Dandelions

Bunting, E. (1995). Dandelions. Illus. Greg Shed. San Diego, CA: Harcourt Books.

Brief Annotation: In the 1800's, a family moves from Nebraska to the prairies of Illinois. The story focuses on Zoe and Rebecca, the two daughters of the family, as they struggle to both soothe their pregnant mother's worries about their new life and adjust to life on the prairie themselves. Will the family bloom together like the dandelions that sprinkle the fields?

Genre: Historical fiction, picturebook.

Grade Level: 1-3

Readers who will like this: Students learning about the pre-west and the pioneer times. Teachers doing a unit on the 1800's and the prairie culture.

Response/Rating (1-4): ***. I did not find this as engaging as Bunting's other books, though it was still beautifully illustrated and had an interesting story.

One question you would ask before a read aloud: Why would a family relocate to the prairie in the pioneer times? What could this land offer them?

Reading Strategies Connection: A reading strategy that I think would work well with this book is Quickwrites, suggested in Yopp & Yopp, page 51. The teacher could ask a question about life in the 1800's and have the students do a quick write before reading the story aloud. This would allow the teacher to see the students' initial thoughts and what knowledge they have about the pioneer times.