Miss Bindergarten Stays Home from Kindergarten

Miss Bindergarten

by Joseph Slate, Ashley Wolff (Illustrator)

A playful take on a topic that all parents can relate to-getting sick!  The ever-lovable Miss Bindergarten is not feeling well.  The flu strikes on Sunday, so she has to stay home from kindergarten on Monday.  Mr. Tusky (who is a wee bit rusty) will be her substitute, but it just won't be the same.  The kindergartners miss Miss Bindergarten!  They pass the time by making get-well cards and singing songs, all the while counting out the days that Miss Bindergarten is away.  What ever will they do without her?

Genres: Picture Books, School, Childrens, Animals, Fiction, Education, 2nd Grade

48 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

Reviews

[Milton Public · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book should be in some kind of hall of fame: it is an animal alphabet (the animals' given names are of course alliterative), it maintains a perfect rhythm without breaking its own neck, it teaches the days of the week, and it has a clever resolution and a number of 'find all your friends' wide-lens pictures. And the pictures are involved and personable and only rarely damaged by being from the nineties (poor Raffy the rhino badly needs a wardrobe change).
I know from personal experience that if this book comes into your house, you may be required to read it so many times that you will be able to name most of the animals involved from memory.

[Megan]

I need to know what happens to Miss Bindergarten's strangly sized, Gap kids wearing, animal students. How does one substitute a class that has a newt the size of a lion cub. Will Miss Bindergartens doggy fireman boy friend who has appeared in Last Day of Kindergarden, visit her on her sick bed and give her TLC? Will her bird/roommate/ pet/ teaching assistant help?

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

My first Miss Bindergarten book but I hope not my last. Love that she's a Border Collie. Are they all set up as alphabet books, with students named Adam... Zach?

[E.S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Joseph Slate writes and Ashley Wolff illustrates the well-known Miss Bindergarten series which I had never read before. Miss Bindergarten is a dog who teaches other animals in kindergarten in this series, and in this particular book, Miss Bindergarten is sick and slowly other animals in her class get sick! This book is a simple narrative and if I’m going to be quite honest, I had no idea this was an alphabet book until I reread it and realized that the letters of the alphabet were in bold. A characteristic of simple narrative alphabet books is that the book tells a story which sometimes means that the fact that it is an alphabet book can be lost on the reader. This is also a rhyming book which means that this is great for both phonological and phonemic awareness and there are just 1-2 sentences per page which make it appropriate for young readers. The letters of the alphabet are represented by students names (C for Christopher) and sometimes the letters are not in order (for example, the story opens up with On Sunday morning, sad but true…and the O is bolded, which is not the first letter of the alphabet). The illustrations are very detailed and sometimes represent what is on the page and other times they tell their own story. However, when it comes to the criteria of an alphabet book, the objects are clear, and although there are other objects on the page, if two students names are mentioned on one page, then there are two students on the page, so it shouldn’t be confusing for readers. The objects are easily identifiable because if there are two students mentioned on the page, then there are identifiers on the page to help differentiate the students (e.g. Adam hangs his jacket. Brenda stores her doll. On the page Adam is standing by his locker which says ‘Adam’ and is also shown hanging his jacket while Brenda is standing by her locker which says ‘Brenda’ and it shows her holding a doll). Overall, this is an excellent book for preschoolers; it meets the criteria, and the art in it isn’t too detailed for preschoolers.

[Marley Stowers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary:
Miss Bindergarten is the teacher of a Kindergarten class. In this story, Miss Bindergarten gets sick with the flu and stays home from school. The class will have a substitute to teach until Miss Bindergarten gets better. Throughout the week, the class is very helpful to the substitute, and they make get well soon cards for their teacher. Meanwhile, a few students from the class also get sick and have to stay home. Why is everyone getting sick, and when will Miss Bindergarten come back to school?

Reflection:
This book is interactive, using rhyming words and is easy for students to follow. The illustrations are detailed and help give students a clear understanding of the story. There is also great vocabulary terms introduced such as principal, substitute and flu. This book is very relatable for students because they are reading it in a classroom.

Lesson:
This book can serve as a great introduction to a lesson about personal health, germs and hygiene in a Kindergarten classroom. It can also be used as a comprehension/retell activity for young students because it is easily relatable since they are new to school and excited about it.

[Hailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Miss Bindergarten Stays Home From Kindergarten is one of my favorite books when I was younger due to all the animals included. I still think this is one of my favorite childrens’ books due to the rhyming and unique arrangement of the words on each page. This book is about a teacher who gets sick, Miss Bindergarten, and then has to stay home so she can get better. Eventually, day by day, more and more kids get sick and have to stay home. The book is arranged in an alphabet book and would be great for kids in kindergarten since they are learning about the alphabet at that age and also since it involves a kindergarten teacher and class, it could be relatable for them to stay engaged and pay attention. Overall, this is a cute book that could be used to teach kids the importance of washing your hands, staying home when you are sick and also about the concept of substitute teachers.

[Ellon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always read Miss Bindergarten Has a Wild Day in Kindergarten in my kindergarten library classes at the beginning of the year but I had never read another Miss Bindergarten book before. This is so cute! I love that there are the same students as the other books. I love the rhyming. I love the little surprises of who is getting sick. I'm going to continue reading the series and will likely purchase them all for the library!

[Hannah Wright]

At the beginning of the book, we find out that Miss Bindergarten has the flu so she must stay home. The kids have a substitute teacher and show him around the classroom. The next day, Miss Bindergarten is still not back and now one of the students is sick. The students write get well cards to their teacher and classmates. On Friday, Miss Bindergarten and the students come back to school. Everyone is so excited. Unfortunately, the substitute teacher gets sick. I love this book; it is so fun to read. To see the students help the substitute and show kindness to their teacher and each other.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Miss Bindergarten is out sick- (I wish I had a cockatoo to care for me like she does!). The kids have a sub, and as they move through the week, more kids catch the sickness. All too real. All are better on Friday, but on Saturday, the sub gets sick too.

[Kitty · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was adorable. On the surface a rhyming book about substitute teachers, I was surprised by all the layers. The animals each start with a letter of the alphabet! The class has 26 different animal students!

[Alyssa Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. Teaches kids about the alphabet, colors, animals, and days of the week. Also a very fun read with great pictures.

[Martin Ewell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it because it was creative to have all the enimals in ABC order and I liked all the animals.

[Haaley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun way to teach about the alphabet and sickness/ substitutes.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Narrated by the lovely Mrs. Clark's Reading Corner on Youtube, the story was a joy to listen to. It shows even a teacher can get sick and need to stay home!

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super cute for my soon-to-be kindergartener.

[kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

okay, the illustrations annoy me

[TCNS]

Substitute teacher when Miss Bindergarten is too sick to teach.

[Lillian Slater · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the Miss Bindergarten books as a kid and it makes me so happy to read them to MY child now!

[Epifania Rita Gallina · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent portrayal and representation of how kids and teachers should stay home from school when Ill

[Blair · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute book about a teacher getting sick and having to stay home and some of the students get sick! A relevant book in the winter sick months at school!

[Pamela Powell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very cute story about a kindergarten class with a sick teacher. We've all been there!!

[Stephen Snyder · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great story for children! The book teaches children how wonderful a school classroom can be; how special the teachers, substitute teachers, and of course last but not least, the students are.

The illustrates capture innocence of childhood.

Bravo Joseph Slate and Ashley Wolff!

[Candice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Miss Bindergarten, the kindergarten teacher is sick. On Monday she stays home from school and the kids have a substitute. The book follows a week in the lives of the students, Miss Bindergarten, and the substitute, Mr. Tusky. As each child is mentioned, we see that the names go through the letters of the alphabet. "Adam hangs his jacket. Brenda stores her dolls." The characters in the book are all animals - Miss Bindergarten is an English setter, Adam is an alligator, Brenda a beaver, Christopher a cat, and so on. It's good for getting youngsters ready to accept a substitute, and the alphabetical nature makes it educational as well. The illustrations are colorful and appealing and show a lot of the activities that take place in a kindergarten class.

[Courtney Gregory · Rating 4 out of 5]

Miss Bindergarten Stays Home From Kindergarten is written by Joseph Slate. This book is about a Kindergarten teaches who gets sick and has to stay home from school. Day after day as the students continue to interact with each other in the classroom, one student per day falls ill as well. The students do activities and share food and supplies but cant seem to figure out what is happening to everyone who is getting so sick. This trend continues until there are only three students and the substitute left. This book is very cute and innocent. The pictures are done very well and go right along with the text and story line. The underlying message about germs is awesome for younger students. Overall, great book!

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is geared towards older preschool, K and grade one. children a Miss Bindergarten misses school because she is sick. The children in her class have to have a substitute teacher. I used this book in a class room when I was a substitute. It was a wonderful way to talk about their teacher an to let them know that she would be back soon. I used this book to talk about how germs are spread and the importance of hand washing. The book also reveals a pattern that can help children make predictions. The pictures are bright and appealing and capture a child's interest and imagination. Great book for a classroom!

[Letitia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Possible Teaching Points with this book:

Rhyming reading
Alphabet
Predicting & Patterns (science & math skills)
Days of the week (social study skill)
Animals (science - animal identification?)
Art (visual arts)
Mental Counting - Patterns (math skills)
Daily routine & Procedures (social study skill)
Health (physical ed/development skill)
Reading Correctly (reading fluency)
Music
Parts of a Books/Type of Book - fiction, book cover, title page, etc.

[Rosa Cline · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is probably my favorite of the "Miss Bindergarten" series. These books are wonderfully written in rhyming form, also using the alphabet in the children's names in ABC order. And like in this book uses the days of the week as well. Incorporating learning in fun for the young readers-listeners. Also this book is a good one to help explain a 'substitute' teacher to a child that may not understand when their beloved teacher is not there.

[Marc Noday · Rating 3 out of 5]

Miss Bindergarten Stays Home from Kindergarten by Joseph Slate was my last choice. I enjoyed this book. I liked the story and the illustrations. The illustrations were very elaborate and I liked how they used many different animals as the kids in the class. Also for some reason it reminded me of a kids version of "Ferris Buellers Day Off" which is one of my favorite movies so maybe that's why I enjoyed it so much.

[Chardell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is about a school teacher that gets sick and stays home while students are with a sub. A few other students end up staying home the following day because they get sick as well. This would be a great way to share with students that it is a good idea to keep your hands washed after caughing on them and blowing your nose, so our friends don't get sick and have to stay home.

[Mia Valdez Quellhorst · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ms. Bindergarten is sick and school will somehow have to go on without her. The animal students get along with their substitute Mr. Tusky until, oh no, they start to get sick too! Rhyming rhythm, colorful pictures, and a playful take on being sick, this is a great book to read with young children while talking about being sick, going to school, and substitute teachers.