Pleasure Reading Picture Book: Following Papa's Song

Title:
Following Papa's Song


Bibliographic Information:
Marino, G. (2014). Following papa's song. New York: Viking.


Weekly Requirement:
Pleasure Reading Picture Books

Plot Description:
Little Blue the whale and his papa are about to embark on a whale's journey through the ocean. Little Blue has not taken the journey before and has many questions for papa. How will they know when it is time to go? Are they going far? How does papa swim so fast? Little Blue asks questions during the whole journey and Papa answers all of Little Blue's questions one by one. When Little Blue swims so deep he cannot see he thinks he has lost Papa, but then he remembers the answers Papa had given him about knowing when its time to go. Little Blue listens for Papa's song and finds him at last, and together the two whales continue on their journey through the sea.


Quantitative Reading Level:
Gunning-Fog 2.8

Qualitative Reading Analysis:
The structure of the book in low complexity with a single layer of simple meaning. The narrative structure is simple and conventional. The narration is in the third person with no shifts in point of view. The story is organized in chronological order. The language is American English with no figurative language. The knowledge demands are low, there is no need for life or background knowledge to comprehend the story.

Content Area:
English

Maine Common Core Content Area Standard:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.K.1

With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.K.2
With prompting and support, retell familiar stories, including key details.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.K.3
With prompting and support, identify characters, settings, and major events in a story.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.K.4
Ask and answer questions about unknown words in a text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.K.5
Recognize common types of texts (e.g., storybooks, poems).

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.K.6
With prompting and support, name the author and illustrator of a story and define the role of each in telling the story.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.K.9
With prompting and support, compare and contrast the adventures and experiences of characters in familiar stories.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.1
Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.2
Retell stories, including key details, and demonstrate understanding of their central message or lesson.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.3
Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.4
Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.5
Explain major differences between books that tell stories and books that give information, drawing on a wide reading of a range of text types.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.6
Identify who is telling the story at various points in a text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.7
Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, setting, or events.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.9
Compare and contrast the adventures and experiences of characters in stories.

 

Curriculum Suggestion:

This is a great book for teachers to read to their students, especially kindergarten and first graders. Teachers can read the book to the point when Little Blue gets lost in the dark ocean and then see if they can predict how he will find his father.

Personal Thoughts:

The colors in the illustrations are BEAUTIFUL!!! Arts teachers who want to teach children about the colors in the ocean would enjoy this book as an example.