Literary Tool Kit
Genre/Type
Title
Author
Diversity
Grade Level
Summary/Review/Response
Alphabet (1)
Peanut Butter and
Jellyfishes
Brian P. Cleary
Neutral
Pre K- 2
Number (1)
I’m Dirty!
Kate McMullan
Neutral
Pre K-3
This alphabet book can be read to
students in pre K and 1st grade. I’d
say the 2nd graders could read it to
themselves or to younger kiddos as
a review. The book has funny
pictures and creatively uses many
words beginning with the specific
letter on that page. As a project, I’d
let students pull out a letter from a
bowl and that student will go
around picking at least three items
that begin with that letter sound.
They can use their imagination and
then draw a picture with those
items. After everyone shares, we
can create our own classroom
alphabet book!
The toddlers at the school I work at
love this author! Beginning at the
toddler age, everyone becomes very
interested in mighty machines. I
wouldn’t really have an activity to
go along with the book. However, to
instill the idea of pre math skills in
the younger kiddos, I would read
this book everyday for a week or
until the little ones can read it with
Predictable (1)
Phases of the Moon
Gillia M. Olson
Neutral
K-2nd
me. The story is about a backhoe
that is cleaning up. He counts down
and up, which are great pre math
skills. Each number of things is also
an alliteration (ex. 4 cat clawed
couches), which I think helps with
memory, vocabulary, and cleaning
up! Depending on attention span,
I’d ask the students after reading to
pick a number of items (ex. 4 red
pencils). After, we can ask friends to
restore the materials, which allows
them to count back down.
Classroom management and
recalling where things belong in the
classroom help!
I like this particular book because it
not only talks about patterns found
in nature, but also uses real photos
of the moon in its phases in
different locations and different
times of year. This goes over more
patterns of nature like the seasons
and day and night. The end of the
book shows a diagram of the
complete cycle of the moon. A
project I’d like to do with the older
kiddos is grab a Styrofoam ball, stick
it on a pencil and call it the moon.
The student holding it will be the
Earth. Another student holding a
Historical (3)
Superstars of History
Jacob Field
Neutral
3rd-7th
The Secret Garden
Francis Hodgson
Burnett
Specific
3rd-5th
flashlight will be the sun. Students
will firsthand see what the phases
of the moon mean and where they
are in location with the Earth and
Sun. Younger kiddos can simply do a
matching game with phases of the
moon on cards and matching them
to the picture. This book is great in
expanding vocabulary, and
integrating science as well!
A different approach than simply
having a picture of the historical
figure and bullet pointing dry facts.
This book looks into leaders all over
the world and with fun illustrations
and text, kids are given an eccentric
and eye engaging look into the lives
of historical figures and what made
them so awesome! I like this book
because it makes learning about
history appealing and I’d like
students to pick a figure to dress up
on their own and present that
person to the class. Can we guess
who it is?!
Students, in all the years I’ve
worked with kids of all ages, love
when I read this book! It’s a very
popular one yes, but I will
absolutely encourage this book to
be in all classrooms. Younger ages
can be read to while the older
grades should be able to read
themselves. This book is about a
girl, Mary, who moves to England
from India after her parents die. Set
in the early 1900s, students learn
about life during that time. There
was no electricity, people still
travelled by carriage, and there was
a class system. They also learn
about friendship and family, as
Mary moves in with her cousin and
brings a garden back to life! I just
did a project on the six simple
machines and used this book as we
made a poster board of the six
simple machines in the garden. The
wheelchair, pulley for a well, tree
swing, axe for wedge, inclined
plane, etc.…
Ben and Me: An
Astonishing Life of
Benjamin Franklin by
His Good Mouse Amos
Robert Lawson
Generic
3rd-7th
A humorous was to learn about
Benjamin Franklin through the
“manuscript” of his mouse
companion, students will learn
about Ben Franklin’s ideas and
where they all originate. This is a
fun way for students to learn about
history and when done reading, can
write a journal entry as their own
Realistic (3)
The Strange Case of
Origami Yoda
Tom
Angelberger
Neutral
3rd-7th
Shiloh
Phyllis Reynolds
Naylor
Specific
3rd-7th
favorite animal or pet at home, who
has given them ideas. Students can
also talk about in a group discussion
things that Franklin accomplished
and how those are important still
today.
I noticed one of my students
reading this book and he then let
me borrow it. The social norms of
later elementary (the book is set for
6th graders) years is profiled through
Tommy, Dwight, and a small yoda
finger puppet. Tommy questions
many mysteries of the validity of
this yoda puppet, the differences in
friendship when you get a little
older, and what his feelings are for
another girl in school named Sarah.
Kids love Star Wars and I think they
will relate to the situations these
kids have to deal with. Great
illustrations and visual craft. It’s
written somewhat like a journal so
it feels less like a chapter book.
The story of a boy who helps a dog
from his abusive neighbor/owner in
Friendly, West Virginia. Marty, like
most children his age, get presented
with many moral dilemmas for
things they want, need, and love.
For Marty, he is faced with telling
the truth about taking care of
Shiloh, figuring out what’s best, and
what to do when something is being
mistreated. There are a lot of life
lessons children can take away with
this book.
Traditional (3)
Out of the Dust
Karen Hesse
Specific
3rd-7th
Lon Po Po: A Red Riding
Hood Story from China
Ed Young
Specific
Pre K-3rd
I read this book as a kid over and
over! This is told through the eyes
of Billie Jo in a poetic/journal type
of way. Billie Jo loses her mother,
has a not so great relationship with
her father, and badly burns her
hands. She was a piano player, and
with the help of school and friends
along the way, Billie Jo tells a tale of
loss, hope, and resilience.
I would hope to use this in a poetry
lesson and work with students on
writing in free verse, something that
happened to them each day for a
week or so.
Using panel illustrations,
representing traditional Oriental art,
this is a beautiful and visually
crafted version of Little Red Riding
Hood. Three young girls suspect the
Granny Wolf to not be their real
grandmother and coax him up a
tree through temptation and kill
him. Students can use watercolors
and create their own panel of a
traditional story.
The Egyptian Cinderella
Shirley Climo
Why Mosquitoes Buzz in Verna Aardema
People’s Ears: A West
African Tale
Specific
Pre K-3rd
Another twist to the traditional
Cinderella story, students will read
the Egyptian version. With beautiful
illustrations and rose red slippers,
you see the tale of Rhodopis. This is
a way to integrate history and
geography students can look at
where the story took place on a
map. They also learn about Egyptian
culture.
Specific
Pre K- K
A tale that students will love and
learn from! A mosquito disrupts the
jungle when he tells a little lie to an
iguana, which then carries that on
to other animals and everything
gets out of control. They learn that
telling lies is never good. The
students learn about African
culture, and discover a jungle
biome! They can also play the
phone game and act out the story!
They see how the one person can
affect a whole community. Truth is
the best policy.
Science Fiction (1)
Aliens on Vacation: The
Intergalactic Bed and
Breakfast
Clete Barrett
Smith
Generic
3rd-7th
Fantasy (2)
The Neverending Story
Michael Ende,
Ralph Manheim
(translator)
Neutral
5th and up
This is a fun book one of my
students was reading. It teaches
about diversity, moral dilemmas,
society as a whole, and
relationships with elders. This boy,
David, vacations at his
grandmother’s bed and breakfast.
Each room is a portal to another
world! Some suspicious people,
mainly the town sheriff, create
tension as David tries to help the
aliens enjoy Earth and his
grandmother stay in business. This
is a relatable book for kids who
know what it’s like to dread a
vacation, not be with friends, and
go on a solo endeavor involuntarily.
You never know where adventure
will find you, even in the middle of
nowhere, Washington at
Grandma’s!
A boy discovers a book in a shop
that the owner discourages strongly
against him taking. He says it’s not
available. Intrigued, the boy runs
away with the book and while
reading, he discovers the book is
actually about him! He is followed
by the “nothingness” that is
consuming everything in its path.
There are many whimsical
characters that help Sebastian on
his path to courage, self-discovery,
and adventure.
Informational (2)
Coraline
Neil Gaiman
Generic
3rd and up
Coraline doesn’t like much about
her life at all. Her name, parents,
eating bad food, the other cooky
tenants, and simply bored all the
time. When she finds a door in her
house that reveals a parallel world
similar to Coraline’s current world
but better, she unveils a little more
than she can ask for. Parents that
look like hers try to change Coraline
into a doll and never let her go! In
this new world, the eyes are
replaced with buttons. Coraline has
to be brave and find her way back.
The illustrations are a great way to
inspire a lesson where the students
read and illustrate their own world
that they wish they lived in. What
would they change? What would
they keep the same? These type of
stories always imply to me that
communication is very important
and loving what you have (being
you is the best you!)
What’s the Difference
Between a Frog and a
Mary Firestone
Neutral
2nd-3rd
Students can create a Venn Diagram
of frogs and toads! They can be
Toad?
Biography (1)
creative and rather than using
circles, they can have a frog on one
side and a toad on another the
middle with similarities can be two
tongues flying out to eat the same
thing! This incorporates the
sciences in comparing/contrasting
research.
Why Do Leaves Change
Color?
Betsy Maestro
Neutral
K-2nd
On a Beam of Light: A
Story of Albert Einstein
Jennifer Berne
Generic
1st-4th
This is a great reading level 2 book
students can read on their own
about the reason for leaves
changing color and the seasons.
After reading, students can collect
leaves outside and make their own
booklet of what a leaf looks like in
each season or just show the many
different colors a leaf can change
into. There are many activities in
the book that helps students at a
young age guide their own lessons
in science. Something like this can
be in the classroom all year round
so students can identify the cycle.
I like this biographical book about
Albert Einstein because it’s
audience is mainly the younger ones
who, through this book, get an idea
about Einstein and his ideas that
made him a rock star in history and
science. They see that Einstein too
Autobiography (1)
My Life with the
Chimpanzees
Jane Goodall
Neutral
1st-4th
Poetry (2)
The Best of Ogden Nash
The Eel
Ogden Nash
Neutral
Pre K and
up
Bob Racska
Generic
Pre K- 3rd
I don't mind eels
Except as meals.
And the way they
feels.
Guyku: A Year of Haiku
was a child and though his teachers
thought he was an odd ball, he
imagined and wondered about
many things that changed the way
we think today. It’s now up to us to
figure out what Einstein couldn’t
and we can do it! This is a great
introductory book for kids who love
science or at least get their curiosity
going.
The life of Jane Goodall through her
words. Students can have a group
discussion about how the story was
different told by Jane, as opposed
to reading about Jane and the
chimps. What it means to be
humane, and how chimpanzees are
similar to humans.
I feel Ogden Nash has a great talent
for creating his own words to
rhyme, and his poems about
animals are so good at describing
the animals themselves. Students
can write poems about their animal
of choice, maybe make up their own
words, if comfortable. Let students
share with the class along with an
illustration to put in classroom
poetry book!
Students work on the 5-7-5 syllable
for Boys
Caldecott (2)
haikus for their own interests
anywhere in nature. Painting a
watercolor after reflects on the
style of haiku. They can be
postcards that they send to loved
ones after posted throughout the
classroom.
The Girl Who Loved
Horses
Paul Goble
(Author and
illustrator)
Specific
K-2
This is a beautiful tale of a Native
American girl, her love for horses,
and her role in taking care of them
for her tribe. This is a great book for
illustrating the Native American
culture, the significance of animals,
and spirituality. Students can study
the illustrations without the text
first to see if they understand the
story. Then reading it to see if it
follows. They can illustrate their
own desert biome.
Locomotive
Brian Floca
(Author and
illustrator)
Specific
Pre K- 5th
The vivid pictures and visual craft in
the writing explain to children the
transcontinental railway and
travelling west. This covers different
modes of transportation, how they
work, history, what the west looked
like as they went from Omaha to
Sacramento, and a love for trains!
Newberry (1)
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats
of NIMH
Robert C.
O’Brien
Generic
4th-6th
BBOAT (1)
The Glass Castle
Jeannette Walls
Specific
5th and up
A brave character indeed, Mrs.
Frisby must move her mouse family
out of a garden before the plow
takes over for the summer season.
She has four children. One child,
Timothy, is very sick and cannot
make the move. She seeks the aid of
another mouse, Mr. Ages, to get
Timothy medicine. A crow, Jeremy,
helps by flying her to an owl, which
helps her once he finds out her late
husband was Jonathan Frisby. The
owl leads her to a society of rats in a
rosebush who were the result of
human experiments that made the
rats smarter (NIMH). Jonathan
Frisby and Mr. Ages were two mice
that survived the experiments.
Nicomedus and the other rats help
Mrs. Frisby and her family move to
a safe location. But they have to get
past the farmer’s cat! This is a great
family story and movie!
A memoir from an author I love.
Jeannette Walls wrote The Glass
Castle, Half Broke Horses, and the
Silver Star. I can’t really pick which
one is my ultimate favorite! The
story is about her three siblings and
their upbringing with their wild and
dysfunctional mother and father.
They were moved all over the place
and very poor. I can relate to this
book with my upbringing. Being
responsible and everyone pitching
for the betterment of the family.
These kids found entertainment in
the little things and became very
resilient. The kids had to grow up
and find their own ways of not
following in the same footsteps as
their parents. This is great for any
reader who had a not so white
picket fence upbringing but still
loved their family unconditionally.