School's First Day of School ~ Picture Book & KID KANDY

This is the perfect book for back-to-school!

by Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

School's First Day of School
By Adam Rex
Pictures by Christian Robinson
(Roaring Brook Press, 2016)

School was new.

He was so new that he didn't realize children would soon come pouring through his doors. Gasp! Janitor was his confidant and friend and tried to tell him things would be great.

But School was anxious.

And the children came to school. Some were bored (that hurt School's feelings), some cried and were afraid to stay at school (School was that bad?), and School even had an accidental fire drill the first day!

Would School enjoy being School?

I LOVED this story! Who would have thought about first-day-of-school-new-building story from the viewpoint of the school!

Funny, imaginative, and realistic. School's First Day of School will lighten the hearts of all readers.

KID KANDY:

Draw a Picture of Your School

Materials: paper, pencils, markers, crayons

1. Use the pencil to outline your school. Maybe you go to a huge elementary school, a small private school, or homeschool. Whichever type of school you attend, draw a picture of it.

2. Decorate your school. Maybe you could name your school, or print the name it already has on the top of the building.

3. Share your picture.

How do you think School felt before the first day? How did the boys and girls feel about going back to school? How do YOU feel about going to school?

I love school! Now that I am a writer and I work from home, I don't get to enjoy the first day of school as a teacher. I miss school! But I hope to visit again soon and read books with my favorite people - the students.

My Teacher Is a Monster! No, I Am Not. ~ Picture Book & KID KANDY

Meet the Monster Teacher.

By Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

My Teacher Is a Monster! No, I Am Not.
By Peter Brown
(Little, Brown and Company, 2014)

Bobby had a big problem at school. His teacher was a monster. A monster who made his education miserable.

But one Saturday morning, Bobby discovered his teacher sitting on a park bench. Much to his horror. After a hysterically role-appropriate series of interactions, Robert rescues Ms. Kirby's hat from certain destruction. Suddenly, Bobby notices that his teacher no longer resembles a monster as much as he used to think.

My Teacher Is a Monster! No, I Am Not. is a very funny and clever book. The illustrations, story, and conversations between the two characters are entertaining and engaging.

School-aged children will love reading this book.

KID KANDY:

Make a Paper Airplane

Materials: copy paper (scrap is best), paper clip, pencils or markers

1. If you don't know how to fold a paper airplane, ask an adult or older sibling to teach you. It just takes a little bit of practice.

2. Decorate the airplane paper.

3. Fold the paper into an airplane. Test your airplane. If it flies fine, don't worry about the paper clip. But I've found out that sometimes a paper clip stuck on the nose of the plane (the front) helps it to fly.

4. Head outside and fly that plane! You could have a contest with a friend or create a flying course for paper planes.

Where should you not fly paper airplanes? (Hint: Bobby knows!)
Where should you fly paper airplanes? (Hint: Remember what happened in the book?)

Happy reading and happy flying!

P.S. What was the longest distance your plane flew? I'd love to hear.

Home ~ Picture Book & KID KANDY

Home
By Carson Ellis
(Candlewick Press, 2015)

Home is where you lay your head or where your heart takes up residence. Home is usually where you reside or where you grew up or where your loved ones live.

Welcome to Home by Carson Ellis.

In her book, Ellis simply and beautifully shows many of the places we call home. Reality and whimsical as well as fairy tale and modern pop culture all have a part in the meaning of home. Ellis even makes up a few words, just to surprise and delight readers. Home is one of my new favorite books.

Home would be a great book to use at the beginning of school to get students to share about their own homes. What a fun Open House art project!

Where is your home?

KID KANDY:

Draw Your Home

Do you live in a house? A log cabin? A mobile home? An RV? An apartment?

Get out the pencils, markers, crayons, or paints. Draw a picture of your house. Color it in. Decorate the outside so that it looks just like your house. Sign your name and put the date on your drawing. Display it so others can see your home as it looks on paper.

Take a walk. How do other homes in your neighborhood compare to your home? Don't just look at people homes - check out animal, plant, and other nature type homes.

How do you feel about your home?

L'ecole - French Picture Book + KID KANDY Activity

L'ecole
Text by Micheline Bertrand and Fernand Nathan
Illustrations by Dick Bruna
(Paris, 1964f)

I love France and all things French. I love old books. I love old picture books.

L'ecole fits all three loves. Though I cannot figure out who published the book, I know it came into being around 1964 and has Paris listed in the scant information on the inside cover.

L'ecole, as you may have guessed if you read French, is a picture book about school.

Yes. School. Small children, les enfants, march happily to school, for school is a pretty place. Les enfants do the normal kid things at school - sing, draw on the chalkboard, build with blocks, celebrate a birthday, and make pattern designs.

And then, they are fini. They go home until the next day.

L'ecole is tres adorable! (Say that with a French accent, s'il vous plait!)

KID KANDY:

Listen to a language ~ any language!

They say that children who learn more than one language do better is school. Early exposure is the very best way to keep those neural pathways and LAD (language acquisition device) intact and available to pick up the nuances and sounds of languages.

Let's do this!

~ Sing some Raffi or Charlotte Diamond. Both of them have songs in English and French. Numerous recording artists sing in two languages. Check it out.

~ YouTube. I know there are basic language videos just there for the listening. Caution: View them before sharing with your child, just in case.

~ Check out a language program from the library. Your choice - Chinese, Japanese, Spanish, Italian . . .

~ Join a language group. In my area there is at least one French speaking group that meets on a monthly basis. I haven't gone yet, but I dream of it. If only to show my lack of true language skills and taste the cheese.

~ Books on CD (or tape). Libraries and bookstores have these available. Occasionally, Costco has a series you can purchase.

Bonne chance!

Angie Quantrell loves hearing and trying to speak French. She easily massacres the beautiful words, but that does not stop her from trying.