Beatrix Potter, Primary Junction

I hope y’all have had a fabulous Spring Break! I have certainly been enjoying mine. I do wish the weather was a little nicer though. It’s been quite chilly here this week, and it even snowed one day! Warmer temperatures are on the way though…just in time to head back to school! That’s how it goes though, doesn’t it?!? I’ll definitely be thankful for the sunshine and warm weather come recess time though! Cold, windy weather sure makes for some dreary playground days, especially for me since I get cold very easily! I think I enjoy the warm weather more than the kids! 🙂

Before Easter/Spring Break we began my favorite Spring unit…Beatrix Potter! I absolutely adore Beatrix Potter books. Not only are her illustrations easily identifiable, but she used vibrant and illustrative language in her books. More often that not, Beatrix connected the two, which make her books perfect for comprehension and word study.

Every year around Easter, I pull out several of her books to do an author study with. My go-to books are The Tale of Peter Rabbit, The Tale of Benjamin Bunny, The Tale of The Flopsy Bunnies, and The Tale of Jeremy Fisher. Another thing that I love about these books is that they are all connected in one way or another. The first three books listed contain familiar characters and settings, which is great for character comparisons, character progression, and author traits. I often do an in-depth study of the characters Peter Rabbit, Benjamin Bunny, and Mr. McGregor. Peter Rabbit in particular is a great character to study for how a character’s feelings impacts their actions. He is also a character that is easy for students to connect and relate to. I really love to use Beatrix Potter’s books in the classroom. It’s somewhat rare to find such high quality children’s literature today that can pretty much be adapted to fit any standard with ease.

The Tale of Jeremy Fisher is my go-to book for teaching visualizations and word meaning. It contains rich, descriptive vocabulary and provides great opportunities for students to use context clues and illustrations to determine meaning.

Making Visualizations with Jeremy Fisher

If you’re interested, you can get these activities are more in my Spring Unit:

Check back tomorrow for a Spring-themed Sight Word Freebie! Until then, what is your favorite Beatrix Potter story? I have to go with her best-known work The Tale of Peter Rabbit!