The Snowy Day

by Ezra Jack Keats

Keats, E. J. (1962). The snowy day. New York, NY: The Viking Press.

          Young Peter awakes one morning to find that snow had fallen while he slept and now covers everything as far as he can see.  After eating breakfast, he throws on his snowsuit and runs outside to discover that snow is piled up very high along the street.  As he walks along the snow he tries making different patterns with his feet and then with a stick he finds.  He smacks snow covered trees, makes a snowman and snow angels, and contemplates joining in a snowball fight with older boys.  He is a typical young boy doing all the things any young child would do when they awaken to the first snow fall.  He pretends to be a mountain climber, then slides down.  He gathers up some snow and packs it tight to save in his pocket for tomorrow.  Then Peter goes in, takes off his wet clothes and takes a nice warm bath while telling his mom all about his adventures of the day.  Before bed that night, Peter sadly discovers that his snowball is no longer in his pocket; only a large wet spot remains.  That night Peter dreams of the sun shining in the sky, melting away all the snow.  However when he wakes the next morning, he finds there is even more snow falling, and he ventures out again, this time with a friend, to have new adventures.  This Caldecott Honor book would be the perfect addition to a K-1 unit study on Winter or an author study on Ezra Jack Keats.

The Snowy Day Read Aloud/Interactive Book

35 Crafts, Activities, and Printables to go along with The Snowy Day

Ezra Jack Keats Foundation

Ezra Jack Keats Teaching Guide

The Bad Guys

by Aaron Blabey

Blabey, A. (2015). The bad guys.  New York, NY: Scholastic Press.

          Mr. Wolf might have a long rap sheet of bad deeds including blowing down houses and attempting to eat old women and their granddaughters, but that doesn't mean he's a bad guy!  Everything you've heard up until now has been a lie.  He really is a NICE guy.  And it's not just him...he has a few friends who also have undeserved reputations and have been unjustly labeled as "Bad Guys."  They include Mr. Snake, Mr. Piranha and Mr. Shark.  Forget the fact that they just want to eat everyone, because Mr. Wolf has a brilliant plan.  No longer will they be the villains, eliciting screams and fear from those they meet.  As of today, these 4 friends are now known as the "Good Guys Club."  They'll drive around in their wicked cool car, rescuing kitties from trees and dogs from the pound.  They'll be heroes!   Even reluctant readers will delight in the friends' humorous dialog and antics in this first book of a brand new graphic novel series from author-illustrator Aaron Blabey, author of the Pig the Pug series.  Recommended for students in grades 1-3, but enjoyable for all ages!

Scholastic Teaching Resource for The Bad Guys

Book Trailer for The Bad Guys

The Last Kids on Earth

by Max Brallier

Brallier, M. (2015.) The last kids on earth. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.

Jack Sullivan was pretty much your typical 13 year old boy.  Well except the fact that he was technically an orphan and bounced around from foster home to foster home most of his life.  But 42 days ago when the monster apocalypse hit, his foster family hightailed it west looking for safety and left him behind to fend for himself.  So what is a boy to do all on his own in a town swarming with gigantic monsters and former inhabitants that have been zombified?  Well for starters he takes refuge in his "scummy little foster" brother's tree house and after some major additions has the place better defended than Fort Knox.  Now that he's feeling a little more secure, he's decided to seek out his best friend, Quint, who he hasn't seen since the day the monsters first struck.  Thankfully he does finally reunite with Quint, as well as Dirk, the resident bully who never passed up a chance to give Jack and Quint a hard time.  Of course every true hero must rescue his "damsel in distress" and Jack is no different.  Jack has his sights set on June Del Toro, editor of the school paper and his current love interest.  The last time he saw her was also the first day of the apocalypse where they locked eyes and then she disappeared into the school.  With Quint and Dirk's help, he is determined to save the love of his life, but as it turns out June is more than capable of taking care of herself.  With the giant monster Blarg hot on Jack's trail and every zombie in town surrounding the school, the 4 teens will have to work together to escape and make it back to the ultra fortified tree house.  Douglas Holgate's black and white comic type illustrations not only bring the characters to life, but add much humor to the story.  This book will be a big hit with students in grades 4-6 and is a great recommendation for reluctant readers.  It is also on the list of Bluebonnet Nominees for 2017-2018.

Interview with Max Brallier

Last Kids On Earth Book Trailer