by Jo-Ann Scranton
Illustrated by Mai Tran
Tielmour Press, 2023
32 pages
BRIEF SUMMARY OF ISAAC AND THE BOULDER
Isaac, a little boy of 5 or 6, is off for a seaside walk. When he finds a huge boulder blocking his path he puzzles through its origin and how to get it back to where it belongs. When he finally succeeds and is ready to head off to the beach again, we’re treated to a very cute surprise ending.
WHY I LIKED THIS BOOK
While the plot is quite simple, it’s also very charming and will appeal to many young children. The author captures a child’s way of reasoning when she has Isaac ponder, “Was the boulder lost?” I love the innocence of that line!
Isaac puts a lot of thought and effort into figuring out how to return the rock to its boulder family, and his thoughtfulness and determination are inspiring.
I don’t want to give away the cute ending, but I’m pretty sure the humorous twist will delight readers.
I also really like the illustrations. They were done digitally but appear to be water colour. They’re bright, refreshing, and fit the setting and mood of the book perfectly!
STORY EXTENSIONS FOR ISAAC AND THE BOULDER
Emotion Rocks: I made some clip art — 19 boulders showing different emotions (you’ll know why when you read the book). Lots of teachers like to teach/review emotions as one way of learning to understand and recognize emotions. These are FREE and you can download them from my Teachers Pay Teachers store.
Rock Properties: Geologists learn a lot about rocks by observing their properties. Go on a rock hunt with your kids and have everyone gather 10 different rocks. Ask them to try and find rocks that are very different from one another. Back in the classroom study the rocks carefully and come up with a list of opposing adjectives (e.g., dull/shiny, smooth/rough, big/small, speckled/not speckled, etc.) Then have everyone in the class choose 5 of their rocks to add to the class collection. Make pairs of properties cards with the words from above, and let the students take turns sorting the rocks.
Make Your Own Rocks: As we all know, there are three kinds of rocks — sedimentary, metamorphic, and igneous. There are lots of fun ways to demonstrate this, but I really like this method using crayon shavings where heat and pressure are applied at varying degrees, to take you through the whole rock cycle. All the directions and helpful pictures can be found at the Ontario Science Centre.
Rock Painting: This is always so much fun to do. All you need to do is collect some smooth rocks (the beach or river is a great place to find some) and some acrylic paint and brushes. If you need a little inspiration this book, Rock Painting for Kids, has some wonderful ideas.
Stone Tower: It’s always fun to make rock towers or even an inukshuk (which is slightly different and resembles a human figure). Of course, you’ll need to find some flat rocks, but it would be fun to measure how tall you can make your tower and then practice your measurement skills with a ruler.
Tumble and Polish Rocks: Have you ever tried this? I haven’t yet but I LOVE smooth shiny rocks. I’m planning on buying one soon for our family because we’re always at the beach and have rocks everywhere! My husband likes to sort them by colour and save them in those old-fashion glass milk bottles. This is the tumbler I’m considering right now, but like I said I don’t have one just yet.
Thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading about Isaac and the Boulder. You can buy it from Amazon (affiliate link) or Tielmour Press.
