I Am a Tornado

Discussion questions 

• What calming strategies do you try when you’re feeling upset and in the red zone of regulation? 

• The size of the tornado changes. Why do you think the illustrator did that?

• Good friends are good listeners. What does active, whole body listening look like to you?   

• Have you heard of Tornado Alley in the central United States? Why do you think more tornadoes occur in this part of the country? How is a tornado different from a hurricane or tsunami?

• The book is all conversations/dialogue. Usually in writing, we use quotations or speech bubbles to show conversations. This book does neither. How did this book let us know who was speaking when? [all capitals in black - Tornado. Regular sentence case in brown font - Cow]. When all capital letters are used, it makes us think of a yelling loud voice. Tornado always uses capital letters. When it calms down, what changes? [font size].

• This is one of those books with a different cover from a dust jacket. Take a peek underneath. Why do you think that was done? See if you can find other books that do that.

Vocabulary 

• irritable: easily annoyed or made angry

• crosswinds: a wind blowing across one’s direction of travel

Video content

• Daddy Mojo Interview with Drew Beckmeyer (YouTube, 25:44m)

• Tips for active listening (YouTube, 4:30m ) 

• Book being read aloud (YouTube, 6:10m )

Publisher content 

• Simon & Schuster

Activities

• Make a tornado in a glass jar (YouTube, 54s) This quick how-to video avoids using plastics and features a child scientist.

• Dance like a tornado with YoYo (video, 60s)

• StoryCorps The Power of Active Listening

• Think about a feeling you have had that makes you feel like something else (like a tornado, river, tree, rock, bird, firework, etc.). Draw yourself as that thing. Add a sentence: When I feel _______ I feel like a __.

Companion books