Introducing a heart-warming read of finding your true self and where you truly belong~ featured in MaiStoryBook Library Collection:

“Not Quite Narwhal” by Jessie Sima

*~Click here to purchase your own copy of *Not Quite Narwhal* to start on your own reading adventure! (This is an affiliate link~ 5% of your purchase will go to MaiStoryBook to help create Reading Resources for your littles)~*

Book Synopsis and Review

It’s a Narwhal! Or wait… is it a unicorn??? Actually~ it’s Kelp! *The Not quite Narwhal* So what does that mean? Kelp is a unicorn born under the sea to a family of narwhals. Kelp grows up, knowing he’a little bit different, he swims quite a bit slower and narwhal food isn’t particularly appetizing, but loving his narwhal family all the same. Until one day, a strong current carries Kelp spa dn away towards a mysterious land where he meets some *magical* four-legged, horned creatures that look just like him~ he finds another family he never knew he had~ Unicorns! Kelp realizes maybe he’s not a narwhal after all… but he’s not ready to leave his narwhal life behind, after all, they are his family. But will Kelp have to choose between his two families? Or will he find a way that maybe, he won’t have to choose at all?

Do you know what a narwhal is? Well sometimes, people even call narwhals, unicorns of the sea because narwhals are small whales that live in the ocean with a long horn, like a unicorn!  This is an adorable heart warming read aloud about finding your true self, and what it means to fit in and stand out. It’s also about family, and how family is anyone who loves you, cares for you and has been an important part of your life, and you know what? You can always have more than one family. You never have to choose to be a certain someone~you should always just be yourself! Those who truly love you will accept you just how you are. Follow along this magical tale, being swept away in the pastel, soft colored, sweet illustrations~*

Vocabulary

• Tusk (p. 3) a long pointed horn or tooth
• Current (p. 7) the direction water moves
• Anxious (p. 12) worried, nervous
• Delicacies (p. 19) delicious, yummy food
• Gallop (p. 20) when a horse runs

Themes/Main Ideas

• Be True to Yourself – You never have to choose between who you want to be- just be yourself!
• Family is.. Whomever loves you and takes care of you, and whom you love for and care for in return

YouTube Video: Guided Shared-Reading Read Aloud Example

Example of a shared-reading, interactive Read Aloud of “Not Quite Narwhal” – how to subtly introduce the vocabulary list words within the text, ask guided questions, and spark conversation!

*~Check it Out~*

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*Unicorn or Narwhal* Spin Craft

*~Unicorns~* What little one doesn’t, at least once, dream of these magical creatures? Of traipsing through an enchanted forest and stumbling upon a sparkling white creature with a rainbow mane and a glistening horn? I myself can recall fantasies of discovering my very own unicorn, of clinging to the back of this galloping mystical beast, wind and sparkles swirling around me as we glide through meadows of flowers and fields of emerald green grass. Strangely enough, apart from horses, narwhals may be the closest creature to a unicorn we’ll come to see. But with a little imagination and if you squint your eyes, these unicorns of the sea may just be the magical creatures we’ve dreamed of. This week’s craft may remind you of the *Duck!Rabbit!* Pinwheel craft~ but Narwhal Unicorn version! Is Kelp a Narwhal or a Unicorn? Or maybe he can be both!

Materials

• Unicorn Or Narwhal Template- Find it here
• Paper plate
• Pipe Cleaner
• Scissors
• Crayons
• Tape

Directions

• Cut out the *Unicorn or Narwhal* Template. Cut out the circle *not the individual bodies* and cut out the head
• Color it in- you can match the storybook characters or create your own colorful creatures! Add grass and water for the corresponding animal body.

• Poke a hole in the center of the circle template and the center of the plate. Align the holes, aligning the circle template with the bottom of the plate, and stick a small piece of the pipe cleaner through the holes, twisting and bending the pipe cleaner on both sides so that the paper and plate attaches.

• Tape the head to the front side of the plate (opposite side that the circle template is attached to) on the left hand side. Before taping, spin the body wheel to make sure that it aligns correctly with the head. Adjust if needed.

Enjoy Your *Unicorn or Narwhal* Spin Craft

• Share your craft with family members and friends to retell the story and share Kelp’s problem and his solution.
• Use your craft as a reading buddy as you reread the story, spinning your wheel to match Kelp’s Narwhal times and Unicorn times
• Keep your craft to remind you to always be true to yourself. You can be whoever you want to be!

*~Overall, have fun creating and sharing  your  *Unicorn or Narwhal* Spin Craft,  and I hope you and your little ones never-give-up on your goals and dreams!  – tag me on Instagram @MaiStoryBookLibrary, Twitter @MaiStoryBook  – or post on FaceBook to share your photos of your own *Unicorn or Narwhal* Spin Crafts, and your own reading adventures! I’d love to hear from you!~*

*Check Back on Next Friday for our New Reading Adventure*

*~Until next time, Happy Reading~*