Recess Queen
Picture Book Read Aloud
book summary
In Recess Queen, there is a bully, and her name is Mean Jean. Mean Jean terrorizes all the other kids on the playground at recess. Everyone knows Mean Jean, and everyone is scared of her. "Mean Jean was Recess Queen and nobody said any different. Nobody swung until Mean Jean swung. Nobody kicked until Mean Jean kicked. Nobody bounced until Mean Jean bounced. If kids ever crossed her, she'd push 'em and smoosh 'em lollapaloosh 'em, hammer 'em, slammer 'em kitz and kajammer 'em."
But things on the playground started to change when a new kid, Katie Sue, arrives. When the bell for recess rang, Katie Sue ran out onto the playground and did as she wished. She didn't know about Mean Jean and all of her "rules."
Katie Sue not following the rules has made Mean Jean so upset that she is ready to fight. Mean Jean marches up to Katie Sue, and tells Katie Sue that she can't play before she does. But instead of backing down and complying with Mean Jean's rules, Katie Sue asks her to jump rope with her. Mean Jean is taken back and a bit shocked because that was the very first time anyone had asked Mean Jean to play with them. So, instead of fighting, Mean Jean plays with Katie Sue, and their friendship blossoms from there.
From that day on, recess is a much happier place because Mean Jean is no longer mean, and everyone is able to play together happily. In this story, the main characters model for students how to resolve a conflict on their own through the simple strategy of being kind to one another. "The Recess Queen" is an excellent story to remind students about the importance of kindness and respect.
suggested teaching point
Using Recess Queen, students can practice making and confirming predictions with this text.
On page 10, Mean Jean is charging after Katie Sue. What do you think Mean Jean is going to do when she catches up with Katie Sue?
On page 14, Show students your thinking through modeling. Was your prediction correct? Mine wasn’t! I thought that Mean Jean would have scared Katie Sue or possibly even tried to hurt her, but that didn’t happen. Share with your partner if your prediction was correct or how Katie Sue’s actions were different from what you predicted
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