Title: The New Bear at School

Author: Carrie Weston

Illustrator: Tim Warnes

Published: Scholastic Press, 2007

Grades: K-2

Genres: Picture Book, Fiction

Medium: paint

Characters: Boris the Grizzly Bear, Miss Cluck, Leticia, Maxwell, Fergus, and the mice gang

Summary: When the students of Miss Cluck’s class learned that they were getting new

student, they were all so excited, until Boris walked in. He was big and hairy, and scary. All

the kids immediately decided that they were not going to be friends with a big, hairy, scary

bear. Boris was so sad! By the end of day Boris was a very lonely bear. As Boris walked home

by himself he came upon the kids in the class being bullied by the rat pack. Boris however,

didn't realize that they were being bullied, he thought they were playing, so when Boris

walked up with a big grin on his face wanting to play, the rat pack got scared and ran away.

You see, when Boris smiles his big pointed teeth make him look mighty fierce. Because Boris

saved them, the kids no longer thought he was a big, hairy, scary bear!

Classroom Connection: English language art, and social skills

 Title: My Mouth is A Volcano

Author: Julia Cook

Illustrator: Carrie Hartman

Published: National Center for Youth Issues, 2006

Grades: 1st-4th

Genres: Picture Book, Fiction

Medium: pencil, paint,

Characters: Louis

Summary: All of Louis thoughts are very important to him. In fact, his thoughts are so

important to him that when he has something to say, his words begin to wiggle, and then

they do the jiggle, then his tongue pushes all of his important words up against his teeth and

he erupts, or interrupts others. His mouth is a volcano! My Mouth Is A Volcano takes an

empathetic approach to the habit of interrupting and teaches children a witty technique to

capture their rambunctious thoughts and words for expression at an appropriate time. Told

from Louis’ perspective, this story provides parents, teachers, and counselors with an

entertaining way to teach children the value of respecting others by listening and waiting for

their turn to speak.

Awards: Winner of the Association of Educational Publishers 2006 Distinguished

Achievement Award for Children’s Books in Graphic Design & Illustration.

Classroom Connection: English language arts, social skills, and theater

 Title: The Monster Who Lost His Mean

Author: Tiffany Strelitz Haber

Illustrator: Kirstie Edmunds

Published: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR), 2012

Grades: K - 2nd

Genres: Picture Book, Fiction

Medium: Paint

Characters: Onster, Monster Crew

Summary: Each letter in the word “monster” stands for a valuable character trait that all

these creatures share: M is for mean, O is for Observant, N is for Noisy, S is for Super Strong,

T is for Tough-to-Please, E is for Envious and R is for Remarkable. Sadly, the lime green,

rectangular protagonist loses his “M” and his ability to be truly mean. Now he is “just The

Onster.” Without his “mean,” he becomes the target of teasing and feels embarrassed when

he is caught by the monster pack doing good deeds and fitting in with the more kind hearted

and accepting young humans. Even when he purposely tries to do something bad, such as

pulling “the flowers out of Mrs. Power’s yard,” he “just can’t bear to harm them, so he

waters them instead.” The rhyming text proceeds at a steady clip, and Edmunds digitally

renders scenes that aptly depict the monster’s back-and-forth feelings about becoming a non-

threatening, thoughtful and friendly Onster.

Classroom Connection: English language arts, social skills, and theater.

 Title: The Biggest Bear

Author: Lynd Ward

Illustrator: Lynd Ward

Published: HMH Books for Young Readers, 1952

Grades:

Genres: Picture Book

Medium: Casein paint

Characters: Johnny, Bear, Neighbors

Summary: Johnny Orchard, a young boy, is jealous because his neighbors have bear pelts
hanging on their barns, so he takes a rifle and goes hunting for the biggest bear in the valley.
However, when he finds only a bear cub, he befriends it by feeding it maple sugar and brings
the bear home as a pet. As it grows, it becomes a nuisance to his family and the neighbors
due to its enormous appetite. After the neighbors complain to his father, Johnny tries three
times to return the bear to the woods. Each time the bear follows Johnny back home.
Finally, Johnny and his father decide the only way to solve the problem is to shoot the bear.
Johnny takes the bear far into the woods, but while loading his rifle, the bear runs off and
into a live trap that has maple sugar in it. Men who had set the trap to capture animals for
the zoo soon come. They take Johnny's bear to a zoo where Johnny can visit him anytime he
wants to.

Classroom Connection: English language arts, and science

Awards: Caldecott Medal 1953

 Title: The Gift of the Magi

Author: O. Henry

Illustrator: Sonja Danowski

Published: Minedition, 2013

Grades: 2+

Genera: Picture book, Fiction

Medium: pencil, ink

Characters: Della and Jim

Summary: Jim and Della have been reduced to a mere smidgen of their income. Right around

the holidays, that proves crippling to their wishes to give something special with love for

Christmas. Della has worked to scrounge $1.87 to buy Jim a gift, and it isn't enough--or so

she thinks. With open hearts and desires to show their utmost love, sacrifices are

made...perhaps unnecessarily.

Classroom Connection: English language arts, social skills, and theater

 Title: Big Anthony and the Magic Ring

Author: Tomie dePaola

Illustrator: Tomie dePaola

Published: HMH Books, 1979

Grades: K-2nd

Genera: Picture Book, Fiction

Medium: paint

Characters: Strega Nona, Big Anthony

Summary: The story of Big Anthony and the Magic Ring starts when Big Anthony worked

day and night for Strega Nona. Strega Nona asked what was wrong. Then she said Big

Anthony could take the night off. The next night Strega Nona reached into a cabinet and

took out a magic ring. She put it on her finger and sang a magic song. In an instant there was

a puff of smoke and Strega Nona turned into a young lady ready to go to a dance. The next

night Big Anthony took Strega Nona's ring, which he wasn't supposed to touch, and sang the

magic song and he went to the village to see if anybody would dance with him. All the ladies

wanted to dance with him and finally Big Anthony was tired of dancing. The women didn't

let him rest. He sang the other magic song to get the ring off, but it didn't work. He tried to

run away from the women but he just couldn't lose them. Big Anthony went to Strega Nona

for help.

Classroom Connection: English language arts

 Title: Abiyoyo

Author: Pete Seeger

Illustrator: Michael Hays

Published: Simon & Schuster, 1986

Grades: 1st – 5th

Genera: Folktale

Medium:

Characters: Magician, his son, and Abiyoyo

Summary: In this book based on a South African lullaby and folktale, a fearsome giant,
Abiyoyo, suddenly appears in a small South African town, causing the people to run for their
lives. Nothing can stop the giant except for the sound of a little boy's ukulele — a sound that
enchants the giant, but a sound that up until now none of the boy's fellow townspeople could
stand to hear. The boy's father also has a special gift: he can wave a magic wand and make
things disappear, a talent the townspeople have found equally annoying. But now, the
previously banished boy and his father are suddenly heroes, as they work together to get rid
of Abiyoyo for good.

Classroom Connection: English language arts, music, geography and theater

 Title: Waiting for Wings

Author: Lois Ehlert

Illustrator: Lois Ehlert

Published: HMH Books, 2001

Grades: K – 5th

Genera: Picture Book, Nonfiction

Medium: paint, paper cut-outs

Summary: Every spring, butterflies emerge and dazzle the world with their vibrant beauty.

But where do butterflies come from? How are they born? What do they eat--and how? With

a simple, rhyming text and glorious color-drenched collage, Lois Ehlert provides clear

answers to these and other questions as she follows the life cycle of four common butterflies,

from their beginnings as tiny hidden eggs and hungry caterpillars to their transformation

into full-grown butterflies. Complete with butterfly and flower facts and identification tips,

as well as a guide to planting a butterfly garden, this butterfly book is like no other.

Classroom Connection: Science and visual art

Awards: Bookseller's Choice for Nonfiction (2002

 Title: Enemy Pie

Author: Derek Munson

Illustrator: Tara Calahan King

Published: Chronicle Books, 2000

Grades: K-2nd

Genre: Fiction

Medium:

Characters: Narrator boy, dad, and Jeremy Ross

Summary: It was the perfect summer. That is, until Jeremy Ross moved into the house down

the street and became neighborhood enemy number one. Luckily Dad had a surefire way to

get rid of enemies: Enemy Pie. But part of the secret recipe is spending an entire day playing

with the enemy! In this funny yet endearing story, one little boy learns an effective recipes

for turning your best enemy into your best friend.

Classroom Connection: English language arts, social skills, theater, and visual art
 Title: The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Author: Eric Carle

Illustrator: Eric Carle

Published: World Publishing Company

Grades:

Medium: paint

Characters: Caterpillar

Summary: One Sunday morning, a red-faced caterpillar hatches from an egg, and begins to

look for some food. He eats through increasing quantities of fruit on the following five days.

By the end of Saturday, the inevitable happens and the caterpillar gets ill with a stomach

ache from over eating too much. On Sunday, he recovers from a stomach-ache and returns to

a more sensible diet by eating through a large green leaf before spinning a cocoon in which he

remains for the following two weeks. Later, the "big fat caterpillar" emerges as a beautiful

butterfly with large, gorgeous, multi-colored wings.

Classroom Connection: English language arts, health, math, science, and visual art

Awards: New York Times Ten Best Picture Books of the Year citation, 1969, American

Institute of Graphic Arts award, 1970, Best Children’s Books of England citation, 1970,

Selection du Grand Prix des Treize, France, 1972, Brooklyn Museum Art Books for Children

citation, 1973, 1976, 1977, Nakamori Reader’s Prize, Japan, 1975

 Title: Diary of A Worm

Author: Doreen Cronin

Illustrators: Doreen Cronin, Harry Bliss

Published: HarperCollins, 2003

Grades: k-5th

Genre: Fiction

Medium:

Characters: Worm and his friend Spider

Summary: Through short journal entries, a young worm describes his daily life. He burrows
in the ground to help the earth breathe and tries, unsuccessfully, to teach his friend, Spider,
to do the same. He watches out for the dangers around him, such as fishermen digging for
bait and kids playing hopscotch. He scares little girls, eats his macaroni art project and
engages in a very abbreviated “Hokey Pokey” dance with classmates. Amid dreams of
becoming a Secret Service agent, he gets in trouble at school for eating his homework and at
home for telling his sister her face looks just like her rear end.

He sustains a special friendship with Spider, even though they often compare themselves to
each other based on their anatomic differences. The worm concludes that he dislikes being a
worm because he has so much homework and can't chew gum or have a dog. But he does like
that he can always track mud through the house and doesn't have to bathe. He finds it hard
to be so small and forgettable, but Mom reminds him that the earth never forgets he's there.

Classroom Connection: English language arts, science, math, and visual art

Awards: South Carolina Book Award for Children's Book Award (2006), Keystone to Reading
Book Award for Primary (2005)
 Title: Oh, The Places You’ll Go!

Author: Dr. Seuss

Illustrator: Dr. Seuss

Published: Random House, 1990

Grades: All

Genre: Picture Book, Children’s Literature, Fiction

Medium:

Characters:

Summary: “Congratulations! Today is your day. You’re off to Great Places! You’re off and

away!” In his whimsical style and humorous prose, Dr. Seuss addresses the newest group of

graduates in the perfect send-off for children starting out in the maze of life, be they nursery

school grads or newly minted PhD’s. In this book, taken from a graduation speech given by

the master himself, Dr. Seuss craftily lays out the “Great Balancing Act” that is life itself,

complete with all the ups and downs it presents. While encouraging us to find the success

that lies within us, Seuss offers cautions for the times when we choose the wrong path or find

ourselves staring at a dead end or simply find ourselves in the “waiting room” waiting for

something else to come our way.

Classroom Connection: English language arts, social skills, theater, and visual art