Skip to main content

Gingerbread Baby



Title: Gingerbread Baby
Genre: Traditional Literature
Author: Jan Brett
Major Awards: 2000 Bookseller's Choice-Picture Book
Age Group: Preschool-1st grade

Gingerbread Baby is a story about a young boy named Mattie who decides to make a "Gingerbread Boy" on a cold, winter day. On the Gingerbread Boy recipe, it is made clear to NOT peek at the Gingerbread Boy baking in the oven until the full eight minutes are up. Mattie just cannot help himself, though, and decides to take a small peek after it had been in for five minutes. This turned out to be a huge mistake. The Gingerbread Boy runs away from Mattie, and terrorizes animals and people in the town. Mattie assumes that the Gingerbread Boy is still in his home, and decides to make a Gingerbread House for him. After giving the whole town a panic by thinking he has been eaten, the Gingerbread Boy returns home and lives happily ever after in the Gingerbread House. 

 I would use this book in the classroom to have a discussion about the importance of following the rules. I would explain to my students that things can go awry and dangerous situations can occur if rules are not abided by. 

 I believe that this book would be appropriate for preschool students up to first graders. The book is very light-hearted and I think that preschoolers especially would get many laughs from it! Kindergarteners and first graders would also think the book was humorous, but would probably gain a deeper understanding of rules and why they should be followed. 

 In my classroom, I could have the students draw each character in the book. It would be interesting to see what these characters look like in their little minds! I could also have the students decorate a Gingerbread Boy and House as another fun way for the book to "come to life" for them. 




Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Title: Diary of a Wimpy Kid Genre: Graphic Novel Author: Jeff Kinney Major Awards: #1  New York Times Bestseller, ALA Notable Book Age Group: 3rd-8th grade Diary of a Wimpy Kid chronicles the life of middle-schooler, Greg Heffley in comic form. The book is told from his point of view, as he is the one writing his daily life in his journal. Greg deals with his fair share of unfortunate circumstances throughout the story that many  middle schoolers deal with, as well. For one, he is one of the smallest boys in his class, so that alone is a big deal to a middle school boy. He also is struggling to fit in, and wants nothing more than to be popular (especially among the girls!). It doesn't help that his neighbor, Rowley always asks him if he wants to go "play" after school, which sets Greg off because what middle schooler asks to "play?" The correct term in middle school would be "hang out", according to Greg. In his desire to fit in, he has a fail...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Popcorn Astronauts and Other Biteable Rhymes

Title: The Popcorn Astronauts and Other Biteable Rhymes Genre: Poetry Author: Deborah Ruddell Major Awards: Notable Children's Books, 1995-2019 Age Group: Kindergarten-2nd grade This story features 5-6 poems that correspond to each of the four seasons. These poems are silly and the illustrations really make the poems come to life. For spring, one of the poems is titled "Lickety-Split Picnic." This poem is stating the ingredients needed to have a perfect picnic. There is figurative language used which makes it fun! For summer, there is a poem titled "Welcome to Watermelon Lake!" This poem is about a lake that looks like a watermelon and has pink water. For fall, there is a poem titled "21 Things to Do with an Apple." This poem is the exact way it sounds; it lists 21 different silly things to do with an apple! For winter, there is a poem titled "Gingerbread House Makeover." This poem is about a gingerbread house that is removed of cand...
Post a Comment
Read more

Corduroy

Title: Corduroy Genre: Fantasy Author: Don Freeman Major Awards: Indie's Choice Book Awards Picture Book Hall of Fame, Top 100 Picture Books for 21st Century- School Library Journal  Age Group: Pre-K-1st grade Corduroy is a story about a bear named Corduroy who lives on a shelf at a department store. He desperately wants to be purchased and loved by someone. One day, a young girl spots Corduroy and wants to buy him. Her mother says no, and tells her that Corduroy is missing a button. Corduroy had no clue he lost one of his buttons, so in an attempt to find it, he runs around the department store searching for his lost button. A security officer finds him causing a raucous, and takes him back to his spot on the shelf. At the end, the same young girl from the day before comes to buy Corduroy and they become best friends forever.  This is a classic children's novel that is loved by young children, so I would like to have it in my classroom! Corduroy just wants to love ...
Post a Comment
Read more