Early Literacy Project--Narrative Skills

Mr. Tuggle’s Troubles by LeeAnn Blankenship; illustrated by Karen Dugan

Mr. Tuggle’s house is a mess!  Each day of the week Mr. Tuggle can’t find an article of clothing he needs before he leaves for work…so he goes without it, only to decide later that he really needs it.  He then makes his own out of newspaper, curtains, and other things he finds.  By Thursday Mr. Tuggle is quite a sight!  Children will remember the order of things he forgets and how he makes his own by looking at the pictures.  As children relate the story days of weeks can also be emphasized by the adult.

Blankenship, L. (2005). Mr. Tuggle’s troubles (K. Dugan, Illus.).  Honesdale, PA: Boyds Mills Press.

We’re going on a bear hunt!

For each verse, replace the underlined words with the words for the following verses. There is an echo after each line. The leader sings the line first and then the kids copy it.

We’re going on a bear hunt

We’re going to catch a big one

I’m not afraid

What a beautiful day!

Oh grass

Tall wavy grass

We can’t get over it

We can’t get under it

We can’t get around it

We’ll have to go through it!

Swish, swish, swish, swish, swish

Grass, tall wavy grass (swish)

Mud, icky sticky mud (squish, squash)

A river, a very cold river (splash)

A forest, a deep, dark forest (stumble-trip)

A cave, a very dark cave (tippy-toe)

ROAR!

Oh no! A bear! A very big bear!

Through the cave, tippy toe, tippy toe

Through the forest, stumble-trip, stumble-trip

Through the river splash, splash, splash, splash

Through the mud squish, squash, squish, squash

Through the grass swish, swish, swish, swish

In the house,

Up the stairs.

Forgot the door!

Oh-ho

Down the stairs,

Close the door,

Up the stairs

Jump on the bed,

Pull the covers over your head…

I’m never going on a bear hunt again!

This well-known action rhyme actually tells a story and by repeating the words and doing actions children begin to remember the sequence of events leading up seeing the bear!

Retrieved from http://kidsministryresources.pbworks.com/w/page/11561766/We're%20Going%20On%20A%20Bear%20Hunt%20words

Not a Box and Not a Stick by Antoinette Portis

An resourceful bunny uses a box to take him on many adventures using his imagination.  The print does not tell what the bunny has turned the box into, the child will look at the illustrations to find out.  The box is always outlined in black, but the rest of the picture is drawn in red.  An example of the text: “Why are you sitting in a box?” (picture of bunny in a box); the next page the bunny answers, “It’s not a box” (picture of bunny in a racecar).  Children will have an enjoyable time talking about what the bunny might be doing with box on the following pages.  Similarly, a pig uses a stick for great imaginative play too.

Portis, A. (2006).  Not a box.  New York:  HarperCollins Publishers.

Portis, A. (2008).  Not a stick. New York:  HarperCollins Publishers.

Hug by Jez Alborough

This nearly wordless picture book has expressive illustrations that children will be able to “read” and tell the story of the cute little chimpanzee looking for a hug. This book can also help children identify and talk about feelings.

Alborough, J. (2000).  Hug.  Cambridge, MA:  Candlewick Press.

Peter’s Picture by Valeri Gobachev

Peter paints a wonderful picture of a flower at school and on his walk home he stops to show several of his neighbors.  Each one thinks the picture is so life-life they want to treat it like a real flower, but each time Peter replies “Oh, no!  That’s not right!”  Peter’s father knows exactly what to do with the picture though!  Children will be able to tell the story about what each neighbor wants to do with the picture from the illustrations.

Gobachev, V. (2000).Peter’s picture. New York:  North-South Books.