Teachers, if you are looking for a great read aloud for the beginning of the school year, Bad Apple: A Tale of Friendship is an adorable choice. We love that this book ties into a theme of fall and apples. However, what makes it a great choice for the new school year are the lessons of friendship and bullying the book teaches. This sweet story is great for elementary students and teaching the qualities of a good friend. - Jodi and the Starts With a Story Team
SUMMARY
Mac is a good apple. He enjoys sharing with his friends, helping clean up after art class, diving into the watering hole and floating on his back. One day, when Mac was napping in the soft green grass it started to rain. When he woke up, Mac realized he was not alone. There was a worm named Will attached to him. The two quickly became friends and enjoyed doing many different things together. Will showed Mac how to fly a kite and Mac shows Will how to float in the watering hole.
When the two friends went to the orchard, the other apples said that Mac was rotten and had worms. Will decided to leave one night so Mac could go back to playing with the other apples. However, Mac realized he was sad without Will and went out to search for him. When the friends reunited they realized it was better to be together than alone.
USE THIS BOOK TO TEACH:
There is so much you can teach with Bad Apple: A Tale of Friendship. Our book companion for this story addresses a number of reading comprehension skills, integrates a variety of writing styles and introduces grammar and social emotional learning concepts. Here is a sneak peak at some of the different lessons you can use this book to teach.
- Practice identifying the theme of the book. Students should provide details from the book to help explain the theme.
- Examine the illustrations in the book and discuss what readers can learn from the pictures.
- Encourage students to write about their own experiences with teasing and boying.
- Integrate descriptive writing by asking students to describe their friends.
- Teach a lesson on antonyms and prepositions using examples from the book.
- Review action verbs and plural nouns.
- Teach a lesson on friendship and bullying.
NO-PREP PRINTABLE ACTIVITIES:
If you are looking for “ready to go” activities for the first day of school, be sure to check out the book companion. With it you’ll receive all of the following resources to align with this specific book:
- comprehension questions
- 30 writing prompts with themed paper
- vocabulary activities
- word study print & go activities
- ideas for grammar lessons with focus sentence printables
- social emotional learning discussion topics
- graphic organizers to target specific comprehension skills and strategies
There are so many different activities included in this book companion. Teachers love how easy it is to select the resource they want to use, print, and be ready to teach. The best part is there is so much variety you can use these activities across multiple grade levels and subject areas. You will be so happy you purchased this resource!
GET THE PRINTABLE ACTIVITIES
ADDITIONAL BOOK SUGGESTIONS
You and your students will also love these similar books:
- Apples to Oregon by Deborah Hopkinson
- Strictly No Elephants by Lisa Mantchev
- Mr. Peabody's Apples by Madonna
- Nerdy Birdy by Aaron Reynolds
TRY OUT A SAMPLE COMPANION
It's hard to explain how amazing the Starts with a Story book companions are because there is just so much goodness included in each one. It's best if you experience using one for yourself. Sign up below & we'll send you an entire book companion to try out for FREE!
