Terrific

//Terrific// Author and Illustrator: Jon Agee

Eugene is the lucky winner of an all-expenses-paid cruise to Bermuda. He usually expects the worst and often gets just that. To each mishap on his trip his answer is always…terrific! Annotation from Virginia State Reading Association http://www.vsra.org/VRC/primary_annotations08.htm

Themes:
 * Words with multiple meanings
 * Effects of positive/negative attitudes
 * Bermuda

Curricular Connections/Activities: Web Resources
 * Use a thesaurus to identify other words for terrific (English SOL 2.6, 2.9, 2.11)
 * Use a dictionary to define “Terrific.” Discuss what Eugene means when he says “terrific” in the story. (English SOL K.12, 1.10, 2.9, 2.11)
 * Compare Eugene’s attitude to the attitude of the Grandpa in //Could Be Worse// by James Stevenson. Have a discussion about how having a positive attitude affects how you view events and handle situations. Define sarcasm and discuss the role of sarcasm in this story and how the reader receives cues from the illustrations to determine Eugene’s attitude. (English SOL K.3, K.8, 1.9, 2.7, 2.8)
 * Have students write a journal entry or draw a picture describing what they would do if they were shipwrecked on a deserted island. Students can orally share their work with the rest of the class. (English SOL K.3, K.8, 1.3, 1.9, 2.5, 2.7, 2.8, 2.9)
 * Select another picture book that is set in a cold climate – example - //This Place is Cold// by Vicki Cobb (Imagine Living Here Series). Discuss the meaning of “physical characteristics” and the “climate” of a place. Have students make observations about the physical characteristics and climates of the settings in the two books. Locate the two settings on the map. Identify the physical surroundings of each setting – land and bodies of water. Discuss reasons why the two settings might have such different climates. How do the different climates and physical characteristics affect the people who live in the two settings? Describe the habitats found in the two settings. (SS SOL 1.6, 2.4; SC SOL 2.5)
 * Have students make predictions about what is going to happen next in the story at appropriate points in the book. For example, students can predict what will happen next after the first page. Students can use clues from the illustrations and as well as from the text to make their predictions. Have students explain why they made the predictions they did. As the story progresses, continually evaluate the predictions that were made. What really happened? (LA SOL K.8, 1.9, 2.7, 2.8)
 * Describe the characteristics of a bird that are visible in the illustrations of the parrot. Have students draw their own pictures of parrots. (SC SOL 1.1, 1.5)
 * Author Study of Jon Agee. Book selections could Include //Milo’s Hat Trick; The Return of Freddy Legrand//; //The Incredible Painting of Felix Clousseau//; //Ludlow Laughs; Dmitri the Astronaut//
 * Author's Website - [|http://www.jonagee.com]
 * Author narrrating a slide show - http://www.nytimes.com/packages/khtml/2005/11/13/books/20051113_AGEE_AUDIOSS.html
 * //Terrific// song - http://www.jonagee.com/agee/music/terrific.m3u (music/performance by the Promise Makers)