#18- First Graders from Mars

#18- First Graders from Mars. Episode 1: Horus’s Horrible Day

First Graders from Mars. Episode 1: Horus’s Horrible Day

Written by: Shana Corey

Illustrations by: Mark Teague

Scholastic Inc., August 2001

32 pages


Fantasy

"So Horus and Pelly bounced into Pod 1 together. And from then on, first grade started to look up."

            This book is about a martian named Horus. Horus loved martiangarten (kindergarten), so he was very excited about starting first grade. When he got to school, he quickly realized it was nothing like martiangarten. Instead of playing and having fun, they actually had to do work. He wasn’t put in the same group with his best friend, his drawing was made fun of in art class, and there was no “snooze time.” When he went home, he decided he was never going back to school. Of course, his mother made him go the next day. When he arrived at school, he met a new girl names Pelly who was nervous and shy about going to school. Horus told her about school, and he realized it wasn’t so bad. He and Pelly happily walk into school together.

Teague uses very colorful, kid-friendly drawings to illustrate this book. The medium for this book is not listed, but it looks like watercolor and pencil might have been used. Most of the drawings have a very round shape to them. The facial expressions of the martians are very readable and comical.

This book is targeted for the younger elementary grade level students. This book could easily be used as an ice breaker book. It would be a terrific book to read to first grade students on the first day of school. It’s silly and outrageous, but it would help the students feel more comfortable in your classroom.