Listen to My Trumpet, pt. 2

Listen to My Trumpet
by?Mo Willems
Hyperion, 2012

Read part 1 here.

But when Piggie asks, “So?! What do you think of my trumpet?” I feel so bad. Gerald is in a tough spot. He tries so hard to be nice and point out the great things about the trumpet (loud, shiny, Piggie holds it well). [CCRA.R.1, CCRA.R.3] Piggie wants more, though.

I hate being in this situation! What do you do when a friend wants your opinion on something they’re doing, and you don’t actually like it?

Gerald tells the truth. He kindly but firmly tells Piggie, “…that was not music. Sorry.” [CCRA.R.3, CCRA.R.2]

At that moment, I feel bad for both Gerald and Piggie. And I’m worried about what Piggie’s response will be. Piggie seems angry at first, but then he reveals that he’s trying to speak Elephant because he wants to sound like Gerald.

Awwww. How sweet is that? I knew Mo Willems would pull it off. Gerald says Piggie’s accent needs work, and they finish up the book with Gerald coaching Piggie to put more “ick” in his “Gr-ick!”

I think next time I have something hard to say to a friend, I’m going to pretend I’m Gerald and say what he would say!

In this blog feature, I share a picture book I really enjoy and externalize my process of reading it–and then I go back and add in the CCSS Anchor Standards that my reading thoughts relate to. I’m hoping this will be useful for those of you who are?educators sharing books with kids and perhaps give you ideas of some?elements you could include?in your book discussions.