Mr. Men and Little Miss Books
by Roger Hargreaves
- For Grades Pre-K - 3
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This guide provides teaching activities to be used with Mr. Men & Little Miss Books by Roger Hargreaves. These books cover basic topics of life for young children and have engaging illustrations and messages.
READING COMPREHENSION
SEQUENCE
Determining the sequence of events in each of the books is an activity designed to aid literal comprehension. Students may be asked to recount the important events of the story individually, or to take turns in a group. The following keywords may be written on the blackboard, and the children encouraged to use these words to indicate sequence:
at first __________ at last
then __________ finally
before __________ after
next __________ soon
A second activity that focuses on sequence presents students with the events of a story in a scrambled order. The task is to rewrite them in correct sequence:
1. Mr. Small decided that he wanted a job.
2. Mr. Small fell into a candy jar.
3. A man writes a children's book and calls it Mr. Small.
4. Mr. Small put mustard into mustard jars.
5. Mr. Robinson found Mr. Small waiting at the door.
6. Mr. Small told Walter the worm that he wanted a job.
7. Mr. Small sorted brown and white eggs.
8. The mailman rang the doorbell for Mr. Small.
ANSWER: 1,6,8,5,4,2,7,3
CAUSE AND EFFECT
Helping children to understand these stories as a series of logical events can be accomplished by focusing on cause and effect. After a brief discussion to explain what these words mean in everyday life, students can work on an exercise derived from the contents of the Little Miss books.
Cause and Effect in Everyday Life
It is raining outdoors.
I had no breakfast.
The water is very cold.
I wear a raincoat
I am very hungry.
I won't go swimming.
A Matching Game
CAUSE
1 Little Miss Naughty played tricks on people.
2. Little Miss Scatterbrain forgot everything.
3. Little Miss Splendid thought she was too splendid to take the bus.
4. Little Miss Giggles lost her giggle.
EFFECT
A. She went to the bank to buy sausages.
B. Mr. Happy bought her a new one.
C. The Mr. Men played a trick on her.
D. She got stuck in the rain while walking home.
ANSWERS: 1-C; 2-A; 3-D; 4-B
RIDDLES
In order to focus on characterization, an activity called "Who Am I?" can be developed. Initially, the teacher can create short riddles about the characters and ask the class to guess who each one could be. Afterward the students themselves can create additional riddles.
Sample Riddles
1. I never can get enough of anything. I want more and more and more and more. Although my stomach bulges, I need the food on your plate, too. Who am I?
2. Everything in my home has a place. It is necessary for everything to be put exactly where it belongs. Especially silverware and teapots. Who am I?
3. I have so many questions about every little thing. How, when, why, and where are my favorite words. Who am I?
4. Whenever I'm around, people hold their ears. My walk makes houses tremble; my voice causes people to run for cover. Who am I?
ANSWERS: 1. Mr. Greedy; 2. Little Miss Neat; 3. Little Miss Curious; 4. Mr. Noisy
FILL-IN
An excellent way to promote total comprehension is to present students with a fill-in exercise after each book has been completed. In this activity, a portion of the text is reproduced with specific words deleted. The teacher may delete every eighth word, or delete special nouns or verbs. Students are required to fill in the blanks with the exact word or an appropriate synonym.
Sample from Mr. Noisy (delete eighth word)
Mr. Noisy was a very, very noisy _______ indeed. For example: If Mr. Noisy were _______ this story to you, he'd be shouting _______ the top of his voice. And the _______ of Mr. Noisy's voice is a very _______ place. You can hear it a hundred _______ away!
OPTIONAL WORD CHOICE: loud, top, person, miles, at, reading
Sample from Little Miss Wise (noun deletions)
Little Miss Wise was as wise as an _______ . Possibly two _______. Being so wise and sensible meant that _______ brushed her _______ every day, made her _______ every day, tidied her _______ every day, and did lots of other wise and sensible things.
OPTIONAL WORD CHOICE: bed, owl, teeth, house, owls, Little Miss Wise
