How the Moon Regained Her Shape by Janet Ruth Heller
Influenced by Native American folktales, this fascinating story deals with overcoming adversity, self-confidence, and understanding the phases of the moon. After the sun insults her, the moon gets very upset and disappears - much to the chagrin of rabbits who miss their moonlight romps. With the help of her many friends and admirers, the moon gains self-confidence each day until she is back to her full size. The For Creative Minds section explains the phases of the moon and answers those pesky questions like why is the moon up during the day? , and why does the shape of the moon change? ~Amazon Product Review
How the Moon Regained Her Shape is a well-written and beautifully illustrated tale that young readers (pre-kindergarten to first or second grade) will enjoy. Teachers will appreciate the fact that there is a "For Creative Minds Section" located in the back of the book and online. Sylvan Dell Publishing also includes a 38 page Teacher's Activity Guide that includes activities such as writing prompts, vocabulary words, science activities, and much more.
Related Activities:
- Visit some of the related websites listed on the Sylvan Dell page.
- Keep a class journal of the phases of the moon.
- Talk about bullying. In the back of the book is a section on "How to Deal with Bullies."
- Read other books about the moon such as The Moon
, Papa, Please Get the Moon for Me, and
Long Night Moon. Compare books that are "fiction" and books that are "factual."
In order to win this book, please comment below with your favorite moon book and/or activity by December 18, 2010. One winner will be randomly chosen using Random.org.
If we're looking critically and carefully and thoughtfully and educationally at this book, we see its flaws.
ReplyDeleteFor example, the opening line in the Amazon review: "Influenced by Native American folktales" is a big red flag. Native stories are not folktales. Native stories are to us, what Bible stories are to Christians. Our stories, however, are considered as "folktales" and instead of being treated with the respect accorded to other world religions, they're used as writing prompts and shelved with the tall tales!
Second, because most people don't recognize our traditional stories as sacred to us, they don't hesitate to combine them, or aspects from several different ones to create a story that is "influenced" by several different tribal nations. Pause for a second... would you combine the religious or sacred stories from several different world religions, and then, label it as a "European" story?
This looks like a fun book. I like Papa, Please Get The Moon for Me. One activity we've done is playing with moon sand. Here's a recipe: http://quirkymomma.com/2010/moon-sand/
ReplyDeleteWe like "I Took The Moon for a Walk," by Alison Jay.
ReplyDeleteIt's fiction and is about a boy walking outside. From his perspective, the moon is always behind him and it seems like it's following him on a walk.
Good for 3-5 year olds.