Book Love: Red Sled

Red Sled by Lita Judge

This book was a new find for me this year, and I think it is really fun. I used it while we were talking about animals in the winter time, as an example of a pretend animal story (in contrast to the non-fiction books we also read). In the book, a bunch of woodland animals have an adventure together using a red sled that they found. The story is told mainly through the illustrations, with simple sounds used for the text.  I love the contrast in the illustrations between the winter background and the colors of the sled and characters. 

Read Aloud Tip: Involve the students in making the sounds on each page and acting out some of the motions in the story, such as tromping through the snow like a bear or pretending to speed down a hill on the sled. You could also invite students to help tell the story and describe what they think is happening on the page. What are the characters thinking, feeling, or doing? Books like this are so great for encouraging students to develop their language and comprehension skills as they expand on the pictures and tell the story in their own words.