CHALLENGING WORDS
accidentallydefinitely
delighted
embarrassed
marshmallows
porcupine
quill
remained
rhinoceros
umbrella
SUMMARY
Fluffy the porcupine dislikes his name. One day he meets a rhinoceros who seems very different from him. His strange name does something forhim and the rhino in the end.
--- Conversation Questions---
(1) / Explain to me what this story is about.(Answer) / A porcupine whose parents gave him an unusual name that he tried to live up to, but grew to like it when it made him a friend.
(Follow Up) / Share with me your favorite part of the story.
(2) / If you were Fluffy, would you like your name?
(Answer) / Any logical answer
(Follow Up) / Why or why not?
(3) / Describe to me how you think Fluffy felt when he first met the rhino.
(Answer) / Any logical answer
(Follow Up) / Tell me how you would have felt.
(4) / Have you ever not liked your name, like Fluffy.
(Answer) / Any logical answer.
(Follow Up) / List some names you like.
(5) / Can you tell me what a “quill” is?
(Answer) / The prickly part of the porcupine.
(Follow Up) / Tell me what it’d be like to touch a quill.
(6) / Recall what the rhinos name was.
(Answer) / Hippo
(Follow Up) / Do you think the rhino’s name is funny?
(7) / List some of the names they were going to name Fluffy.
(Answer) / Spike, Lance, Needleroozer, Prickles, Pokey, Quillian
(Follow Up) / Which name would you have picked?
(8) / Tell me some things that happened that made Fluffy not “fluffy”.
(Answer) / When he backed into a door & stuck; poked holes in the mattress; when he carried an umbrella he poked holes through it.
(Follow Up) / Do you think this made Fluffy mad or sad?
(9) / List some things that Fluffy tried to do make himself “fluffy”.
(Answer) / Tried to be a cloud, a pillow & a rabbit; took a bubble bath; put whipped cream on each quill; ate lots of marshmallows; rolled in shaving cream w/feathers
(Follow Up) / When Fluffy put the whipped cream on, he said they should have named him what?
(10) / Explain to me what Fluffy was doing when he met Hippo.
(Answer) / He was out for a walk trying to think of ways to become fluffy.
(Follow Up) / Describe to me what happened when Fluffy told Hippo his name.
Activities
1. / Make a list of names that would be suitable for a porcupine and a rhinoceros.
2. / Draw a picture of Fluffy having a mishap due to his quills.
3. / Create a birth announcement for Fluffy. Be sure to make up a date and time when he was born, how much he weighed and how long he was. Be creative!
4. / Write the word PORCUPINE or RHINOCEROS at the top of your opus. Make as many words as you can.
Introduction
1. Show a picture of the porcupine and the rhino. Ask the child what their names might be. Make up two silly names (unsuitable ones) and ask if these names would be good names for the animals. Say, “Today we are going to read a book about these two animals that don’t like their names.”2. Ask the child if they like their name; why or why not. If they could change their name, what would they change it to. Say, “Today we are going to read about a porcupine who doesn’t like his name. Let’s see how he handles things.”
3. Discuss the prickly qualities of a porcupine. Ask the child if they would want to hug a porcupine and what name would they choose for a porcupine. Say, “Today we are going to read a porcupine named Fluffy. What a funny name for a porcupine!”
Book Title: A Porcupine Named Fluffy
Author: Helen Lester
/ Illustrator: Lynn MunsingerISBN: 0-395-36895-2 / # of Text Pages: 27 AR: 2.4 LEX: 140
Building Oral Vocabulary
1 / delighted / 18 / prickly / 26 / exhausted
Prediction Questions
3 / Do you think Fluffy is an unusual name for a porcupine?
6 / What do you think Fluffy will get stick in next?
17 / What do you think the Rhino will do?