The Nest That Wren Built by Randi Sonenshine

Here in the midwest, we are anxiously awaiting spring and The Nest That Wren Built by Randi Sonenshine is a great book to help us think about the possibilities of spring.  I was so excited to discover Randi Sonenshine is a middle school literacy coach and this is her first picture book.  Maybe this book will inspire other teachers about the possibilities of publishing their writing.

Each page has three lines of lyrical/poetic text describing the life of the Carolina Wren. I love the glossary and additional wren facts at the end of the book.   The illustrations are warm, soft, and inviting.  It was interesting to discover Anne Hunter used ink and colored pencils on tinted papers.

As we read the story the students made some observations about the text.

“each page keeps ending with; that wren built.”

“it’s rhyming.”

“I wonder if the last sentence says something other than, that wren built.”

Post reading student thoughts.

“The story can keep going with mouse.”

“I predict mouse will have babies.”

“I wanted the story to go on and see what the mouse did with the nest.”

“It was a cliffhanger, the story doesn’t go on.  It needs a sequel.”

“Chrsthanemum had an epilogue, I wish that this book would have had one too.”