Knuffle Bunny

Title: Knuffle Bunny

Author: Mo Willems
Illustrations: Mo Willems
Published: Willems, M. (2004). Knuffle bunny. New York: Hyperion Books.
Themes: childhood, loss, family, adventure

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Trixie ventures out on a special errand with her dad to the laurdomat. As a toddler, Trixie enjoys helping her dad put cloths into the machine and put the coins in their slot. As the two travel home,Trixie realizes that her beloved bunny was left at the laundromat. How will Trixie get her stuffed animal back? Will she ever see Knuffle Bunny again?

My JK/SK class totally LOVED this book! Any why wouldn't you? The illustrations are spectacular; Willems places his cartoon-ish illustrations in front of iconic New York scenarios. This is the first of the Knuffle Bunny trilogy; Knuffle Bunny Too and Knuffle Bunny Free.

Classroom Ideas:
- This is a fantastic book to do some text-to-self connections. Who hasn't lost something in their lives? Even my JK's were able to tell me of a time when one of their toys went missing, how they felt and what they did to help find it. 
- Have students write about their favourite toy using descriptive detail.
- This would be such a great book to have students do some work at retelling.
- Have students create their own art inspired by the book. Give students a black and white scenery and have them place their own characters on top.
- Create a character map for Trixie -- check out the two sequels to see how her character develops through the years.
- Have students compare Knuffle Bunny to other iconic books about stuffed animals, such as Corduroy and The Velveteen Rabbit. Have students create a Venn Diagram to discuss the similarities and the differences.



How can you not love this book?