That Fun Reading Teacher

Fun early literacy and social-emotional learning tips, resources, and more!

  • Inspiring literacy
  • Storybook Lessons
  • Early Literacy Skills
  • Feelings & Social Skills
  • Writing for Real Purposes

Social emotional lessons in my go-to book for teaching Concepts of Print.

2020-11-02 By: That Fun Reading Teacher2 Comments

Pin183
Share
Tweet
183 Shares

Social emotional lessons I discovered in my go-to Concepts of Print book - brave transitions #sesamestreet #earlylearning #earlyliteracy #socialemotional #teaching #kindergarten #conceptsofprint

It was just recently that I discovered the social emotional lessons in my go to book for teaching Concepts of Print.

A few years ago, I was thrilled to discover that The Monster at the End of This Book had been brought to life, still as a storybook, through animation. Here is just a taste of what goes on in kindergarten when it is being played:

Did you notice the activity on the floor?

Concepts of Print

The Monster at the End of This Book is a natural and entertaining model of Social Language and lesson about early Concepts of Print.

I start the lesson by sharing the front cover, and asking who is on it. Those familiar with Sesame Street recognize Grover, who politely introduces himself on page one.

Most are puzzled when I ask them what Grover is, and do not seem to process that he is a monster. In all of the years I have introduced the title of the story and read the first page, very few have made the connection between Grover’s fear and what he actually is.

Throughout the story, Grover politely urges the reader not to turn the page, and on the bottom right of each double-page is an illustrated curled up corner, giving the reader a sneak peak of what lies ahead. Despite Grover’s valiant and hilarious attempts at preventing page-turning, it is just too tempting. The creative, visual prompts ensure success and immediate reward. Readers are met with a massive CRASH, disastrous mess and/or Grover’s pleas to avoid getting to the end of the book.

Social-Emotional

Until a few weeks ago, I did not truly realize the social emotional value of this story.

I was teaching a Virtual Kindergarten class from a few area schools. It was a large group, and we were finally feeling settled after five weeks. We had put time into our scheduling smaller groups for shorter times, having ‘Meet the Teachers’ time with each family and everyone was happy.

One Wednesday afternoon it all changed. A couple of school boards in our area announced that elementary school organization model was changing. The Face-to-Face and Virtual classes would be put back together into home school groups to allow more flexibility for students switching between. Suddenly, we had two days left with our class before reorganization into the hybrid model.

I had planned to do this storybook lesson with our students that Friday already.

As I thought about it, I realized that it was the perfect story for that day. Grover was feeling anxious. The situation was out of his control. No matter what he did or said, the pages kept on turning and he had to go along with it, and he did so bravely. He managed to remain kind when he must have been frustrated.

As expected, our students loved the story.

When it was finished, I asked them what Grover was afraid of at the beginning? When he was imagining this monster at the end of the book, what might he have pictured?

A few shared their opinions about that. We agreed that Grover had a good imagination. I asked if any of them had good imaginations. We talked about how Grover had to deal with change all the way through the story, and how his imagination made him feel very anxious – when, in the end, everything was just fine!

Many things in life are like that, I told them, giving them the example of teachers having trouble sleeping before the first day of school. We are all human, and having feelings is part of that. We get anxious too, especially during times of change. And in the end, then things usually work out. They will settle in to their new classes, just as we settled into ours. Because they are brave adventurers who can roll with change. And I knew they would have an easier time than silly Grover!

Before this, our final Meet, I had sent them Brave Adventurer Crowns to color and wear (and also gave them the option of making their own). I hope you find these free crowns helpful for your own students going through changes in their own lives:

Feeling brave crowns for transitions - free!

I like to keep this story on our class bookshelf after the students are familiar with it. It is a high-interest book with its vivid, action-packed pictures, and motivating to beginning readers. With so many visual supports in the pictures (along with listening to it repeatedly), it is a popular book to ‘read’ to friends or ‘play teacher’ with.

I am an Amazon Associate, and do earn a small commission from qualifying purchases that help support this site. I have included links below for those would like to purchase this book or any related materials. Please read my disclosure policy here.Ā 

Do you have any favorite Sesame Street books? I have another one that I plan to post about soon. Please include them in the comments!

Best wishes, my friends. Stay safe and well.

 

 

 

Related / Included in:

 

 

 

Children's books explaining emotions

 

Rethinking reading logs for early readers

  • FREEBIE

    TOP SECRET READING TRICKS STORYBOOK

    Freebie!
    Thank you for subscribing!

    Comments

    1. shannon colclough says

      2021-07-01 at 8:38 am

      Social-emotional learning is very important and is something that every school district should be implementing in every school district since the pandemic.

      Reply
      • That Fun Reading Teacher says

        2021-07-05 at 3:18 pm

        Thank you for your comment, Shannon. I agree with you whole-heartedly. I’m fortunate to be in one that does, and has since before COVID. We have needed this emphasis for well over a decade, and now mental health crisis seems to be pandemic overlapping the end of the COVID pandemic. Little ones are so open minded to pro-active strategies. I believe they are our greatest teachers, don’t you?

        Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Welcome!
    Canadian mom and literacy teacher sharing great content from years of fabulous on-the-job training, and the best of what I find on the web. Background in teaching kindergarten and primary grades, Reading Recovery and special education

    Let’s Connect:

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter

    Search this website!

    Freebie

    DO'S AND DON'TS OF GREAT BUDDIES!

    Freebie!
    Thank you for subscribing!

    Everything Seasonal!

    The Dealing with Feelings Series

    The Top 3 Reading Prompts

    Teaching reading - The top 3 reading prompts for emergent readers | ThatFunReadingTeacher.com

    Canadian Education K-3

    Canadian education resources and content for primary and kindergarten students!

    Kids’ Stuff

    Instagram

    thatfunreadingteacher

    Yikes! It's Christmas Eve! You know the song... Me Yikes! It's Christmas Eve! You know the song...
Merry Christmas everyone. Wishing you and your loved ones a safe, healthy and happy holiday season. Now, hurry! Time is ticking by! The big guy's on his way!
.
.
.
#christmaseve #heknowswhenyoursleeping #santaiscoming #kidschristmas
    Merry Christmas, everyone! Hope you're all enjoyin Merry Christmas, everyone! Hope you're all enjoying time with your loved ones, cherishing memories of those who are 'gone from your sight'. Be warm, safe, healthy and happy this holiday season! xo I.M.
.
.
.
#merrychristmas #teachers #teacherchristmas #kindergartenteachers #primaryteachers
    "Kindness, I've discovered, is everything in life. "Kindness, I've discovered, is everything in life." 
~ Isaac Bashevis Singer

Thoughts? 

It means more to me personally with each passing day. šŸ’•
.
.
.
#kindness #teachersofinstagram #teachersofthegram #teachersofig #teachersofinsta #teachers #igteachers
    Why I’ve been MIA on social media for way too lo Why I’ve been MIA on social media for way too long. Trying to juggle all the things after all the moves in what still feels like a new position #teacherlibrarian 
.
.
.
#teachersonig
    I love hanging out with our kindies! Here’s what I love hanging out with our kindies! Here’s what they’ve been working on for #fathersday 

What do you have planned? 
.
.
.
#thatfunreadingteacher #fathersdaycard #kinder #kindergarten #teaching
    Are you ready to hope and believe again? . . . #ho Are you ready to hope and believe again?
.
.
.
#hope #teacherlife #teacherfriends #iteach #thatfunreadingteacher
    It’s like running into a student outside of scho It’s like running into a student outside of school…
.
.
.
#teacherlife #iteach #canadianteacher #teachersofinstagram #ThatFunReadingTeacher
    It's ON! The first sale of 2022! Today and tomorro It's ON! The first sale of 2022! Today and tomorrow, save 25% on TPT when you apply the code FEBSALE22 at checkout. ⁣
⁣
My wish for you is that you treat yourself to something that will simplify your days! Link to my TpT store in profile and comments! Check out my freebies to sample resource lines for social emotional learning and early literacy!

#tptsale #socialemotionallearning #sel #thatfunreadingteacher 
.
.
.
#iteachk #iteach1st #earlylearning #alphabet #iteachreading #readingteacher
    I don’t know about you, my friends, but I’m lo I don’t know about you, my friends, but I’m looking for all of the #positivity I can find right now! Our Groundhog predicted an early Spring, but that pretty much lines up with six more weeks of Winter around here anyway, so I’m going with this…hope it makes you smile - even for a second!
 
#february #welcomefebruary #teacher #teacherlife #thatfunreadingteacher
    Follow on Instagram

    Teachers Pay Teachers

    Pinterest

    That Fun Reading Teacher © 2025 Ā· Disclosure · BRANDING + WEB DESIGN BY LAUGH EAT LEARN

    We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking ā€œAccept Allā€, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.View Terms and Conditions
    Cookie SettingsAccept All
    Manage consent

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
    CookieDurationDescription
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
    viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
    Functional
    Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
    Performance
    Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
    Analytics
    Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
    Advertisement
    Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
    Others
    Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
    SAVE & ACCEPT