How to Babysit a Grandpa
Written by Jean Reagan
Illustrated by Lee Wildish
For grown-ups and first grade readers and second grade readers alike, this is a really cute story with neat cartoonish pictures. However, it is also an empowering story for young children that will thrill them no end.
Instead of grandpa doing the babysitting, the main character is and the focus is on keeping grandpa happy and out of trouble until the parents come home.
Literacy skills galore can be strengthened like text to illustration correlations, picture clues, inferential skills and foreshadowing as the children will quickly find the humor in what isn’t said on the page.
Teachers can use this as a discussion starter as well as a story starter for students to write about, “the time I babysat for my grandpa or grandma.” It could be a fun project for grandparents day, Christmas or any holiday.
An art teacher can have a marvelous time with children making illustrations showing some of their favorite activities with grandparents. Or it can take a completely different position in health class by having children illustrate or list a few of things that they would have to be careful about when taking care of others.
Basically, though, this is a totally enjoyable read aloud that will be worn out by little people and their grandpas.
Title: How to Babysit a Grandpa- Author: Jean Reagan
- Illustrator: Lee Wildish
- Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers, 2012
- Reviewer: Elizabeth Swartz
- Format: Hardcover/32 pages
- ISBN: 978-0-375-86713-2
- Genre: Realistic Fiction
