Room on the Broom

Room on the Broom

Written by Julia Donaldson

Illustrated by Axel Scheffler

I love Halloween.  I love the clever costumes, fun foods, parties, and decorations.  We meet and talk to more neighbors on Halloween night than on any other night of the year.  Most of all, I love seeing my little ones dressed up and excited for their night full of goodies.

Whatever your thoughts on the holiday may be, I do hope that you'll include Room on the Broom as one of your October read-alouds.  A witch and her cat are flying on a broom when various items fall to the ground, such as the witch's hat, her hair bow, and her wand.  Each time they go to retrieve the fallen item, a new animal comes out with the lost item, along with a request to join the witch and the cat on the broom.  Excitement continues when the broom breaks and a dragon enters the story!  

Retelling:  Shadow Puppets

The characters in the story are all perfect candidates for shadow puppets.  My kiddos had the time of their lives putting on a puppet show while I read aloud the story.  They played with the shadow puppets the entire afternoon.  

To make the shadow puppets, I found free coloring pages of the main characters.  I printed them off on cardstock and cut around the edges.  I then taped a skewer on to the back (I would recommend using Popsicle sticks if you have little ones!).

To make the shadow puppet theater, I cut off the top and bottom flaps of a cardboard box.  I then covered the top opening of the box with a white piece of tissue paper and taped the tissue paper to the sides.  We used a small lamp, and it worked out great.  

You might also check out the book's website!  It has some fabulous resources and activities!

Happy reading!

Emily