ABOUT THIS BOOK: AND THEN IT’S SPRING

by Julie Fogliano

As I sit wrapped in a blanket listening to the howling wind sending Minnesota temperatures to -40 degrees, I think that I should be writing about A Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. That classic story is about a little boy content to be outside in the snow all by himself, having a wonderful time. The setting of And Then It’s Spring moves to the very end of winter. This little boy is, also, content to be outside by himself. The only other characters accompanying him are his silent animal friends. Ms. Fogliano uses sparse poetic text with one continuous sentence to convey peace, anticipation, and hopefulness. A sample page:

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The purpose of this reading is to bring everything together: the text and the illustrations. The discussion and activity options focus on analyzing the main idea, theme, character traits, setting and how all of the story elements fit together.

During this reading your child and you will read the story all the way through. Three ways that you can add fun and improve recall during this reading are:

~You may switch roles and become the listener and the questioner as your child “reads”(retells) the story to you.

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To allow the brain to focus on the information in the illustrations, this reading will look only at the illustrations and the information they provide to the reader. There are no right or wrong answers in this reading. Enjoy the questions we have provided and feel free to add your own questions. If the pages are not numbered, page 1 is the first page of text.

Ms. Stead’s illustrations are full of hints of spring and subtle humor. As you study her illustrations keep track of the questions that come to mind. You will look for answers to the questions as you read the text in the Second Reading.

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To allow the brain to focus on the information in the illustrations, this reading will look only at the illustrations and the information they provide to the reader. There are no right or wrong answers in this reading. Enjoy the questions we have provided and feel free to add your own questions. If the pages are not numbered, page 1 is the first page of text.

Ms. Stead’s illustrations are full of hints of spring and subtle humor. As you study her illustrations keep track of the questions that come to mind. You will look for answers to the questions as you read the text in the Second Reading.

(more…)