Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs: Family Programming at the Public Library: Story Kits

Family Programming at the Public Library -- Story Kits

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, by Judi Barrett

Library outcomes:
If the audience is new to the library, introduce them to the library. Sign them up for cards, introduce the borrowing procedure, and the books in the collection. Inform them that books are free to take home, but must be returned within a certain time period.
Participants will be introduced to the genre of tall tales and introduced to humorous picture books.
Participants will be introduced to the author Judi Barrett.

Educational outcomes:
Participants will recognize how exaggeration and pretense are used in tall tales.
Participants will explore the advantages and consequences if tall tales came true.

Directions for Implementation Summarized:
Make one copy for each participant of the "benefits and problems" chart.
Divide participants into two groups, one is an all child group and one an all parent group.
Provide storytime or other activity for the children while the parents are preparing for the family activity.
Reunite parents and children for the family activity of reading Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.
Reunite as whole group and share ideas about the "benefits and problems."
Offer related books and the extension activity.
In conclusion, complete the Participant Evaluation forms.

Materials Provided:
20 copies of the book, "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs," one for each family.
Original copy of the "benefits and problems" chart in the Facilitator's Guide.
Original of participant evaluation form in the Facilitator's Guide.

Materials You Need to Collect:
None

Things to Do Ahead of Time:
Make a display of books of tall tales. See Related Books
Prepare a list of these books as a handout.
Make a display of other books by Judi Barrett. Prepare a list of these books as a handout.
Make copies of the "benefits and problems" chart for each participant.
Make copies of the "Participant Evaluation" form for each participant.

Staff Responsibilities:
Staff member:

to plan and market the family activity.
to make all preparations before the activity.
to facilitate the family activity.
to help set up and serve refreshments.

Staff member:

to provide a storytime or other activity to occupy the children during the parent preparation time.

Staff member:

to prepare parents to read Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs with their children.
to demonstrate to the parents how to complete the "benefits and problems" chart.
to explain to the parents the importance of the participant evaluation form and to give them to the parents.
to collect participant evaluation forms at the end of the program.

Parent Preparation:
Work with the parents to do a "pre-reading" activity. The "pre-reading" activity is the presentation of questions that relate to the subject of the book or activity. These questions are asked and discussed before reading the book.

Pre-reading activity:
Ask the parents to describe a tall tale.
What do tall tales have in common?
Do you know any tall tales?

Model reading "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs."
Parents can share books.
Have the parents look at the book's cover and share what they think the story is going to be about.
Begin reading the first three pages until Grandpa begins telling the tall-tale bedtime story. Point out the name of the town where the story takes place, Chewandswallow.
After everyone is through reading the book, summarize the story with parents contributing their ideas.
Introduce the "benefits and problems" chart and have parents share possible ideas to fill in the columns.

Possible responses:

Benefits	Problems
People don't have to spend money for food.	People can't choose what they want to eat.
People don't have to cook.	Everyone has to eat the food when it falls, not when they are hungry.
There is no need for food wrap or containers, so there is much less garbage.	Buildings could be damaged by falling food.

Suggest that the chart can be completed while the parents read the book to their children. While reading, the parents and children can discuss the pluses and minuses of having their food supplied through the weather system.
Explain that after the parents and children read the book, the large group will share the ideas listed on their charts.

Discussion: How the Parents Can Work with the Children:
Have the parents share how they are going to explain tall tales. A possible example would be for the parent to say that a tall tale is a make-believe story that is filled with exaggerations. That means that the things they say happened are too much to believe, for instance, not just SOME food fell from the sky but ALL food fell from the sky.
Remind the parents to talk about the name of the town with the children.
Encourage the parents to help their children complete the "benefits and problems" chart.
This discussion time should be a time of clarification and review for the parents of the techniques that were demonstrated during the modeling of the reading activity. This time is intended to build the parents ability and confidence for working with their children.

Description of Family Activity:
Parents and children will read the book together and complete the "benefits and problems" chart.
All the parents and children will reunite as a whole group and share what they think are the benefits and problems of having all their food fall from the sky.

Recommended Age of Children:
Six to ten years old. Children need to be able to understand the concepts of exaggeration, benefits and problems.

Ways to Alter Activity for Younger Siblings:
Change "benefits and problems" to "Happy things" J and "Unhappy things" L . For instance, does it make you happy or unhappy for a pancake to fall on your head? For you to eat a pancake?
Change the emphasis away from understanding exaggeration and its use in tall tales to enjoying a humorous story and identifying what is funny in the story.
Show the parents how to act out the classic story of "The Gigantic Turnip" by Tolstoy (another tall tale about food) with their children.

Extension Activity:
Talk about the displayed books and hand out the prepared lists of related books.
Tell them they can make up their own "tall tale" to tell each other at home.

Related Books:
Tall Tales: "John Henry" by Julius Lester, "Swamp Angel" by Anne Isaacs, "Pecos Bill: A Tall Tale" by Steven Kellogg, "Paul Bunyan" by Steven Kellogg.
Books by Judi Barrett: "Pickles to Pittsburgh; The Sequel to Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs," "Animals Should Definitely Not Wear Clothing," "Animals Should Definitely Not Act Like People,""Things that are Most in the World," "Old Macdonald Had an Apartment House."

Evaluation:
There is a brief Participant Evaluation Survey included in the Facilitator's Guide.
These can be completed in writing or orally (by interview of staff one to one or in a group) depending on the English reading and writing abilities of the participants.
Explain that by telling us what they liked and what they didn't like, they help us put together better activities and they teach their children to think about what they did like.
The Evaluation asks about their satisfaction level, what they learned about tall tales, and what they plan to do with what they learned. It asks for their suggestions to improve this activity and suggestions for future activities.

To Make Suggestions and Comments: ccolletti@ilsos.net

Notes to Myself - Lessons Learned for Next Time:

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