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M is for Mischief : An A to Z of Naughty Children. Linda Ashman. Dutton, 2008.
An alliterative 8 line rhyme for each letter of the alphabet describes a naughty child and the consequences of their behavior. Funny, clever, rambunctiously illustrated. Could your students write one about themselves? A great writing model. Picture Book.
Read-aloud 2nd-5th grade
Alison’s Zinnia. Anita Lobel. Mulberry, 1996.
Girls give and receive flowers from A to Z : “Beryl bought a begonia for Crystal.”
Alpha Oops! : The Day Z Went First. Alethea Kontis. Candlewick Press, 2006.
Tired of always being last, Z and Zebra lead the revolution to change the order of the alphabet. Getting progressively more out of order, they lose track of who hasn’t had a turn. In the end, A to Z is best. Picture Book.
Read-aloud 1st-2nd grade
Away From Home. Anita Lobel. Greenwillow Books, 1994.
This alliterative alphabet book takes you around the world to familiar and unfamiliar places. Could also serve as a research model. Picture Book.
Clara Caterpillar. Pamela Duncan Edwards. HarperCollins, 2001.
Clara Caterpillar becomes a plain cream-colored butterfly who saves the beautiful crimson Catisha from a crow. Picture Book.
Read-aloud K-3rd Grade
Click, Clack, Quackity-quack : An Alphabetical Adventure. Doreen Cronin. Atheneum, 2005.
Farmer Brown’s duck and cows are planning a farmyard picnic. X marks the spot.
D is for Drums : A Colonial Williamsburg ABC. Kay Chorao. Harry N. Abrams, 2004.
A visually pleasing alliterative alphabet full of facts that give a clear sense of time and place. Excellent glossary. Picture Book.
Dinorella : A Prehistoric Fairy Tale. Pamela Duncan Edwards. Hyperion, 1997.
A clever prehistoric version of Cinderella with just about as much alliteration as one could possibly fit into a tale. Picture Book.
Double Trouble in Walla Walla. Andrew Clements. Millbrook Press, 1997.
Lulu, the principal, school nurse and teacher are infected by a” wobble wobble word warp”. Lots of hyphenated words and nonsense rhymes. Fun to read-aloud. Picture Book.
Ellsworth’s Extraordinary Electric Ears : And Other Amazing Alphabet Anecdotes. Valorie Fisher. Atheneum, 2003.
Using doll house style figurines and other objects, the author uses colorful scenes to depict various scenarios. I love the library scene : Quentin quickly quieted the quibbling, quarreling, and quacking of the quintuplets.
The Featherless Chicken. Chih-YUan Chen. Heryin Books, 2006.
The chicken born featherless suffers from being cold and having allergies He wants to fit in with the four fancy chickens. Picture Book.
Four Famished Foxes and Fosdyke. Pamela Duncan Edwards. HarperCollins, 1995.
Four fox kits hunt for meat in the barnyard while their brother prepares a vegetarian feast. Picture Book.
The Great Fuzz Frenzy. Janet Stevens. Harcourt, 2005.
Who knew that fuzz could create such a frenzy? That’s what happens when a dog drops a tennis ball into a prairie dog burrow. Fabulous read-aloud. Picture Book.
Henry and the Buccaneer Bunnies. Carolyn Crimi. Candlewick Press, 2005.
Captain Barnacle Black Ear is ashamed of his bookworm son, until his knowledge saves them from the worst of fates on a desert island. Picture Book.
I Stink! Kate McMullan. Joanna Cotler Books, 2002.
The important work of garbage trucks is celebrated here. Love the alliterative recipe for alphabet soup. Picture Book.
I’m Dirty. Kate McMullan. HarperColins, 2006.
A backhoe loves getting dirty and describes the various stuff he moves. Picture Book.
K is for Kissing a Cool Kangaroo. Giles Andreae. Scholastic, 2002.
Each page of this alphabet book has a lively illustration showing animals and objects beginning with that letter. Picture Book.
Matthew A.B.C. Peter Catalanotto. Atheneum, 2002.
Mrs. Tuttle has 25 students all named Matthew. She tells them apart by the first letter of their last name : “Matthew A. is extremely affectionate.” Matthew Z. joins the class at the end, covered with zippers. A clever and fun read-aloud. Picture Book.
Old Cricket. Lisa Wheeler. Atheneum, 2003.
Old Cricket (cranky, crotchety and cantankerous) feigns illness to try and get out of helping prepare for winter. A great trickster story, richly told. Picture Book.
Princess Penelope’s Parrot. Helen Lester. Houghton Mifflin, 1996.
Penelope is a rude and spoiled princess who receives a parrot for her birthday. The appalled bird refuses to speak to her. When the handsome prince comes, the bird repeats all of Penelope’s rude words. Picture Book.
Princess Pigtoria and the Pea. Pamela Duncan Edwards. Orchard Books, 2010.
The latest from Edwards may be too much of a good thing for some, but I think it is great fun for readers and listeners. Picture Book.
Read Anything Good Lately? Susan Allen. Millbrook Press, 2003.
An alliterative alphabet book showing fun places and things to read : “an atlas at the airport.” Picture Book.
Some Smug Slug. Pamela Duncan Edwards. HarperCollins, 1996.
Rich with ‘s’ words, slimy, succulent, shattering, and suspense, and ‘s’ animals, this is one of the best alliterative stories. Each ‘s’ word is carefully chosen and not forced.
The Wacky Wedding : A Book of Alphabet Antics. Pamela Duncan Edwards. Hyperion, 1999.
Full of humor, lush illustrations and clever alliterations. Begs to be read-aloud.
Walter Was Worried. Laura Vaccaro Seeger. Roaring Brook Press, 2005.
Deceptively simple children’s faces react to a storm. Walter was worried, so his face has the letters from the word “worried” placed in a way to depict the emotion. Also a great book for learning about sentence structure. Picture Book.