Must Read Monday- Rhyming Books

I'm having a great time reading everyone's book suggestions this summer!  I'm linking up again today with The Kindergarten Connection and Kindergarten Planet to focus on books that rhyme!

 

When rhyming books come to mind, the first thing I think of is Dr. Seuss.  How can you resist the delightful sing-song catchiness of his books?  (I remember my first Read Across America day in the 1st grade classroom where I student taught.  I read Dr. Seuss ALL DAY- in small groups, with individual students, whole group, etc.  When I went home that evening, it was hard to have a normal conversation without speaking in or listening for rhymes!  This was my introduction to a primary teacher's life.)  :)

But I'm not highlighting just any Dr. Seuss book.  This book is in my top ten favorites.  It MIGHT even be in my top three favorites: Horton Hears a Who.  This lovable elephant is on a quest to save very small persons on a speck from the evil Vladikloff the Vulture.  I love watching the suspense on my students' faces when I read this to them.  I make voices for the characters and encourage the children to join in on the repetitive verses.  They pretty much have it down by the end of the story.  :)  It has such a sweet message and theme for little people...a person's a person, no matter how small!

 

 

 

 

 



The Llama Llama books are great little rhyming stories that teach social skills!  They are so age-appropriate and relatable for little ones.  Llama Llama Misses Mama, by Anna Dewdney, is a good book to share during the first week of school, for kindergarteners who are having separation anxiety.

 

 



I think it is pretty rare to find a catchy non-fiction text for kindergartners that rhymes! I was first introduced to I Like Bugs! by Margaret Wise Brown as a Big Book read aloud selection in our reading curriculum last year.  Then I realized there were smaller Step Into Reading versions of the book available (as pictured above).  You know a book is good when your students beg you to reread it and are participating as you are reading it to them!  It has a rhythm that is irresistible!  (And, who doesn't love reading about bugs??) 

 

 



The Night Before Kindergarten by Natasha Wing  is a new favorite of mine!  I ordered it this summer to add to my Back to School collection and I am excited to introduce it to my kindergarteners this year.  I like it because the text is based off of the popular "Twas the Night Before Christmas" poem, so students have some background knowledge about the poem and also can relate to the text that is specific to them!  It will be a great example of how authors can use other's work as inspiration for new stories. 


Check out the other teacher suggestions this week for great books that rhyme at The Kindergarten Connection and Kindergarten Planet !

Must Read Monday- Books About Compassion

 

 

 

 

Thanks to The Kindergarten Planet and The Kindergarten Connection for hosting this weekly summer link up!  I'm jumping in today for week 5's topic: book about compassion! 

Compassion is such an important idea to introduce to our kindergarteners.  Some students are naturally further advanced in this than others, and most are just beginning to grasp the idea of feeling empathy for another person. 

 

 

 

1.  I love having a chapter book on hand to read aloud to my students when we come in from recess.  It helps calm everyone and focus us for the afternoon.  I usually try to keep our chapter books short, but I took a leap of faith this spring and chose to read them Charlotte's Web by E.B. White, partly because our media specialist had introduced them to the story.  I own the Garth William's illustrated version...I love his sweet and charming pictures!  It took us several weeks (month?) to get through it, but they were so into it!  They really developed a connection with Charlotte and Wilbur.  Death is a hard topic for kindergartners to grapple with, but the book depicts it gently and lovingly, and follows up with Wilbur in turn caring for Charlotte's children, having had her model of care and compassion.  And Templeton the rat lightens things up by adding humor throughout the story, which my students loved!

 

 



 



 

2.  A new baby in the family is something that several of my kiddoes experienced this year.  If they have been the baby up until this point, it is sometimes hard to understand that there is a new little one that will require some of Mom and Dad's attention, too.  Peter's Chair by Ezra Jack Keats recognizes the fear and even anger that some little "olders" might experience at first, but ends by Peter realizing that his younger sibling needs him and can use his outgrown baby furniture.  I read it to my class and it provided an opportunity to talk about new siblings and how big siblings can help during this new, happy, but sometimes difficult, time. 

 

 

 

 



 

 

 

 

 

3.  We were HUGE Bear book fans in my classroom this past year!  Bear Feels Sick by Karma Wilson is one of the many Bear books I read to my students throughout the year.  Most kiddoes can relate to the idea of having someone take care of them when they are sick.  This book provided a great age-appropriate way to talk about little things we can do to make someone feel more comfortable when they are not feeling well. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4.  How Do Dinosaurs Play With Their Friends? by Jane Yolen and Mark Teague is a good way to introduce (or reintroduce) kindergartners to the concept of not hurting their friends' feelings, and playing nicely with others.  I own several of the "How Do Dinosaurs" books, and I love to pull them out when a particular behavior starts cropping up in my classroom.  It shows children, in a gentle, humorous way, what not to do.  Of course, we would NEVER act like THOSE dinosaurs!  Never, ever!  :)

 

 

 

Check out other teacher recommendations for books that teach compassion at The Kindergarten Planet's post this week!