Attack of the Chicken Nugget Man: A National Test Prep Adventure

by Kumar Sathy

This laugh-out-loud children's book is aligned with the new Common Core State Standards. It covers 2nd - 5th grade English Language Arts and Mathematics . Attack of the Chicken Nugget A National Test Prep Adventure is a hilarious story that teaches and references curriculum concepts that students in all states need to learn! This breakthrough educational book tells the story of a struggling third-grader (Chris Robb) who desperately wants to pass a standardized test. Chris's school is a crazy place and his teacher has the strangest name he has ever Ms. Bubblebrain. Every character in the book has a unique personality trait. Smelly Sam stuffs random objects up his nose (sushi, socks, etc), the bus driver waves around his stinky shoe to get the kids to settle down, and the principal harbors an incomprehensible infatuation with strawberry milk. Meanwhile, rumor has it that a mysterious Chicken Nugget Man has been sneaking into schools and causing all kinds of chaos. A task force is created to capture the Chicken Nugget Man. The country's smartest children will be chosen to join the effort because for some reason, no adult has ever seen the Chicken Nugget Man. Chris, who can barely remember his teacher's name, has the odds stacked against him when it comes to passing the big test, but as the reader discovers, he might have a little help, and a little hope, after all. The book has built-in Bloom's Taxonomy critical thinking comprehension questions and silly versions of standardized test prep questions that are written in kid-friendly language. Open-ended questions, creative writing prompts, and drawing activities are included for all kinds of learners. A strong emphasis is placed on character education and every time a character makes a poor choice, the narrator reminds readers of the consequences, encouraging them to suggest more responsible choices. This delightful work of humorous fiction makes learning fun and helps students in all states prepare for standardized tests. It's great for fourth and fifth grade remediation, gifted second graders, after school tutoring, read-aloud, literature circles, family reading nights, and guided reading.

162 pages, Paperback

First published February 12, 2009

About the author

I draw upon my teaching experience to create educational books that bring laughter back to the classroom (and the kitchen table). When I first began teaching, I discovered how difficult it was to find educational books that my students actually wanted to read.

I started writing my own novellas after work, sharing the fresh chapters with my students, never disclosing the fact that I was the author. Their reactions, their uncontrollable laughter, their frustration when it was time to stop reading, their genuine interest long after the bell had rung, were enough to convince me that I was onto something.

My first book, Attack of the Chicken Nugget Man: A North Carolina EOG Adventure, was published in 2009. It received the silver medal at the Moonbeam Children's Book Awards in 2010.

Reviews

[Janette Fuller · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is an entertaining and educational book driven by the Common Core State Standards developed by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices. The book focuses on second through fourth grade concepts and can be used as a remediation tool for fifth graders.

The story tells about the Chris Robb, a frustrated third-grader, who was trying to pass a standardized test. Chris had all kinds of crazy experiences in his chaotic classroom.

Chris thought the name of his teacher was the silliest name he had ever heard. Chris always seemed to forget how to say it right. One time, he called his teacher Ms. Bubblegum instead of Ms. Bubblebrain. Her name was not the only silly thing about Ms. Bubblebrain. She also shouted the names of really gross foods when she was mad or surprised. Ms. Bubblebrain would yell things like "hairy cricket biscuits" and "soggy salmon salami".

Chris was terrorized at school by the dreaded Chicken Nugget Man. This was a creature that ate children and caused all kinds of frightening experiences for the kids.
Chris learned that the children with the highest scores on their standardized tests would be in charge of the Anti-Chicken-Nugget Task Force. Chris decided it was time to turn his life around and try harder in school.

I really like the concept of providing educators with a resource that makes learning fun. This book is absolutely loaded with questions and exercises that will reinforce both language and math educational standards.

I think kids will recognize and enjoy the humor and satire in this book. Here is an example of a clever play on words;
"Preston stole a kindergartener's yellow Captain Stinkypants Thermos and drank out of it."
Most kids will immediately remember the popular "Captain Underpants" books and smile at the similarity.

The only problem I have with the book is sometimes the humor was a bit extreme and OVER THE TOP for my taste. I know that I am not a child but I think the humor could be toned down to be more appropriate for classroom use. Here is one example:

"The room was silent. Ms. Bubblebrain stared at Chris. Her mouth opened so wide that a family of flying gorillas could have flown inside. Her jaw dropped to the floor. Then she said it, one word at a time. It was the longest, grossest food she had ever named. 'Holy peanut-butter-and-donkey-lasagna-covered, spinach pretzel-filled, beef-and-boxer-shorts donuts with brown sugar skeletons and banana-covered battery frosting! Chris, you actually remembered something!'"

This book fills a need for kid-friendly test prep material. Mr. Sathy has produced a resource that can be used by both teachers and parents to improve their student's test scores.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this book to read and review from NetGalley.

[Piwi Mama · Rating 3 out of 5]

We homeschool, but at some point in the near future our second grader will likely be taking some form of standardized test. We use the usual bland Test prep books and I was excited to check out an alternative called Attack of the Chicken Nugget Man: A National Test Prep Adventure. It is written by educator, Kamar Sathy.

My review of the book is in two parts –my opinion and that of our Second grader.

I thought the introduction for parents and educators was very helpful and I was excited to get to the rest of it. I enjoyed the first two chapters, especially the reading comprehension questions at the end of each chapter. By the end of the fourth chapter I was starting to have my doubts about the storyline. I was unsure how a story about unbearably stinky bus rides and bullies are supposed to alleviate test anxiety. I understand the book is fiction. The story is supposed to hold the attention of students Grade 2-5 while they are practicing with the multiple choice questions and learning test strategies. The teachable moments are skillfully disguised in the story. The concept is good, it was the plot I took issue with.

I finished the book and DD7, seeing the cartoon pictures, wanted to read it. I handed over my kindle. Half an hour later she was still reading and I asked her what she thought. She says ‘it’s fine' and goes back to reading’. Her usual chapter book genre is anything Animal, Unicorns and fairies, so I was surprised. Apparently the only thing she had to complain about was that there were no pictures of Chicken nugget man. So there we have it, DD implied I was overreacting and suggests I didn’t like it because ‘you’re not a kid’.

Overall, it is great to see an alternative to Test preparation workbooks. I have some reservations about the storyline but it is clearly not aimed towards the Mama demographic. As DD points out it is for kids. It would be great to see some other story lines in the future. DD suggests a female Super hero.

I was sent Attack of the Chicken Nugget man in exchange for an honest review. to be submitted to Student Solutions, Inc, via Netgalley. I will not receive any monetary compensation from the publisher or Netgalley. The links to amazon do contain affiliate links where I do receive a small commission for any purchases made through this link.

This review was originally posted at Learning and Growing the Piwi way.

[Jnase1 · Rating 2 out of 5]

First, let me say, that I love the idea of a fun book that teaches test taking skills based on national standards, but I found this book incredibly hard to follow. The storyline seemed to jump around a lot and I didn't care too much for the gross humor. There seemed to be a lot of stories within the story that just didn't make the story flow very well. I am sure it is meant to capture the attention of young readers, but as a teacher, I would not use this book to teach with because of the ick factor. I did like the "silly standardized test questions" at the end of each chapter and think those could be helpful, but don't think that all the slime, mold, and just plain grossness is needed in this story. The fact that a a chicken nugget is talking is enough to get the attention of a young reader. I also think that that having the standards listed in parts of the story is distracting to the reader. I would suggest putting those in a teacher's copy and leave them out in a student's or reader's copy of the book. It takes away from the flow of the story. Overall, I like the idea behind Attack of the Chicken Nugget Man, but I think it needs some work. I will be interested in seeing if some of issues things are addressed in the next book.

[Ionia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is so much fun and perfect for helping a child increase their comprehension skills. If you have a student that is having difficulty understanding the material they are trying to learn, this might be a good way to help them. The stories are funny and silly and exactly the kind of thing that children find entertaining.

As a parent, I love books that have educational value and this one does. At the end of every chapter there are questions for the student to answer. The questions aren't terribly difficult, but they do show what the child has learned from what they just read.

There are also illustrations which help break up the monotony of just reading through text. My kids thought this book was a lot of fun.

I would recommend this book to parents and teachers of elementary aged kids.

[Mary · Rating 1 out of 5]

I won Attack of the Chicken Nugget Man from First Reads. I'm looking forward to reading it now that its arrived. I'll add more then.

Update: I can see how a child would be entertained by this book. It wasn't really for me but then I'm not the intended audience. I did however give Chicken Nugget Man to my 10 year old nephew. He was quite excited to get it. It seems he'd heard of the book and wanted a copy. I'll post his rating when he finishes it. Also his mother is a teacher so she'll look it over as well. For now, my rating is 3 stars.

[IrenesBookReviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book will keep any kids attention. The story itself is exciting. They won't even realize they are learning a study skill. The questions are age appropriate and the kids will enjoy answering them. Although the pictures are in black and white they were well drawn and matched the information being talked about. This is not your typical test prep with pages and pages of questions. That is a good thing especially when you are looking for something to keep the kids attention! If you know a teacher you should pass along this book!

I won this in a first reads contest.

[Lisa (Bookworm Lisa) · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Attack of the Chicken Nugget Man takes a silly story and at the end of each section asks "silly standardized test questions." Each question is linked to a reference number that tests common core educational standards.

I though this is a great idea to take a non intimidating story and help kids learn skills that will help them do better in school.

I'm going to donate the copy I received through the LibraryThing Member Giveaway to the Principal of my Elementary School to peruse.

[Lorin · Rating 4 out of 5]

We loved the story line and it has made my child listen to the story so he knows how to answer the questions correctly. Some of the chapters are a little long which makes it harder for the younger children to remember what happened in that chapter. Very good concept and the book should be enjoyed by everyone who reads it. Thanks to publisher and Netgalley for the chance to review this book.

[Dawn (noladawnreads) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cute premise but hard to follow. Would have liked to see more storyline followed by practice pages in groups. The problems stuck in would distract my students too much and, unless I was reading it to a whole group, they wouldn't likely pick it up on their own.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Check out my review HERE!