Back to School Read-Aloud Roundup

Joy Fleishhacker, Curriculum Connections -- School Library Journal, 8/14/2008

From eye-catching picture books to crowd-pleasing chapter books, these selections spotlight familiar school settings and experiences with verve and humor. Read these rib-tickling titles aloud to dissipate back-to-school worries, settle post-summer jitters, and—by sharing a laugh or launching a discussion—to build a sense of community and cohesiveness in newly forged classrooms.

Fun for the Littlest Ones: K-Gr 1

With a resounding refrain, jaunty rhymes, and crisp-as-an-apple artwork, Daniel Kirk introduces a smiling girl who is ready to take on anything and everything that school has to offer. Whether riding the bus, learning new skills, or playing and sharing with classmates, Keisha Ann Can! (Putnam, 2008), and this self-assured youngster will show listeners that they can too.

In another child-empowering book, a group of inventive classmates while away a rainy day—enlivening common objects with a dose of imagination, generating an assortment of make-believe scenarios. With Carole Lexa Schaefer’s simple text and Pierr Morgan’s spirited paintings, Kids Like Us (Viking, 2008) will inspire students to make the jump from day-to-day reality to creative pretend play.

Picture Books and Poems: K-4

Stephanie Calmenson offers a flip-side perspective of a common concern, as a teacher oversleeps and then scrambles to get to work on time and obey his number one rule: never be Late for School! (Carolrhoda, 2008). Rapid-fire rhymes and Sachiko Yoshikawa’s energetic, bold-colored artwork humorously depict Mr. Bungles’s frenzied commute via train, hot-air balloon, and more (K-Gr 2). Lisa Eisenberg’s Silly School Riddles (Dial, 2008) is another funny offering that pairs easy-to-read jokes with Elwood H. Smith’s goofy cartoons. This lighthearted selection rebounds with double entendres and wordplay that will elicit giggles galore and can be shared aloud or enjoyed independently (K-Gr 3).

Poems are always attention-grabbers and Lee Bennett Hopkins’s Hamsters, Shells, and Spelling Bees: School Poems (HarperCollins, 2008) brings together 20 child-pleasing tidbits that describe an array of school-themed subjects such as show and tell, library day, and lunch-bag treats. Illustrated with Yoshikawa’s color-saturated artwork, the poems are appropriate for beginning readers and perfect for sharing aloud (K-Gr 3). In another well-versed selection, a feisty boy describes a year’s worth of experiences, from the silly—catching School Fever (Dial, 2008) from a virus-infected computer—to the slightly more serious—placing an ad for a bully-squishing superhero. Brod Bagert’s 21 simply worded poems are vivified by Robert Neubecker’s zany, supercharged paintings (Gr 1-3).

With lyrics set to well-known tunes, Smelly Locker: Silly Dilly School Songs (S&S, 2008) presents 14 hilarious ditties about commonplace topics including test-taking stresses, picture-day preparations, and back-breaking backpacks. Alan Katz’s wonderfully ridiculous verses and David Catrow’s madcap cartoons will have students rolling—and singing—in the aisles (K-Gr 4).

Chapter Book Delights: Gr 1-5

Set solidly in the school milieu, these longer selections treat an assortment of classroom-related experiences and issues with a light touch, inviting students to mull over, laugh about, and discuss common concerns.

In Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things (Random, 2008), a Chinese-American boy who possesses the courage and self-confidence of the imaginary Firecracker Man at home, becomes timid and tongue-tied when he begins second grade. Illustrated with LeUyen Pham’s witty ink drawings, Lenore Look’s story of friendship, self-discovery, and finding a place to fit in balances gentle humor with childlike honesty (Gr 1-2).

Orville and Wilbur Riot, two brothers joined at the funny bone, return in Mary Amato’s Stinky and Successful (Holiday House, 2007) for three new escapades as they save a damsel (fly) in distress, cook up (mad) science experiments, and pull an April Fool’s prank on the principal (aka, Mom). Be forewarned, the first-person narrative percolates with gross-out humor, eye-rolling puns, and disgusting details, all perfectly matched by Ethan Long’s sublimely silly sketches (Gr 2-5). In a similarly uproarious tale, Raymond and Graham Rule the School (Viking, 2008)—or at least that’s the plan, but as the two friends head into fourth grade expecting the best year ever, they’re in for a few surprises. Written by Mike Knudson and Steve Wilkinson and illustrated with Stacy Curtis’s black-and-white cartoons, this title sparkles with enjoyably exaggerated situations and over-the-edge humor (Gr 3-5).

Books are a great way to encourage discussion about classroom interpersonal relationships and to dispel beginning-of-the-year tension. Andrew Clements combines laugh-out-loud humor with a thought-provoking premise to tell the tale of Dave Packer, a self-professed blabbermouth who challenges archrival and fellow tongue-flapper Lynsey Burgess to a fifth-grade boys-versus-girls No Talking (S & S, 2007) contest. This entertaining and eye-opening novel touches on themes of self-expression, communication, and cooperation (Gr 3-6). In another battle of the sexes, fourth-grader Nadie discovers that it’s no longer acceptable for girls to socialize with boys—causing an at-school rift between she and her best-pal Nick—and it takes a free-thinking new student to open everyone’s eyes to The Trouble with Rules (Peachtree, 2008). Realistic situations, honest emotions, and spot-on dialogue bring Leslie Bulion’s thoughtful story to life (Gr 3-5).

Want to entertain your students and slip in a language lesson at the same time? David Lubar presents a witty tale about a boy who is caught misbehaving in the library and is subsequently Punished! (Darby Creek, 2006)—he can now speak only in one-liners that make his best friend groan and his teacher irate. Readers join in the fun as Logan undertakes a quest for the special words needed to lift the curse (Gr 3-5). In Tripping Over the Lunch Lady: And Other School Stories (Dial, 2004), 10 popular authors provide couched-in-humor perspectives on topics such as peer relationships, the rigors of academic assignments, and the challenges of growing up. Read these stories aloud to encourage classroom discussion and initiate journal or creative-writing projects (Gr 4-6).

Share these irresistible books now—and throughout the school year—to amuse, enlighten, and grab the eyes, ears, and imaginations of students.

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