Father's Day - children's literature

Want something new and fresh for Father's Day?  The titles below are recently published.

You can browse through "Demolition Dad" by Phil Earle at Amazon or read reviews here and here.  You can read reviews on the other new titles which are more for younger readers here.  Free teachign notes for "My Dad is a Giraffe" are available here.

I recently blogged about another title, "Every Second Friday" that is great for children of divorced or separated parents here.

 

"A Day with Dad" is similar in that Tim doesn't live with his Dad.  His dad lives in another town and Tim doesn't see him very often, so spending a day with his dad is very special.  You can browse inside this title here or read a review here.  You can view a read aloud of this title here.

Some other fabulous picture books for Father's Day are included below:

"My Daddy Ate an Apple" is another classic from Craig Smith that is full of humour and comes with a CD for the story in song.  You can read a review of this title here and here.  You can view a review of this funny picture book with such a catchy tune here.  

"Every Friday" is the story of a boy and his father who spend every Friday doing special things together that illustrates the unique bond between fathers and sons.  A trailer for the picture book for early readers can be viewed here.

"Two Old Potatoes and Me" is the story of a daughter and her father.  This is another picture book featuring a family who are separated. At her father's house she finds two old potatoes in the back of the cupboard that have sprouts growing from them.  This is a terrific picture book for integrating backyard science into Father's Day studies, by studying gardening, plants and propagation.  You can read a review of this picture book here and here.

There are some terrific ideas here for a Dads' and Kids' Book Club using "Two Old Potatoes and Me".  Free teaching notes are available here and here and here.   

"Crocodaddy" is a fun rhyming story for early readers.  You can look inside the book here, view a synopsis of the story here or access free teaching notes here.

"A Wild Father's Day" is such a fun title which is also great for introducing similes.  You can look inside the title here.  I was thinking it would work well with "From Head to Toe" by Eric Carle.  You can preview the story by viewing a father reading it to his young baby here.

"My Dad" is a classic by Anthony Browne.  You can view a read aloud of this picture book here or here or you can look inside the book here.  You can read book reviews here and here.

What are your favourite picture books for Father's Day in Australia?  Please leave a comment below if you have a favourite.

Have a wonderful week everyone and Happy Father's Day to all the Dads out there.

Spotlight on Craig Smith's picture books - absolutely hilarious!

I just love Craig Smith's picture books as they use rhyme, rhythm and repetition which is great for early readers.  They also come with a CD of Craig singing the story, which encourages young readers to join in with the shared reading experience.

Don't know Craig Smith's stories?  You don't know what you are missing...

Firstly, The Wonkey Donkey.  View a YouTube clip of the story here.  This is a crack up - it's a cumulative story which the kids really love (and university students too!).  It has such a catchy tune.  

We used bee bots with those free jackets you can get online and put a donkey cover over the bee bots, with the children programming them to dance to the tune of The Wonkey Donkey.

We downloaded the free bee bot jackets from Primary Treasure Chest.

We also used the bee bots without jackets (just as bees) and the children programmed them to dance to another of Craig Smith's stories, Willbee the Bumblebee.  You can view a YouTube clip of the story being sung here.

My Daddy Ate An Apple is hilarious.  Have you ever taken a bite of an apple only to find a worm in it?  Not just any worm, but a fuzzy one, a buzzy one, a great big fat juicy one!  You can view a review of the story  here.

Finally, drum roll... I picked up Craig Smith's latest picture book, Square Eyes.  Again, the author uses rhyme, rhythm, repetition and humour to totally engage the reader.  

This is a really funny story about not being a couch potato and getting away from the TV, the screen, the electronics etc. and being engaged and active with all life has to offer.

Craig Smith has dedicated his book, "To all the children who sometimes struggle to get their parents off the couch, their tablets and phones to play with them."

When I was reading the book, I came to the page where they were in the swimming pool and I almost wanted to get out my red pen.  In my head I was thinking there was a spelling mistake, and it wasn't until I put on the CD and listened to the song version that I got it and laughed out really loudly!  I don't want to spoil it for you, but it is very clever :)

You can view Craig Smith, the author, singing the story in song, with a group of students here.  

If you know any children who find it hard to extract themselves from digital devices, this is the book for them!  It would also be a handy addition to any unit of work around health and exercise.

On that note, if any of us made health-related New Year's Resolutions, and we shared this book in the classroom, it could be a handy reminder for us - work/life balance etc.

Happy New Year everyone!