Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

Title: Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Author: Judith Viorst
Illustrator: Ray Cruz
Number of Pages: 28
Publisher: McClelland & Stewart, Ltd.
Copyright Date: 1972
Grade Level: Intermediate (4-6)
Honors/Awards: None
Type of Book: Picture Book/Multicultural

Summary:
Alexander’s day starts off badly. He has gum in his hair, he trips on his skateboard, and he drops his sweater in the sink while the water is running. Already he can tell it is going to be “a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.” His brothers get toys in their cereal, but he doesn’t. Alexander states that he wants to move to Australia. He has to sit in the middle seat in the back of the car. His teacher doesn’t like his picture of an invisible castle; he sings too loud at singing time and leaves out sixteen during counting time. Alexander’s best friend says he isn’t his best friend anymore. All his friends get dessert in their lunches, but his mom forgot his dessert. He goes to the dentist and finds out he has a cavity. When the dentist says he’ll fix it next week, Alexander says he’ll be in Australia. The elevator door closes on Alexander’s foot; his brother pushes him into the mud and then calls him a crybaby when he cries. When Alexander tries to punch his brother, his mom scolds him “for being muddy and fighting.” Nobody listens to Alexander when he says that he is having “a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.” At the shoe store Alexander has to get plain white shoes because they’re out of the shoes he wants, when they pick up his dad, he makes a mess of his office, there are lima beans for dinner and kissing on TV. His bath is too hot, soap gets in his eyes, and he looses his marble to the drain. He has to wear his least-favorite pajamas, his brother takes back a pillow he said Alexander could keep, the night light burns out, he bites his tongue, and the cat didn’t sleep with him. His mom says “some days are like that – even in Australia.”

Commentary:
This book lets children know that they are not alone: everyone has bad days sometimes. Alexander goes through a lot of bad things on his “terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day” and many children will be able to relate to this. It is a multicultural book in that it pictures an African American child. Although the pictures are not in color, they are very appropriate for the book. It has a dreary theme, and is very likely to depress the reader a little after reading it. On the other hand, Alexander’s mom’s words at the end are encouraging. Some days are just like that. Even in Australia. You can’t run away from your problems, and everyone experiences days like that.

Teaching Ideas:

• Journal about a time when you had a “terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.” You can make a list of all the things that happened to you and draw a picture.
• Draw a picture of what you think Alexander’s “invisible castle” would have looked like if it wasn’t invisible.
• Research Australia
• Learn about cavities, have a dentist visit the classroom
• Make a list of all the bad things that happened to Alexander. Then, on the other side of the paper or the board, write how he could have made those bad things turn out better. Discuss how we can influence whether we have a good day or a bad day

Related Books:
Books by Judith Viorst:
I’ll Fix Anthony
Alexander, Who’s Not (Do you hear me? I mean it!) Going to Move
Alexander, Who Used to Be Rich Last Sunday
Earrings!
Other similar picture books:
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
Fortunately by Remy Charlip

American Grub

Title: American Grub
Author: Lynn Kuntz and Jan Fleming
Illustrator: Mark A. Hicks
Number of Pages: 77
Publisher: Scholastic
Copyright Date: 1997
Grade Level: All Ages (K-6)
Honors/Awards: None
Type of Book: Picture Book/Informational

Synopsis:
In American Grub, there are 50 recipes, one for each state in the United States of America. Along with recipes, though, there is also a paragraph including interesting facts about each state, a picture of the state, the nickname of the state, and the capital of the state. In the back of the book, there is an index listing all the different dishes that are described in the book under different categories. There are also some science implications when possible, such as Illinois’ pizza, which includes yeast. We learn that yeast is a fungus and how it makes bread rise.
Examples of Dishes:
New York Delish Deli Duo
Iowa Popzacorn Balls
Arizona Powwow Wow Bread

Commentary:
Even if you’re not going to use this book when teaching, it’s a great book to have on a bookshelf for kids to thumb through in their free time. Although it isn’t a story or a book that you would ever expect a child to read from cover-to-cover, this book has a lot of facts about individual states, interesting cooking ideas that the kids can try out at home, and lots of fun pictures! Kids can learn a lot from reading just one page of this book.

Teaching Ideas:
· Teach about the 50 states
· Talk about the differences between foods in our own country, then expand that to a discussion about the differences between foods in the USA and foods in other countries around the world
· Have students chose one state and give a presentation on it (including state bird, flower, etc. and an example of that state’s food)
· Measurement of ingredients, and learning about the art of cooking
· A lesson on Americanization and immigration
· Talk about taste buds, using the information from page 59
· When talking about Nevada, bring in a Spanish lesson because Nevada means “snowy” in Spanish.
· Talk about trade, and how different places in the world are better suited to produce different products (like oranges from Florida)
· Kitchen and cooking safety, following pages 10-12

Related Books:
Books about the United States:

Books about cooking/food:

The Moon Book

Title: The Moon Book

Author: Gail Gibbons

Number of Pages: 30

Publisher: Scholastic Inc.

Copyright Date: 1997

Grade Level:

Type of Book: Picture Book/Informational

Synopsis:

This picture book tells everything you ever wanted to know about the moon. We learn about the moon's orbit around the earth, history about what people thought the moon was, the phases of the moon, scientific names of the phases, the solar and lunar eclipses, and how the moon effects the weather. We also learn about astronomers, and how they look at the moon from earth (telescopes, binoculars, and observatories). Gibbons describes what the moon looks like up close, and tells us the history of how we came to know all this information about our moon. She describes Luna 3 and Surveyor 1 and Apollo 8. Finally, she tells us about Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin in the Apollo 11 mission. At the end of her book, Gibbons has a list of "Moon Milestones" and "Moon Legends and Stories," as well as "More Moon Facts" for those who still want to know more.

Commentary:

This book has all the information a teacher could ask for about the moon. It answers many questions about the moon that children may raise when talking about the solar system. Teachers will learn from the book just as much as the students will! It is also an especially good book for the classroom because there are so many practical applications to teaching in it.

Teaching Ideas:
- A: Have students make a solar eclipse project like the one in the book
- S: Record the phases of the moon as they happen, ask students if they saw the moon last night

- S: Use binoculars to look at the sky and try to find the moon during the day, or send them home with one student per night so they can examine the moon at night
- SS: Watch a video of the first steps on the moon

- ELA: Have each student write their own legend about the moon

Related Books:

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There's an Alligator Under my Bed

Title: There's An Alligator Under My Bed

Author: Mercer Mayer

Illustrator: Mercer Mayer

Number of Pages: 29

Publisher: Dial Books for Young Readers

Copyright Date: 1987

Grade Level: Primary Grades (K-3)

Honors/Awards: None

Type of Book: Picture Book

Synopsis:

In this picture book, the narrator is a young boy who, when it was time to go to bed, had to be very careful because he had an alligator under his bed. Whenever he called his parents into the room, they couldn't find the alligator, so the boy decided to take matters into his own hands. He went downstairs to the kitchen and took all the food that he thought alligators would like, then made a trail of "alligator bait" from his room to the garage. Then, all he had to do was wait. The alligator came out and ate everything. The boy followed him through the hall, down the stairs, and when he reached the garage, the boy slammed the door shut! After he returned to bed, the boy realized that he should leave a note for his parents letting them know about the alligator in the garage.

Commentary:

This is a very simple, yet very entertaining book. Mercer Mayer does an exellent job describing the thoughts and imagination of a young boy. It addresses the issue of children being afraid of "monsters under the bed" without being scary. The book gives the illusion that there is nothing to be afraid of, even if there really were an alligator under the bed. It encourages bravery as well as imagination.

Teaching Ideas:

Related Books: