Saturday, February 26, 2011

Big Anthony: His Story

Written and Illustrated by: Tomie dePaola
Ages: 4-8


What was Big Anthony's life like before he met Strega Nona?  This is a great book to read with students before or after reading Strega Nona.  Big Anthony did not pay attention, starting as a young boy.  By the time he was a teenager his father sent him away to find work because he no longer wanted Big Anthony working on the farm.  Every job that Big Anthony found he managed to mess up which caused him to be fired and ultimately led him to Strega Nona's door.

Theme:Paying attention is an important part of life because you never know what will happen if you do not know what is going on.

About the Author:
Tomie dePaola developed a love for books starting at a very young age because his mother read to him everyday and at age four he told everyone that he wanted to write and draw stories for books.  Tomie dePaola has written and/or illustrated over 200 books within 40 years.  

"Tomie dePaola and his work have been recognized with the Caldecott Honor Award, the Newbery Honor Award and the New Hampshire Governor's Arts Award of Living Treasure." Tomie dePaola is also the 2011 winner of the Wilder Award.

Pre-Reading Activities:
Like with Strega Nona, it will be important for the teacher to point out Italy and the particular cities that Big Anthony travels through on a map.  This could start before the book and then as the book is being read, point out these cities again.

Post-Reading Activities: 
Students can write a story about a time that they did not pay attention.  How did it turn out?  Were they confused?  Did they get in trouble?  What happened?

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