A big guy took my ball

Willems, M. (2013). A big man took my ball! New York: Hyperion.

When Piggy thinks a big guy took his ball away, Gerald decides to get it back. After all, Gerald is a big guy too. When Gerald finds that the ball really belonged to the big guy, a friendly whale, he and Piggy decide to play with him.

Suggested lesson plan

2^nd grade -Reading

Before reading, students should be introduced to characters. Students may or may not have previously encountered these characters. Text should be read aloud, pausing in appropriate areas to allow students to make inferences.

After reading, students should complete a character chart for each of the three characters (Gerald, Piggy, and Whale). Students should can cut and paste character traits onto a chart in the appropriate characters’ name. After identifying character traits, students should discuss the lesson learned from the story.

Questions to be asked:

Why was Piggy upset?

Who took the big ball?

Was Whale really a bad guy?

Why did Piggy think Whale was bad?

Are big guys all bad?

Materials needed:

Character trait chart

Character trait list

2nd grade – Reading

(9)  Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Fiction. Students understand, make inferences and draw conclusions about the structure and elements of fiction and provide evidence from text to support their understanding. Students are expected to:

(A) describe similarities and differences in the plots and settings of several works by the same author; and

(B) describe main characters in works of fiction, including their traits, motivations, and feelings.