Patricia Mullins

I love cumulative tales :)

A cumulative tale is one of those fun stories that builds on itself, one element at a time, just like "The House that Jack Built".

In this case, every member of the family runs to get a girl another article of clothing to "Go with the shoes from grandpa", until eventually she asks them nicely if they can just get her a pair of jeans instead.

The only trouble I have with this book (and it's minor, really), is that it's written with British English in mind. Which means show more that to my American voice, some of the rhymes (laugh and scarf; blouse and bows) just don't work, and it messes up the flow.

If it weren't for that quibble, I wouldn't have a problem at all. The book rocks. show less

V for Vanishing is an informative book that has illustrations that leap off of the page! Mullins shows readers different animals by using the alphabet. Some of these animals are in danger of becoming extinct. The pictures are very detailed and textured with paint. As an animal lover, this book made me feel compassion for the animals that may become extinct, and I know it will do the same for children as well as show them various animals that they may have not known about before.

Hattie And The Fox is a great story about a chicken who tries to warn her friends of danger. I like this book because of the wonderful illustrations and the moral of the story and would use it in my classroom to describe honesty and caution. This book is suitable for grades 2 and 3.

Shoes from Grandpa is a story about a girl named Jessie, who amasses an entire new wardrobe after her grandpa notices her shoes are too small. The entire family pitches in to get Jessie everything from skirts to blouses and jackets to scarves and socks, but all she really wants is a pair of jeans.

Cute book! It had a fun, bouncy rhythm that would be fun to read aloud, and I loved that it challenged the gender stereotypes of girls in frilly pink clothes!

Classroom Extensions:
1. Have kids make show more paper buddies (instead of paper "dolls") and outfits, and use these to talk about weather appropriate clothing.
2. Use the story to preface a classroom clothing drive. show less