Title: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Genre: Fantasy
Author: Roald Dahl
Illustrator: Quentin Blake
Awards: New England Round Table of Children's Librarians Award (1972)
Age Group: 7-10 years old
Teacher evaluation: I would use this book for upper elementary because of the overall message of the story. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory touches on the topics of imagination, honesty, integrity, and the classic distinction between poverty and wealth. I could also tie this book into a lesson about descriptive language.
Summary: Mr. Willy Wonka, the owner of the greatest chocolate factory in the world decided to open the doors to 5 lucky children and their parents. He devises a plan to hide 5 golden tickets in the wrappers of his famous chocolate bars. Augustus Gloop, whose only hobby is eating, finds the first ticket. Veruca Salt, an insufferable brat, receives the next ticket from her father. Violet Beauregard, an avid gum chewer, finds the third ticket. Mike Teavee, who cares only about television, finds the fourth ticket. Lastly, Charlie Bucket, a poor but virtuous boy finds the remaining ticket. The 5 kids go to the factory and while Charlie and his grandpa are grateful and respectful to Mr. Wonka, the other 4 kids succumb to their character flaws. August falls into the hot chocolate river, Veruca is thrown in the trash by squirrels, Violet becomes a giant blueberry, and Mike shrinks himself. Charlie and his grandpa are the last family remaining and Mr. Wonks gives them the entire chocolate factory.
Title: Pete the Cat Out of This World
Genre: Science fiction
Author: James Dean
Awards: N/A
Age Group: 4-7 years old
Teacher evaluation: I would use this book for a read-aloud in a pre-k to first-grade classroom. This is a great book for introducing new vocabulary about space such as astronauts and comets. It also has fun, colorful pictures and a touch of music. Children can embark on a fun adventure to space with Pete the Cat.
Summary: Pete heads off to space camp. As he unpacks his stuff, Pete and his friend Glenn hear an announcement that their mission begins now. They meet with astronauts Tom and Kris who tell them of their space trips. The campers train and get to experience what it feels like to be an astronaut. Tom tells them that they have extra space on their flight to the moon. Pete and his friends travel to the moon and pass by satellites and comets. Pete even plays his guitar in the rocket ship! They arrive on the moon and Pete has a separate mission to put on his jetpack and go to Mars to take some photos. The astronauts return to space and Pete is happy to be back on the ground.
Title: Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs
Genre: Fantasy
Author: Judi Barrett
Illustrator: Ron Barrett
Awards: New York Times Best Illustrated Children's Book of the Year, 1980 Colorado Children's' Book Award, 1984 Georgia Children's Book Award, 1990 Delaware Diamonds Award
Age Group: 4-7 years old
Teacher evaluation: I would use this book as a read-aloud for first or second grade. It is a great way to start a unit on weather or the environment. Although this book is fantasy and could not happen in real life it is a great way to bring up elements of nature. This book helps introduce the fact that weather changes and people need to be prepared for the worst of times. This book brings humor, fantasy, and imagination to all who read it!
Summary: A grandfather tells his grandchildren a tall tale of a town called Chewandswallow whose weather conditions consist of the town's meals for the day. The residents never need to go grocery shopping. The weather for each day is forecasted and every time the people in Chewandswallow would go outside with their plates, utensils, and cups to catch their meals. The weather would bring orange juice, hamburgers, baked potatoes, and jello. The people of the town are happy until the weather takes a turn for the worse. Their meals consist of odd food combinations such as peanut butter and mayonnaise. The conditions get so bad that the Sanitation Department can't keep up with the weather. A huge pancake has fallen on the school and meatballs are damaging houses. The people decide to leave the town and build boats out of bread to sail off for new land. They arrive in a small town off the coast and decide to settle there. Happy to be out of the mess, they adjust to their new lifestyle of buying food from to grocery store and preparing it themselves.
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