Book Summaries and SOL Connections

VRC 2016-2017 Primary Selection

Book Summaries and SOL Connections

I Yam a Donkey!, by Cece Bell; Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston, NY © 2015, ISBN978-0-544-08720-0

This delightfully FUNNY book about grammar is a great read-aloud that will leave both student and adult audiences chuckling as they ponder proper speech!

SOL: Oral Language K.1euse complete sentences that include subject, verb, and object/Oral Language 1.2c use common singular and plural pronouns with matching verbs in complete sentences/ Oral Language 2.1c use correct verb tenses in oral communication/ Writing 3.10d use past and present verb tense/Communication 4.1euse grammatically correct language/Writing 5.8edit writing for correct grammar (subject verb agreement)

This Book Just Ate My Dog!, by Richard Byrne; Henry Holt & Company, NY © 2014, ISBN 978-1-62779-071-0

About a girl on a walk with her dog, this simple story surprises the reader when the characters disappear into the “gutter”, or binding of the book. The resolution requires intervention by the reader to return things back to “normal”.

SOL:Oral Language K.3gfollow one- and two-step directions/Reading K.5understand how print is organized and read/Reading K.9cuse picturesto make predictions/ Oral Language 1.3d follow simple two-step oral directions/ Reading 1.9d make and confirm predictions/ Reading 2.8amake and confirm predictions/ Writing 2.13i use commas in the salutation and closing of a letter/ Reading 3.5cmake, confirm, or revise predictions/Writing 3.9 write for a variety of purposes (letter writing)

Wolfie the Bunny, by AmeDyckman, illustrated by Zachariah OHora; Little Brown & Company, NY, © 2015, ISBN 978-0-316-22614-1

A different perspective on the topic of adoption, yet the story addresses issues that ALL families confront and resolve, when opening their family circle to a new member.

SOL: Civics K.10epracticing honesty, self-control, and kindness to others/Civics 1.10a helping others, and treating others with respect/Civics 2.11a, Civics 3.11a respecting and protecting the rightsof others/Writing 2.14the student will use available technology for reading andwriting/ Science 3.5bherbivore, carnivore, omnivore/ Writing 3.12 the student will use available technology for reading and writing/Reading 3.5d compare and contrast settings, characters, and events./ Reading 4.5j identify cause and effect relationships

Take Away the A, by Michael Esoffier, illustrated by Kris Di Giacomo; Enchanted Lion Books, NY, ©2014, ISBN 978-1-59270-156-8

This is the most “different” alphabet book ever, which causes the reader to look at letters and words in a unique and infectious manner.

SOL: Reading K.7aidentify and name the uppercase and lowercase letters of the alphabet/Oral Language 1.4e, Oral Language 2.4d add or delete phonemes (sounds) to make new words/Reading 3.3a use knowledge of regular and irregular vowel patterns

Last Stop on Market Street,by Matt de la Pena, illustrated by Christian Robinson ;G.P. Putnam’s Sons, NY, © 2015, ISBN 978-0-399-25774-2

Winner of the 2016 Newbery Medal and a 2016 Caldecott Honor, this book is an ode of gratitude for the simple and the most important things in life.

SOL: Oral Language K.2duse words to describe name, location, size, color, and shape/Reading 1.9f identify characters, setting, and important events/ Reading 2.6c use knowledge of story structure and sequence/ Reading 3.5c make, confirm, or revise predictions/ Reading 4.5b describe how the choice of language, setting, characters, and information contributes to the author’s purpose/ Reading 5.5f identify and ask questions that clarify various points of view/History and Social StudiesK.1ecomparing and contrasting people, places, or events/History andSocial Studies K.7 describe how the location, climate, and physical surroundings of a community affect the way people live, including their food, clothing, shelter, transportation, and recreation/ Economics K.9a recognize that people make choices because they cannot have everything they want/ Economics 1.8 explain that people make choices because they cannot have everything they want/ Civics 1.10a, helping others, and treating others with respect/Civics 1.13cinclude people who have diverse ethnic origins, customs, and traditions and are united as Americans by common principles/ Civics 2.11cdescribing actions that can improve the school and community/ Civics 3.13recognize that Americans are a people of diverse ethnic origins, customs, and traditions and are united by the basic principles of a republican form of government and respect for individual rights and freedoms/ Scientific Investigation, Reasoning, and Logic K.2a the five senses and corresponding sensing organs

SHH! We Have a Plan, by Chris Haughton, Candlewick Press, Somerville, MA,© 2014 ISBN 978-0-7636-7293-5

In this story, the best laid plans go astray, every time. Kindness proves to be successful, but a difficult lesson to learn.

SOL: Oral Language K.1dparticipate in creative dramatics/ Oral Language K.2e use words to describe or name actions/ Reading K.9g discuss characters, setting, and events/ Oral Language 1.1d participate in creative dramatics/ Reading 1.7c use information in the story to read words/ Reading 1.9f identify characters, setting, and important events/ Oral Language 2.1bcreate and participate in oral dramatic activities/ Reading 2.8i draw conclusions based on the text/ Reading 3.5d compare and contrast settings, characters, and events/ Reading 4.5b describe how the choice of language, setting, characters, and information contributes to the author’s purpose/Reading 4.5g identify sensory words/ Reading 5.5k make, confirm, or revise predictions

Creature Features: 25 Animals Explain Why They Look the Way They Do, by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, NY, © 2014 ISBN 978-0-544-23351-5

Written as queries to 25 animals about their unusual appearance, this book provides factual information in a very amusing way and is illustrated with Steve Jenkins’ amazing paper cuttings.

SOL:Life Processes1.5banimals, including humans, have many different physical characteristics/ Living Systems 2.5a living organisms are interdependent with their living and nonliving surroundings/ Life Processes 3.4a behavioral adaptations and 3.4b physical adaptations/ Living Systems 3.5c predator and prey/LivingSystems 4.5a animal adaptations/ Living Systems 5.5c traits of organisms that allow them to survive in their environment/ Geography 2.6a locating the seven continents and the five oceans/ Writing 2.12 write stories, letters, and simple explanations/ Writing 3.11 write a short report/ Research 4.9 demonstrate comprehension of information resources to research a topic/ Writing 5.7write for a variety of purposes: to describe, to inform, to entertain, to explain, and to persuade

Rex Finds an Egg, Egg, Egg, by Steven Weinberg; Margaret K. Elderry Books, NY, © 2015 ISBN 978-1-4814-0309-2

Rex finds an egg, then survives a number of disastrous events, only to find that it is not an egg at all!

SOL: Reading K.5e match voice with print (concept of word)/ Reading K.9f retell familiar stories, using beginning, middle, and end/ Reading 1.5c identify ending punctuation/ Reading 1.9g retell stories and events, using beginning, middle, and end/Oral Reading 2.8j read and reread familiar stories, poems, and passages with fluency, accuracy, and meaningful expression/ Reading 2.8h summarize stories and events with beginning, middle, and end in the correct sequence/ Reading 4.5g identify sensory words/ Reading 3.4g, 4.4c, 5.4c use word reference resources (thesaurus)

What Do You Do With An Idea?, by Kobi Yamada, illustrated by Mae Besom; Compendium Kids, Seattle, WA, © 2013 ISBN 978-1-938298-07-3

This whimsically illustrated story is about the conception, nurturance, and development of an idea that is unusual and carries the potential of extraordinary change.

SOL: Scientific Investigation, Reasoning, and Logic K1.kobjects are described bothpictorially and verbally/ Scientific Investigation, Reasoning, and Logic1.1iobservations and data are recorded, analyzed, and communicated orally and with simple graphs, pictures, written statements, and numbers/ Scientific Investigation, Reasoning, and Logic 2.1l simple physical models are designed and constructed to clarify explanations and show relationships/ Scientific Investigation, Reasoning, and Logic3.1j inferences are made and conclusions are drawn/ScientificInvestigation, Reasoning, and Logic4.1adistinctions are made among observations, conclusions, inferences, and predictions/ScientificInvestigation, Reasoning, and Logic 5.1i inferences are made and conclusions are drawn/ Writing 4.9d give credit to sources used inresearch/Writing 5.9f give credit to sources used in research

Found, by Salina Yoon; Walker Books for Young Readers, NY, ©2014, ISBN978-0-8027-3559

Bear finds a lost toy and does his very best to return it to its owner. As he searches, he has a lot of fun with his new friend, and becomes very fond of it; then the owner appears. The resolution is a worthy lesson in generosity and sharing.

Writing K12.bdraw pictures and/or use letters and phonetically spelled words to write about experiences/ Writing 1.13g share writing with others/ Writing 2.12 c expand writing to include descriptive detail/ Writing 3.9write for a variety of purposes/ Reading 4.5j identify cause and effect relationships/ Writing 4.7write cohesively for a variety of purposes/ Reading 5.4didentify an author’s use of figurative language/ Writing 5.7write for a variety of purposes

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