The document describes several children's books and provides suggested activities to accompany each book. For the book "Mouse, Mole, and the Falling Star", the summary explains that it tells the story of Mouse and Mole, best friends who see a falling star but argue over who saw it first, causing a quarrel. As summer passes, they miss each other more until a change in weather and a golden leaf bring about a change in their friendship. Suggested activities include discussing predictable and unpredictable events, and having students list fun things they've done with friends.

1. RING-O By: Caitlynn McKinney 2 nd grade

2. Amelia Bedelia’s Family Album By: Peggy Parish Summary Back of book: If you think Amelia Bedelia gets things all mixed up, wait until you meet her relatives! You are invited to a special party to meet the family. Just be prepared for the wackiest bunch of people you’ve ever met…and the most laughs you’ve had in a long time. Biggerbooks.com: Amelia Bedelia entertains Mr. and Mrs. Rogers by showing them her family album and describing what her relatives do.

3. Amelia Bedelia’s Family Album By: Peggy Parish ACTIVITY Before reading Amelia Bedelia’s Family Album , have students draw pictures of what they think a few of the following occupations look like: “telephone operator, loafer, big-game hunter, bank teller, boxer, horse racer, cook, picture taker, checkbook balancer, printer, bookkeeper, garbage collector, and catcher.” Next, read the book Amelia Bedelia’s Family Album and have student’s compare their drawings with the illustrations in the book. Ask students what Amelia Bedelia was thinking and what Mr. & Mrs. Rodgers were thinking. Explain what multiple-meaning words are. In groups of 4 or 5, have students create their own family albums. Allow them to draw pictures of their family members and the label what each member does. Last, have students add together the total number of family members at their table (including all their classmates’ drawings of family members. STANDARDS English/Language Arts - 2.1.10: Identify simple multiple-meaning words ( change, duck ). Mathematics – 2.2.1: Model addition of numbers less than 100 with objects and pictures. GARDNER’S Logical-Mathematical Visual-Spatial

4. The Giving Tree By: Shel SilverStein Summary Bookrags.com: The story is a short moral tale about a relationship between a young boy and a tree in a forest. The tree and the boy become best friends. The tree always provides the boy with what he needs: vines to swing from, shade to sit under, apples to snack on, branches to build a house. As the boy grows older and older he requires more and more of the tree. The tree loves the boy very much and gives him anything he asks for. In the ultimate act of self-sacrifice, the tree lets the boy cut her down so the boy can build a boat in which he can sail. The boy leaves the tree, now a stump. Many years later, the boy, now an old man, returns and the tree says "I have nothing left to give you". The boy replies that all he needs is a quiet place to sit and rest as he awaits death. The tree happily obliges.

5. The Giving Tree By: Shel SilverStein ACTIVITY Explain that we can find out how old a tree is by counting the rings on the stump. Because a tree goes a layer of wood each year, it creates rings that account for one year each. Divide students into small groups (4 or 5 students) and explore a stump outside. Have each group count the number of rings and decide how old they think that tree was. Next, have students measure the distance between the rings on the outer edge of the stump and the center of the stump. Ask: What should we measure in centimeters, inches, feet, yards? Last, have students compare their information to other groups’ information they gathered. Helpful information: http://www.ehow.com/how_5849819_measure-tree-rings.html STANDARDS Math – 2.5.2: Describe the relationships among inch, foot, and yard. Describe the relationship between centimeter and meter. Science - 2.5.6: Explain that sometimes a person can find out a lot ( but not everything) about a group of things, such as insects, plants, or rocks, by studying just a few of them. GARDNER’S Logical-Mathematical Naturalistic Bodily-Kinesthetic

6. In The Wild: Penguins By: Claire Robinson Summary Barnesandnoble.com: Discusses the lives of penguins, particularly Emperor penguins, describing where they live, what they eat, their mating habits and parental behavior, and more. Back of book: Can penguins fly? Do penguins dance? How do penguins keep their eggs warm? In The Wild Penguins describes how penguins in the wild hunt, eat, and take care of their young.

7. ACTIVITY After reading In The Wild: Penguins to your students, have a discussion on where to find the title, table of contents, glossary, index, and chapter headings. Discuss what each structural feature is used for. Next, discuss why there are bolded words in the book and explain the meaning of each one. Allow students to act out a few of the bolded words such as: agile, huddle, rookery, and trek. Send students on a book scavenger hunt (with clues) to find out the answers to questions that relate to the story. Examples: Title of the chapter that discusses penguins eating squid. Page the glossary is on. Where I can find out about emperor penguins. STANDARDS English/Language Arts – 2.2.1: Structural Features of Informational and Technical Materials: Use titles, tables of contents, and chapter headings to locate information in text Science – 2.4.2: Observe that and describe how animals may use plants, or even other animals, for shelter and nesting. GARDNER’S Bodily-Kinesthetic Verbal-Linguistic In The Wild: Penguins By: Claire Robinson

8. The Retired Kid By: Jon Agee Summary catalog.dclibrary.org: Although he enjoys some aspects of his retirement, eight-year-old Brian gains a new perspective on his job of being a child after spending time in Florida's Happy Sunset Retirement Community. Back of book: At the Happy Sunset Retirement Community, there’s Ethel, Myrtle, Harvey, and Tex. And then there’s Brian. The retired kid. He’s here to escape school, homework, and daily chores. But retired living has its challenges, especially when you’re sixty years younger than everybody else!

9. The Retired Kid By: Jon Agee ACTIVITY Before reading The Retired Kid , discuss what it means to be retired. Ask students: Do you know anyone who is retired? What do they do? Who are they? After reading, have stations set up around the room where students can learn about different careers. For example, one station might have a photo of a doctor, explanation of what a doctor does, stethoscope, and band aids. After exploring each station, students will write a short paragraph on which career they would like to have. Helpful website students could visit: http://www.knowitall.org/kidswork/index.html Have students work together to figure out how many total students want to become a doctor, how many want to become a teacher, how many want to become a police officer, etc. Then have them turn their totals into fractions. For example, if there were 5 students who wanted to become a teacher out of 21 students in the class, they would write 5/21. Last, help students figure out which fraction is the largest and which career the most students want to be. STANDARDS Science – 2.4.8: Give examples of different roles people have in families and communities. Mathematics – 2.1.9: Recognize, name, and compare the unit of fractions: ½,⅓,¼,⅕,⅙,⅛,1⁄10, and 1⁄12. GARDNER’S Logical-Mathematical Intrapersonal

10. Annabelle’s Awful Waffle By: Tracey E. Dils Summary Annabelle and her brother Andy are very different from each other. Their waffles even become different as Annabelle begins putting several strange toppings on her waffle such as peas, apples, and popcorn. Will the waffle topple?

11. Annabelle’s Awful Waffle By: Tracey E. Dils ACTIVITY Introduce Annabelle’s Awful Waffle by asking: -What do you like to eat for breakfast? -What do you add to your breakfast? (Ex: syrup, butter, jam, jelly) -Do you think you eat healthy food for breakfast? -Can you name some healthy foods? -(Show cover of book) – Do you think this waffle looks yummy? Identify which toppings are healthy and which are unhealthy for the body. After reading Annabelle’s Awful Waffle, pass out clipart waffles and $3.00 in change to each student. Each student will have the chance to buy toppings from the “grocery store” to add to their own waffle. The toppings will the same food that Annabelle added to her waffle (cherries, cheese, spinach, pickles, popcorn, apples, and peas). Students will glue the toppings to their own awful waffle after they buy them from the store. STANDARDS Mathematics – 2.5.12: Find the value of a collection of pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters, half-dollars, and dollars. Health & Wellness – 2.1.1: Identify that healthy behaviors affect personal health. GARDNER’S Logical-Mathematical Bodily-Kinesthetic

12. Spider on the Floor By: Bill Russell Summary N-e-n.com: A catchy, creepy-crawly song about a mischievous spider together with an amusing review of body parts makes this just right for Halloween—and all year round. With splashy illustrations, rhythm, and rhyme, this simple, cumulative story-song is fun and satisfying for beginning readers. I would use this book especially for struggling readers in the second grade. If possible, have second graders read this story to a younger grade.

13. Spider on the Floor By: Bill Russell ACTIVITY Read the book to students and then allow them to sing the song “Spider on the Floor” to music. Divide students into groups based on their skill level and set up stations. Each group will have a different task at each station. Students must switch stations by figuring out what time it is. They must switch stations every fifteen minutes. Stations and activities on next slide. STANDARDS English/Language Arts – 2.1.3: Decode (sound out) regular words with more than one syllable ( dinosaur, vacation ). Science – 2.1.5: Demonstrate the ability to work with a team but still reach and communicate one’s own conclusions about findings. Mathematics – 2.5.9: Tell time to the nearest quarter hour, be able to tell five-minute intervals, and know the difference between a.m. and p.m. GARDNER’S Musical Interpersonal Logical-Mathematical

14. Below Level Group #1 Average Group #2 Above Level Group #3 Reading Station Reread the book and sing the song. Find words that have more than one syllable and replace it with a word that makes sense. Replace all nouns with words that have more than one syllable. Animal Station (With books about each animal in the story.) Take turns describing each animal in the story by looking up one new fact for each. By searching through the animal books, describe each animal’s habitat. As a group, find out each animal’s habitat and three facts about each animal. Health Station Identify the parts of the body that are described in the story. Draw a picture of all the body parts that are mentioned and label them. Identify the parts of the body that are described in the story. Draw a picture of them and a body part they are connected to. Complete the same task as group #2. Students will then explain a function of two body parts that they drew.

15. What Do Teachers Do (After You Leave School)? By: Anne Bowen Summary What do teachers do when the bell rings at three? Do they sit around reading the dictionary and giving each other pop quizzes? No way! While the kids are at home doing their homework, teachers are busy goofing off at school all night long. They skate down the halls, start a food fight in the cafeteria, mix up wild concoctions in the science lab, and more – all with hilarious results.

16. What Do Teachers Do (After You Leave School)? By: Anne Bowen ACTIVITY Students will create the same goo that the teachers created in the story. Each student will have a bowl, some cornstarch, water, and food coloring. Students will empty a box of cornstarch into the bowl, add 1 ½ cups of water, and add 15 drops of food coloring. Last they can mix it with their hands! If goo is not hard or soft enough, continue to add cornstarch or water until mixture creates the solution of goo that it should. STANDARDS Science – 2.5.2: Recognize and explain that it is often useful to estimate quantities. Mathematics – 2.5.5: Estimate and measure capacity using cups and pints. GARDNER’S Bodily-Kinesthetic Logical-Mathematical

17. Mouse, Mole, and the Falling Star By: A.H. Benjamin Summary Back of book: Mouse and Mole are the best of friends. They have fun together and share everything. They trust each other completely, even with their deepest secrets. Then one evening, while laying side by side on a hilltop, they see a falling star. “It’s my star! I saw it first,” says Mole. “No, I saw it first!” shouts Mouse. Their quarrel tears them apart, but as the summer days roll by, they miss each other more and more. Fall brings a change in the weather, and a golden leaf brings about a change in Mouse and Mole. With gentle humor and charming illustrations, this sweet story carries messages about true friendship and the appreciation of nature.

18. Mouse, Mole, and the Falling Star By: A.H. Benjamin ACTIVITY After reading the story to students , explain that some events can be predicted and some cannot. Have students discuss what events can and cannot be predicted. Make a chart on the board with two columns: Can Be Predicted & Cannot Be Predicted. List students’ responses. Have students make a list of the fun things that they have done with a friend, just like the fun things Mouse and Mole have done. After they have finished their list, students will write a short letter to their friend describing the fun times. STANDARDS Science – 2.5.5: Explain that some events can be predicted with certainty, such as sunrise and sunset, and some cannot, such as storms. Understand that people aren't always sure what will happen since they do not know everything that might have an effect. English/Language Arts - 2.4.1: Create a list of ideas for writing. GARDNER’S Intrapersonal Visual-Spatial

19. Summary Back of book: Mouse and Mole are the best of friends. They have fun together and share everything. They trust each other completely, even with their deepest secrets. Then one evening, while laying side by side on a hilltop, they see a falling star. “It’s my star! I saw it first,” says Mole. “No, I saw it first!” shouts Mouse. Their quarrel tears them apart, but as the summer days roll by, they miss each other more and more. Fall brings a change in the weather, and a golden leaf brings about a change in Mouse and Mole. With gentle humor and charming illustrations, this sweet story carries messages about true friendship and the appreciation of nature. Nobody’s Mother is in Second Grade By: Robin Pulver

20. Nobody’s Mother is in Second Grade By: Robin Pulver ACTIVITY After reading the story, students will be divided into groups to discuss the different features of plants. Each group will share with the whole class what new information they discovered about plants – by reading Nobody’s Mother is in Second Grade, reading nonfiction books about plants, and researching credible websites online. Next, students will be able to plant their own plant in a small cup. They must measure how much dirt to place in the cup and estimate how much water to pour in it each day. Have students place their plants on the windowsill in pairs. Have each student count how many plants there are by counting by twos. Switch the plants to groups of fives and tens. Then count by fives or tens to find out how many plants there are. STANDARDS Science – 2.4.1: Observe and identify different external features of plants and animals and describe how these features help them live in different environments. Mathematics – 2.1.1: Count by ones, twos, fives, and tens to 100. GARDNER’S Logical-Mathematical Verbal-Linguistic Naturalistic

21. Summary Back of book: It’s kindergarten graduation! All the children in Room Nine are excited when they get their bright white graduation gowns. Mrs. Says to keep them in their boxes until the big day. But Junie B. Jones just can’t help herself. Then – uh-oh – an accident happens! Can Junie B. find a way to fix things? Or will graduation be a spotty dotty disaster? Junie B. Jones Is a Graduation Girl By: Barbara Park

22. ACTIVITY Read the book to students over a period of time (days/weeks). Allow students to make graduation caps for Junie B. Jones. Students will have to measure certain parts of the construction paper. Instructions for this activity can be found at: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/756079/how_to_make_paper_graduation_caps_for.html?cat=4 STANDARDS Mathematics – 2.4.1: Construct squares, rectangles, triangles, cubes, and rectangular prisms with appropriate materials. Science – 2.1.6: Use tools to investigate, observe, measure, design, and build things. GARDNER’S Logical-Mathematical Bodily-Kinesthetic Junie B. Jones Is a Graduation Girl By: Barbara Park