Fiction:

• Title: “Just Go to Bed (Little Critter)”
• Author: Mercer Mayer
• Publication Date: April 23, 2001
• Publisher: Random House Children’s Books

Description:

This is an illustrated children’s fiction book that tells a story about a character named “Little Critter”. The pictures depict Little Critters dad tries to get him to get dressed in his pajamas and ready for bed. It shows all of the activities that the Little Critter does on the way to bed. This story is relatable to all family members and has a humorous tone which can be enjoyed by all. This book is the BEST selection to choose from, because it involves not only students/children, but also a parent’s viewpoint. It can be used as a tool inside and outside the classroom. This text is the BEST selection that I could find, I looked at five other texts including “Dr. Seuss”, “Goodnight Moon”, “Llama Llama in Pajamas”.

Excerpt from book:

“I’m a cowboy and I round up cows, I can lasso anything. Dad says… It’s time for the cowboy to come inside and get ready for bed.”

“I’m a general and I have to stop the enemy army with my tank. Dad says… It’s time for the general to take a bath.”

“I’m a space cadet and I zoom to the moon. I capture a robot with my ray gun. Dad says… The giant robot has captured the space cadet and is going to put him in the bathtub right now.”

“I’m a zookeeper and feeding my hungry animals. Dad says…Feeding time is over. Here are the zookeepers pajamas.”

Standards:

Standard 1: “Students will comprehend concepts related to health promotion and disease prevention to enhance health.”

PHW1.5.3    Explain why sleep and rest are important for proper growth and good health.

PHW1.5.2    Describe values that promote healthy behaviors.

Standard 2: “Students will analyze the influence of family, peers, culture, media, technology, and other factors on health behaviors.”

PHW2.5.1     Describe how family influences personal health practices and behaviors.

Standard 5: Students will demonstrate the ability to use decision-making skills to enhance health.

PHW5.5.5     Choose a healthy option when making a decision.

Core Integration:

This piece of literature can be incorporated into the the english language arts core subject area. This can be executed with no follow up worksheet necessarily. I would read this book aloud as a ‘read aloud’. With a read aloud, I would ask prompting questions such as, “What do we think this book is going to be about?, Who is the main character?” and I would pause within the read aloud to point towards the learning target. The learning target would be for students to learn and understand why sleep is important for living a healthy lifestyle.

Standards:

English Language Arts Standards » Reading: Literature » Grade 2

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.7 Explain how specific aspects of a text’s illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a story (e.g., create mood, emphasize aspects of a character or setting)

Key Ideas and Details:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.3 Describe characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events

 

Non-fiction:

• Title: The Promise of Sleep
• Author: William C. Dement
• Publication Date: 2000
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Description:

This book talks about the importance of sleep and compares it to the importance of diet, exercise, and heredity. Since we are such a sleep deprived society, the author, Dr. William Dement, gives his professional expertise on the sleeping body and mind. Our bodies pay a price from neglecting taking care of sleeping habits. He also offers ways how to get on track with good sleeping habits, how to do tests on yourself to see exactly how much sleep you need, and a variety of other topics around sleep.

Excerpt from book: “Bad sleep habits inhibit our motivation and creativity, and rob us of the vitality that makes life worth living.”

Standards:

Standard 1: Students will comprehend concepts related to health promotion and disease prevention to enhance health.

PHS1.5.1  Describe the relationship between healthy behaviors and personal health.

PHS1.5.2  Identify examples of emotional, intellectual, physical, and social health.

PHS1.5.3  Describe ways in which safe and healthy school and community environments can promote personal health.

Core Integration:

To integrate this into the classroom setting I can leave it as a resource for students, teachers, and parents/families by making a newsletter or sending an email. This will inform them on the resources I have available for them so, they are able to make healthy lifestyle changes. For a core subject, I would integrate this into literature, I could chunk this book into small sections. I could read aloud these sections to my class at a time, this can reinforce the ZPD of these students. These sections can also be cut out and used for an investigation. Students will use cut out paragraphs or sentences in a writing journal and dissect the paragraph. Students will count how many sentences there are, how many periods, if there are any questions, and then come together as a group and discuss our findings.

 

Standards:

English Language Arts Standards » Reading: Literature » Grade 2

Key Ideas and Details:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.1 Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.7 Explain how specific aspects of a text’s illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a story (e.g., create mood, emphasize aspects of a character or setting)