Mike ThalerRecensioni

Fun; I'll encourage my grandchildren to read this series.

Independent Reading Level: Grade 3
Awards: none

Dilemma

Art

EducatingParents.org rating: Approved

EducatingParents.org rating: Approved

EducatingParents.org rating: Approved

EducatingParents.org rating: Approved
Warning: there is a line in the book that could be taken as normalizing boys hurting girls because they love them.
"She sits in front of me in class. I pull her hair. She doesn't know I love her."

EducatingParents.org rating: Under Review

EducatingParents.org rating: Under Review

A cat goes to the vet to find out that he, actually a she, is going to have kittens.

Independent Reading Level: GR Level K
Awards: N/A

Silly but cute

Silly but cute

This book is about a student’s first day of school with a new teacher. The student’s teacher’s name is Ms. Green and he imagines her as a creature from “the black lagoon”. The student imagines Ms. Green as an alligator-esque monster who eats her students for lunch. This would be suitable for kinder-third grade students. This age group would be best because of the creative images and limited text per page. This book could also be suitable for students towards the end of the school year as they think about what their teacher for the next year would look like.

54514

Super cute. And sweet.

7 copies

Independent Reading Level: Grades 2-3

It’s the third day of school. I’ve been sent to the principal’s office.

People go to Mrs. Green’s office and never return. Bones and skeletons, they say, fill the waiting room. The rug is red so that the blood doesn’t show.

What will happen to me? Will I become part of her coat rack? Food for her pet alligator? A paperweight or a bookmark? Maybe Mrs. Green will put me into one of the cages under her desk. Or send me home in chains.

What happens if she decides to keep me for one of her experiments? Will I end up with a dog’s head? A hamster’s hands? A chicken’s feet?

And now the door is slowly opening . . . .

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In this book, part of the author’s Black Lagoon series, Mrs. Green, the teacher in “The Teacher from the Black Lagoon,” has become the principal. And, although the being-sent-to-the-principal’s-office situation is not quite as relatable as a new teacher for young readers, even the best-behaved youngsters can imagine what it would be like to be sent to the principal’s office.

The targeted audience for this hilarious picture book, young readers ages four through eight, preschool through the primary grades, are sure to enjoy this preposterous tale filled with absurd imaginings and speculation. Young readers, familiar with school settings, are likely to empathize with the main character.

Colorful illustrations accompany the story; the imaginative tale is sure to keep youngsters giggling.

Highly recommended.

It’s the first day of school. Who will be my teacher? Will it be Mr. Smith with his warts and dandruff? Or Mrs. Jones with her whip and her wig?

It’s Mrs. Green. She’s really green . . . and she has a tail. She uses her claws to scratch her name on the blackboard.

What will happen to Freddie when he throws a spitball? How will Mrs. Green demonstrate fractions to the class?

Will the students make it through recess without incident?

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Colorful illustrations and a highly-relatable situation make this a perfect book for children. The targeted audience for this hilarious picture book, young readers ages four through eight, preschool through the primary grades, are sure to enjoy this preposterous tale of the first day of school. Young readers are familiar with uncertainness connected to the first day of school and can readily empathize with the main character.

Having the majority of the story turn out to be nothing more than a dream is sure to allay any fears that young readers might feel as Mrs. Green eliminates several students. Read this with your young reader and be ready for non-stop giggling.

Highly recommended

Humorous look at librarians and libraries.

Title: The Gym Teacher From The Black Lagoon
- Author: Mike Thaler
- Illustrator: Jared Lee
- Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
- Date: 1994 (year published)
- Pages: 32
- Type of Book/Genre: Picture Book, Fiction
- Short Summary of the Plot: The story begins with there being a new gym teacher at the school, and there are a lot of rumors about him. For example, that he is hairy and is nicknamed Coach Kong (he is depicted as a big, green, scary monster in the illustrations). He makes his students run all around the world, you have to lift his truck, he works the kids too hard and makes them throw up, he sets the rope that you are climbing on fire, play tag with glue, play baseball with actual bats, etc. After going through all the rumors, the kids meet the gym teacher and he is not a big scary monster, then they play basketball and end up liking gym.
- Tags/subject headings that describe the content: rumors, school, gym class, gym teachers.
- My response: I think this story can be used as a good teaching moment to not put stock into rumors, and to make your own judgements.

Rex Fenderbender is the new school bus driver, and rumour has it that he drives as if he's racing in the Indy 500 and that he makes the kids rebuild the engine when it breaks down. Are the rumours true? The students will soon find out.

Anticipation turns a trip to the principal's office into a playfully frightening adventure!