Need some fun reading for April Fool's Day? Try anything from Mo Willems or Dr. Suess. And don't forget about the poetry of Jack Prelutsky...It's raining pigs and noodles,
it's pouring frogs and hats,
chrysanthemums and poodles,
bananas, brooms, and cats.
Assorted prunes and parrots
are dropping from the sky,
here comes a bunch of carrots,
some hippopotami.
It's raining pens and pickles,
and eggs and silverware.
A flood of figs and nickels
is falling through the air.
I see a swan, a sweater,
a clock, a model train -
I like this so much better
than when it's raining rain.
I mention FAMILY FUN MAGAZINE fairly often on my blog. When my kids were young, it was my go-to resource for fun ideas and activities. They have some hilarious ideas for April Fool's Day. I remember the year I served fish sticks (Zagnut Bars) and ketchup(strawberry jam), mashed potatoes and gravy (vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce) and green peas(sour apple Nerds or Jelly Belly candy peas & carrots) to my husband and children for dinner one year! Here are some more "pranky" foods from their website:
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| DESSERT that looks life meatloaf! |
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| MEATLOAF that looks like dessert! |
, if you're interested in a fun story that also teaches math concepts).
by Richard and Florence Atwater (I've show the edition with illustrations by Robert Lawson). Mr. Popper is a house painter in the 1930s in Stillwater, USA. He only works from the spring through fall seasons. During the winter, he reads National Geographic and listens to radio shows about world explorers, such as Admiral Drake and his Antarctic Adventures. The Admiral surprisingly responds to a fan letter from Mr. Popper by sending him a live penguin (who they name "Captain Cook"). The adventures start with one, but soon the Popper family grows to include 12 penguins - all of whom must be fed! So Mr. Popper, his wife, and their two kids take the penguins on the road. They're billed as "Popper's Performing Penguins, First Time on Any Stage, Direct from the South Pole". The act eventually gets old and they have a run-in with the law - only to be bailed out by the Admiral. Mr. Popper is then faced with a moral dilemma about the penguins' future. The adventures while on tour are hilarious, as the penguins disrupt other acts and invade hotels. This classic read-aloud is perfect as a bedtime "chapter-a-night" book for ages 7 and up.
- an incredibly enjoyable and beautifully filmed 2005 documentary, narrated by Morgan Freeman (if you haven't, try to see it soon!) It's about a colony of hundreds of Emperor Penguins as they return, in a single-file march of 70 miles or more, to their frozen breeding ground, far inland from the cold oceans where they thrive. Most of the other creatures leave, and the Emperor Penguins, are the only animals to spend the long winters on Antarctica's open ice (unlike the Adélie Penguins, who spend their winters in the cold seas surrounding the offshore Arctic ice pack). Click 
by John Stadler. Review from Library School Journal: Upset that the illustrator has drawn him into the wrong book, a dog tries to get the story right before its conclusion. The artist, it seems, is a bit of a klutz and some spilled paint causes the cast of characters that he has just drawn to flee in terror. Finally, the pup takes matters into his own paws and draws an appropriate ending, which just happens to fit the story he thought he belonged in all along. The text is infused with funny one-liners, sight gags, and wordplay such as "If a tree falls in a book and no one is reading, does anybody know?" or "I've got a sinking feeling" as a boat is filling with water. A narrative strand involves a tortoise and a hare with amusing brief dialogue. The brightly colored illustrations make use of perspective in an imaginative and amusing way. Younger readers may find it confusing, but visually sophisticated youngsters will appreciate the unusual premise.
While running errands with his mom, a young boy is suffering from boredom - until he sees a sign at the bakery they've stopped at that says, "Buy a Dozen, get a Dinosaur". He can't believe his eyes. "They must mean a toy," his mom says. After they purchase their dozen doughnuts, the store owner hands over a dinosaur...a REAL, LIVE, DINOSAUR. His mother begins to panic a bit as they come to the realization that all the stores in town are participating in this dinosaur "giveaway of the day"! (After they've acquired four of these giants, his mom decides to go home immediately). More fun ensues as she finds ways of solving the "problem" of having the dinos in their home. Great for independent readers or read aloud listeners.
by Lauren Child. This author/illustrator does a clever job of communicating the real fears and runaway imaginations that can inhabit young minds. Her witty and silly text, combined with her unique illustrations, will turn those unspoken fears into out-loud laughter. Just imagine what you would do if a storybook character Wolf and his side-kick (more ridiculous than threatening) climbed out of your book and into your room! Well, a young boy named Herb outwits the Wolf when he reaches into his fairy tale treasury and shakes out more characters, such as Cinderella and a Fairy Godmother, who lend help and some hilarious antics.
