Why?

Title: Why?
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Author: Richard Torrey
Major Awards: None
Age Group: Preschool-1st grade

Why is a story about six-year-old Jack and the many questions he has. Why are there holes in crackers? Why does healthy food taste bad? Why can't I play with my older brother and his friend? Why can't I have a tail like my dog? Why can't I keep my frog I caught in my bedroom? Why did my goldfish die? Why do I have to take a bath? Why do I have to go to bed if I am not tired? Why?! In the end, Jack falls asleep after asking why he has to go to sleep. His mother replies, "That's why." Jack is a very curious young boy who has many questions for the world, just like a typical six-year-old. 

This would be a great book to have in my classroom! Young children like Jack are trying to figure out the world, thus resulting in many questions. I think that children who read this book would totally relate to the questions Jack has! 

I believe that this book would be appropriate for preschool-aged children through first graders. The book is short and simple with very few words on each page. I think this would be the perfect story for a child who has just started to read on their own because of that. The illustrations really make the book come alive and the expressions on the characters' faces give the book meaning. Also, like I stated before, children these ages are starting to discover the world. Many of the questions Jack has are questions that children these ages ask, so they would find this book incredibly relatable. 

In the classroom, I could have my students come up with questions they have themselves and write them down. We could discuss the questions as a class, and see if we could come up with answers to the students' questions. We could also talk about the five "W" words (who, what, when, where, why), and discuss why it is important to ask questions. I could also play "The Five W's Song" to help them with this concept, as well.