Mr. S: A First Day of School Book

Written and illustrated by Monica Arnaldo

Katherine Tegen Books (An Imprint of HarperCollins)

978-0-06-300395-8

40 pp.

Ages 4-8

June 2023

 

When is a sandwich more than sandwich? How about when it's a teacher and called Mr. S. Or is it?

From Mr. S by Monica Arnaldo

When the children arrive for their first day of class in room 2B they are met by...no one! Of course, they know they should have a teacher but the only indications that a teacher is around is a steaming mug of coffee, a sandwich, and "Mr. S" written on the board. The perplexed children are divided what to do until a loud slap of a ruler hitting the ground, from beside the sandwich, grabs their attention and they start to wonder. With that and the connection to Mr. S–it must be Mr. Sandwich, right?–the students feel compelled to do an alphabet lesson on sandwich types, an art class, a music class, and storytelling, even giving an errant boy lines to write.

From Mr. S by Monica Arnaldo

Unbeknownst to them, there is a story going on outside their window in the gloom of a thunderstorm. The man who'd been in their classroom before they arrived–this was on the title page– is dealing with mayhem upon mayhem with his car in the parking lot. There's a whole farce happening out there, including everything from lightning and pizzas, a sympathetic raccoon or two, and a fire. For the man, it goes from bad to worse. And when he finally does show up, it's still not clear whether the sandwich has been in charge all along.

From Mr. S by Monica Arnaldo

Okay, let's forget that a class would never be left unattended, especially a kindergarten class and not on the first day of school when kids are normally greeted by their teachers outside before being led into the school. Let's forget that because this is fiction and suspending reality is necessary to make this story so charming. But that's me as an adult and a teacher who knows how things are supposed to be. But these are little kids on their first day. What do they know? And look at that sandwich with its olive eyes, bologna tongue and lettuce ears or hair. It looks like a face. And the name on the board did say "Mr. S." Those children were actually quite clever putting the clues together. They were even more clever for directing their own instruction, albeit very sandwich-based. 

 

Montreal's Monica Arnaldo has written a quirky story of a class being taught by a sandwich but it's surprisingly plausible, especially since children can come up with some pretty fantastic ideas when presented with unusual clues. These kids are a hoot, policing themselves under the watchful eyes of a sandwich, learning the alphabet–could you find a sandwich for each letter of the alphabet?–and creating artwork that emulates great artists like Warhol, Banksy and perhaps Rothko. These kids have character, from differences in their mobility–one child is in a wheelchair and another uses purple forearm crutches–to their shapes, sizes and colours, and their attitudes which range from silly and playful to studious and bossy. Monica Arnaldo has given us real children, and, for them, Mr. Sandwich is just as real, even giving them fodder for debate about different kinds of teachers.

From Mr. S by Monica Arnaldo

The art is as playful as the story and there's so much to find in Monica Arnaldo's digital illustrations created with watercolour, coloured pencils and ink. Whether it's the details in the classroom, like the children reading from Monica Arnaldo's picture book Are You a Cheeseburger?, or the endpapers of children's lunch bags and teacher photos, and definitely the drama happening outside in the parking lot, there is humour and reality that will put a smile on every reader's face and a chuckle in their belly. (And I haven't even given away the ending which will surprise and make children wonder.)

Here's to Mr. S, the sandwich and the book, to all the teachers who guide and inspire and delight, and to the children who find learning opportunities in the most unconventional circumstances.

What Grew in Larry's Garden

Written by Laura Alary

Illustrated by Kass Reich

Kids Can Press

978-1-5253-0108-7

32 pp.

Ages 4-7

April 2020

What Grew in Larry's Garden is far more than meets the eye, or the tongue, in this picture book about fruits and vegetables that help build community.

Larry, a teacher, has a small but impressive garden next door to young Grace who likes to help him.

From What Grew in Larry's Garden by Laura Alary, illus. by Kass Reich

There were buttery yellow carrots and purple potatoes. Rainbow chard and scarlet runner beans. Rosy tomatoes the color of ripe peaches. And black ones with red insides.

Together they garden, nurturing the plants and enjoying harvests. When problems arise, like bugs and squirrels, Larry always says, "We can figure this out." His positivity and efforts lead him to encourage his students to grow their own tomato plants from seed and to gift them to others, explaining in letters why they'd been chosen. From gifts of thanks or apologies or to helping them face their fears, Larry was actually allowing his students to connect with others.

From What Grew in Larry's Garden by Laura Alary, illus. by Kass Reich

But when a neighbour adds a big panel to the top of his fence, blocking the sun out of Larry's garden, it's Grace who figures out a way to make things right, echoing back to Larry that he will just need to "Wait and see" what her idea is.

From What Grew in Larry's Garden by Laura Alary, illus. by Kass Reich

Laura Alary based What Grew in Larry's Garden on Toronto teacher Larry Zacharko's project to use tomato plants to help his students connect with their community. Although this endeavour is but a portion of the story of What Grew in Larry's Garden, the whole story is supportive of the need to build community, whether it is by gifting a tomato plant, helping others, making compromises or reaching out to those who seem immovable. Laura Alary makes sure to communicate through her text that community comes with time and effort and is worth both.

Versatile artist Kass Reich–she has written and illustrated a series of Hamster concept books as well as provided art for the Megabat series and other picture books–uses gouache and coloured pencils to bring Larry's garden and his community to life. She uses colour and shape to embrace the reader in a neighbourhood of picturesque houses and arboreal splendour and a garden so textured with life that it's hard to believe there's room for Larry and Grace and a ginger cat to work and play. Fortunately, their efforts at creation and connection produce far more than a garden of fruits and vegetables. They also create a closeness of people and place.

What Grew in Larry's Garden is rosy reciprocity, budding bonds and sprouts of support. Ah, for every garden to be this lush. 

From What Grew in Larry's Garden by Laura Alary, illus. by Kass Reich

My Teacher's Not Here!

Written by Lana Button

Illustrated by Christine Battuz

Kids Can Press

978-1-77138-356-1

32 pp.

Ages 3-7

April 2018 

For our youngest students, school can be a daunting daily ritual only made bearable by an awesome teacher who greets you, helps you throughout the day and always knows what you need. But if that teacher is away, what happens to your day? In easy rhyme that young children will love, Lana Button tells the story of Kitty whose day goes from shaky to manageable, even fun, when her wonderful teacher Miss Seabrooke is absent and replaced, for the day, by the substitute teacher Mr. Omar. 

From My Teacher's Not Here! by Lana Button, illus. by Christine Battuz

The first thing our story's narrator notices when she arrives via school bus is the absence of her teacher on the playground. She's sure they must all go home but is shocked to realize that things will proceed as normal but without Miss Seabrooke.

Call back those buses!

Close school for today!

Wait! Why's the BELL ringing?

Do we start ANYWAY?!

But Miss Seabrooke, like all good teachers, is still thinking about her students though she is ill. She leaves them a message about Mr. Omar (teachers: get this note copied to use in your classrooms)...

From My Teacher's Not Here! by Lana Button, illus. by Christine Battuz

...and plans for fun activities which Mr. Omar follows to the best of his abilities. Still, he needs a little help from the students who know their routines best, especially Kitty who observes Miss Seabrooke's directive to help him out because she's counting on them.  Soon enough...

The school bus is here!

I made it! I'm done!

I survived the WHOLE day.

(I even had FUN.)

Even with that little worry that Miss Seabrooke might not return the next day, Kitty and her peers have managed to endure the day, be helpful to their teachers and classmates, and even find that Mr. Omar's differences-he is a tall, deep-voiced giraffe-add a new flavour to their school day.

Most of us don't like change to our routines and it can be even more distressing for our youngest who thrive on routines. They gain comfort from them, making them feel safe and in control in a world that can be very big and baffling. Miss Seabrooke and Mr. Omar know how important it is to follow routines for the children to be their best selves. By giving voice to what a child might be thinking and experiencing when a teacher is absent, Lana Button is demonstrating that a successful teaching day begins with detailed lessons and instructions and a substitute teacher who follows them while gaining important information directly from their students. Lana Button, who works in early childhood education, recognizes this, and the capacity of children to adapt to new circumstances, sharing this through her upbeat rhyming with vocabulary that is perfect for our youngest students. Even though Kitty's distress, as conveyed in the title and her initial reactions to an absent teacher, is evident, Lana Button writes in a cheeriness to the situation, which Christine Battuz encourages with her illustrations.

From My Teacher's Not Here! by Lana Button, illus. by Christine Battuz

Christine Battuz, whose artwork enhanced Wade's Wiggly Antlers (2017), creates a diverse class of cat, pig, koala, bunny, fox, hedgehog and more, taught by a hen and then a giraffe. Every animal, and hence every child and teacher, are represented by her wonderful collection of characters. The colours are bright without being primary, making My Teacher's Not Here! a great read for kindergarten as well as Grades 1 and 2.

As teachers start preparing for the upcoming school year, they should ensure that a copy of My Teacher's Not Here! is purchased and sitting on their desk in anticipation of that inevitable day when they will be absent and a substitute teacher needs a gentle reminder for students that they and the day are going to be okay.

Phoebe Sounds It Out

Written by Julie Zwillich

Illustrated by Denise Holmes

Owlkids Books

978-1-77147-164-0

32 pp.

Ages 3-7

April 2017

Too many children like Phoebe avoid that which seems difficult or problematic especially in school.  So it’s not surprising that the young girl would prefer to play with her rain boots and a pencil rather than practise writing her name as instructed by the teacher.  Even though she has her name written on her backpack to use as a guide, she knows the letters don’t match the sounds that she is able to distinguish in her name. (Her Mama must have made a mistake.)

From Phoebe Sounds It Out

by Julie Zwillich 

illus. by Denise Holmes

So, Phoebe carefully chooses the sounds and letters that would make sense in her name and, for a child in kindergarten, she is absolutely en pointe!  She’s not copying her name out; she’s sounding it out and spelling it as the sounds dictate.  Moreover, she’s led by her heart to use letters that fit but still she chooses those that might have special meaning or add a little something extra like companionship for lonely letters.

“Maybe she could borrow the letter that was at the end of Nicky’s name.  It sounded right.  Nicky wouldn’t mind.”

And though her teacher could chastize Phoebe for incorrectly spelling her name, she instead celebrates all the children’s attempts with glitter glue and a clothespin display for all to enjoy.

From Phoebe Sounds It Out

by Julie Zwillich

illus. by Denise Holmes

Julie Zwillich’s picture book is based on a very familiar premise though not all teachers and parents would recognize it as so or be as accommodating as the children’s teacher Ms. Martha.  As daunting a task as writing your name for the first time, so is reading. Imagine needing to decipher letters before you can even put the sounds together to form words.  Still the story is very straightforward and told in an uncomplicated text so that young children just learning to read will want to attempt to decipher the words, especially since they’ll see themselves within Phoebe’s story.  Everyone is in this book, courtesy of illustrator Denise Holmes who creates a diverse class with students of different races, ethnicities, abilities and challenges, whether they be eyesight or mobility or spelling.  Judging by the names of students displayed (looks like there’s a Lakshmi, Maria, Finch, Ali, Aaron, Miguel, Hazel, Sam, Nicky, June and, of course, Phoebe), Ms. Martha’s classroom is wonderfully rich in diversity, inviting readers to empathize with her students and  respond to Phoebe’s circumstances with understanding.

There’s a wonderful Teachers’ Guide for download that encourages  activities with reading comprehension, writing, and the alphabet, but just reading Phoebe Sounds It Out will suffice to foster discussions about trying and making mistakes as a part of learning.