The Kissing Hand discussion

1. Picture Book: The Kissing Hand Audrey Penn
This story is about Chester Raccoon. He is scared to go to school so his mom gives him a kiss in his palm and he feels better. This book can be used to help ease first day jitters on the first day of preschool or kindergarten.
2. Picture Book: Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? Bill Martin, Jr.
This book introduces colors using animals as the characters. It can be used for teaching colors or helping beginning readers because it has repetitive text.
3. Picture Book: Owl Moon Jane Yolen
A little girl goes into the forest at night with her dad to try and find an owl. This book can be used as a mentor text to help write small moments stories.
4. Picture Book: Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed Eileen Christelow
This story is about 5 little monkeys that jump on the bed. Each time one falls off and bumps his head. This story could be used for number recognition or counting. It can also be used for early readers because of the repetitive text.
5. Picture Book: The Dot Peter H. Reynolds
This story is about a little girl named Vashti. She doesn’t know what to draw so she makes a dot. Her teacher frames the dot and inspires her inner artist to come out. This book could be used to help children develop a positive mindset. Instead of saying “I can’t” they at least need to try.
6. Picture Book: Beautiful Oops Barney Saltzberg
This book is about how mistakes on paper can be made into something very creative. I use this book at the beginning of the year to reinforce the concept that mistakes will be made and it is okay, as long as we learn from them.
7. Picture Book: The Day the Crayons Quit Drew Daywalt
This story is about a box of crayons who write letters to Duncan telling him they quit. They don’t like how much he uses them or how little they get used. It is a very funny story. This book can be used as a mentor text for letter writing.
8. Picture Book: Only One You Linda Kranz
In this story, Adri’s parents are giving him advice about life. For example, they tell him to look for beauty wherever he is. This is a great book for teaching students that being different and unique is okay. It has a message to go out and make a difference in the world, too.
9. Picture Book: Silly Sally Audrey Wood
In this story, Silly Sally is headed to town, but she walks backwards and upside down. Along the way, she meets friends who are as funny as she is. Kids love this story because it is funny and it rhymes. This is a great book to use to teach rhyming concepts.
10. Picture Book: Froggy Loves to Swim. Jonathan London
In this story, Froggy’s parents want him to learn how to swim, but he is reluctant to try. After many attempts at stalling, he is finally in the water and discovers that he loves it. This book could be used as a growth mindset lesson. It can help kids learn to not be afraid of trying new things.
11. Picture Book: Llama Llama Misses Mama Anna Dewdney
It is the first day of school for Llama Llama. He becomes very sad when his mom leaves. At first he doesn’t want to participate in any activities, but his teacher and friends slowly win him over. By the end of the day, he decides he can love his mama and school too. This would be a good book to read on the first day of school for kindergarteners or preschoolers.
12. Picture Book: The Umbrella Jan Brett
Carlos heads into the rainforest to find some animals. He sets his umbrella down and climbs a tree to look for some. While he is in the tree, some rainforest animals come along and have an adventure of their own in the umbrella. This book is a great one to read when studying the rainforest. It would also be great for an author study on Jan Brett.
13. Picture Book: Chicka Chicka Boom Boom Bill Martin, Jr. and John Archambault
In this book, the alphabet letters are going to race each other to the top of the coconut tree. In the process they get all tangled up and banged up. This book is great for teaching the alphabet to little ones.
14. Picture Book: Curious George H. A. Ray
The man in the yellow hat sees George in the jungle and decides to take him back to America with him. George is a curious little guy and gets into all kinds of trouble. He falls overboard on the ship, at home he plays with the phone and calls 911. He is thrown into jail for the false alarm fire. He escapes from jail and later ends up floating through the air because he is holding onto a bunch of balloons. One activity that could be done with the Curious George books is to compare and contrast different Curious George books. The students could compare and contrast the setting or the problem.
15. Picture Book: The Lazy Bear Brian Wildsmith
Bear and his friends find a wagon. They take it to the top of a hill and roll down it. At first, they take turns pushing the wagon up the hill, but bear becomes lazy and makes his friends push him up every time. His friends become angry and teach him a lesson. This book would be a good one to use for teaching about taking turns or being a good friend.
16. Picture Book: Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type Doreen Cronin
In this story, the farm animals discover an old typewriter. They type letters to Farmer Brown asking for better working conditions. For example, they ask for an electric blanket because the barn gets cold at night. Farmer Brown refuses their requests so the animals go on strike. At the end of the story, the animals will give up the typewriter if Farmer Brown gives them electric blankets. This book could be used with a lesson on point of view.
17. Picture Book: Two Cool Cows Toby Speed
This is a very funny book about two cows that steal the Huckabuck children’s boots and head off for an adventure on the moon. It is full of funny rhyming phrases so it would be a good one to use in a rhyming lesson.
18. Picture Book: The Cow That Went Oink
In this book, the animals are making the wrong sounds. The pigs moo and the cows oink. By the end, they finally learn what sound they should make. This book would be good for small children to help them learn what sounds animals make or to identify animals and learn their names.
19. Picture Book: My Lucky Day Keiko Kasza
In this story, pig accidentally knocks on wolf’s door. Wolf grabs him and prepares to have him for dinner. The clever pig is able to trick wolf into extra food, a massage, and a bath. The poor wolf is so tired that the pig gets away. At the end, the reader discovers the pig goes to his predators’ houses to get pampered and then leaves. I used this book for a writing activity. The last page shows pig knocking on bear’s door. I have the kids write about what will happen next.

20. Picture Book: The Flea’s Sneeze Karla Firehammer
The animals are all asleep in the barn until a flea sneezes. The sneeze scared the rat, who woke the cat, who baffled the bat, and so on. Once the flea gets a tissue, they all settle down again. But, at the end, the pig is asking for a tissue. This book can be used for sequencing practice or predicting.
21. Picture Book: The Berenstain Bears Count Their Blessings
Brother and Sister Bear like to go play at their friends’ houses. However, when they come home, they are very jealous of what their friends have and want their parents to buy it for them. During a storm, their parents remind them they should be happy for all the things they do have. This is a great book to use in a lesson on greed.
22. Picture Book: Where the Wild Things Are Maurice Sendak
Max gets into trouble and is sent to bed without supper. In his room, a forest begins to grow. He sails across the ocean to the land of the wild things. They make him his king, but after a while, he discovers that being king is not fun. At last, he is able to get away from the wild things and get home. I have used this book to teach problem and solution.
23. Picture Book: The Very Hungry Caterpillar Eric Carle
This story begins with a tiny egg that turns into a caterpillar. Then the caterpillar begins to eat. On Monday it eats one apple. On Tuesday, it eats two pears. After a week of eating, the caterpillar wraps itself in a cocoon. Weeks later, he emerges as a beautiful butterfly. This book can be used to teach numbers to 5, days of the week, or the life cycle of a butterfly.
24. Picture Book: The Rainbow Fish
Rainbow Fish is the most beautiful fish in the ocean because he has shiny scales. They are his most valued possessions so he refuses to share them when his friends ask him to. As a result, he ends up with no friends and all alone. The wise octopus tells him to share his scales if he wants friends again. This is what Rainbow Fish does and discovers that sharing is a great feeling. This book is a great one to use for lessons on sharing.
25. Picture Book: Chester Raccoon and the Big Bad Bully Audrey Penn
Chester Raccoon and his friends are being bullied at school by a badger. When they tell Mrs. Raccoon, she tells them a story about a rock that had to be smoothed out. At school the next day, Chester and his friends band together and ask the badger to play with them. The badger didn’t bully anyone again. This a great book to include in a bullying lesson.