Mentor Text {Pumpkin Soup}

Is anyone else struggling with finding balance between, life, school, kids, housework, gym time, soccer practice, cooking, and everything else we have to do?  With the boys in soccer for the first time this fall I am REALLY struggling with keeping up with EVERYTHING, especially blogging.

I thought I would at least share with you what I have been up to rather than blogging....keeping up with these boys at the soccer field :)

Maxton starting off the quarter :)

Xavier blocking the other team, look at that face of determination!

And how we keep up with the baby while his brother's play :)

Onto my FAVORITE fall stories for Collaboration Cuties Mentor Text Linky!

I discovered Pumpkin Soup by Helen Cooper back in my college days.  I can not remember which class I took that I had to use the story in but once I read it I absolutely fell in love with it.  I read it every fall to my kids.  My first year teaching the teachers acted out the story for the school while another teacher read it aloud.  It is a wonderful book!

Pumpkin Soup is about three friends who make Pumpkin Soup the same way every time, until one day Duck decides he wants to stir rather than put in just enough salt.  The change causes the three friends to have a dispute and work together to overcome their disagreement.  It is a great story for teaching theme (friendship) and there are some great mentor sentences as well!  The illustrations are also beautiful fall images.

After I read Pumpkin Soup I always follow it up with reading Delicious, A Pumpkin Soup Story.  In this story the three friends run out of pumpkin and try to make fish soup, mushroom soup, and other soups, but just aren't satisfied with the results.  Again, this is a great story for teaching theme and problem solving skills.

 Each book provides you with the recipe for the soups created by the three friends in the book.