A Family Is a Family Is a Family

What makes a family a family? Are families all the same?

Families come in all shapes and sizes, but there is one thing they all have in common. What do students think that one thing might be?

As you read the book aloud, have students raise their hands if they hear a word they do not recognize or a word used in an unfamiliar way. Write these words on the board. Ask students to figure out the meaning of the word from context. Provide real-life connections to this new word by discussing other situations where it could be used.

Come together as a class and examine the opening pages of the book. Read the text aloud. Which character is speaking? How does this character feel at first about the class assignment to discuss one’s family? How do students think she feels by the end of the book? Why do students think her feelings might have changed?

One of the main themes in this book is that all families are different but they also have similarities. Each student in the book describes something special or different about their family but underneath those details the reader sees the similarities. Come together as a class to discuss families. Ask students what makes their family special. What do they love most about their family? How is their family like other families? How is it different? Do students have a different idea of what a family is now that they have read this book?

Look at the front cover with the class. In it, the characters from the book are making letters to spell the title of the book, “A Family Is a Family Is a Family.” What do students think this illustration means? Are all the letters the same? How does this cover illustrate the main message or theme of the book?

Break students into small groups and assign each one a two-page spread from the book for closer study. Work with students to explore the following questions: Who are the characters in this scene? What is the setting? What do the words tell us about the family? What do the illustrations tell us? Do you need both to tell the story? How do they work together to communicate the main message of the book? Have each group present their findings to the class.

Break students into pairs and have them interview each other about their families. Instruct them to ask questions to learn about their partner’s family and clarify details they don’t understand. When they are done interviewing each other, have each student tell the class about their partner’s family, including fun and interesting facts that show how that family is special.

Examine the illustrations of each family. As a class, describe who is in the family and what they are doing together in the illustration. How many students have done this same activity with their own families? Do you need to be a certain kind of family to do this together? Why or why not?

Read A Family Is a Family Is a Family to the class, paying special attention to how the story is structured. Discuss the different parts of a story, including how the beginning introduces the story and the ending concludes the action. Ask students what parts of the story need to stay in the same place for the whole book to make sense. What parts can be moved around? Is this true of every story? Have students compare this book with the last one read by the class. How are they each structured? How are they the same? How are they different?

Have each student take the beginning letter or sound from their first or last name and go through the book, identifying all the words that begin with that sound. Working with an adult if necessary, have them make a list of the words they know and the words they don’t know that begin with that sound. If a word is new, help them to figure out its meaning from context clues. Have them select a favorite word from their list, use it in a sentence and draw a picture illustrating it.

Create a classroom version of A Family Is a Family Is a Family by having students write and illustrate their own pages. Working with an adult if necessary, have students compose a sentence or two describing what makes their family special. Have them illustrate their description with a drawing that shows their family doing something they love. Break students into small groups to discuss their pages with each other. Have students add details and revise their work based on their classmates’ suggestions. Scan and print out copies of the final pieces to create a customized edition of the book. Have a group reading where each student gets to read their own page.

Tell students to choose one of the families shown in this book as the subject for a creative writing project. Have students make up a new adventure for the family, then write or dictate the story and illustrate it with original drawings. Ask for volunteers to share their stories with the class.