Monday, April 5, 2010

The Little House by: Virginia Lee Burton


This story has a hidden message about the environment. This is the story of a little house that was built long ago in the country and was strong and sturdy. The man who built it said, "This Little House shall never be sold for gold or silver and she will live to see our great-great-grandchildren's great-great-grandchildren living in her." The house can see the city way off in the distance and wishes to see it. As time passes the area surround the house grows busier and busier. It starts with roads, then gasoline stations, roadside stands, other small houses, and more roads. Soon the countryside was divided into lots, then bigger houses, buildings, and more. The house got to where it could barely even see the sky. The trolleys turned into trains and the city was all around the little house. The city suffocated the little house until it was rarely even noticed, until one day the great-great-granddaughter saw the house and decided to move it out to the country. The little house never wanted to see the city again.

I feel this story is only the beginning of an ongoing cycle that happens in this day and age. The "country" is becoming smaller and smaller and more surrounded by cities and pollution. It is so important that we recognize this and do our best to appreciate the nature that surrounds us. This story would be great when teaching recycling.

Yes Day! by: Amy Krouse Rosenthal & Tom Lichtenheld



This is a cute story about the one day in a year that the answer to every question that the little boy asks is "yes". The little boy gets the answer "yes" to everything from "Can I have pizza for breakfast?" to "Does this day have to end?" I really enjoyed the concept of designating one day in the entire year that a child gets a 'yes' answer to any of their questions. The pictures in this story are lively and fun.
This would be a cute story for a younger crowd.