Snow Day! by Barbara M. Joosse - Teaching Ideas

Robby is SOOO excited to wake up to lots of snow outside. He runs to the radio to listen for the news...it's a snow day! Robby does not want to waste this perfect day on TV, so he gets dressed and heads outside. Robby and his dog Zippy have tons of fun, they make snow angels, and have a snowball fight with the rest of his family. They laugh and throw and have a great time together. When it starts to snow they head inside for some hot cocoa in front of the fire. As Robby goes to bed it is still snowing, will tomorrow be another snow day?

This is such a fun little book. It is easily identifiable to those kiddos that experience snow days and a good example of what snow days are all about to those that have never experienced a snow day. Your students will love it!

I have created a compare and contrast freebie to use with this book and the book The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. These are great books to compare, they are so similar and yet just slightly different.

If you are looking for a different skill or strategy to use with this book, listed below is some information that may help you create a great activity for your kiddos. 

Reading level: 2.4
Theme: weather, family 
Genre: fiction 

Suggested Vocabulary & phrases: whipped peaks, furry flakes, radio announcer, yelp, sifted, mounded 

Reading skills and strategies:

• Asking questions - {possible questions before} I wonder what the story is about. I wonder what the boy is going to do in the snow. {possible questions during} What are snow angels? {possible questions after} I wonder if they will have a snow day tomorrow too. **Remember to have your students answer/reflect their questions.
• Author’s point of view – Third person. Be sure to find 3 pieces of evidence to support this.
• Author’s purpose – entertaining {evidence} Dogs can’t make snow angels. It was silly when it was snowing sugar in the kitchen and their snowball fight looked like a lot of fun. All of these things were very entertaining.
• Beginning, middle, end - {most important event from beginning} It snowed and the bus and plows could not get through so school was cancelled. {most important event from middle} Robby and Zippy played in the snow. {most important event from end} The family had a snowball fight and then went inside and had hot cocoa.
• Cause and effect – Why was Robby so excited? Because school was cancelled because of the snow. Why did powdered sugar get all over the kitchen? Because Zippy barked at the mound of sugar on Robby’s bread and the sugar flew all over. Why did mom join them outside? Because she wanted to join in the snowball fight. Why did Robby and his family have to go inside? Because it started snowing. Why did the family start a fire? Because they were trying to warm up from being outside.
• Character analysis - describe Robby {looks like, feelings, thoughts, character}
• Classify & categorize – snow day activities – what can you do inside and what can you do outside?
• Compare & contrast – Your snow day to Robby’s snow day. Compare this book to the book The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. Compare Robby from this book to Peter from The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats.
• Connections - {possible text-to-self connections} Having a snow day. Making snow angels, snowball fights and drinking hot cocoa. {possible text-to-text connections} Connect to The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. They both have to do with snow days, snow angels and snowball fights.
• Drawing conclusions & inferencing – Do you think they will have a snow day tomorrow? {text clues}The end of the book shows snow falling at night. If the plow and bus can’t get through there will be a snow day. {my conclusion} I think there will be another snow day tomorrow.
• Fact & opinion – Facts about snow. {facts} – Snow is actually clear in color. Some people build houses out of snow, they are called igloos. You can make your own cloud by breathing out in cold weather. It will snow when it is 0º Celsius or 32º Fahrenheit. {opinions} I love snow. Making a snowman is the best thing to do in the snow. I hate shoveling snow. Snow makes me happy.
• Main idea & details - {main idea} Robby and his family enjoying their snow day. {details} Making snow angels. Having hot cocoa and having a snowball fight.
• Plot – The turning point of the story is when it starts to snow again and the family needs to go inside.
• Predict – What do you think the story is about? What do you think the radio announcer will say about school? How do you think Robby will get Louise to come out to play? Will they have another snow day tomorrow?
• Sequencing – The bus and plow cannot get through. Robby woke his sister. The radio announcer said that school was cancelled. Robby tried to wake Heather. Robby and Zippy made breakfast. They got ready to go outside and made foot prints in the fresh snow. Robby got Louise to come out and make snow angels with him. Dad came out to shovel he snow. They had a snowball fight. It started snowing. They all came inside and started a fire and drank hot cocoa.
• Story elements - list title, author, characters, setting, beginning, middle, end, or problem & solution.
• Visualize – What would you do on a snow day?

 

 

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Happy reading!