Fantasy - Always a Favorite

Is does not matter the age of our children, they all love fantasy!  It is world of unlimited imagination where a child can ride on the back of a pterodactyl, swim to the depths of an ocean on a lantern-fish or discuss world events with a barnyard of farm animals. Fantasy books are wonderful to inspire writers, especially young writers in 3rd grade!  Many of my students have difficulties writing beginning narratives, so I use Laura Numeroff's books for mimic writing with my students. My favorite is If you give a Moose a Muffin  (Publisher - HarperCollins; 1st edition Copyright:  September 30, 1991)

This book is written using multiple cause and effect situations and the children love it.  I have had children write wonderful stories using this same concept and their books are never about a moose!   One thing makes the moose think of another and it goes on and on!  "... if you give a moose a muffin, he will want some jam to go on it...." and on the story goes until the moose is back eating a muffin and wanting jam to go on it!  I have my students think of a really fun animal that they like and have them develop their story around that animal and themselves.  Then, they just put the animal into their life and make things happen.  Cause and effect is also a standard in third grade reading comprehension; thus, these books by Laura Numeroff are a great place to combine reading and writing.  My students always want to read all of Numeroff's other books after we finish with this one!