Interest Level: K - 2

Grade Level Equivalent: 3.5

Lexile® measure: 540L

DRA: 38

Guided Reading: P

Genre/Theme:

• Comedy and Humor

Topics:

• Life Experiences and Relationships
• Peer Pressure
• Self-Esteem
• Understanding Self and Others

About This Book

Free Teaching Resources: A Bad Case of Stripes Lesson Plan

Camilla Cream loves lima beans — but she won't admit it to anyone. The other kids don't like them, and Camilla wants to fit in. "Camilla was always worried about what other people thought of her." But as she tries on her forty-second potential outfit for the first day of school, the unthinkable happens: Camilla breaks out in stripes. When the doctor pronounces her perfectly healthy (albeit colorful), she has to go to school and face the ridicule of her classmates. It turns out that she is completely susceptible to the suggestions of others, so when the kids call out patterns, she changes colors obediently; likewise with the Specialists and Experts who attempt to cure her with their theories. After an Environmental Therapist tells poor Camilla to "become one""with her room, she melts into the walls, with paintings for eyes, a dresser for a nose, and her bed for a mouth. Drastic action is needed. A little old lady arrives and pours a handful of lima beans into Camilla's waiting mattress mouth. "I knew the real you was in there somewhere," she tells the little girl, who is magically restored to her original self.

In this original fable, the author/illustrator of the Caldecott Honor Book No, David! takes on the schoolyard bully known as conformity. Readers will identify with Camilla's reluctance to admit to being different from her peers, and they will both laugh at and sympathize with the preposterous circumstances in which she finds herself. Shannon's imaginative paintings are full of vivid details, humor, and a touch of the spooky, making even Camilla's oddest transformations seem real in context. Use this unique story to prompt discussions on peer pressure and the importance of maintaining identity.