No Jumping on the Bed!

Tedd Arnold's No Jumping on the Bed is the story of a little boy named Walter. He is jumping on his bed when the floor cracked and the whole bed and Walter fell through the floor into Miss Hattie's dining room. The story continue's that Walter, Miss Hattie, Mr. Matty, Aunt Batty, Patty, and Natty, Mr. Hanratty, Fatty Cat, seventeen cans of paint, stamps, a TV, phagehetti, and the bed fall all the way through the building. Turns out Walter was only dreaming but above him he hears a break and down falls Delbert.

Great book! Tedd Arnold is a wonderful children's author. I love the exagerations and details of the story. The fact that all of the names rhyme make it kind of fun.

I would like to do a fun activity with this story. I would have show more the students draw a picture of their house and I'd ask them to draw where someone would land if they fell through. They could be creative and exagerative just like the book. show less

Walter's father tells him not to jump on the bed, but when he hears the boy above him doing it, Walter thinks it's only fair if he gets to jump, too! But his jumping send him, and his bed too, crashing down through floor after floor of other apartments. Down they all go, all the way to the basement, picking up spaghetti and fish and stamps and paint and instruments as well as people along the way.
Despite the book's age, the soft, rounded illustrations have remained, for the most part, timely. The only thing that might strike young readers is the size of the tv - small and boxy with an antennae, it's clearly a product of the late 80s, when the tale was first publish. A twist on a bedtime warning very familiar to most children, this show more cyclical story provides lots of laughs, particularly as Walter remains composed - and polite - through the whole ordeal. show less

I liked this book for two reasons. First, the language is very descriptive. The text is descriptive enough that I began to draw a picture in my head before I was done reading the page and looked at the illustration. For example, when the author was talking about how Walter was jumping on the bed. Walter’s hair touching the ceiling was described. Therefore, I knew he was jumping high. Second, the story pushed readers to think about life in the shoes of others. Not all children live in apartments or know how it is to not be able to run or jump in your home because if you do you will disturb those who live around you. Walter in the book was not able to jump on his bed because then the others around him would hear, just like her heard show more Delbert jumping on his bed. The big message of the book is to listen to your parents the first time. Had Walter listened to his father the first time he would not have fallen through the ceiling. show less

Summary: This cute story begins with a little boy named Walter. Walter loved jumping on his bed, but as his father walked in to turn of his lights he was caught. His dad told him not to jump on his bed or he is going to crash through the floor. As Walter drifts off to sleep he listens to the boy upstairs named Delbert jump on his bed. He says if Delbert can do it so can I. In his dream Walter falls through the floor crashing through a dining room, TV room, his Aunt's apartment, the twins' block tower, an art studio, and a string quartet. After his adventure Walter said that there will be no more jumping on the bed for him.

Personal Reaction: I love the playfulness of this book. It totally captures the very essence of childhood. Children show more are always wanting things to be fun, even if it may be risky. Sometimes they have to learn the hard way before changing their ways. Thankfully for Walter it was just a dream. The pictures in this book are full of life and very creative. The book is jammed pack with an explosion of color which is sure to capture little eyes. The nostalgia that this book brings me is heart warming. I loved having my mom read this book to me before bed.


Classroom Extension Ideas: This book would be great for talking about listening to authority. You could say, "look what happened in Walter's dream when he did not listen to his dad." For a lesson about consonance you could use this book because the names of the people and cat all have the same ending consonance sound : Miss Hattie, Mr. Matty, Aunt Batty, Patty, Natty, Fatty Cat, Mr. Hanratty, and Maestro Ferlingatti. Say that three times fast. = ) show less

Children love the predictability of words in this book. The repetition of the characters and rhymes is great! The premis is one which many children probably think could happen; why else would parents tell them to stop jumping on the bed?

I liked the book “No Jumping on the Bed” by Tedd Arnold. One reason I liked the book was because of the illustrations. Every other page in the book had a full page illustration on it. The illustrations were also very colorful and had a lot going on in each one. They also accurately portrayed what was happening in the story. Another aspect of the story I liked was the characters. The characters were relatable to young children. “If Delbert can jump on his bed, so can I.” At this point in the story Walter is disobeying his dad and jumps on his bed anyways. As a result, he breaks his floor and falls downward into his neighbor’s dining room. He then continues to fall through many people’s apartments. In the end, it ends up all show more being a dream. “No more jumping on the bed for me.” As soon as Walter says that, Delbert comes crashing through the ceiling because he was jumping on his bed. The big idea of the story is to listen to your parents. When they tell you not to do something, it is usually for your own good. show less

No Jumping On The Bed was a great story to read as I was growing up. It is very informative in a creative way to tell young children what they should not do during bed time. Most children know that they shouldn't jump on the bed but some do not. This book is a good reminder of what kids should not do. I thought it was really funny when the little boy jumped so high on the bed that the bed crashed through the ceiling into other apartments. Kids will enjoy the imaginative quality that the writer has created for a common rule. The illustrations are fun and colorful which adds to the story.