Every morning I wake up all hopeful that today will be warmer. The light is coming earlier (well, at least until daylight savings times throws a monkey wrench in that on Saturday night :)), and the angle of the light says spring is coming. The robins are incurably optimistic. But every morning I walk downstairs and check the thermometer and it's still COLD.
The novelty has worn off.
I've forgotten what grass looks like.
But it is March! Time is on our side! And to help us throw off the winter doldrums, we have the amazing March Madness Writing Contest to distract us, with the fantastic first prize of a read and critique by Karen Grencik of Red Fox Literary! So I hope you're all busily concocting stories :)
Chins up, everyone! It's technically less than 2 weeks until spring AND the contest fun! :)
And now, how about a Perfect Picture Book or two or twenty to get us through the weekend?
Written By: Diane Rose-Solomon
Illustrated By: Rachel Cellinese
SOP3 Publishing, 2012, Fiction
Suitable For Ages: 4-8
Themes/Topics: responsibility, pets, rescue animals
Opening: "Since as long as I can remember, I've wanted a dog. At night, I dream about dogs. Little dogs with floppy ears and short legs. Big dogs with pointy ears and long legs. There are brown dogs, tan dogs and spotted all over dogs. Some are even pink and green. But those dogs are just in my dreams."
Brief Synopsis: Maya has always wanted a dog. When her Uncle Jerry finds a stray, it looks like maybe her dream will come true. But what if his owner comes to claim him? Maya learns a lot about stray dogs and about what it is to care for a pet of her own.
Links To Resources: talk about caring for pets, discuss responsibility and what that means in relation to taking care of an animal, talk about making thoughtful decisions, Bookmaking Activity, free downloadable worksheets for individual grades, Animal Welfare Lessons from the ASPCA, some animal rescue information at the back of the book.
Why I Like This Book: Well, you guys all know I love dogs, and that both my dogs are rescues, so this is a topic near and dear to my heart. The story is entertaining and serves to get across a lot of information to help kids understand why dogs may be homeless and how they can help. Although this is a fictional story, the information presented within it is true. Lots of kids want pets, or think they do, so a story like this can be helpful in promoting discussion of exactly what is involved and expected.
For the complete list of books with resources, please visit Perfect Picture Books.
PPBF bloggers, please be sure to leave your post-specific links in the list below so we can all come visit you (since it's still too cold to spend much time outside!)
Have a great weekend, everyone!!! :)
