I loved reading Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Very Bad Day, by Judith Viorst. I read it for the first time a few years ago, and as a teacher, I saw so much potential in it. Not only is it a funny book, Alexander's character is very relatable, and there is so much children can learn from Alexander.
Alexander is having just one of those days; one of those days where nothing goes right. He didn't get the window seat on the way to school, he got in trouble in school, he had to go to the dentist, and they found a cavity, etc. Alexander starts to get really down and decides he's going to move to Australia. Luckily his mom gives him some good words of wisdom, and he starts to see everything in a different way. This is a great book to teach students how to deal with disappointment and that things are not always going to go our way.
About the Author: Judith Viorst was born in 1931 and brought up in New Jersey. She has lived in Washington D.C. since 1960 since she married her husband, Milton Viorst. She has three sons, and I was surprised and excited to learn that their names are Anthony, Nick and Alexander, because those are the names of the brothers in the Alexander series. She writes science books, children's picture books, adult fiction and non fiction, poetry for children and adults and she has also written three musicals.
Genre: Character education, fiction, dealing with disappointment.
Theme: Things are not always going to go our way, no matter where we are (even in Australia). We need to learn positive ways to deal with disappointment.
Grade level: Grades 1-5
Pre-reading activity: Students will have already read I was So Mad, by Mercer Mayer and they will have completed the word web on frustration during the previous class. Before reading Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, students will discuss what makes them frustrated and the ways that they can make themselves and others around them feel better when this happens. It is important that during the story students help fill out a story man concept map. This will help them with the post reading activity.
Post-reading activity: After reading Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Very Bad Day, students will use their story man to complete a new day for Alexander. They will take events from Alexander's day, and make them more positive. They will call their new versions: Alexander and the Terrific, Amazing, Super Duper, Very Good Day.
I love this book! This book is great to show students how to deal with having a bad day. I love your idea of having students write about creating a new day for Alexander! What a great idea! Instead of only discussing the negative, you are showing students how they can be proactive. I also like that you are providing students with a graphic organizer. It would be so interesting to hear all of the different renditions!
ReplyDeleteI used this book as part of a short character education unit on dealing with disappointment. By the time we worked on this book, the kids were thinking positive and had a blast looking for ways to turn Alexander's Day into a great one! It was alot of fun!
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