting from their face to their feet. Make sure they are breathing deeply, have them let go of any thoughts on their mind and have them sit in this meditative state for a few minutes. Teach them to go to their happy meditative place when they need to relax or this could also be a great way to start the day.

Reader Response Questions:

Why do you think the illustrator has each child doing their yoga poses in nature?

Do you think it is important to stay active?

Why is is a good idea to do these poses in the morning?

This book was written by Mariam Gates whois a teacher and author. She created the Kid Power Yoga Program to show kids ways to stay active, be confident, and find strength within themselves. She also wrote the book Good Night Yoga: A Pose-by-Pose Bedtime Story. These books were illustrated by S. J. Hinder. 

Gates, M. (2016). Good morning yoga: a pose-by-pose wake up story. Louisville, CO: Sounds True.

Gates, M. (n.d.). Mariam Gates: Director and founder of kidpower yoga. Kid Power Yoga. Retrieved from http://kidpoweryoga.com/pages/about/index.html

  

Press Here

Press Here is a hands on book full of fun from page to page! This book gives instructions to press, shake, turn, and tilt the book to see what will happen to the dots on the next page. Lots of fun for all ages but may seem most appropriate for younger children. I had a blast going through the book myself.

This is a picture book with minimal illustrations. The book contains pages filled with yellow, blue, and red dots that grow in size and shape. 

Activities: 

Have kids make their own version of the book. What would they have each page do? They can make any shape they want and use different colors from what the book shows.

Another idea is to make a game out of cutting circles out of colored construction paper. Move desks around and put the colored paper on the floor. Have students go across the room in a musical chairs fashion. When the music stops the kids must find a dot to stand on. Each dot also means something else. If you are on a yellow dot you can only stand on one foot. If you are on a red dot you have to jump up and down, and if you are on a blue dot you must pose like a statue. Each round a dot must be removed off the ground until eventually there is a winner.

Reader Response Questions:

What three colors are the dots throughout the book?

What happened to the dots when we clapped our hands?

This book was written by Hervé Tullet who is a French author of over fifty children's books. He has written two other interactive books that go along with Press Here. Those books are Mix it Up! and Let's Play!

Tullet, H. (2010). Press here. San Fransisco, CA: Chronicle Books.

The Kissing Hand

The Kissing Hand is the story of a young raccoon named Chester who is scared to start school. His mother shows him an old secret that when she kisses his hand her love with stay with him even when they are apart. This is a great story for families to read together especially before a new school year begins. 

This story is a picture book great for preschool and young school aged children. The illustrations are done by Ruth E. Harper and Nancy M. Leak. The pictures are created by dark colors done in watercolor. 

Activities:

On the first day of school have students write down how they feel. Is it sad, happy, scared, or excited. Then have them write down a few things they want to learn this year. Next use paint to cover their hand and have them place their palm on the paper. After their hand print dries have them draw a heart in the center to show the love that they will have throughout the year. Hang all the pictures up in the classroom.

Next have them make something to take home for their parents. At the end of the first week of school have them go home with a certificate that they can sign their name on to show their parents. They will be excited to say they made it through the first week.

Reader Response Questions:

Have you ever felt sad to leave your mom or dad when coming to school?

Do you think Chester will be more confident at school knowing he has a kissing hand?

This story was written by Audrey Penn who has written many other children's books with Chester the raccoon. 

More books from Penn:

A Pocket Full of Kisses

A Kiss Goodbye

Chester the Raccoon and the Big Bad Bully

Penn, A. (1993). The kissing hand. Indianapolis, IN: Tanglewood Press.

All in Just One Cookie

All in Just One Cookie is a light hearted story that goes through all the ingredients Grandma uses to make her famous chocolate chip cookies. Page by page you can see the different places each ingredient comes from.

This story is a nonfiction picture book great for students in grades K-4. The information found in the story about where all the ingredients come from are factual and can help educate readers. This book also acts as a cookbook showing how much of each ingredient is used to make the chocolate chip cookies with the exact recipe at the end. The watercolor illustrations throughout the book show Grandma baking her cookies alongside her dog and cat. While Grandma is cooking the animals are busy searching for facts about each ingredient. 

Activities:

After reading the book think of more ingredients to add to the cookies and look up facts about each one. You could look up more about peanut butter chips, oatmeal, nuts, or dried fruits. Help students look up these new ingredients on the computer and put together more pages to the book.

Teach students about all the different ways math can be used in the kitchen. Go over all the basic measurements that were used in the book like teaspoon, tablespoon, and cup. Bring in measuring tools so that kids can try to measure out ingredients in real life. 

Reader Response Questions:

What type of plant does vanilla come from?

What animal do we need to make butter?

Can eggs be other colors besides white? 

Who doesn't love cookies? I personally have been eating chocolate chip cookies for as long as I can remember! I love books that pull readers in by using an interesting topic and using that to teach something kids would otherwise not have ever thought about. This book was written by Susan E. Goodman who is known for writing over thirty nonfiction children's books. The book was illustrated by Timothy Bush who is known for his dulled watercolor pictures in many children's books. 

More from Goodman:

How Do You Burp in Space?

On This Spot

The First Step: How One Girl Put Segregation on Trial

Goodman, E., S. (2006). All in just one cookie. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers

Beware, The Snowman

Beware, The Snowman is the story of a young girl named Jaclyn who moves from her hometown of Chicago to the cold wintery town of Sherpia. She learns about a mysterious snowman that the townspeople are afraid of living on the top of a hill. The story shows what happens when she breaks the rules and climbs to the top of the mountain to meet the snowman. This is a fun book for kids grades 3-7 who enjoy a wacky plot with frightening elements.

This story falls under the genre of fiction because of its imaginary plot and characters. I would even go to say there are some aspects of fantasy that this book contains based on the snowman that talks, and the magic powers of sorcery. 

Activities:

Great for the Halloween season have students write a short horror story making sure to include at least one character that is not realistic. 

Have students identify ways the author keeps readers interested in the story by using suspenseful writing. 

Reader Response Questions:

What did the people in Sherpia do to protect themselves?

Who did the snowman tell Jaclyn he was? Who was he really?

Why was the snowman on top of the mountain?

The Goosebumps series written by R.L. Stine is made up of over 60 books. This story is one that I remember checking out of the library in middle school. I loved the R.L. Stine books growing up because of their scary plots and weird characters. 

More books by Stine:

The Haunted Mask

Don't Go to Sleep

Full Moon Fever

Stine, R., L. (1997). Beware, the snowman. New York, NY: Scholastic.

When Sophie Gets Angry- Really, Really Angry...

When Sophie Gets Angry- Really, Really Angry... is the story of a young girl and what happens when she gets upset. This book expresses the feelings of anger and sadness and shows that sometimes we just need some alone time to be ourselves again.

This story is a picture book great for young readers in grades K-2. The author uses thick lines and colors that change depending on the mood of the character. When Sophie is angry her color changes page to page from yellow to red. This technique of changing color is used to show personality and feelings of the character.

Activities:

Have students draw a picture of themselves when they are really happy and when they are really sad. Have them write some words or explanation as to what makes them happy or sad. Also talk about what they do to cheer themselves up if they are feeling sad. Do they need alone time, do they need a hug, do they need to cry?

The main conflict arises in the book because Sophie's sister takes the toy away from her. Her sister took the toy because it was her turn but this still upset Sophie. Have students say why they think it is important to share with other people and how it makes them feel when others don't share with them.

Reader Response Questions:

Would you be upset if someone took the toy you were playing with away from you?

Do you think Sophie used a helpful way of dealing with her feelings by spending some time alone?

I think this is a great story for small children because around the kindergarten age children are still getting used to sharing and expressing feelings. This story was written and illustrated by Molly Bang. She has written many children's picture books and this story won a Caldecott Medal.

More books by Molly Bang:

When Sophie's Feelings Are Really, Really Hurt

The Grey Lady and the Strawberry Snatcher

Ten, Nine, Eight

Bang, M. (1999). When sophie gets angry- really, really angry... New York, NY: The Blue Sky Press