Before reading

To activate prior knowledge, discuss wanting a pet, getting a pet, taking care of a pet, etc.

During reading

How to read it – Partner reading

Since the two characters talk back and forth, this back lends itself really well to one partner pretending to be the child (Tony) and one partner pretending to be the Dad. Some children will struggle with knowing what is their part so teachers may want to use highlighting tape to assist those students.

While you are reading today think about:

What kind of pets Tony wants.
What pet you think Tony and his father really will eventually decide on.
Notice why the pets that are rejected won’t work as a good pet.

After reading

Make a list of the animals and why they were rejected as a pet.

Animal	Reasons the animal was rejected as a pet
Elephant	Too big Elephants live in herds Live on third floor, how could we get it in apartment?, won’t fit in window
Pony	Live hoof marks, no where to run
20 foot python	Where would we sit?
Sheep	They will wake us up
Gorilla	Climb in someone else’s window
Parrot	Parrots screech
Quiet Bird, Flamingo, Pelican	They like beaches, need sand, like the warm, too expensive to turn up the heat
Dolphin and Whale
Puppies

Scot Foresman, Second Grade

Daddy, Could I Have an Elephant? SECOND READING

By Jake Wolf

ISBN: 0-14-056410-1

Fiction Genre: Realistic Fiction

Before reading

Ask children to determine if this story fiction or nonfiction. Then ask: Is this a story that could really happen?

During reading

Look for places in the story that this is realistic fiction.

After reading

Children should conclude that the boy and his dad seem like real people. A little boy could ask his dad for a strange pet, and his dad could discuss it with him. If children have trouble with the boy’s imagination – bringing in an elephant in through the window or having a python in the living room – point out that these are things he imagines, but that they do not really happen.