Stories to Start Out the School Year

 The Story Blanket, will help you create the classroom climate at the beginning of the school year.  I teach kindness every year and it is a focus during the start of school.  The story is a great read aloud and will be a springboard for the many conversations that are necessary about the golden rule.

Babba Zarrah lives in a tiny village in the snow-covered mountains. The children love to visit her. They settle down on her big, old story blanket and listen to her imaginative tales. One day Babba Zarrah notices that Nikolai needs new socks, but she has no yarn. Every question has an answer, Babba Zarrah tells herself, I just have to find it. After the children leave, she unravels part of her story blanket and knits him some nice warm socks.

Not long after that, the postman is surprised to find a scarf wrapped around his mailbag. The grocer mysteriously receives a shawl to keep her warm. On the woodpile outside the school is a pair of mittens for the schoolmaster. Meanwhile, the story blanket is getting smaller and smaller. When the villagers discover Babba Zarrah s secret, they decide to give her a surprise of her own.


Click HERE to download a writing response page for students to complete after reading the book.

I am planning a short Science activity about questions and answers.  Check back as I will post another first week of school activity.  Also search for Each Kindness on my blog, another great story to share at the start of school.

Thanks for stopping by.  Enjoy your day.