Bread and Jam for Frances by Russell Hoban-Module #2
Hoban, Russell. Bread and Jam for Frances. New York City: HarperCollins Pub. 1962.
Summary:
Little Frances loves bread and jam. The problem is, she doesn't want to try anything else. After seeing that Frances finds fault with any food besides bread and jam, her parents decide to teach her a lesson. Frances is then given bread and jam for every meal. At first, this seems to be a good thing. However, Frances soon learns that variety is a good thing when it comes to eating.
Tattered Cover says:
This is a great book for teaching kids that too much of a good thing can end up bad. I love the way the author incorporated rhyme into the story with Frances singing about her food. The suddle way the parents teach Frances her lesson is entertaining. The book shows healthy eating habits and also incorporates some appetizing descriptions of meals.
How to use this in the library:
Bread and Jam for Frances would be a great story to use in the library for a health lesson for primary aged students. After the story, students could do an activity requiring them to make healthy choices to put together a healthy meal. They could do this whole group with pictures of choices of food on a Power Point. Also, students could be encouraged to look for other books such as kids cookbooks to come up with healthy meals they could have at home.
Reviews:
"Frances loves nothing better than jam and bread, and turns up her nose at other kinds of food. Then her mother starts giving Frances jam and bread for breakfast, lunch and dinner. ``What I am/is sick of Jam,'' Frances sings to herself. That's the end of Frances's jam-only days, as she discovers, in her own winsome way, that variety really is the spice of mealtimes." Publisher's Weekly 1987
