Up, Tall and High!

Title: Up, Tall and High! 
Author: Ethan Long 
Illustrator: Ethan Long 
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile 
Publication Date: February 2012 
Genre/Format: Fiction/Picture Book 
GoodReads Summary: In three laugh-out-loud situations, an irresistible cast of colorful birds illustrates the concepts of "up," "tall," and "high." Each short story features a flap that reveals a surprise twist. Full color.   
What I Think: This book is hysterical. I had a blast reading it with Peanut. There are three little stories within this book. The birds are so cute. There are a few lift up or lift out flaps in the book that make it really fun. We were excited to see what was under the flaps.
     This book would be perfect to read when talking about adjectives and especially when teaching adjectives to students who are learning English as a second language. The fun and silly antics of this birds will have kids laughing but at the same time learning the concepts. It reminds me a lot of Mo Willems' Elephant and Piggie series and even of Mo Willems' Amanda and Her Alligator because of the multiple stories in one short picture book.  
     This book would work brilliantly as a readers' theater. It's short and simple but so funny. Students can practice their fluency by putting emotions and expressions into the simple lines of text.
     I also think this book would be great to read during a unit involving birds or even arctic animals and penguins. There is a vibrant peacock and there is a penguin that pop into the story that will make readers think about what they know about these types of birds.
Read Together: Grades Pre-K - 3 
Read Alone: Grades Pre-K - 3 
Read With: Elephant and Piggie (series) by Mo Willems, Amanda and Her Alligator by Mo Willems, Robot Zombie Frankenstein by Annette Simon   
Snatch of Text: It's entirely too hard to quote this book and capture the fun because the illustrations are so much part of the story. You can follow this link to watch Ethan Long himself read the book, though!
Reading Strategies to Practice: Making Predictions, Reading Fluency, Inferences
Writing Strategies to Practice: Descriptive, Personal Narrative  
Writing Prompts: Write about a time in your life when you wanted to be like someone else - maybe like a sibling or a cousin. Make a list of other adjectives that can be used to describe the birds in the book. 
Topics Covered: Competition, Caring, Being Unique, Birds

Jen *hearts* It: