“Frog and Toad are Friends” – A swim

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“Frog and Toad are Friends” is a beloved children’s book written and illustrated by Arnold Lobel, first published in 1970. It is the first in a series of four books featuring Frog and Toad, who are best friends. The book consists of five short stories, each highlighting the strong bond and adventures shared between the two characters. The stories are:

Spring – Frog helps Toad wake up from hibernation. / The Story – Toad struggles to come up with a story to tell Frog when he is sick. / A Lost Button – Frog and Toad search for Toad’s lost button. / A Swim – Frog and Toad go for a swim in the river. / The Letter – Frog sends Toad a letter to make him happy.

A classic read for children, celebrating the power of friendship between a Frog and a Toad, two opposing characters. Frog is like the sunshine and Toad needs that sunshine.

lobel

Arnold Stark Lobel (1933-1987) was an acclaimed American author and illustrator of children’s books. Born in Los Angeles, California, and raised in Schenectady, New York, Lobel showed an early interest in drawing and storytelling. He attended the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York, where he studied art and began his career as an illustrator.

Lobel is best known for his “Frog and Toad” series, which includes: “Frog and Toad are Friends” (1970) / “Frog and Toad Together” (1972) / “Frog and Toad All Year” (1976) / “Days with Frog and Toad” (1979).

Lobel’s work is celebrated for its warmth, gentle humour, and timeless appeal. His stories often explore themes of friendship, kindness, and empathy. In addition to the “Frog and Toad” series, Lobel authored and illustrated numerous other books, including “Mouse Soup” and “Owl at Home.”

Lobel received several prestigious awards during his career, including a Caldecott Honor for “Frog and Toad are Friends” and the Caldecott Medal for “Fables” (1980). His contributions to children’s literature have left a lasting legacy, and his books continue to be cherished by readers of all ages.

a swim

I have selected the story ‘A Swim’ for my 4th and 5th graders. In it Frog and Toad decide to go for a swim in the river. Toad, feeling self-conscious about his bathing suit, is reluctant to be seen by others. Despite Frog’s encouragement, Toad insists on privacy and hides behind a rock to change. Eventually, Toad overcomes his embarrassment and joins Frog in the water. However, when Toad’s friends arrive, his shyness resurfaces, leading to a humorous and heart-warming conclusion as Toad faces his fears.

The story gently explores themes of friendship, self-consciousness, and courage. Lobel’s warm illustrations and simple, yet poignant text capture the essence of childhood insecurities and the supportive nature of true friendship, making “A Swim” a delightful and relatable read for children and adults alike.

You can find a read along of the story here, by the wonderful voice of Mr David Gibson*:

and some worksheets I have created to be used either before or after reading the story:

‘Frog and Toad are friends – A Swim’ worksheets

 

 

* David Gibson was born in Northern England in 1947 and began teaching in 1964. His five diplomas were awarded by the universities of Nottingham, Bristol, and Cambridge and he taught in England in junior and secondary schools for 15 years. He came to Greece in 1979 and taught English as a Foreign Language in private schools before joining the British Council in Thessaloniki in 1987. There, he taught English Language and Literature, was a Teacher-Trainer, and served as the Coordinator of Student Social and Cultural Activities.

In 1995, he took up a post as teacher of English Language and Literature at Pinewood International Schools, Thessaloniki, becoming the Chairman of the English Department in 1999. At Pinewood, he also coached three football teams, ran Guitar Clubs and School Bands, and was involved in a wide variety of other school activities and events.

David has worked for Cambridge ESOL for more than twenty years, as an Oral Examiner, Team Leader, Supervisor, Seminar Presenter, and Inspector, and is a founder and three-time board member of TESOL Macedonia-Thrace, Northern Greece, being a regular speaker and active participant in conventions and similar events.

In June 2008, he retired from full-time teaching in order to concentrate on other projects, but has continued to work with Pinewood students – coaching football, playing guitar with them, encouraging them to read and to write … and to watch birds.

You can see some of his inspiring work as the one half of the two-man English Teaching Theatre Group “Dave’n’Luke” here:

DAVE’N’LUKE English Language Theatre

Using Nursery Rhymes at school: A reading project with a 4th grade class

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I’ve always been interested in Nursery Rhymes for their multiple benefits, which so vividly David Gibson presented on various occasions (see Nursery Rhymes).

So, when I found these nicely illustrated little books on offer I bought 20 and started a reading project with a 4th grade class: every fortnight/week students would have to read a book, maybe listen to the CD which accompanied it. This CD was recorded with the help of my dear friend David who kindly read the Nursery Rhymes for us. There were 6 titles in the series and each packet also contained a leaflet giving some general, introductory information on Nursery Rhymes and some info on each Nursery Rhyme: when they were published, the story (if there is one) behind them, and the explanation of some unknown words. Every child had to present one of the Nursery Rhymes they liked- either recite it or play it or sing it, either alone or with another classmate. Every week I would choose a Nursery Rhyme and find a worksheet on it from the big variety there is on the Internet, or make my own, and teach the corresponding rhyme or song.

We also danced to the Grand Old Duke of York, following the pattern  of this video:

Folk Dance – Grand Old Duke of York (England)

Here is a short presentation of the things we did throughout the year:

Using Nursery Rhymes at school

It was a very enjoyable project. All the students were involved with enthusiasm (even boys, whom I expected to be more reluctant!) and had lots of fun! At the end of the school year we presented ‘The grand old Duke of York’ and other Nursery Rhymes to the whole school and our special guest, Mr David Gibson!

 

I presented the project (actually complemented David Gibson’s wonderful talk with this educational example) on various occasions (TESOL Macedonia-Thrace, TESOL Greece, Ekadeve) and it received a warm welcome by colleagues! (interview)

You don’t have to buy books, of course, to make this project, since there are so many things you can find on the Internet and do with Nursery Rhymes!

You can find lots of Nursery Rhymes here:

The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Big Book of Nursery Rhymes, by Various

Google Slides: vocabulary on a text at a click of a button

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Google Slides are a great way to do so many things!

Why use them (and not PowerPoint, for example…) ?

Because they provide consistency, they can be easily accessed and shared and are ideal for group work. There are some minor downsides (fewer template choices, a gmail account is required), but the possibilities are endless!

You can give free rein to your imagination and creativity and create virtual worlds. You can create classrooms, libraries, escape rooms … practically, any scene!

Here’s an example:

What about a ‘room’ which recreates a scene (here: ‘Goldilocks and the 3 bears’) with active links on some objects of the scene? Or a classroom (with a teacher showing various videos and/or resources on the Letter Aa?)

But this is not the case here!

In this case I used a Google Slide Presentation to present the vocabulary of a text by immediately connecting the word to its meaning (sometimes reinforced with pictures) and its pronunciation. Magical, right?

Here’s the how-to video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jywXOkP9PMA

And here’s the end product (4th grade, Unit 5, Lesson 2, Βιβλίο Μαθητή):

Christmas in Britain

and another one (6th grade, Unit 3, Lesson1, Pupil’s Book), containing the pronunciation of the words as well:

Unit 3, Old Creatures and new

We built this city!!!

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What with all the technology and the digital tools we use I’ve come to appreciate the simple, crafty activities we do in the classroom…

Here’s a craft that we can start in D and could evolve into a communicative activity in E and St classes!

We can start it in D class, when we have taught the places / buildings in a village/town/city (Unit 3, Lesson 2, My city). The students bring an empty carton of milk (or an empty packet of biscuits) and glue a piece of paper on it (A4). On the piece of paper they can each draw the building/shop they like.

For our project we used this template so that the buildings/shops would be of a specific size and look homogenous on our town. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_D7RFW1fAt_pHGnvrM3z9C1gnRvio49a/view?usp=sharing

We can either use a big cardboard sheet on a desk or a big piece of a Styrofoam sheet. Then we put everything the students created and we ‘design’ our city: where the streets, the buildings, the parks (and anything else the students’ imagination would deem necessary!) would go/ any trees, inhabitants, etc they would bring and add in their city.

We can then use our ‘city’ in E class (Unit 3, Lesson 2 ‘How can I get to …?’) and St class (Unit 5, Lesson 2 ‘Transportation’) for actual 3D practice: in pairs the students have to ask for and give directions to a specific place in the city. After students have studied the expressions for asking for and giving information 

(here’s a useful handout: Asking-for-giving-directions.pdf)

a dialogue like this can ensue:

-By car or on foot? (One of the students holds a car and a figurine of a person. The other student has to choose the transportation means)

-Goodmorning. Could you show me the way to… (pointing to a shop/building)?

-Go down (… street – the students have given names to the streets) and take the (second) turning on the (right) into ….Street.

-(The other student follows the directions)

-The (…) is opposite/between/… You can’t miss it!

-Thank you very much!

-You’re welcome!

 

The gains from this activity are manifold: apart from being fun and interactive, students get an actual sense of direction, not to be acquired by any activity on a piece of paper (usually a map).  

Have a look: