Violet Findley

This is the retelling of the classic life lesson learned from the patience of the tortoise. The hare makes fun of the tortoise so much that the tortoise finally suggests a race. The hare gets sp far ahead that he believes a nap before the win would fit into his time frame. The tortoise pulls ahead for the victory because "slow and steady wins the race."
I think that it is very important for children to understand the "slow and steady" concept as early in their lives as possible. In order for show more children to never feel bad for being behind in school, or embarrassed for feeling too advanced compared to others, they must ALL learn that each and every person has their own pace...and as long as they pace themselves, they will always be victorious.
The hare was a big bully. I think it would come in handy to point that out to my kiddos, and then have them journal about at least one of their own bullying experiences. Another great way to get my students involved would be to get them outside of the classroom. Have a race across the playground for a "prize," but then make sure that every single person gets the same thing like candy/ story time/ free homework pass/ etc. show less

In this traditional "Once upon a time tale" three pigs build a home made our of different items. The wolf goes to each house and blows the first two pigs home down. Made of Straw and sticks the homes couldn't survive the big wolf's deep breaths. Finally the wolf came to the 3rd pigs home and is unsuccessful at blowing it down, because it's made of bricks. The wolf then tries to go down the chimney, but is burned by a big pot of stew cooking.

Reaction: As a child this book was one of my show more favorites. I always loved hearing about the pigs, and hoped maybe this time they would survive his hot air. Never worked that way though. I loved how this story can develop into so much more.

Extension: I would have the children build their own homes out of straws, and sticks. After they are done we can test the homes to see which ones will survive a small fan. A second extension is to have the children come up with an alternate ending to the story. show less

Summary:

The nightingale has a beautiful voice. The king from china hears the voice and asks his servant to go and get the nightingale. The servant asks the bird if he will come and sing for the king. The king gets a cage for the nightingale and is accompanied by a toy bird that also sings. The nightingale feels forgotten and flies away back into the forest. The king gets sick and the toy bird is broken and can't be fixed. The nightingale sings by the kings window and he gets healed. The show more king wants the nightingale to stay with him, but the bird says no, that it will stay in the forest and come everyday by his window and sing for the king.

Personal Reflection:

I really liked the moral behind the story. I feel that it teaches children to not be selfish and to also be grateful with what they have. I also like how the nightingale gives the king a chance, but the second time he defends himself and lets the king know that he can't always have it his way.

Classroom Extension:

1. I would use this story as a mulitcultural book, and use China as a theme.
2. I have students do a needs and wants chart, also I would tie it with the importance of nature and how to appreciate its beauty.
3.Have them do their own beautiful nightingale bird and have them state what makes them happy. show less

Summary: the hare thought because he was the fastest thing on earth and the tortoise was the slowest thing on earth, that he could beat anyone. he would make fun of the tortoise. so one day, they decided to have a race. the hare was in the lead and because he thought he was the best, he decided to take a little nap because either way, he "thought" that he would still beat the tortoise. the tortoise passed him as the hare was waking up and had won.

personal: the hare was just being mean and show more it made me mad haha. i still enjoyed the book. traditional stories are always fun to read.

classroom: this is a good book to talk about how bullying is not ok. i can explain to the students that what the hare was doing was wrong and that everyone should get along because its the right thing to do. show less