No, David!

Publication Year: 1998
Author: David Shannon

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Grade Level: Pre-K to Grade 2

Theme: Misbehavior and consequences

Skill Taught: Three parts to reading a book

Summary: This story is about a young boy named David and the trouble he gets into.  His mom is always saying "No, David!" From reaching into the cookie jar, walking through the house full of mud, playing with his food, knocking down a vase, or picking his nose, he is always causing mischief.  Regardless of the trouble  he continually gets into, his mother still loves him.

About the Author: David Shannon was born in Washington, D. C. on October 5, 1960.  Shannon loved to make his own illustrations to the books he was reading in high school, leading him to choose the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California.  After college, he moved to New York City to work for the New York Times and the Book Review.  Working for these two groups exposed his illustrations across the country, leading to his first book of illustrations in How Many Spots Does a Leopard Have?  His first children's book was How Georgie Radbourn Saved Baseball, which was published in 1994.  (http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/contributor/david-shannon)  

For the Classroom

Pre-Reading Activity: I would introduce to students the idea of comprehending a book by "reading" its pictures.  I would begin by having the class draw a picture and be able to tell a story from it.  Students would turn to their partner, taking turns telling the story of their picture with no words.  We would begin reading the book by only looking at the pictures and analyzing what is happening on each page.  We would read the book a second time, but this turn around, we would read the words.  As a group, we would compare how we read the story through its pictures and then through its words.   

Post-Reading Activity: After reading the book twice, students would take turns retelling the story to a partner as we went through the book one page at a time.  Students would go back to their seats and I would begin a class discussion about the importance of reading a book in the three different methods we did, and ask the class to explain the benefits of this strategy.  Once we have concluded our class discussion, student would then write an entry into their Learning Logs to be collected at a later date.

Reflection: I really enjoyed the artwork of this book, and especially David's appearance.  This book is a great way to teach students to not only read the words, but the pictures too.  It is a story all children can relate to, and makes them aware they are always loved no matter how much trouble they find themselves in.  This book can also be used to help children recognize their mistakes and learning from them, supporting a healthy development.      

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