Splat the Cat by Rob Scotton

The beginning of the school year is an exciting time for children.  Even though they feel excited, they also feel anxious.  Will my teacher like me?  Will I make friends?  What if the work is too hard?  What if I have to go to the bathroom?!?!?!  

Splat the Cat by Rob Scotton is a popular children's book that is typically read at the beginning of the school year.  It's about a cat named Splat and how he felt on his first day of school.  Just like many children on their first day, Splat feels anxious.  Read on to learn more about Splat the Cat to find out what happens on Splat's first day of school, how his anxiousness eventually goes away, and for a FREE printable you can use in your classroom.

This is an updated version of a blog post I wrote in 2014.  Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

Author's Summary

It's Splat's first day of school, and he's worried. What if he doesn't make any new friends?  Just in case, Splat decides to bring along his pet mouse Seymour and hides him in his lunchbox. The teacher, Mrs. Wimpydimple, introduces Splat to the class and he soon starts learning all his important cat lessons.  But when Seymour escapes and the cats do what cats do (They chase mice!), Splat's worried again. Maybe now he'll lose all his friends, old and new! Just in time, wise Mrs. Wimpydimple takes charge and teaches everyone an important new lesson.  Maybe Cat School is going to be okay after all! A fun school story to share in the classroom or at home.  Nervous kitties wondering about friends and school will enjoy laughing along with Splat the Cat!

🍎 Title: Splat the Cat

🍎 Author: Rob Scotton

🍎 Illustrator: Rob Scotten

🍎 Date: July 1, 2008

🍎 Publisher: Harper Collins

🍎 Pages: 40

Building Background Knowledge

It's Splat the Cat's first day of school and he's feeling worried.  Chances are your students can remember how they felt when it was their first day of school.  Before reading Splat the Cat with your students, take a few minutes to recall and talk about how they felt when they entered your classroom that day.  Share your emotions from the first day of school too!  If time allows, make an anchor chart to record how they felt.

Reading Splat the Cat

Splat the Cat is a fun story to read out loud to children.  It's fast-paced and not overly complicated... perfect for young children learning how to read.  Have fun reading Splat the Cat with your students.  Be dramatic.  Change your voice for each character and match their emotions.  Find ways to make this story interactive for your students.  Can they choral read parts of the story with you or act it out? 

Beginning, Middle, End

One of the first reading comprehension skills children learn at school is identifying the events at the beginning, middle, and end of a story.  Characters (and setting depending on the age of your students) are introduced at the beginning of the story.  The biggest problem happens in the middle of the story.  The solution.. the happily-ever-after... is revealed at the end.  When talking about the beginning, middle, and end of Splat the Cat with your students, work together to brainstorm what events should be included in each part of the book.  One possible brainstorm:

• Beginning: It was Splat the Cat's first day of school and he was scared to go, so he put his pet Seymour in his lunchbox.
• Middle: Seymour escaped from the lunch box and all of the cats chased him!
• End: Seymour helped the class get the milk out of the cabinet.  He and Splat the Cat became friends with the other cats.

The beginning, middle, end graphic organizer below is something I use frequently with my students.  It's an open-ended activity that can be used in a variety of ways.  Students can draw pictures, use dot-jots, or write complete sentences in each section.  You can make this assignment as easy or as complicated as you'd like.  Feel free to download this printable to use with your students.

To download a FREE copy of this graphic organizer (one page in all), please click on the image above. Clicking this image will take you to the Teachers-Pay-Teachers third-party website. This is a FREE download-- no purchase necessary.

To learn more about Splat the Cat, visit Rob Scotton's website.  You can watch Splat the Cat in this Youtube video by Read Aloud Book for Kids.

Rob Scotton wrote a lot of books about Splat the Cat.  Do you have a personal favorite that you like to read with your students?  If so, tell us in the comments below!

(Next Article: About Kelly's Classroom Online)

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