Language Arts Mentor Text Link Up (Featuring Jon Klassen and Two FREEBIES)

It's the first Sunday of the month and time for Collaboration Cuties' Mentor Text Linkup.  This week's topic is language arts.  My mentor text picks for this week are two books by Jon Klassen:  I Want My Hat Back and This Is Not My Hat.

I Want My Hat Back follows Bear as he tries to find his beloved hat.  He asks a series of animals, including  Rabbit (who is actually wearing the missing hat) if they know where his hat is.  All of the animals tell Bear they have not seen his hat.  Eventually Deer asks Bear a question and sparks Bear's memory.  Bear retrieves his hat with a vengeance.
This book is great for sequencing, predictions, and identifying the problem/solution.  Its repetitive phrases are great for early readers.  Bear's hat is also very simple to make.  The kids will love it.

This is Not My Hat is Klassens' follow up to I Want My Hat Back.  It has a similar premise.  The Big Fish's hat goes missing.  But instead of following the Big Fish around, the story focuses on the hat stealing Little Fish.  The Little Fish has a plan to get away with the theft, however the end result is the same as in I Want My Hat Back.  Basically, both books show that crime doesn't pay.

This Is Not My Hat is also perfect for predictions, identifying the problem/solution, as well as retelling. When read together these books offer a fabulous opportunity for comparing and contrasting the characters or the texts.  Below you will find two Venn diagrams to go with these books.  The first compares and contrasts the characters.  The second works with the two books.  The clip art is from KPM Doodles and Melonheadz.

If you would like a free copy of these printables, click on one of the pictures below.

Here's the low down . . .

More mentor text recommendations and activities are at Collaboration.  Be sure to check them out.