Ada Potato

• Discuss and role-play ways to deal with "put-downs" and being made fun of.
• Study an instrument that you might like to play.

Apple Pie and Onions

• Interview a friend or family member who once lived in another country.
• Drink tea with lemon, or bake an apple pie!

Chloe in the Know

• Write your own Hallmark-type greeting card.
• Study an instrument that you might like to play.

The Cousins

• Make Venn-Diagrams comparing and contrasting yourself with a friend, cousin, or other family member.

Dear Annie

• Make a 'Mail From Everybody' bulletin board.
• Write letters to grandparents, parents, or older friends asking them about their lives. They will enjoy reminiscing, and you'll enjoy reading!
• Mail letters to other friends (in the school). Receiving mail is exciting and interactive, and the letter-writing is great practice for an important skill.
• Design your own stamp!
• Make an 'Annie' timeline. Imagine what might happen to Annie as she gets older.
• Find your very own penpal! (Click here for some online help.)

Grandpa's Garden Lunch

• Make (or even grow) your own garden lunch!
• Make a 'Garden Lunch' bulletin board.
• Design your own seed packets, and fill them with beans. (Kidney, lima, and some other types of dried beans will even sprout if planted! Click here for more on this.)
• Visit a plant nursery.

Harry, Willy, and Carrothead

• Invite someone with a prosthesis, or something 'different' about him/herself to visit your classroom and discuss his/her experiences.
• Ask questions and have a discussion about 'how we are different' and 'how we are the same'.
• Read about Jim Abbott. (For more on him, click here.)

Mama, Coming and Going

• Write stories about funny family mishaps that have happened. Did your mother lock her keys in the car? Forget a purse somewhere? Put her glasses in the...refrigerator?

Mickey's Class Play

• Draw and paint your very own favorite ducks. Discuss the differences in each.
• Write a story about how you are different from a friend or family member.

Molly Pink

• Practice singing a solo, or giving a short speech in class on something that interests you.
• Discuss different ways to overcome stagefright.

Molly Pink Goes Hiking

• Create postcards about your vacation times, and mail them to a friend or relative.

Mr. Green Peas

• Make drawings of your pets. Or, create the most outrageous pet you can think of!
• Create a paper maché iguana.
  (For more on paper maché, click here.)
• Study iguanas.
• Get yourself a pet iguana!
  (For more info on iguana care, click here.)

The Noisemakers

• Make a bulletin board of your favorite noises (Zap, Bam, Wham, Whoosh, etc...).
• Write a book/story about the right and wrong places to make noise.

Praying to A.L.

• Discuss a famous figure who has inspired you.
• Learn about Abraham Lincoln. Click here for some great A.L. info.

Priscilla Twice

• Write stories about how your own family may be different.
• Draw a picture of your unique family.

Slumber Party

• Write your own play!
• Paint rocks, eat ice cream, and read a story before you go to bed!
• Have your own slumber party!

Sophie & Sammy's Library Sleepover

• Have a pretend class sleepover! Bring in sleeping bags and stuffed animals! Make a campfire with tissue paper and a flashlight. Read your favorite books, and be sure to have your librarian wear bunny slippers!

Three Happy Birthdays

• Buy dog bones, punch a hole in them, and paint them. Put a string through them, and make your own necklace!
• Make birthday cards and poems for the book's different characters.

When Grandpa Came to Stay

• Write a story about someone close you who has died, and how it made you feel. If you like, share this with others who may have had the same experience.
• Write a pretend 'condolence' letter to a friend whose grandma or grandpa has died.

Witch Mama

• Write Halloween party invitations to your best friends.
• Make a picture of your favorite candy bar.
  
  "When I drew my favorite candy for this book, I used a real candy as a model. It was difficult because my children kept stealing and eating my models! " - J.C.

Bully

• Read this excellent article about "bully-proofing" your children.
• Make a list of non-violent, productive ways to deal with a bully.
• Talk about the biggest, meanest bully you've ever faced! (If you've never faced a bully, try making a creative story!)
• Learn about bullying at this site.