As a teacher, I’m always looking to shake things up this time of year. We’ve written lots of stories about ourselves, our families, our pets, and our friends. February is always cooking month in Kindergarten, so we spend time writing directions and recipes. We don’t start poetry until May, so that leaves March and April open for something different. I never want writing to be stale and boring in my classroom. Gail Gibbons’ books provide the perfect mentor texts and inspire us to try something different.
I have several of Gail Gibbons’ books in my collection, but not nearly enough for an author study. Amazon had many of the books I was looking for and the school library had a big stack too. Gail Gibbons writes mostly nonfiction books. Her newest books are listed on her website.
As a future farm owner, I feel it’s my duty to own this book! I’ll be putting it in my Amazon shopping cart!
I read Chicks and Hens to my class last week. They loved this book!
Our sensory table is filled with corn, so this is a perfect book to share.
I’m excited to get my hands on this book. It came out in February, 2012, and I’m sure it’s as wonderful as her other books. Ooooh, as I was looking at some of her older books, I found a book on Rabbits! I’m excited to track that one down too!
So, why am I getting so excited about these nonfiction books by Gail Gibbons?
*First of all, I love sharing nonfiction books with my students. The majority of reading material in our adult lives is nonfiction. Reading nonfiction material takes skill and practice. I want my students (and my own kids) to learn to love nonfiction and love learning new things in general.
*She uses labels in her books! In kindergarten, we spend a lot of time talking about the importance of labels and using labels in our own writing.
*Gail Gibbons usually has a sequence of events in her books. How to gather eggs, how to grow corn, and how to make an apple pie are a few of my favorites.
*The kids in my class are excited about her books. They love learning about new authors and often comment about “the nice coloring” Gail Gibbons does in her work. They look at her books and think, “I could do that!” That’s motivating for young kids!
I’ll be sharing more of our Gail Gibbons inspired, Kindergarten writing soon!
Happy reading!