Squashed in the Middle.

Title: "Squashed in the Middle"

Author: Elizabeth Winthrop

Illustrations by: Pat Cummings 

Reading level: Ages 4-8

Grade: Pre-kindergarten-third 

Hardcover: 17 pages

Publisher: Live Oak Media (August 2008) 

Language: English 

ISBN-10: 978143010443

"Her father was chopping carrots."

"Her mother was talking on the phone."

"Her big sister was chasing her little brother around and around the kitchen table."

Nobody every listings to me thought Daisy who is the middle child in a family of five. When she talks everyone acts like their listen but she can tell their not. How can she show her family that she wants to be heard? What can she do to get their attention? A friend of Daisy's comes over and asks if she wants to have a sleepover. Daisy tries to ask her parents but they never listen, so Daisy leaves with her friend. Not long after her family comes to her friends house looking for her, they start talking and talking and Daisy can not get a word in until she YELLS as loud as she can. Finally she gets through to her family and they finally start listening to her. Being the middle children isn't so bad after all. 

The literacy elements I can see in the story are allegory. I feel as if there are not any others. The allegory in the story is that Daisy is the middle child and is always feeling that she is not being heard when she has something to say. We learning in the story that everyone has a voice and we need to take time out to listen to what each and everyone of use has to say because every ones opinion matters.

"Squashed in the middle" is a great story it teaches us that we need to stop and listen to everyone. A lot of times we never see that others feel as if they are not being heard but we really need to work on putting our cell phones, computer, and i pods down to listen to our children. In life today we are always on the go and many time we do not realize that some people feel left out and not heard. So its a story that reminds us of that. Life is to short to not stop and listen to everyone. The story is one that could really happen. The middle child always feels left out but I know each and every child can feel left out weather its at home, school, a friends house, or any social setting. The characters problem did seem natural its something I believe everyone deals with. 

The illustrations in the book are colorful, fun, and playful. The text makes the picture for meaning full and you can see so much more of the story through the pictures. You see the different emotions the character Daisy feels from sad to happy, loud to quit. Its a great story to read in a class where a lot of times children feel left out or not heard. 

I would use this story in my classroom as a way to explain to each one of my students that what they have to say is very important to me even if I do not seem like it is. I would use this story as a way to build a talking box, where each child if they had something to share could write it down and place it in the box. At the end of the week we would read over all the children thoughts and have time to talk about them. This would give each child the opportunity to share how they feel and let them express themselves in class.