This sample set of books communicates the idea that we can be anything we want. As children develop their sense of self, they often doubt their own abilities. These stories allow children to share such doubts and they model how children can reach their goals.

Read Aloud Collection 1

Concept: We can be anything we want to be.
Anchor book: Amazing Grace by Mary Hoffman
Companion book: The Wednesday Surprise by Eve Bunting
Companion book: City Green by DyAnne DiSalvo-Ryan
Age range: All

Amazing Grace opens the conversation. Because this story concretely depicts the concept, it is a good choice to open the set. Begin by asking an open-ended question to help the listener make a connection between the books and his own life experience. For example, "Grace loves to pretend to be characters from stories. When you pretend, who do you like to be?" The story then reveals that Grace wants to play Peter in her class's production of Peter Pan, but the other kids tell her she cannot—Peter's neither Black nor a girl. Model thinking out loud with a connection such as, "This reminds me of the time I was told I couldn’t play soccer because I couldn't run fast enough." This helps draw the listener into the connection. Ask the listener to share his own experiences, and to predict what Grace might do next. Like many children, Grace turns to her family. Nana, Grace's grandmother, takes her to see an African American ballerina performing Juliet from Romeo and Juliet. While this reference may be lost on some children, they will relate to the line from the story, "I can be anything I want ...." Children will be eager to predict the ending of the story—at the tryouts for the play, the class agrees that Grace is best—and will relate to the last line of the book, "If Grace put her mind to it, she can do anything she want."

In The Wednesday Surprise, Anna and Grandma work every Wednesday night on a surprise for Dad's birthday. At the beginning of the story, ask your student to talk about her experiences of attending surprise parties, being watched by a babysitter, having a grandparent who lives nearby, or simply reading books with someone—including you. As the story continues, model book-to-book connections. For example, "This story is about the relationship between a grandmother and her granddaughter. There were also a grandmother and granddaughter in Amazing Grace. Do you think these two stories will be alike? Let's keep reading to find out." Encourage your student to think about what reading every Wednesday night might have to do with the surprise. The story reveals that Anna is teaching her grandmother how to read; although Dad thinks he has received all his presents, Grandma gives him the best one of all—she reads aloud the stories that Anna has taught her. Draw out the book-to-book connection: "When I read that Anna’s grandmother wanted to be a reader, I think that the story is about how we can be anything we want to be. This reminds me of the story, Amazing Grace. Grace also believed she could be anything she wanted to be. Also, like that story, this one shows the relationship between a grandmother and a grandchild." Follow with an open-ended question to your student, "How is Anna's relationship with her grandmother different than Grace's?"

City Green is the last book in this set. Like the others, it is well written and supports the universal concept of self-determination. When a young girl and her elderly friend create a community garden, an empty lot in an urban neighborhood is transformed into a wonderful place filled with flowers and vegetables. While many children may not have had experiences with community gardens, they may connect to the city scene and the idea of wanting the place you live to be beautiful. By this time, your student might be eager to share her thoughts on book-to-book connections. All three stories depict a grandparent figure and a young girl. All three show how the two work together to get something done. In both Amazing Grace and City Green, the characters did not believe in something, but had a change of heart.

Connections between books and universal concepts are made during the reading of each story, and deepen after the last story. You might model how all three stories support the idea that we can be anything we want. "Grace wanted to be Peter Pan. Anna’s grandmother wanted to be a reader. What did Marcy want to be in City Green? What would you like to be? Who will help you become what you want to be?”