Books for First Graders: Junie B. Jones

(This is the first in what I’m hoping will be a semi-regular series over the summer, sharing books with you that I love reading with the kids.)

I’ve talked a little bit about the Junie B. series of books before (How Junie B. Jones Ruined America), and the main reason I bring them up again is because of the ample opportunities for good classroom conversations that can come out of the books.

Junie’s a brat. Junie makes some terrible, terrible choices. Junie has a lot to learn about sharing and relating to the world, and that’s what makes them such a good read—a lot of the first graders are right on her level. The icing on the cake is that Junie is a kindergarten student for the first 16 books in the series, which is a great way to drive home the lesson with first grade kids:

Kindly Teacher: “Oh dear, guys, it looks like Junie’s gotten herself into trouble again. But we wouldn’t act like that, would we?”

Wide-eyed Students: “Nooooooooooooooooo!”

Kindly Teacher: “Good kids. Let’s go to recess.”

Sure, the language isn’t perfect. Stupid is one of her favorite words, and the way that she mangles grammar sometimes makes them hard to read aloud. Again, these are the teachable moments, and if you pre-read and know they’re coming you can do a world of good with them.

That, and they're hilarious. I have a hard time not cracking up myself when I read them out loud, and that's a nice feeling to have to deal with.

Some great Junie resources on the web:
The Official Random House website, with promotional video.
The New York Times article that inspired my earlier post above.
A sample lesson plan from the International Reading Association that might help give you some ideas on how to use the books in your room.

You can find all the Junie B. books at Amazon, here, or through your Scholastic book orders.

Read more here, if any.

How Junie B. Jones Ruined America

I've never had a child in my class who didn't like the Junie B. Jones series of books from Barbara Park.

Guess I'd better not read them to the parents.

(Courtesy of the New York Times)

Mr. Alvis wasn’t so sure about that. Nor are some of the more vocal parents who discuss the books on Web sites like Craigslist and UrbanBaby. Most of the books have earned an average rating of at least four stars out of five from Amazon readers, but the negative reviews are brutal.

“I am going to throw them out,” one said. “I wouldn’t give them away, because I don’t want anyone else to read them.”

Another wrote, “I find this the mental equivalent of toxic waste.”

Better not show them Walter the Farting Dog; they'll die on the spot.

Read more here, if any.