My Red Balloon

Made me cry. Suspenseful. I felt myself reading faster and faster wanting to know what would happen next. As he loosened the balloon string, my heart sank, I knew what was going to happen. I wanted to scream to him to stop so he wouldn't lose his balloon. The balloon was how his dad was going to find him. He had thought he had changed so much since the last time he saw his dad, that maybe he wouldn't recognize him.

This is a great piece of realistic fiction to introduce to children in the second or third grade. The story is about a young boy who misses his father, who is in the military. One day the boy and his mother go to the shipping harbor to welcome his father back home! The boy holds dearly to a red balloon that says 'Welcome home Daddy'. In an attempt to adjust the balloon's string on his arm, the boy accidentally allows the balloon to fly away. As they watch it fly toward the sky, the boy's father arrives! This would be a good book to read with students who have parents that travel due to the military, etc. This book is on a second grade reading level.

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This book would be good for a shared reading with students in first or second grade. It tells the story of a young boy who is excited for his dad to return home from overseas. The boy has gotten his dad a red balloon so that he can easily see him when he gets off the ship. The boy runs into trouble when the balloon gets away from him, but is still reunited and excited to see his dad. This book would be good for teaching many literary concepts. The first is point of view as the book is told in a first person point of view from the little boy's perspective. The second is symbolism and what the balloon represents to the boy. The third is tone and how the boy's tone changes as different events occur in the story. This book describes the show more excitement military children feel as their loved ones retune home. show less

Summary: My Red Balloon is about a young boy anxiously awaiting the return of his father from a deployment. He wakes up on the day his dad would finally be home, and gets ready to go to welcome him. He takes along a red balloon so that his dad will be able to spot him in the large crowd. While waiting, the boy accidently lets the balloon go, and it floats into the sky. He is very upset because he is afraid his dad won’t find him without the balloon. He watches it float toward the ship, and while watching the balloon, he spots his dad.
Personal Reaction: I liked this book. It shows the range of emotions that children can go through while waiting for a parent to return home. In my personal experience, kids can be confused about what show more they should feel like, and how to act in this situation. They know they are excited, but often overwhelmed and unsure of how to express that. Seeing the range of feelings the boy has could help another child to know that their feelings are normal. The illustration is well done, with an emphasis on the bright red balloon.

Classroom Extension Ideas: In a classroom with military children, this book would be very useful. Many of them have had, or will be having, a similar experience. Reading and discussing this book could help the students to know that they aren’t alone in their feelings or situation. This book would also be nice to read to a classroom of children who don’t live in a military community, but have a classmate with a deployed parent in the reserves or National Guard. It would help the students to understand this big event that is happening in their friend’s life. show less

My Red Balloon is a story of a little boy who is waiting for his Daddy to come home from overseas. He wakes up realizing that today is the big day. He gets ready and eats breakfast, making sure not to forget his red balloon shared like a heart that says "Welcome Home." The little boy and his mommy are at the pier waiting for the shit to get in when suddenly the balloon gets out from his hand. He is scared his Daddy won't recognize him without the balloon. But of course his Daddy will recognize him, his Daddy couldn't forget his little boy.

Summary:
This is the story of a little boy who wakes up one morning and is very ready to see his daddy, who has been away at war. He gets ready and ties a red balloon that says “Welcome Home” around his wrist. He and his mommy get into the car and wait at a harbor along with many other people of all ages, shapes, and sizes. The little boy is holding the balloon so that his daddy will see them when he gets off the ship. While waiting, the balloon string gets very tight, and in an attempt to loosen the string, the balloon flies away. The little boy is very upset, but while watching the balloon float away, he sees his daddy. Soon his daddy is hugging him and kissing his mommy. The little boy tells his father, “Welcome Home” as the show more song Anchors Aweigh plays.

Reflection:
This is a very good example of contemporary realistic fiction. It never happened, but it could have. I find myself a little depressed after reading this, and my heart goes out to the families of those in service who are separated for months and years at a time. I think it’d be an excellent book for children who have parents serving overseas.

Extension ideas:
I think it would be nice for the children in a classroom to write encouraging notes to those serving overseas. If a child in the class has a parent in the military that is deployed, the class could write thank-you notes to them. Another idea might be to play the song Anchors Aweigh, and learn the different songs for each branch of the armed forces. show less

Bobby prepares for his dad's return home! He is identified by a red heart balloon, but soon worries when he looses his balloon! Cute story about what a child may think about when a parent has been over seas for some time.