Read About the Book

Read Aloud, Read Along

Little Oh by Laura Krauss Melmed; illus. by Jim LaMarche. Lothrop, 1997. A mother tells her son the story of Little Oh, a girl made of paper who becomes separated from her human mother.

For Teachers and Librarians

Children can respond to literature in a creative way.  For example, for The Raft a student could make rafts from materials at hand , or make a drawing as Nick did, or keep a journal of a vacation.

Rafts

This is a balsawood raft called the Kon-Tiki in which world-famous explorer Thor Heyerdahl sailed from Peru to the Polynesian Islands.

Thor Heyerdahl

Here are some other stories with rafts in them.

George, Jean Craighead. Fire Storm. HarperCollins, 2003.

Alex enjoys kayaking behind the raft of his aunt and uncle as they journey down Idaho's Salmon River, until they find themselves in the middle of a forest fire. RL 4.4;  Interest Level K-3

Whelan, Gloria. Wanigan: A Life on the River. Random House, 2003. (PB) RL 3.5

When her father becomes a logger and moves his family into the wilds of Michigan, 11-year-old Annabel Lee misses her friends, and can't stand country living. A long trip downriver on a wanigan--the floating cookhouse that follows loggers--introduces Annabel to aspects of her new life that she comes to love.

Wilson, Sarah. Big Day on the River. illustrated by Randy Cecil. H. Holt, 2003. (-E-)  RL 3.7

Willie's relatives bring her so many provisions for her rafting trip that she almost does not get to go.

Raft Research

See second column.

Jim LaMarche  Biographical Sketch and review of his books

Photograph from Storyopolis. Permission requested 4/11/04 for educational purposes.

 Mr. LaMarche is practically a neighbor since he grew up in Kewaskum, Wisconsin. . .the region of southeastern Wisconsin where, 10,000 years ago, two fingers of the glacier met and created a unique landscape.  He spent summers at a cabin on Lake Superior. The Raft is a memory of his time there.

The son of teachers, he studied science at the University of Wisconsin, then joined VISTA where he discovered art.  His art often reflects the landscape of Wisconsin.  He is married and now lives in California.

Mr. LaMarche's hometown beach. Compare this picture with the pictures in The Raft.

Read Alone

 For Students

Once Nicky found the raft he was happy to discover that the animals liked it, too. Here are some other nature books you can read aloud.  If you read aloud for just a few minutes each day, you can become a better reader. First-graders, you will love reading these books about funny animals and true facts.

Read by Yourself Books About Nature
	The Enormous Turnip Author: Alexei Tolstoy Illustrator: Scott Goto Publisher: Harcourt, 2002 A farmer's turnip grows so big that everyone on the farm must come help him pull it out, including the cat and the dog.
	From Caterpillar to Butterfly Author: Deborah Heiligman Illustrator: Bari Weisman Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books, 1996 Read about metamorphosis (a caterpillar turning into a butterfly) in this easy nonfiction book.
	Mrs. Brice's Mice Author/Illustrator: Syd Hoff Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books, 1990 Mrs. Brice owns twenty-five mice and takes them wherever she goes. They accompany her to the market, sleep with her at night, and even join her for morning exercises. Mrs. Brice's mice live a peaceful existence until they encounter a hungry cat.
	Oscar Otter Author: Nathaniel Benchley Illustrator: Arnold Lobel Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books, 1987 Oscar the otter loves to slide down hills into his pond. One day he sets out on a mission to build the ultimate slide high in the mountains despite his father's warnings about his worst enemy, the fox.
	Tale of a Tadpole Author: Karen Wallace Publisher: Dorling Kindersley, 1998 You can read this and get a close-up view of the frog's life cycle.

Research: Rafts Around the Globe

 Do you want a little challenge? Try this research project.

Can you discover what cultures might have made these rafts and the one in the left hand column? This is a real research project. No answers are given. Only strategies, not resources are supplied below.

 n What questions could you ask?

• What part of the world did the raft you chose come from?
• What is it made of?
• What is it called?

n What key words might you use to find out more about the rafts?

n What resources might help you?

n What will you do to show others what you have learned?

n How will you know you have been successful with your project?