Me...Jane

Does your child love chimpanzees? Is that the first exhibit they want to see at the zoo?  If so, they need to become familiar with the life of Jane Goodall. She loves chimpanzees too! There are many great books about Jane Goodall's life; however, not many of them talk about her childhood.

Me... Jane by Patrick McDonnell is a biography all about Jane as a young girl.  What I love about this story is that it does not try and share everything there is to know about Jane Goodall.  Instead, it only shares one small part of her life with the reader.  In my opinion, it shares one of the most important parts of her life: childhood.  This simple story shares with children the power of dreaming big!  Jane explored our magical world as a little girl and made her dreams come true.  This story shares such a good message with young children - anything is possible.

When you share this story with your child, make sure you take some time to make text-to-self connections. Jane takes her stuffed toy chimpanzee everywhere.  Does your child have a stuffed animal (or a blanket) that means the world to them?  Did you have one as a child?  Jane has a dream to go to Africa.  What does your child dream of doing?  What were some of your dreams as a child?

I highly encourage you to take a few minutes and read the About Jane Goodall section of the book. You and your child will learn a lot about Jane.  If this book sparks your curiosity about Jane Goodall visit her website!