The Mitten

The Mitten is another classic that just had to be posted in my blog, and I think I have seen it used in almost every classroom I have ever taught in classrooms from Kindergarten to 3rd grade. Beyond the intricate illustrations, Jan Brett, who has been creating stories since she was a little girl, wrote this special story about a boy who loses his mitten, and the adventures of the animals who all try to use the mitten for shelter on a cold winter day. The imagination she uses is absolutely fascinating to children, and this is probably one of my favorite stories to read during our wonderful winter season in Syracuse.

I could see this being a resource for Special needs children. The Speech teacher that I work with does a lesson with The Mitten each year, and every time I've seen her carry the unit out she adds something new to do to help students build upon their reading and literacy skills. As a pre-activity, students could picture walk and make predictions, and as a post-activity, have the students re-tell the story creating puppets, and displaying the actions of what happens in the story ( especially when the mitten rips, that could be a lot of fun!). She has also had the students work with sequencing with puzzle pieces that describe different parts of the story, and for students with Special needs the tangible resources are always a necessity. Originally is a well known Ukrainian folktale, and I'm thankful for Jan Brett's rendition that is so accessible for young learners.