Listen, Buddy!

My sweet mother gave me this book when I first began teaching overseas. I stuck it on my shelf without reading it or really giving any thought to it. A few years later, I pulled it out and actually read it and immediately began using it in my classroom. It became another favorite and one of my “required readings” at the beginning of every year!

This silly book is about a bunny named Buddy. He has beautiful long ears, but that doesn’t mean he’s a good listener. In fact, he is such a distracted bunny he often misunderstands directions to the frustration of his parents. (“When they asked him to buy fifteen tomatoes, he came home with fifty potatoes.”) On the day they allow him to go on a very long hop all by himself, Buddy learns the dangers of not listening. You can be sure Buddy was a changed bunny!

Because it focuses on listening for meaning, this book was my go-to book when my class struggled with listening. We would read it, giggle about how silly Buddy is, and then use it as a constant reference. If I noticed a student not listening, I would simply say, “Listen, Buddy!” and the lessons of this book would be remembered and behavior usually improved. It was also humorous to hear students use the line on each other when working in small groups!

While listening may be something toddlers and preschoolers need some help with, this book is not age-appropriate based on its length/wordiness. I found it worked well in both my Kindergarten and 1st grade classrooms, and I think it could easily be used up through 2nd grade as a read-aloud!

See Also:
http://www.helenlester.com/
http://hmhbooks.com/laughalonglessons/LALDiscussionGuide.pdf

Bonus Info:
Interest Level: Grades K – 2