Author study of mem fox coloring

We just began a new author study on the work of Mem Fox. This has been really exciting as I have found myself building on different skills to the earlier author studies. I'm also seeing a much deeper understanding of authors and illustrators and an interest in exploring new books.

We began with Mem Fox's most famous story – “Possum Magic”, and I was fortunate enough to be able to get access to a Big Book version of the text. I also managed to find a DVD of Mem Fox reading the story (and also “Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge”). On the first day we just read the book and discussed what we liked about it. On the second day we watched the video and then did some map work using the Smart Board and a worksheet I created. My students pieced together a map of Australia and then labeled the states. I then asked the class to find the places that Grandma Poss and Hush visited, and draw the path that they travelled. On a blank map they drew the foods they ate