First grade students are enjoying a classic children’s book through our current read aloud of Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle by Betty MacDonald. Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle loves children and children love Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle! She is expert on children, and with her cures, she can tackle any ailment. Throughout the story, readers are introduced to a variety of characters. Each chapter focuses on a child, his or her parents, a common misbehavior, and Mrs. Piggle Wiggle’s creative cure. Chapter titles are listed below:
- The Won’t-Pick-Up-Toys Cure
- The Answer-Backer Cure
- The Selfishness Cure
- The Radish Cure (for not taking baths)
- The Never-Want-To-Go-To-Bedders Cure
- The Slow-Eater-Tiny-Bite-Taker Cure
- The Fighter-Quarrelers Cure
As we read the book, we will be discussing story elements including character, setting, and plot. We will be discussing a character as anyone in a story and a main character as the most important character. We will explore character traits by describing what characters are like and how characters look and act. We’ll be looking at how characters grow and change in a story. We will discuss the setting of a story as when and where a story takes place. We will discover how it impacts the feeling of a story. Finally, we will discuss plot, identifying problems and solutions.