We Don’t Eat Our Classmates by Ryan T. Higgins is sure to bring a smile to students. This book is pure enjoyment. It has an action filled plot and a lovable child-eating dinosaur that will engage young learners and grab at their hearts.
I read the story to 18 kindergartners. These 18 students sat with wild eyes as I worked my way through the book. They laughed, gasped in disbelief, and smiled. I closed the book after reading the last page. The entire class erupted into spontaneous applause. One of the girls, Sally ran up to me in the rocking chair and gave me a huge bear hug. The teacher glanced my way and said, “You read them a great book, and you have made friends forever.”
I often fall into the trap of looking at books through a lens at how they can be used to support instruction at the cost of forgetting that sometimes a good book is just meant to be read and enjoyed.
