Math

It's Probably Penny 

By: Loreen Leedy

It's Probably Penny is a great story to read to students when teaching math, specifically probability.  This book is a higher level book, such as second or third grade level.  This story is about a teacher using different color jelly beans to have the students predict which color he will choose and the likelihood, or probability of that option.  He explains to the students that the purpose of doing this was so they would know what to expect when they do their math homework (and it was fun).  Afterwards, a student goes home and predicts outcomes about her dog Penny.  

Students may like this story because they may like dogs.  This story shows a young girl using probability to show that her dog, Penny, ate her sandwich, making a crazy noise, finding a buried treasure, etc.  She predicts that it's... "Probably Penny!"  This is something that many students can relate to back home and share the probability of their animal eating their homework.  

This story could be used to create a math assignment too.  For example, in the story the students math homework was to use the jellybeans and tell the likelihood of: 1.) WILL, MIGHT, CAN'T (probability of happening);  2.) Tiny chance/Impossible;  3.) Equal chances;  4.) Unequal chances.  This is a way to show if students are understanding probability in a fun way.  

Science

How a Seed Grows 

By: Helene J. Jordan

As a young learner, some students may have a hard time learning science.  They may not be interested.  This is why it is important to choose books for young learners to read and understand in which they can relate or use in their lives.  I think How a Seed Grows is a great example of this.  This book is about different things that grow, such as trees, carrots, corn, daisies, etc. all beginning from a tiny seed being planted.  

While reading this book to students, the teacher could ask them "Do you know someone who plant seeds?".  Then they can tell from their experiences that their mom, grandma, or aunt plants seeds.  They will also be able to share what plants, fruits and vegetables that they were able to get from those seeds.  This is a fun book to share and read aloud to students because this is science in a way they may have experienced and not realized!  They will learn that a tiny seed can create such a big tree.  Further in the book, the author included a science experiment for younger learners.  How to plant a seed and how it grows into a flower!  Students will learn about the root and how the root and root hair pushes down into the soil to grow.

After reading the book, students could do fun activities such as coloring their own seeds and roots on paper.  Also, they could plant their own seeds in little containers and experiment over the few days/weeks how their seed is growing.  This could be fun for students to visually see science happening right in front of their eyes.  

Social Studies

Wolf Island

By: Celia Godkin

Social studies may be hard to teach young students.  This is why teachers have to incorporate what their students may be interested in.  This is why I chose the book Wolf Island.  Students always seem to be interested in animals.  Wolf Island is about a family of wolves who leave their home, the island.  Before they leave the island, the island is very clean and healthy, but when they come back they realize that the environment they used to live in is not the same.  When they get back, their food is gone and the island is all around less healthy than it was before.  

This is a great book to teach students because they not only get to learn more about wolves, they get to learn about their prey, what they eat.  Students will learn the balance on the food chain, and how animals depend on each other on the food chain.  This is a good and true science/social studies turn on activities. 

Also, after reading this book, teachers can give students activities such as a map of the island in which students can draw where the wolves traveled.  They can make up their own names of places (this incorporates most of the social studies aspects).  They also learned about different food chains.  They can draw a food chain that shows what their wolves will be eating (science aspect).  This needs to stay simple for early learners so they may not fully understand the food chain, but they can use their imaginations to play around with these activities.

 

Nonfiction

A Tree for All Seasons

By: Robin Bernard

When teaching nonfiction to early childhood students, the teacher must explain that nonfiction is information that is not made up.  It is all true!  That is why I think this book, "A Tree for All Seasons" is a great book to share with them.  This is a book that National Geographic Society included in their magazine.  This story is about different ways leaves look throughout different seasons.  There are many illustrations to show this.  For example, the teacher can point out the tree with the most leaves on it and tell them that, that tree would be a summer tree when the leaves do not fall off! 

When I first thought about nonfiction, all I was thinking about was true stories about Rosa Parks, Christopher Columbus, Martin Luther King Jr., etc.  Although these are all great stories that could be used to teach nonfiction in the classroom, I feel as if the tree could be used more so for a kindergarten, or preschool class.  This is something that I believe students will relate more to.  They will definitely share their experiences of which trees they have seen!

Following reading the book, the teacher could further their knowledge about the true statements of trees in different seasons by giving them a worksheet.  The worksheet can have different pictures of trees that they can cut out and the words "Summer, Spring, Fall, Winter" below a blank square so they can glue the trees in order of the seasons, and how they will observe the trees.  

Traditional Literature

Goldie Socks and the Three Libearians

Jackie Mims Hopkins 

When teaching traditional literature, it is very important to use a well known book that students may have heard of before.  Most traditional literature books have fairytale elements such as, m

agic, royalty, love, specific language “Once upon a time”, animals talk, think, act, feel, etc.

This type of language helps with identifying the difference between traditional literature with other genres. "Goldie Socks and the Three Libearians" is a spinoff from Goldie Locks and the Three Bears many know the tale of Goldie Locks. While reading students the spinoff, the story starts with "Once upon a time..." and the most common quote is the first object is too big, second is too small, and the last is "just right". This particular book is great for young students because it is also predictable. I would definitely use this book in my classroom to teach traditional literature. I would have guided & independent working time so students will be able to differentiate traditional literature to other genres and they would show the different elements that make up this genre. For selection/evaluation, it reflects narrative style, illustrations match the tone, rich literary style, plot rising action, climax, falling action, close ending.

Poetry

"A Frog in the Bog"

Karma Wilson & Joan Rankin

This book is a great book to read to students when using or teaching poetry.  Not only does this story have a great amount of rhyming, but it also allows students to predict what will come next.  For younger student, they will really engage in this type of poetry because throughout the story, it is very repetitive so students can guess or we can work together to put everything together for our prediction!

In A Frog in the Bog, "There's a frog on the log in the middle of the bog.  A small, green frog on a half-sunk log in the middle of the bog...".  As you can tell, each ending of the sentence rhymes with beginning parts of the sentence.  Each page adds on a new element but is then followed by this statement above.  This will be a great way for the students to realize a pattern and eventually read aloud with me when they realize what comes next, every time.

I would definitely read this book to my students when covering poetry.  While reading this book, I will expect my students to catch the repetitive quote on every page that way they can help me read the story.  I could also incorporate this book into a lesson over the letter "F" or a lesson over frogs.  Throughout this book, there are different bugs that are introduced that frogs eat (flies, ticks, fleas).  

While teaching poetry, it is always fun to incorporate activities in which the students can relate to or are interested in.  Rhyming is the best way to get a child familiar with the topic, especially when it is repetitive.  Many teachers may go to Dr. Seuss which is a very common author in the poetry genre.  I would also love to use his stories.  But I think there is a lot more useful stories to help the younger aged students (pre-school) in which my book is relating to.