For the second year in a row, I decided to read
Not Norman by Kelly Bennett and illustrated by Noah Z. Jones, to all K classes at G.E.S. This is a fiction story about a boy who receives a goldfish for a pet, but wants anything but a goldfish for a pet. He tries to get rid of him, but over the course of doing so, realizes how wonderful this pet can really be!
To work on our opinion writing skills, students wrote one reason why the pet goldfish Norman was such a great pet for the boy main character. Students created Norman the goldfish by using orange paint and their good ol' hands! It was once again a wonderful project to showcase their learning.
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| A happy kindergarten student creating her Not Norman picture. |
This year I decided to find Kelly Bennett's website at http://kellybennett.com/. Here is where I found the librarian's jackpot; Kelly Bennett visits with schools via Skype. So, I emailed her and arranged a Skype visit for all K students and teachers to enjoy. We learned all about her many goldfish pets of the past and even her cat! We even learned about a new book she has currently in the works about baseball. Kelly reminded the students of the many revisions she needs to do to get books publisher-ready! Kelly Bennett was gracious and such a wonderful role model for these young writers. This was NOT just another author visit! Thank you, Kelly!
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| Kelly Bennett sharing her writing tips with K students at G.E.S. |
