First Grade Stinks! - Hardcover

Rodman, Mary Ann

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1561453773 ISBN 13: 9781561453771

Publisher: Peachtree Pub Co Inc, 2006

Synopsis

No share time! Only one recess! Writing is hard! The stories don’t end right! FIRST GRADE STINKS!
It is the first day of school and Hayley is excited. Things are different now. She is a first grader. Hayley quickly finds out that first grade is different from kindergarten, but in all the wrong ways! The classroom isn’t as bright and colorful. Ms. Gray doesn’t seem to smile as much as her kindergarten teacher did, and there isn’t enough time to play outside. Finally, Hayley has had enough. “First grade stinks!” she shouts. The classroom is suddenly very quiet. But to Hayley’s surprise Ms. Gray doesn’t look mad at all.
Young readers will immediately empathize with Hayley and her increasing apprehension, as she explores new expectations and challenges on the first day of a new school year.

About this title

About the Author

Mary Ann Rodman always wanted to be a writer, publishing her first story in second grade. Her first desk was the bathroom laundry hamper. She still has the hamper, although she now has a desk and office of her own. Her picture book MY BEST FRIEND won the Ezra Jack Keats New Writer Award and the Charlotte Zolotow Award. A longtime children's librarian, she lives in Georgia with her husband, her daughter (who gives her lots of good story ideas), and her cat and dog. FIRST GRADE STINKS! is Mary Ann's first book for Peachtree. For more information, see www.maryannrodman.com

From the Back Cover

Haley and her friend Ryan have been looking forward to the start of school. But first grade is not at all what Haley expected. No share time? No fancy classroom decorations? No chocolate ice ceream? Even story time, Haley's favorite part of the day, is a huge disappointment. Why does her new teacher stop reading right iin the middle of the story? The rest of the day isn't much better. What's wrong with painting an orange sky? Haley wonders. And, most importantly, when is recess? Author Mary Ann Rodman's hilarious story, charmingly illustrated by Beth Spiegel and narrated by a very independent-minded little girl, is certain to ring a bell with kids who are facing the challenges of a new experience. Readers of every agewill root for Haley as she discovers that being a first grader is very special after all.

Reviews

PreSchool-Grade 1–On her first day of first grade, Haley discovers that the routines are much different and decidedly less fun than kindergarten. She gets only one recess, no sharing time, a room without the familiar decorations, a teacher who is less demonstrative than her beloved Ms. Lacy, and, worst of all, a read-aloud that isn't even finished. Each time Haley discovers another difference she mutters to herself, First grade stinks! Finally, a gentle reprimand for whispering sends Haley into a full-blown meltdown, screaming her mantra of frustration aloud to the entire class. When she lists her complaints to her teacher, Ms. Gray explains about chapter books and reassures her that soon she will be reading them on her own. With her eyes opened to the possibilities ahead, Haley decides that first grade is great. The scratchy, fluid, full-color watercolor-and-ink illustrations feature plenty of white space. Perfect as a read-aloud, this book is a worthy successor to Miriam Cohen's When Will I Read? (Dell, 1996). Pair it with Kevin Henkes's Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse (HarperCollins, 1996) for a spot-on depiction of teachers helping kids through rough patches.–Marge Loch-Wouters, Menasha Public Library, WI
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

PreS-Gr. 1. Entering first grade, with its increased structure and emphasis on reading, writing, and math, can be just as difficult a transition as starting kindergarten. Rodman acknowledges some of the changes new first-graders may experience in this book about two friends who loved kindergarten but have different feelings about starting school anew. "We first-graders know how to act," says Ryan when he and Haley cruise by the "poor little kindergartners" as they make their way to their first-grade classroom. It doesn't take long for them to feel the difference: no whispering, only one recess, and lots of work: "Haley, your A's and B's are not the same size. . . .Write them again, please." Soon Haley has had enough. "First grade stinks!" she yells aloud, her face, mouth open wide, taking up most of a page, making sure the point gets across. When her teacher acknowledges her fears, Haley calms down and^B admits that first grade isn't so bad after all. Ink sketches filled in with splashy watercolors depict a worried, increasingly frazzled Haley as she copes with new challenges in a busy, active classroom. An important book for kids making a pretty tough transition. Stephanie Zvirin
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Peachtree Pub Co Inc
• Publication date: 2006
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1561453773
• ISBN 13: 9781561453771
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Spiegel Beth
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 32