Ruffles and the Cozy, Cozy Bed
Time to settle in for some cozy reading! Meet Ruffles, an adorable little pup who loves sniffing, chewing, sleeping, and all the other good stuff pups love to do. The colorful illustrations convey Ruffles’ expressions and emotions so well that readers will notice that this pup is not a fan of loud noises. When thunderstorms crash, flash, and boom, readers will feel for Ruffles as they skitter and seek cover behind a racket, under a chair, and in a box. Finally, comfort and quiet are discovered in a familiar and cozy place…Ruffles’ own bed! Next time a loud noise ruffles your feathers, snuggle up with this story to feel cozy again.
Pennsylvania Center for the Book Awards
Book Activities & Discussion Ideas
This simple story presents a great opportunity to extend children’s vocabulary, and get their bodies moving at the same time. After listening to the story, ask children to act out Ruffles’ movements when he hears loud noises: crouch, creep, skitter (move quickly and lightly), scoot (slide on one's bottom). Adults can encourage children’s learning these words by using them now and then: “Let’s skitter to the rug for circle time!”
Notice that we aren’t told that Ruffles is afraid of loud noises, but rather that he doesn’t like them. This is an important distinction for children who are bothered by, not afraid of, certain sensory experiences. In talking about Ruffles’ experiences, adults can encourage children to talk about things they don’t like. In addition to showing understanding and support, adults can remind children of places in their setting where they can go to relax or be alone.
This book has several pages that contain 9 smaller pictures of Ruffles engaged in various activities. This layout gives adults an opportunity to model the proper direction for reading, by touching each picture from left to right and top to bottom. Younger children will enjoy acting out and learning names of some of Ruffles’ activities during this story, e.g., sniffing, scratching, creeping, staring. Older children may appreciate a chance to talk about noises or other things that they don’t like. This can extend into talking about where their special cozy, safe place is, or where they would like one to be. On rereading, some children may be able to retell parts of the story, while younger ones might just enjoy randomly pointing to pictures and asking the adult to tell or read the descriptive words.