The Principal's New Clothes

Bibliographic Information: Clamenson, S. (1989). The Principal's New Clothes. Illus. Illustrator Denise Brunkus. Broadway, NY: Scholastics.

Brief Annotation: Mr. Bundy was the sharpest dressing principal, he had enough clothes that he would go a whole month without repeating his outfits. Then one day, a couple of tricksters came to sell Mr. Bundy some new clothes made out of special fabric. This Fabric was so special that only smart people or people who are fit for their jobs could see it. When no one, not even Mr. Bundy, could see the clothes everyone pretended to see it. No one wanted to tell the truth because they didn't want to seem stupid until a kindergartner pointed out the truth. Then Mr. Bundy awarded the student a golden star for her honesty.

Genre: Trickster tale, fractured fairy tale

Grade Level:K-3

Readers who will like this: Anyone who enjoys an entertaining and comical book.

Response/Rating (1-4): 3, The message of the book is a great message to use with primary grades. It really teaches kids to be honest, even if you're afraid of how other might think of you!

One question you would ask before a read aloud: What kind of clothes do you think the principal is getting?

a. Reading Strategy: Open-Minded Portraits

b. Strategy Description: The students will choose one character from the book and draw a portrait of that character. Then on the second page, they will draw an open-minded portrait of what they think that character was thinking during a specific moment in the book. They will get to choose which moment they want to draw about. Once they've decided which moment they are doing, they will write a brief description of that event before they draw that character's open-minded portrait.

c. Rationale: This strategy will allow the students to think deeply an reflect on some of the small moments in the book. It will also allow the students to look at the moment from the chosen character's perspective.