Welcome back to Smarty Books, a monthly newsletter featuring smart and sweet picture books to inspire young readers. (4 minute read)
Our book today is Cookies: Bite-Size Life Lessons by the late Amy Krouse Rosenthal, illustrated by Jane Dyer. This concept-driven book teaches the meaning of hard-to-grasp words by using them in situations with cookies. There’s no better blend of smart and sweet than Cookies.
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Summary
Cookies: Bite-Size Life Lessons explains the meaning of abstract words and concepts through situations involving cookies. Each page follows a straightforward formula that begins with the special word. For example, “Respect means offering the very first cookie to your grandmother.” Relatable, everyday situations with animals and people show complex words in action. Often, two approaches are contrasted on opposing pages, like greedy and generous or pessimistic and optimistic. My favorite pages are compassionate, honest, courageous, content, and wise.
Why Cookies: Bite-Size Life Lessons is great
The concept of using something so well-loved and universal to explain abstract words is brilliant.
Rosenthal’s background in advertising shines with her clear and concise examples. One great example is the courageous page where one character says, “It was not easy for me to tell you that I took the cookie, but I took a deep breath… and made the words come out.” I remember that feeling from my own childhood. When I wanted to bring up a difficult subject with my parents, I would get so nervous about it that I would almost count to three in my mind before I forced myself to “make the words come out.”
Jane Dyer’s illustrations create a cozy, homey feel that might make you nostalgic for your own childhood
Cookies introduces many new vocabulary words and provides opportunities for further conversation about complex ideas.
Both children and adults will enjoy reading Cookies together and reflecting.
Would you like another Cookies? Yes, please.
Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Jane Dyer teamed up on THREE other cookie books.
Christmas Cookies: Bite-Size Holiday Lessons (HarperCollins, 2008)
Sugar Cookies: Sweet Little Lessons on Love (HarperCollins, 2009)
One Smart Cookie: Bite-Size Lessons for the School Years and Beyond (HarperCollins, 2010)
Using Cookies in an elementary classroom
Students working to hone their precision in writing could use the Cookies formula in a writing project. Instead of using cookies, students choose an area of their own expertise, like Legos, for their examples.
Option one: define values of the school PBIS matrix.
Responsible means picking up the Legos when center time is over.
Kind means asking a new classmate, “Would you like to play Legos with me?”
Respectful means pausing my building to listen to my classmate’s idea about how to build the castle.
This could be a fun activity at the beginning of the school year when teaching the behavior matrix or writing a classroom contract. Each student writes and illustrates one of the values so there are many examples of each. The pages are displayed for a week and then made into a classroom book. Note: Remember to use only positive examples, not “Safe means never throwing Legos at my classmates.” : )
Option two: define vocabulary words in a particular unit.
Use the same steps as above and have students choose a word (or assign a word) from the vocab unit that they will explain and illustrate using an example from an area of expertise.
About Amy Krouse Rosenthal
Amy Krouse Rosenthal wrote more than thirty picture books before she tragically passed away from ovarian cancer in 2017. The Amy Krouse Rosenthal Foundation is dedicated to ovarian cancer research and developing childhood literacy. Learn more about Amy’s work for children and adults and the many accolades her books have won on her website. Curious adults will enjoy her memoir Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life about being human. It’s totally relatable.
In an interview with Mark Bazer in February 2017, Amy said,
I am kind of smitten with the small moments. It’s true. I think that when you look back on your year or decade… Inevitably, you want to see the everyday stuff—the kids just sitting at the kitchen eating breakfast, or funny little moments. You’re not going to go back and watch the big school play or the graduation ceremony. All those small things are the things that are full of magic.
I have tremendous respect for Amy Krouse Rosenthal, and this quote encourages me to savor the everyday moments—I hope you can, too.
Cookies: Bite-Size Life Lessons was published in 2006 by HarperCollins.
October Writing News
My story “Santiago’s Favorite Animal” was published in the October issue of Highlight’s High Five magazine. Many libraries have a High Five subscription if you’d like to check it out.
Edits are well underway for the memoir-in-verse.
Happy reading until we meet again!
—Sarah White
Enjoying Smarty Books? Share this post with an elementary school teacher or the person you know who bakes the best cookies (shoutout to Sandee and Mary C.).
Hi Sarah - I continue to celebrate your Substack venture. This author and her life lessons using cookies is absolutely brilliant and what a clever way to teach these concepts! However, when I found that she had passed away I was so sad, sad that we will not be able to hear from her in the future.
Now, Sarah, I am so happy for your own writing success! Highlights magazine is a really big deal so congratulations on that! You are a wonder. Thanks for another great substack!!