Our read-aloud today was Danny and the Kings by Susan Cooper, illustrations by Jos. A. Smith. Danny's mom is a widow and they can't afford a Christmas tree; Danny really wants to have one for his little brother who's never seen one before. The story has a traditional, heartwarming ending; the best part was the symbolism that my grade 1 - 3s picked up. The kids picked up some of the symbolic ideas better than I did. They were inferring, predicting and using their schema to do so. And, they were excited as their predictions and inferences came true.
The 'kings' in the story are three truckers riding in trucks with "King of the Road" and Christmas lights on top of their cab. Danny gets a ride with them and he feels like he's sitting on a throne.
One of my grade one boys said, "You once told us the three wise men came from the East and the truckers in the story are heading EAST.
The message in the story: the three kings are still here today - they can be any one of us doing a good deed for someone in need.
This book was one of the best read-alouds I've had in a long time. Lots of connections, shining and excited faces - it was worth our time!
The 'kings' in the story are three truckers riding in trucks with "King of the Road" and Christmas lights on top of their cab. Danny gets a ride with them and he feels like he's sitting on a throne.
One of my grade one boys said, "You once told us the three wise men came from the East and the truckers in the story are heading EAST.
The message in the story: the three kings are still here today - they can be any one of us doing a good deed for someone in need.
This book was one of the best read-alouds I've had in a long time. Lots of connections, shining and excited faces - it was worth our time!