A Sweet Smell of Roses Picture Book Companion

This picture book companion is an amazing supplemental resource for upper elementary and middle school. A Sweet Smell of Roses, by Angela Johnson, is an ideal interactive read-aloud for any time of the year or for educating your students about influential leaders, community, unity, the Civil Rights Movement, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., persistence, equality, standing up for what they believe in, kindness, being brave, and appreciating each other’s differences. The illustrations by Eric Velasquez are absolutely stunning and add another layer of depth to the story, opening up the opportunity for students to think about the symbolism that illustrations and color can hold. Students will love the engaging and fun activities, and you will appreciate the time saved hunting for high-level resources to teach reading concepts that students frequently struggle with.

With 28 print-and-go reading activities to choose from, this resource is ideal for customizing learning to your student’s specific needs and academic ability. Students will investigate characters, identify story elements, determine the theme, investigate symbolism in color and illustrations, practice plotting story events, analyze characters, and much more! The activities provided are designed to enable students to apply higher-level thinking skills, to encourage students to provide text evidence to support their thinking, and to challenge students to express their own thoughts and/or perspectives.