The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs by A. Wolf as told by Jon Scieszka

The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs by A. Wolf

(Puffin-1996)

As told by: Jon Scieszka

Illustrated by: Lane Smith

Genre: Modern Fantasy

Grade: 1-3

The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs by A. Wolf is the "real" story of the three little pigs whose houses are huffed and puffed to smithereens...from a wolf's perspective. This poor, much criticized wolf has gotten a bad reputation. He just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time with a sneezy cold, harmlessly trying to borrow a cup of sugar to make his granny a cake. Is it his fault those pigs built insubstantial houses? This is a really funny story and a great book to use to teach comparison and point of view. Most kids know the story of the three little pigs (if they don't, give a brief summary and have other students help). It is really funny to hear the other side of the story. I love using this book to teach kids to listen to all sides of a story before making a decision and to keep this in mind especially when watching the news.

Theme/Skills Taught: Humor & Comedy/Perspectives

About the Author: After reading a few bio's on Jon, he is a very funny author. He has a website dedicated to him and his books and it is really funny to read. Jon Scieszka's Bio He was born in flint Michigan and is one of six boys! Jon thought about being a doctor, but decided to write instead and graduated with his MFA in Fiction at Columbia University. Then, he painted apartments and became a school teacher, teaching a range of grades. He found the best audience for the books he was writing and took a year off to write stories for kids. Through his wife, he met Lane Smith who loved his book A Wolf's Tale and drew some illustrations for it, but still got rejected by publishers. In 1989 Viking Books liked the book, changed the title to The True Story of the Little Pigs, and published it. Since then he has sold 11 million copies around the world and won a few awards! He is a great author and a really funny individual!

About the Illustrator: Lane Smith was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma on August 25th, 1959. His family moved to Corona, California when he was three, but spent the better part of every summer back in Oklahoma. "My family would take the old Route 66 highway. I think that's where my bizarre sense of design comes from. Once you've seen a 100-foot cement buffalo on top of a donut-stand in the middle of nowhere, you're never the same." After high school Lane worked as a janitor at Disneyland for five years. After he graduated from college with a B.F.A. in Illustration, he headed for the Big Apple with a small portfolio of illustrations. His work is is rendered in oil paints. He paints on board, building up several thin glazes of the oil, sealing them between coats with an acrylic spray varnish. This not only dries the oil instantly, but also causes a chemical reaction between the oil and the acrylic. Normally, it would be a mistake to combine two opposites like this and in fact it was a mistake the first time I did it, but I liked the results. "I hope I can follow the path these dark illustrators have walked, or at least use the sidewalk that runs alongside it." The two of them, Lane and Jon make a great pair with their talent and humor. Lane Smith's Bio

Pre-Reading Activities: Discuss as a class how there are always two sides to a story. Ask them to share a situation where they saw a different view than a friend did. Also, you will have to go over the original story to make sure all students have read it and if they haven't give a brief synopsis, asking other students to help.

Post Reading Activities: Have children write their own versions of a fairy tale with a twist- Have students brainstorm things that happened in the Three Little Pigs story that didn't happen in the true story (compare/contrast).