Make a Wish on a Fish by Jennie Wiley

Rhyming words is one of the first skills children learn as early readers.   Being able to rhyme words teaches children about how language works, how to identify sounds within words, and can even help children in decoding the words they read.  Rhyming is sometimes a predictor of how well children will learn to read.  The more children listen to poetry and participate in activities like fingerplays, the easier it will be for them to connect and make sense of what they're reading.  Make a Wish on a Fish by Jennie Wiley is a book written as poetry and with lots of rhyming words.  Keep reading to learn more about Make a Wish on a Fish and how to use it in your reading lessons.

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

🍎 Title: Make a Wish on a Fish

🍎 Author: Jennie Wiley
🍎 Illustrator: Mina Anguelova
🍎 Date: June 21, 2018
🍎 Publisher: Willow Moon Publishing
🍎 Pages: 46

Author's Summary

How do you make magic in the world? Make a wish on a fish, of course. With a little imagination, magic can be found everywhere in a child's life. Make a Wish on a Fish is a journey into magical moments through the whimsical illustrations of Mina Anguelova and the playful story of Jennie Wiley.

Reality vs. Fantasy

Whenever I start a new story with my classes, I like to do a picture walk through the book and talk with them about the illustrations.  I ask the children about what the characters are doing, what they think will happen next, and answer any questions they have.  One of the things children may notice right away about Make a Wish on a Fish is that it's a story about magic and imagination.  Some of the children may look at a picture and say something like, 'That's not for real,' or, 'That can't happen.'  If so you can turn the picture walk into a teachable moment about reality vs. fantasy, real vs. make-believe, etc.  You may need to explain to them what imagination is and reassure the children that it's OK if things happening in the story aren't real.  After all... anything can happen in your imagination!

Rhyming Words 

Since Make a Wish on a Fish is written as a poem, it's important to read it with the appropriate rhythm, expression, and added emphasis on the rhyming words.  The added emphasis on rhyming words will help children recognize and hear their sounds.  Depending on the age and reading levels of the children you are reading to, you may be able to integrate the use of word cards into your lesson.  

I created my own set of word cards to use with Make a Wish on a Fish.  I printed them up on my printer and used them in a pocket chart.  You can use index cards, construction paper, cardstock, etc. to make your own cards or you can use the ones I already made.

To download a FREE set of this set of rhyming word cards (three pages 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.

Mina Anguelova, the illustrator of Make a Wish on a Fish, shares her excitement of seeing her illustrations for this book in print for the first time.  I'd be excited too... her illustrations are beautiful!

(Next Article: What's My Instrument? by Johnny Oddsocks)