Children's Picture Book Database at Miami University

Things that sometimes happen | by Avi

This collection of short stories are exaggerated to intrigue your imagination. The stories are full of odd events involving animals, traveling, and much more.

Keywords: acceptance, accomplishment, adventures, animals, appearance, bear, beverage, camel, car, cat, critical thinking, decision making, dragons, elephant, excitement, feelings, friendship, goal setting, happiness, hard work, hippopotamus, home, humor, illness, imagination, individuality, kindness, monkey, repetition, self esteem, storytelling, success, teamwork, tiger, transportation, travel, verbal communication, water, weather

Four famished foxes and fosdyke | by Edwards, Pamela Duncan

A mother fox leaves her four children at home for five days. They must feed themselves. Three of the siblings plan different ways to catch meat. The fourth fox is a vegetarian and saves the day by cooking a feast for all of them.

Keywords: alliteration, animals, assertiveness, chicken, cooking, critical thinking, dog, duck, family, food, fox, french, goal setting, health, individuality, multicultural, nutrition, parents, self esteem, sequence, siblings, verbal communication

Little polar bear | by De Beer, Hans

A baby polar bear wakes up to find himself in a world surrounded by color. He makes many friends, but becomes homesick. His friends help him develop a plan to get back home where everything is white.

Keywords: animals, baby, beach, birds, bodies of water, chameleon, climbing, critical thinking, eagle, exercise, family, friendship, goal setting, hippopotamus, homesickness, jungle, ocean, parents, polar bear, seasons, snow, summer, swimming, travel, whale, winter

Dragon in the rocks: A story based on the childhood of early paleontologist Mary Anning | by Day, Marie

A twelve year old girl loves to find and dig out fossils from the cliffs along the beach. She helps out her family financially by selling the fossils. She uncovers a rare dinosaur and digs it out by herself. Her determination shows as she pieces the puzzle together.

Keywords: beach, bodies of water, bones, critical thinking, death, determination, dinosaur, england, extinction, family, fossil, goal setting, history, loss, market, museum, ocean, parents, rhyme, sequence, siblings

Elena's serenade | by Geeslin, Campbell

Elenaﾒs father is a glassblower. Elena wants her father to teach her how to blow glass. He refuses to teach her because she is a girl. After disguising herself as a boy, she learns how to blow glass. She shows her father she can blow glass and then reveals that it is her.

Keywords: animals, assertiveness, business, conflict resolution, day, decision making, discrimination, disguise, family, goal setting, mexican, Mexico, multicultural, music, night, nonverbal communication, spanish, travel, verbal communication

Armadilly chili | by Ketteman, Helen

Billie decides to make armadilly chili. She asks her friends to help her but they are all busy and do not want to help. After Billie makes the chili, all of her friends knock on her door. Billie will not let them eat because they wouldn't help. She soon realizes her chili is missing something: her friends!

The story of frog belly rat bone | by Ering, Timothy Basil

A boy discovers an unexpected treasure at the junk yard. After some of the treasure is stolen, he makes a creature to stand guard. As they patiently wait, their treasure blooms into a gorgeous garden for them to enjoy.

Keywords: animals, anticipation, critical thinking, dedication, excitement, flowers, garden, goal setting, patience, plants, prevention, problem solving, protection, rabbit, rat, robbery, teamwork

How groundhog's garden grew | by Cherry, Lynne

In this story of friendship and sharing, Squirrel teaches Groundhog how to grow a garden. Groundhog learns how to plant and care for many different plants and vegetables. In the end there is enough for all of their friends to enjoy.

Keywords: author's note, autumn, cooperation, critical thinking, friendship, garden, goal setting, groundhog, hibernation, plants, problem solving, seasons, seed, sharing, squirrel, sun, teaching, verbal communication, water, wind

Greetings, sun | by Gershator, Phyllis//Gershator, David

A boy and girl greet the sun of a new day and begin their routine of eating breakfast, walking to school along the island, and observing parts of their school building. At the end of the day, they prepare for bed and say goodnight to nature.

Keywords: bedtime, body parts, clothing, exercise, family, food, goal setting, jamaican, jumping, morning, multicultural, nature, nutrition, parents, rhyme, routine

Our tree named Steve | by Zweibel, Alan

A father writes a letter to his children about the tree that they named Steve years ago, which they has insisted on not cutting down when building their new home. The children had formed a strong bond with Steve and now, years later, the tree has fallen down in a storm. Through the friendship with Steve, the children learned about the importance of home, family and relationships.

Keywords: aging, animals, appreciation, camping, caring, change, closeness, community, correspondence, critical thinking, death, decision making, dedication, destruction, emotions, family, friendship, goal setting, home, rain, relationship, seasons, storm, tree, verbal communication, weather

Three cheers for catherine the great! | by Best, Cari

A family moves from Russia to America. The grandma of the family has a birthday and she does not want presents. Her grand-daughter spends hours trying to figure out the perfect no present for her grandma.

Keywords: baby, birthday, celebration, conflict resolution, critical thinking, dancing, decision making, exercise, family, food, goal setting, grandparents, holidays, language, multicultural, music, nutrition, opera, parents, party, poetry, presents, russian, self esteem, song, stress management, travel, verbal communication

Ella's big chance: A jazz-age Cinderella | by Hughes, Shirley

This version of the Cinderella story takes place in a dressmakers shop. Mr. Cinders and his daughter Ella run the shop. Ellaﾒs father remarries a wicked woman, and she and her daughters take over the household. A ball is announced and Ella desperately wants to go. Her fairy godmother sends her in a beautiful gown and the duke falls in love with her. Ella, however, denies the Duke and admits her love for Buttons, who has helped her and her father in the shop.

Keywords: affection, ambition, assertiveness, beauty, bicycle, celebration, change, clothing, conflict resolution, dancing, decision making, exercise, fairy, family, fantasy, goal setting, godmother, instruments, love, music, refusal skills, self esteem, stepmother, verbal communication

Who wants to be a poodle I don't | by Child, Lauren

Trixie Twinkle toes, a poodle, lives a very pampered life with Mademoiselle Verity Brulee. She has a maid, a cook, and a butler! No one understands that Trixie Twinkle Toes doesn't like any of the pampering and special treatment; she wanted to be like other dogs. She decides to act out, but every time she does Mademoiselle Brulee calls the vet, the pet psychic, or the pooch psychiatrist. no one can understand Trixie, until finally one rainy day, Trixie sees a dog drowning in a puddle and jumps in to save her. When Mademoiselle saw how daring her poodle was, she let her run with the other dogs.…

The blue ribbon day | by Couric, Katie

Ellie and Carrie are best friends in the second grade. They do everything together and this year they are trying out for the soccer team. Carrie does not make the team and feels left out. She finds a new hobby, the science fair.

Keywords: challenges, competition, confidence, feelings, friendship, goal setting, hard work, school, science, soccer, sports

The goat lady | by Bregoli, Jane

Two young children new to Lucy Little Road, help us reveal the simple yet important life of the goat lady; a life that many people in the town despise. Through the children's time spent helping the goat lady, they learn of her vast life experiences. It isn't until after the children's mother takes portraits of the goat lady, that the rest of the town see waht a truly wonderful person the goat lady is.

Keywords: acceptance, aging, animals, appreciation, art, assertiveness, barn, birds, cold, companion, coping, critical thinking, curiosity, decision making, discovery, emotions, environment, food, friendship, goal setting, goat, hard work, home, illness, listening, loyalty, neighbors, nonverbal communication, pets, pride, relationship, respect, support, teaching, trust, verbal communication

I can't stop! A story about tourette syndrome | by Niner, Holly L.

A young boy goes through the tribulations of finding out he has Tourette Syndrome. He has to learn to deal with his tics. As he becomes more accepting of his disorder, he helps others understand why he has the tics and movements. Others become more understanding.

The greatest potatoes | by Stowell, Penelope

Cornelius Vanderbilt sets out on a mission to find the best potato dish ever. He travels around and finds none that are good enough. Vanderbilt goes to Cary Moon's Restaurant, where George Crum is the head chef. Crum makes many dishes that Vanderbilt does not like. Crum decides to make the potatoes so crispy and salty, so he will not like them. Vanderbilt loves them and that is how the potato chip is invented.

Keywords: accomplishment, anger, conflict resolution, cooking, critical thinking, decision making, determination, discovery, feelings, goal setting, happiness, history, restaurant, travel, worry

Elephants can paint too! | by Arnold, Katya

Comparisons are made between human students and elephants who are learning how to paint. Photographs of elephants and their artwork are shared. Children learn that these elephants have many similarities to humans and must take part in the same learning process as them in order to achieve goals.

Keywords: animals, art, body parts, colors, communication, comparisons, creativity, elephant, food, friendship, goal setting, jungle, learning, nonverbal communication, playing, school, self esteem, similarities, teaching, wildlife

A negro league scrapbook | by Weatherford, Carole Boston

Through the use of photographs, narrations, and an inspiring poem, the history of African Americans in baseball unfolds. The struggles and triumphs they have experienced in the past have helped to establish the sport that we know today.

Let's find it! | by Arnold, Katya

An assortment of environmental themes, such as a park, a street scene, a garden, a pond, a beach and a forest are used as background to identify plants and animals. Words are used to label and identify different plants and aniamls in our environment.

Keywords: animals, beach, birds, bodies of water, cat, critical thinking, crow, dog, environment, exploration, flowers, forest, garden, goal setting, grasshopper, hummingbird, insects, ladybug, nature, nonverbal communication, osprey, park, parrot, pets, plants, pond, reptiles, sea, snake, sparrow, tree

Browse Abstracts (915 total)