Reading & Writing With Picture Books Table of Contents Grade 3 About This Book... 2 Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney... 5 by Susan Lowell... 11 The Wump World by Bill Peet... 17 A Bad Case of Stripes by David Shannon... 23 Piggins by Jane Yolen... 29 Night in the Barn by Faye Gibbons... 35 The Keeping Quilt by Patricia Polacco... 41 Annie and the Old One by Miska Miles... 47 The Jester Has Lost His Jingle by David Saltzman... 53 Aunt Harriet s Underground Railroad in the Sky by Faith Ringgold... 59 Dandelions by Eve Bunting... 65 The Librarian Who Measured the Earth by Kathryn Lasky... 71 Reading Skills Chart... 78 Writing Skills Chart... 79 Answer Keys... 80 www.themailbox.com 2003 by THE EDUCATION CENTER, INC. All rights reserved. ISBN# 1-56234-536-2 Except as provided for herein, no part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or storing in any information storage and retrieval system or electronic online bulletin board, without prior written permission from The Education Center, Inc. Permission is given to the original purchaser to reproduce patterns and reproducibles for individual classroom use only and not for resale or distribution. Reproduction for an entire school or school system is prohibited. Please direct written inquiries to The Education Center, Inc., P.O. Box 9753, Greensboro, NC 27429-0753. The Education Center, The Mailbox, the mailbox/post/grass logo, and The Mailbox Book Company are trademarks of The Education Center, Inc., and may be the subject of one or more federal trademark registrations. All other brand or product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Manufactured in the United States 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Written by Susan Lowell Illustrated by Jim Harris Three javelinas, dressed in their best Southwestern outfits, set out to seek their fortunes in the desert. Each builds a house out of plentiful desert materials tumbleweeds, ribs from the saguaro cactus, and adobe bricks made of mud and straw. A bad coyote huffs and puffs, blowing two of the houses down. The two homeless javelina brothers flee the crafty coyote and take refuge with their equally crafty sister, who beats Coyote at his own game. Vocabulary Building New Vocabulary Lay the foundation for comprehension one word at a time! Before reading the story, write the listed words on the chalkboard. Ask students to share the meanings of the words they know and record their responses. As you read the book, challenge students to listen for the words and any clues about their meanings. Pause briefly to clarify the meaning of each vocabulary word. After reading the story, give youngsters additional practice with the words by providing each child with a copy of page 15 and having him complete it as directed. javelina hooves snouts whirlwind tumbleweeds saguaros Ha u suspicious Sí adobe Name Vocabulary Building New Words Cut out the words at the bottom of the page. Read each sentence. Find the missing word and place the cutout on the matching 1 2 number. Glue the cutouts in place. 3 4 5 1. Javelinas have hard, hairy. 2. Javelinas have soft, pink. 3. The first little javelina is caught up in a of dust. 4. The first javelina finds himself on a heap of. 5. Giant cactus plants called grow high in the sky. 6. The Native American women replies,, and gives some sticks to the second little javelina. 7. The little javelinas are of the crafty coyote. 8. The Spanish brickmaker answers,, and gives the third little javelina some bricks. 9. The coyote huffs and puffs but cannot blow down the solid house made of bricks. 6 8 Home, Sweet Home 7 9 tumbleweeds saguaros Ha u adobe 11
Sequencing events Hats Off to Sequencing! Help students get story events in line with this center idea! Place a class supply of page 16, a class supply of sentence strips, and a copy of the book at a center stocked with scissors and glue. At the center, direct each child to read the sentence starter on each hat. Then have him write an ending for the sentence describing a story event. Encourage the youngster to look back through the book if he needs help. Tell him to color the hats (around his writing) and then cut out the patterns. Have him place the hats in sequential order along a sentence strip so that the letters along the top of the hats spell Javelinas. Instruct him to glue the cutouts in place. If desired, pair students and have each child use his sentence strip to retell the story to his partner. J V All three javelinas trot away to seek their fortunes. A The first javelina Coyote blows the tumbleweed house down. E The second javelina builds a house with tumbleweeds. builds a house with saguaro ribs. Character study, dialogue A Reading Recital When it comes to identifying characters with dialogue, this idea hits the mark! In advance, copy the listed quotes on a chart (without the answers). For each quote, challenge students to determine the speaker and to describe the related event. Write the character s name beside the statement. Next, divide students into four groups. Assign each group a different character. Then reread the story. Each time you encounter a listed quote, pause and signal the appropriate group to recite its part. (If necessary, cue students with several words.) Now that s a fun way to get students to identify with characters! 12 I ll build a house with them! Please, may I have some sticks to build a house? May I please have a few adobes to build a house? Not by the hair of my chinny-chin-chin! Just try it! The stove pipe! Little pig, little pig, let me come in! Then I ll huff, and I ll puff, and I ll blow your house in! Yip yap yeep YEE-OWW-OOOOOOOOOOOOO! (first javelina) (second javelina) (first, second, or third javelina)
Synonyms, dialogue He Said, She Said Dry dialogue becomes a thing of the past when students substitute synonyms for said. Give each child a 9" x 12" sheet of green construction paper, scissors, and a pencil. With her paper positioned vertically, have her lightly trace her hand (with her first, second, and third fingers held together) and forearm. Then direct her to cut out the resulting cactus shape along the traced line. Next, direct students to listen for synonyms for said and jot them down on the cactus cutouts as the story is reread aloud. Invite students to share their listed synonyms, adding words to their own lists that they may have missed. Point out that said and its synonyms are often used in writing dialogue, the words spoken by a character. Remind students about the basic rules for writing quotations. Then direct each student to choose three synonyms from her list. On the back of her cactus, have her write three quotations using the selected synonyms to convey things that story characters might have said. Invite each student to display her completed project on her desk as a handy reminder to use synonyms and quotations to spruce up her writing! called shouted cried gasped My house has been destroyed! gasped the second javelina. Descriptive writing Desert Descriptions Use the author s detailed descriptions to whet students appetites for descriptive writing! In advance, prepare student copies of a whirlwind pattern similar to the one shown. Tell students to listen for vivid descriptions of the desert as you reread the story. Prompt students to share how the author s choice of words helps readers see and feel the desert. Then ask each student to choose something from the story s setting to describe in more detail. Direct her to draft a descriptive paragraph about her subject on notebook paper. Then have her copy her revised and edited version onto the whirlwind pattern. Invite students to share their paragraphs with the class. Display them on a bulletin board titled A Whirlwind of Descriptive Writing! The tall, prickly saguaros stood still in the sun. Nothing was stirring, not even a rabbit. All of a sudden, a whirlwind of yellow dust swirled across the dry land. It hid the saguaros from view. Then the cloud of dust was gone and the desert was quiet again. 13