Materials
Camera and film9" x 12" (22 cm x 30 cm) oaktag or tagboard
Glue
Marker
Clear contact paper or laminate
Hole punch
Yarn or jump rings
Instructions
1. There are many ways to use children's books effectively in your curriculum.
The most obvious way is to incorporate story time into your daily schedule.
2. After reading a book, do extension activities to reinforce concepts as well as
just have fun with the book's ideas. A good place to start is to use the small
group activities suggested in this activity guide. After trying several, it will
become easier to identify age-appropriate activities for any of the books in
your collection.
3. Another way to use books and stories is to encourage children to create their
own books based on the story read to them. A variety of prompts can
encourage them to contribute their own ideas to their books. For example,
ask them, "What part of the story did you like the most? Can you make a
picture of it?" or "Have you ever had anything happen to you like what
happened in the story?"
4. Then, write down the children's verbal responses. Ask the children to
illustrate their ideas.
5. When the children are finished, assemble all the pages to make a classroom
version of the book that was shared.
6. There are many different ideas you can use for child-created books. For
example, if you read a book about apples, give the children apple-shaped
papers on which to draw. Or, invite children to complete a line from the story
using their own words, such as:
Brown bear, brown bear, what do you see?
I see a _________ looking at me!
The following is a list of books arranged by themes. These are broad themes, and
some books may overlap with more than one. Many of the small group activities
can be used in connection with these book selections.
