Nighttime Adventures & Misadventures
Nighttime ninja by DaCosta, Barbara — Little, Brown, 2012--E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 1.4 Late at night, when all is quiet and everyone is asleep, a ninja creeps silently through the house in search of treasure.
Rationale: This My Books Alive blog post is an idea post not a lesson because Ninjas and bedtime aren’t in any curricula in my schools, but many of my schools, especially the primary grades, have a wintertime activity that involves a pajama day. A couple of the schools also have a sleep-over night as a reward for accomplishments such as reading a designated number of books. The library can easily be involved in either. Don’t be afraid to wear pajamas or a robe and slippers. You might even try an old-fashioned nightcap or really old-fashioned curlers or rag-curlers in your hair. Move the furniture aside, encourage the kids to bring big pillows or stuffed toys and have a leisurely reading time or read aloud or book video or sleepy time story hour.
Using this particular book, you could have a ninja party instead of a pajama party. Ninja’s are very popular now especially with the boys. Some of the Related Books are about Ninjas, but all are about nighttime imagination and/or mischief. Do similar activities: dress up, see a ninja movie, read aloud, etc. Of course, you could also have some snacks. The lesson plan from the book’s website, found in the Teacher Resource list, is full of ideas for a ninja pajama party.
You might also want to use the “ninja” idea when reading about Japan. There are several entries about Japan where ninjas could be included. Keep checking for Wabi Sabi or Won-Ton where lessons about Japanese culture and haiku are found and will be part of My Books Alive soon.
Related Entries about sleep that have already been posted or will be soon: Sleep Like a Tiger, No Go Sleep, Snow White by Phelan for sleep in fairy tales for 3-6, Old Bear for hibernation.
Related Books:
Maybe a bear ate it! by Harris, Robie H — Orchard Books, 2008--E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 0.8 At bedtime, a young boy who cannot find his favorite book imagines the various creatures that might have taken it from him.
What's under the bed? by Fenton, Joe — Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2008--E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 1.4 Fred imagines that there is some sort of monster under his bed when he tries to go to sleep.
Night knight by Davey, Owen — Templar Books, c2011 p2012. Dewey: -E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 1.5. Riding through the forest to reach his bedroom, a little knight battles crocodiles to brush his teeth and climbs a tall tower to get into his bed before settling down to sleep.
Tell me about your day today by Fox, Mem — Beach Lane Books, 2012. Dewey: -E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 1.6. What could be more wonderful than sharing bedtime with beloved friends? This little boy loves to talk to his stuffed animals at the end of the day, and share with them all the things that happened to him that day--and to hear about their day, too.
The baby beebee bird by Massie, Diane Redfield — HarperCollins, c1963 p2000--E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 2.0 The baby beebee bird is new to the zoo, and he sings his song all night long. The other animals come up with a plan to teach the bird that night time is really best for sleeping, especially for little birds.
The storm by Miyakoshi, Akiko — Kids Can Press, 2016. Dewey: -E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 2.1. When a powerful storm begins to rage one summer evening, a young boy holds little hope for the next day's promised trip to the beach. Huddled under covers to muffle the roaring rain, he falls asleep ... and dreams. Can the mighty ship of a boy's imagination sail him through the storm to blue skies by morning?
Mitchell goes driving by Durand, Hallie — Candlewick Press, 2013--E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 2.3 Mitchell's dad makes going to bed fun when he suggests Mitchell pretend to be driving to his room.
Hush little polar bear by Mack, Jeff — Roaring Brook Press, 2008--E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 2.4 A little girl invites her plush polar bear to dream of all of the places where sleeping bears go, from the high seas to a starry desert and back home.
King Jack and the dragon by Bently, Peter — Dial Books for Young Readers, 2011. Dewey: -E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 2.5. Jack, Zack, and Caspar build a castle fort, then spend a day fighting dragons and beasts, but at day's end giants carry away first Sir Zack, then Caspar, and King Jack is left to face night creatures alone.
Bedtime monsters by Schneider, Josh — Clarion Books, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013. Dewey: -E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 2.7. A young boy conquers his fear of bedtime monsters after making a surprising discovery.
The boy who cried ninja by Latimer, Alex — Peachtree, 2013--E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 3.0 A young boy named Tim is accused of lying when he tells his parents that a ninja ate the last piece of cake and a sunburned crocodile landed on the roof, so he figures out a way to prove that he is telling the truth.
I need my monster by Noll, Amanda — Flashlight Press, 2009. Dewey: -E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 3.0. When Gabe, the monster that lives under Ethan's bed, goes on vacation, Ethan finds that the substitute monsters Gabe has sent just won't do, and wonders how he will ever fall asleep.
Tell me what to dream about by Potter, Giselle — Schwartz & Wade Books, 2015. Dewey: -E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 3.1. At bedtime, a little girl asks her big sister to tell her what to dream about and together they imagine the possibilities.
Wink : the ninja who wanted to be noticed by Phillips, J. C. (Julie C.) — Viking, 2009--E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 3.1 Wink is thrilled to be accepted to the Summer Moon School for Young Ninja, but he cannot quite master the concept of being silent and stealthy when what he really wants is to be noticed.
Princess says goodnight by Howland, Naomi — Harper, 2010--E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 3.2 A little girl imagines she is a princess as she gets ready for bed, and insists her subjects kiss her goodnight before she goes to sleep.
Amy's three best things by Pearce, Philippa — Candlewick Press, 2013. Dewey: -E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 3.4. Going to her grandmother's house for a first sleep-away visit, Amy enjoys a wonderful shared day before missing her mother, baby brother, and dog at night and assuaging her homesickness with three objects that she has brought with her.
The too-scary story by Murguia, Bethanie Deeney— Arthur A. Levine Books, an imprint of Scholastic Inc., 2017. Dewey: -E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 3.5. At bedtime, their father tells Grace and Walter a scary story about two children in a dark forest.
Turn on the night by Valerio, Geraldo — Groundwood Books/House of Anansi Press, 2016. Dewey: -E-; Int Lvl: K-3. A little girl falls asleep, her book in hand, and as she dreams, an astonishing adventure unfolds...
Ninja! by Chung, Arree — Henry Holt and Company, 2014--E-; Int Lvl: K-3; Rd Lvl: 4.6 A ninja must be strong, courageous, and silent! He creeps through the house on a secret mission. There may be obstacles! But have no fear--a true ninja can overcome all challenges.
Teacher Resources:
Lesson Plan from Book’s website http://nighttimeninja.blogspot.com/p/activities.html
Book’s website (mostly news about awards book has received ) http://nighttimeninja.blogspot.com/
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