I'm so excited to share this story with you! This is a great book to read at the beginning of the school year -- it's humorous and also gets across an important concept related to social emotional learning.
Why this book?
I'm always looking for entertaining stories to get across important concepts for early learners. I'd heard about this book before from my 12 x 12 writing group, and I was delighted to find it in my library. The simple cover design with the big title grabbed my attention right away.
My thoughts as a creator:
I love how Carrie Finison took a potentially serious topic and made it into a fun story! This is a wonderful example of how to include different layers in a picture book—including social emotional learning and rhyme! I also like the use of repetition which encouraged my students to read along. Illustrator Daniel Wiseman used a bright, cartoon style that is both attention-getting and suits the humorous tone of the story.
My thoughts as an educator:
Early years educators and teachers will love this book for a lead-in to helping young children understand that they have a say in who can give them a hug. It’s also great for discussing individual differences and preferences. I also loved the spread with different ways to give a high five. Other elements to discuss include rhyming words, collections and different ways to show you care about someone.
Ages: 4 - 7
Grades: K - 2
Connections: bodily autonomy, consent, individual differences, friendship
Activities:
Social Emotional Learning: Make a list of different ways you could show you care about a friend. Revisit the page with different types of high fives. Turn to a partner and try five different ways to high five. Can you think of another way?
Math: Doug has a striped shirt. How many other children in the book are wearing stripes? How many are wearing dots? How many kids in your class are wearing stripes? How many are wearing dots? You can use these questions to model how to record data in charts or graphs.
Literacy/Phonics: Talk about the short "u" sound. Try this game from Fantastic and Fun learning to practice reading short "u" CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) words.
More resources:
Visit author Carrie Finison's website for book related colouring pages and activities such as "Invent Your Own High Five."
Description from the publisher:
Visit the creators (click for link):
G.P. Putnam’s Sons, an imprint of Random House
For more wonderful picture books, visit Perfect Picture Book Friday!