My School
Fun Book
was created
especially for
John Michael Trout
at the age of 5
With Love From
Mommy
September 2001
"Hello, hello,
hello, John. My name is Coco and I am the Clown with red hair and a very,
very wide smile. I will try to guess your age and where you live. I guess
you are 5 years old and you live in Springfield, Massachusetts. Oh my,
John. I am so good at guessing, I should be in the circus!"
"John, I want to
stay and play with you. Would you like to ask Sharon and Matt to come and
play?
Take your crayons and color my balloons, John. Oh-h-h, I like the
colors that you painted on the balloons."
"Please take me
with you to St. Matthew's School, John. You, Sharon and Matt will each sit
at your own desk. I will have my own desk too. We will listen carefully to
what the teacher, Ms. Templeton, is telling us. One more thing I must tell
you, John, don't chew on your pencil!"
Ms. Templeton asked
the children to repeat after her:
A , B, C, D, E, F, G
H , I, J, K, L, M, N, O
P, Q, R, S
and
T, U, V
and W
"How are you doing, John? Now do you think that you, Sharon and Matt
can read your A, B, C's?"
"Oops, we forgot the last three letters, X and Y and Z."
"Oh, this game
looks new to me," said John. "I am only 5 years old. Will you help me?"
Coco the Clown replied, "Turn back the page and look at the letters
again. Ask Sharon and Matt to help you draw lines from the letter A to B to
C. Keep drawing until you come to the letter O."
"What a great time
we have had today at school," said Coco. "Now it is time to go home. There
we will run and jump and play outdoor games. It is good to get exercise
every day, John. It is not good to stay indoors and watch TV too much.
Exercise keeps us healthy."
"Watch me brush my
teeth, John," said Coco the Clown. "It is easier to brush your teeth when
you have a big smile on your face. John, make a big smile in front of your
bathroom mirror every day. It will start your day right and make everybody
else happy too."
"Oh-oh, raindrops!"
moaned Coco the Clown. "I have on my long, yellow coat and my wide, floppy
shoes and I will stay dry. I must be careful at the bus stop with no
pushing or shoving other boys and girls. Remember this, John, and remind
Sharon and Matt too."
"The sign reads,
'SCHOOL BUS'. Use a pencil, John, and follow the dots to draw the school
bus. Start with number 1. If you turn the page you can see what comes
after number 1."
"Please ask Sharon
and Matt to read these numbers from 1 to 20. John, can you make up rhymes
to learn your numbers? I'll start," said Coco the Clown.
"1, 2 What shall I do?
3, 4 Shut the door.
Let me see if you can do it, 5, 6....go ahead, John, you try it."
"A birthday cake
without any candles!" cried Coco the Clown. "John, please draw candles on
my birthday cake. Ask Sharon and Matt to help you."
"How many candles shall we draw?" asked John.
"That is up to you to do the guessing this time. Guess how old I am,"
giggled Coco the Clown.
"John, you are very
smart. Are you ready for another guessing game?" squealed Coco the Clown.
"When I call out the name of a food, you guess what color it is. John, you
point to the same color shown in the little square drawings. READY? GET
SET! GO!"
APPLES GRAPES
CHOCOLATE RAISINS
ORANGES BLUEBERRIES BANANAS LETTUCE
Red, Purple, Brown, Black, Orange, Blue, Yellow, Green
"On page 30, you
can see 4 shapes, John. A circle, a triangle, a rectangle, and a square.
A circle has no sides and is round like a ball or pie.
A triangle ALWAYS has three sides.
A rectangle has 4 sides, but 2 of the sides are long and 2 are short.
A square has 4 sides, but all 4 sides are the same size.
Did you color the 4 shapes on page 30, John?"
"John, color the
pictures. Next, draw a line to connect one shape to another shape that
looks just like it. Draw a line from the yellow square to the other
square. Keep on drawing and making connecting lines, and soon your work
will be done."
"Well," said Coco
the Clown. "It's time for me to go. I shall miss you, John. I will take
this very special book to remind me of you."
Soon, colorful circus wagons came to pick up Coco. He ran as fast as
his floppy shoes would let him. He hopped aboard, waving and shouting,
"Good-bye, good-bye. I had a very nice time."
John knew then that Coco the Clown was a real circus clown after all.
Favorite things for
John Michael Trout
_______________Book
_______________Game
_______________Song
_______________Food
_______________Color
_______________Movie
_______________Friends
