Image Credit: Clipart Library

Reading, Listening and Responding to Texts

Sometimes the best way to get to know characters in books, and even other people is to “stand in their shoes”.

Families:

The book Amazing Grace by Mary Hoffman and illustrated by Caroline Binch is about a girl named Grace who loves stories, and acting them out. She is excited when she finds out her class at school will be putting on a production of Peter Pan. Her classmates have many reasons why they think she can’t be Peter Pan.

Before you listen to the story

Invite your child to brainstorm some ideas with you about what might make Grace “amazing”.

As you listen together to the book

Listen to find out what Grace does that makes her “amazing”.

After listening

Invite your child to choose a scene and a character from the book, and to put themselves in a character’s “shoes” by acting out the scene with you or maybe a sibling or other adult.

Some prompts:

  • How might the character talk? What might the character’s voice sound like?
  • What might the character’s body language look like?
  • What about the character’s facial expression?

Encourage your child to brainstorm some words to describe the character they chose to be, now that they have stood in that character’s “shoes.”