Little Wonders

A boy wishes for a star of his very own. He imagines all the ways he and his star can play. Will he ever find one? Oliver Jeffers is a maker of art. He has written and illustrated several picture books, and How to Catch a Star was his first. Some of the activities in this unit are drawing the starry sky, sorting sensory bin items, and painting a planet.

A young boy travels the far reaches of the planet to help his penguin friend find happiness. Some of the activities in this Book a Week unit are painting with penguin colors, exploring ice, and making no-churn ice cream.

The author Oliver Jeffers is a maker of art. He has written and illustrated several picture books. How to Catch a Star was his first. He gets his best ideas when he’s not paying any attention. He lives in Brooklyn, New York with his wife and son, Harland.

A youngster waits for their garden to grow. The author Lois Ehlert's love of creating was nurtured by her parents, who furnished her with art supplies to fuel her creative nature. Her artistic explorations garnered her a scholarship to the Layton School of the Arts. Upon her graduation, she began working as an illustrator and graphic designer in children's publishing. Although she loved art, she was disappointed in the lack of rich colors in the children's books at the time, so she left publishing to work solely as a graphic designer. Lois Ehlert eventually began illustrating again and published her first book, Growing Vegetable Soup, in 1987, more than 20 years after first working in children's publishing. Some of the activities in this unit are painting a still life, exploring the feel of flowers, and making flower playdough.

On an island of imaginary friends waiting to be chosen by children and given special names, Beekle can wait no longer. He goes on a journey to the real world to find his human. And just when he thinks she cannot be found, a sweet “Hello!” greets him. This Caldecott Medal-winning picture book is a touching story about determination and friendship. In this unit, you will find activities such as making Beekle's island, creating an imaginary friend with puffy paint, and marshmallow sorting.

This Caldecott Honor Book is about two mamas and their little ones setting out to pick blueberries. What a shock the characters receive when the two mamas discover their children have absentmindedly followed the wrong mama—Sal’s mother has been followed by Baby Bear, and Mama Bear has been followed by Little Sal!

In this unit you will find activities to pair with the story, such as making a blueberry patch sensory bin, painting with blueberries, and learning some facts about bears.

The Gardener is a rich, heartwarming story about a young girl named Lydia Grace who is sent to live with her uncle in the big city. Set during the depression era, the book is written as a series of letters from Lydia Grace to the family she had to leave back home. With a few bulbs and seed packets, she transforms her uncle’s bakery and rooftop patio into a lush garden and cheerful place through her determination, green thumb, and generosity. The Gardener is a 1997 New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of the Year and a 1998 Caldecott Honor Book. Some of the activities in this unit are building a block flower shop, seed sensory play, and writing a friendly letter.

Anna Ingalls brings Diane Stanley's beloved retelling of Goldilocks and the Three Bears Goldie to life with instructions on how to make a "Wonder Box" - a family of painted wooden peg doll characters.

Poor Katy has no pocket for her baby, Freddy, to ride in. She seeks help from all of her animal neighbors to find a way to carry her baby. After many failed attempts, Wise Old Owl directs Katy to the city for help. It is in the city she finds exactly what she needs to be able to carry Freddy. Some of the activities in this unit are making a Mixed Media Kangaroo, exploring tool sounds, and creating Australian Dot Art.

The Little House is a story about a little house in the country that, over many years of urban development and growth, ends up being a little house in the city. The little house ages and becomes unkempt, sad, and lonely over the years. Finally, she is rediscovered by the great-great-granddaughter of her former owner and is moved back to the country, fixed up, and loved once again. Some of the activities in this unit are building snack houses, experimenting with construction on a moving surface, and making season handprint crafts.

Rosie Revere dreams of one day becoming a great engineer. Shy and uncertain of her ability, she hides the gadgets and gizmos she’s made in her attic or under her bed. Afraid to fail and be laughed at, Rosie is hesitant to share her amazing ideas. Great-Great-Aunt Rose helps her to see each fail as one step closer to making her inventions a success. Some of the activities you will find in this unit are building a snack tower and doing an egg drop experiment.

In this beautifully worded and illustrated version of the tale of Stone Soup, three Chinese monks are on a journey to understand what makes a person happy. The monks visit a mountain village where the villagers are guarded and unwelcoming. Cleverly, they build a fire and begin making a soup made from stones. From this experience, the curious villagers all learn to open their hearts and to give as they come together and contribute to the stone soup. In this unit, you will find fun activities to pair with this beloved book, such as building stone patterns, making sensory rocks, and eating with chopsticks.

Tops and Bottoms is a hilarious story about a crafty hare who outwits a lazy bear. Bear spends his days sleeping—he has plenty of money and land, but he wishes only to sleep. Nearby, the clever, but poor, Hare resides with his large family. With many children to feed, Hare and Mrs. Hare go into business with Bear only to trick him into getting all of the good parts of the crops. Janet Stevens has authored and illustrated many books, and she won a Caldecott Honor for "Tops and Bottoms." Some of the activities in this unit are exploring Edible Tops and Bottoms, doing a celery experiment, and making Lettuce Leaf Prints.

A young boy dresses in his wolf suit, and his mischief gets him into trouble. He is sent to his room without supper where his imagination unfolds, and an adventure in the land of the wild things begins. Some of the activities in this unit are creating messy monster art, boat building with blocks, and making Wild Things masks.

After a fire at their previous home destroyed everything Rosa, her mother, and her grandmother had, they saved their coins in a big jar in hopes of purchasing a “wonderful, beautiful, fat, soft armchair.” Their new apartment had many things that were generously donated to them after the fire, but they didn’t have a cozy and comfortable place for Rosa’s mother to sit after a long day of work at the Blue Tile Diner. Will they be able to save enough to buy the new chair? This unit includes activities such as building mini armchairs, creating a piggy bank or coin drop, and going on a bus ride.

A small charming inchworm, who is proud of his ability to measure anything around, including a flamingo’s neck and the legs of a Heron, is one day threatened by a nightingale. The nightingale has demanded that the inchworm measure her song, or she will eat him for breakfast. At first, the inchworm is not quite sure how to do such a thing but quickly comes up with a clever idea to solve the quandary. Some of the activities in this unit are painting with worms, making a collage, and investigating worms.

One day, Masako Matsuno found herself walking in her clogs again to hear the familiar sounds they made on the pavement. This book grew out of that event and her wish to share the sound and the experience with American children. Some activities in this unit include chopstick pom poms, graphing, weather tracking, and making Japanese rice balls.

Piccolo, a carefree tomcat, who lived along the canals of Venice, thoroughly enjoyed his independence. One day as he was out exploring the canals, he discovered two young abandoned kittens. Although he knew they needed care, he certainly did not want to be the one caring for them. That is, until he discovered his own tender heart. In this heartwarming unit you'll find directions for painting with spaghetti, making homemade mini pizzas, and drawing a cat.

It was with his fellow New Englanders that Robert Frost (1874-1963) first became known for his poetry. Over twenty years later Frost published his first book. He went on to win a record of four Pulitzer Prizes and became one of the most well-known poets of his era. The illustrator of Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening, Susan Jeffers, worked on this book from her studio that is surrounded by woods and animals, which she loves to draw. Susan has worked for many publishers and has authored a few books of her own, including Three Jovial Huntsmen, a Caldecott Honor Book. These illustrations in Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening were done with pencil, pen, and ink.

It is interesting to note how much the illustrations play into the story of this book. With the text, the imagery of the illustrations fill in the blanks and bring life and detail to the words. Whether this is the exact meaning that Robert Frost had in mind, we do not know. For the children, this influence that the illustrations have to the book creates a story and fills it with life. As the adults, this is also a powerful influence that we must just remember was added by the illustrator. On the darkest night of the year, a man, his sleigh, and his horse head into the woods. The man stops for some time to watch the snow falling through the trees. His horse becomes anxious to keep going as there is not a farmhouse near. Regardless, they stay awhile as the man observes and plays amongst the trees and animals. Before long they continue on as the man has obligations to meet and there are miles to go before they sleep.

Some of the activities in this unit are making popcorn snowballs, mixing up and using "snow" paint, and pine cone weaving.

The Story of Ping is a story about a young duck, Ping, and his family who live on a wise-eyed boat on the yellow waters of the Yangtze River. Each day, Ping and his family members would hunt for snails, little fishes, and other pleasant things to eat, and each evening, the duck’s master would call them back to the boat. Ping was always careful not to be the last one to board because the last one to cross over the bridge to the boat got a spank on the back. However, one evening Ping did not hear his master’s call, and he knew he would be the very last duck to cross the bridge. He had a choice to make. Would he choose to get a spank on the back or avoid boarding the boat all together. What will happen because of his choice? Some of the activities in this unit are making a footprint duck, making a rice cake snack, and studying ducks.

Oops! So often that means, “Uh oh!” That is not the case in here—young readers will be thrilled with the creative ways Barney Saltzberg turns smears, stains, and tears into beautiful pieces of art! Some of the activities in this unit are a "finish my doodle" art project, blow painting, and folded paper art.

The Chapter Book Editions have lesson plans for one week, but the book is intended to be read over a longer period.

All Wilbur, a runt pig, wants is friendship and companionship. A young girl, named Fern, saves Wilbur and asks her uncle to raise him on his farm for her. That’s where Charlotte, a barn spider, comes along. A tale of friendship unfolds in this 1953 Newbery Medal award winner. Some of the activities in this unit are mapping the spider's life cycle, making handprint pigs, and painting watercolor spider webs.

Princess Lenore has eaten too many raspberry tarts and now feels ill, and the King will stop at nothing to make her feel better! When Princess Lenore asks for the moon, the King enlists the help of his wise men—the Lord High Chamberlain, the Royal Wizard, and the Royal Mathematician—to get the moon, but they all claim it is impossible. Will the Court Jester be able to help? This book was awarded the Caldecott Medal for Slobodkin's emotive illustrations in 1945. Some of the activities in this unit are making a jester hat, painting a moon in the branches, and baking raspberry tarts.

Sylvia loves to write rhyming poetry. She attaches one poem to a birch tree, wanting to make the world more beautiful. When she returns to the tree, she realizes a poem has been written back to her. Believing it is from the tree, and excited to feel understood and appreciated, Sylvia writes another poem to the tree. She is shocked when she discovers who the real author of the poems is. Some of the activities in this unit are making kindness rocks, learning about how leaves breathe with a science experiment and making discovery bottles.