Where The Wild Things Are
Where The Wild Things Are
By Maurice Sendak, Harper Collins Publishers, 1991
Concepts and Themes
- Mischief
- Imagination
- Rumpus
- Vine
- Monsters
- Boat/sail
- Gnashed
- Tamed
- King
- Claws
- Island
- Feelings: fear, anger, happy, lonely, sad
- Note: Pictures without text will require an explanation by the reader
Expanded Core Curriculum Skills and Activities
Orientation and Mobility
- Ask the child where the story takes place. Discuss the concept of an island, and how it is separated from the rest of the land. If possible, go to a roadway island, talk about how that is the same/different then the island in the story. Make a pretend island in the classroom.
Social Interaction
- Imitate a Monster
Use homemade or commercially produced masks. Talk about how a monster would act.
- Talk about the monsters in the book. Ask if they were scary or funny. Talk about feelings and emotions. Point out that Max and the monsters dance and play, ask how they feel about each other at the end.
Recreation & Leisure
- Set-up a tent and talk about what you use a tent for. Have naptime in the tent (if they can sleep!)
- Tell the child how the monsters were hanging from the tree. Go to a bar of overhead monkey bars and have the child hang like the monster.
Visual Efficiency Skills
- Discuss the ways that the monsters in the book look the same (all have yellow eyes) and how they look different.
Self-determination
- Discuss the emotions of both Max and the monsters. Identify each of the emotions occurring in each of the situations.
