Teaching Geography with Children’s Literature: Nine O’Clock Lullaby

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Summary and Introduction Nine O’Clock Lullaby was written by Marilyn Singer and illustrated by Frane Lessac.  With the use of its wonderful pictures, this book takes the reader all over the world one hour at a time.  It displays with pictures and words information about each city’s culture and activities that might be unique to their area of the world.

7:30 A.M. in India All over the village well ropes squeak, buckets splash, bracelets jingle, long braids swish.  All over the village morning music.  7:30 A.M. in India is …”

Curriculum Connections
One suggestion to do while reading this book would be to have a globe handy so that after each page or city is read, you could show the students where that is on the globe.  This book has a lot of cross curriculum connections.  While the book certainly does a great job taking its readers all over the world and definitely captures the essence of Geography, it also has a scientific focus on the time of day as each page begins with a specific time.  In addition, it covers the idea of day and night, where it may be daytime and the sun is shining in one area of the world, but it is nighttime, dark and the moon is out in another area.  There is also an ecological element regarding the animal habitats in the various regions that book displays.  Based on its short passages and reoccurring reading patterns, this book is geared for a student in K-2nd grades. (VA SOL Geography K.4)

Additional Resources

  • First Grade Map Activity:  This flash card game ties in traits from different types of communities along with the types of things that might be present in those communities.
  • Continents, Poles and Equator: This is a song to teach the children sung to the tune “Are you sleeping?”  The child will use body parts to describe where in the world the continents, poles and equator are.
  • Continent Word Search: This is a continent word search worksheet for use with first or second graders.

Book: Nine O’ Clock Lullaby
Author/Illustrator : Marilyn Singer / Frane Lessac
Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers
Publication Date:
Pages: 30
Grade Range: K – 2nd
ISBN:0-329-13502-3

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