SLOTH TO THE RESCUE by Leanne Shirtliffe & Rob McClurkan - a story about stepping out of your comfort zone

 

Why this book?

As a person who feels shy about new experiences, I could relate to Sloth and his desire to help his friend while at the same time feeling nervous and worried.  In this story, Sloth's friend Patti leaves an important notebook at the Animal Rainforest Rescue Center. Sloth decides to bring it back to her, even if it means stepping out of their comfort zone. 

I loved the way Sloth could rely on friends to help, as well as using strategies to stay calm. The illustrations are colourful and detailed, and the animal faces are so expressive!

 

My thoughts as a creator:

This would be a great mentor text if you're trying to incorporate social emotional learning into a story that has a classic problem and solution plot. 

My thoughts as an educator:

I really liked how even though Sloth was feeling stressed, they were kind to their friends and pointed out how their friends' strengths could help them get through a part of the journey to find Patti. This book would be great for introducing discussions about problem-solving and strategies for feeling calm. 

Ages: 3 - 7

Grades: Prek - 3

Connections: new experiences, problem-solving, feelings, belly-breathing, rainforest animals, helping friends, first day of school

Activities:

Create - Have students choose a favourite animal and write or draw a picture of what would happen if that animal came to school. Questions to think about: What is your animal good at? How would that help them in a tricky situation?

Math - Count all the different animals in the story. How many are there? 

Social-Emotional Learning - Practice belly breathing. Make a poster for a calm down corner in your classroom that reminds others to try belly breathing when they feel stressed.  

More resources:

Learn to belly breathe with Rosita from Sesame Street:

One Green Planet gives us a peek at how to teach an injured sloth how to crawl again. 

Description from the publisher:

At the Rainforest Rescue Center, Sloth loves when Patti comes to visit. But when Patti forgets her class report, it’s up to Sloth, with the help of his other (faster) rain-forest friends, to return Patti’s notebook to her-at school! Will they be able to find her among all the other kids in a new environment?

The first day of school can be scary-especially if you forget your summer assignment-but in Sloth to the Rescue,Sloth, Peccary, Boa, Capuchin, and Ocelot overcome their fears and realize that what makes them unique is what helps them fit right in!

Sloth to the Rescue by Leanne Shirtliffe & Rob McClurkan was published by Running Press Kids in 2019.

For more wonderful picture books, visit Perfect Picture Book Friday at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. 

Learning from Picture Books – SCHOOL’S FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

I enjoyed this fresh perspective on the back-to-school story.

Summary from the Publisher:

It's the first day of school at Frederick Douglass Elementary and everyone's just a little bit nervous, especially the school itself. What will the children do once they come? Will they like the school? Will they be nice to him?

The school has a rough start, but as the day goes on, he soon recovers when he sees that he's not the only one going through first-day jitters.

School’s First Day of School was written by Adam Rex and illustrated by Christian 

Robinson. It was published by Roaring Brook Press in 2016.

Opening:

“That summer, they dug up the big field, and poured the foundation, and set brick on top of brick until they’d built a school.”

My Thoughts as a Writer:

It’s an interesting and tricky challenge to take an inanimate object and write a story from its perspective, but I think it works here because schools are so familiar to kids. I liked the conversational writing style, which is full of the small details of everyday life.

The illustrations are a lot of fun and kids will enjoy studying them to see what the students are doing in the group scenes

My Thoughts as a Teacher:

I’d love to read this book to students so they can think about a different perspective on back-to-school. It’s also a good way to introduce some of the places and what a day in school might be like. The pages with scenes from different parts of the school would be fun to talk about, and to model “reading the pictures”.  

I liked the message that anyone can be nervous or worried at the beginning of school. The words reflecting emotion (e.g., “worry”, “felt bad”, “embarrassed”), are nice opportunities to discuss how to talk about feelings.

Ages: 4 – 8

Grades: kindergarten to grade 5

Themes: first day of school, fears, diversity, janitors or custodians

Activities:

How is your school the same or different from the school in this book? Make a list!

What do you think your school might say on your first day? Draw a picture of your school and write one sentence to share your school’s feelings.

Find your janitor or custodian and interview them to find out what they do to get your school ready for students! Share what you found out.

Which page is your favorite? Explain why.

This book has an activity guide.