I Want a Dog: My Opinion Essay (The Read and Write Series Book 1)

Hurrah for Essays! All writing lessons should be this much fun.

When cousins Dennis and Mellie decide to get a dog, they consider carefully what breed would be best for each family. For example, Dennis wants a big dog, but Mellie wants tiny. He has no other pets, but she has other pets that a dog must get along with. They consider different dog personalities, family situations, and personal preferences. Dennis writes an opinion essay for his teacher, Mrs. Shirky. But will his essay convince his parents to get the dog of his dreams?

This story takes a popular subject—kids getting a pet—and adds dogs of all sizes and shapes: all writing lessons should be this much fun. In the end, it’s cousins and the dogs that keep a reader turning the page. What kind of dog will Dennis choose? Will Mellie want the same kind of dog?

PRAISE FROM DOG EXPERTS

–Fred Kampo, President of the Labrador Retriever Club

This story hits many notes:

• A family story about cousins, Dennis and Mellie
  
• Information on dog breeds


• Responsible dog ownership


• Mentor-text for teaching writing


• Model opinion essay for elementary students


• Models the writing process, especially the importance of pre-writing or planning before you write


• Completes the writing process by showing the results of Dennis’s essay

I WANT A DOG almost makes opinion essays look too easy.

See other books in THE READ AND WRITE series:

I Want a Cat: My Opinion Essay (forthcoming)

My Crazy Dog: My Narrative Essay (forthcoming)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Growing up, author Darcy Pattison (www.darcypattison.com) wanted to be an astronaut. Instead, she writes about aliens in her early chapter book series, ALIEN, INC. SERIES (Mims House), which includes Kell, the Alien; Kell and the Horse Apple Parade; Kell and the Giants; and Kell and the Detectives. Published in eight languages, her middle grade novels include: Saucy and Bubba: A Hansel and Gretel Tale (Mims House); The Girl, the Gypsy and the Gargoyle (Mims House); and Vagabond (Mims House). Recent nature books for children include: Abayomi, the Brazilian Puma: The True Story of an Orphaned Cub (Mims House); Wisdom, the Midway Albatross (Mims House), a Starred Review in Publisher’s Weekly; Desert Baths (Arbordale), an NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Book 2013; and, Prairie Storms (Arbordale). Darcy Pattison is the 2007 recipient of Arkansas Governor’s Arts Awards for her work in Children’s Literature. For more see darcypattison.com/about

ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR

In her debut picture book, Ewa O’Neill (ewaoneill.com) creates art that is luscious, inventive, and colorful, bringing the story energy and humor. A dog-lover herself, Ewa (pronounced Ĕ-va) gives each breed a personality that helps kids begin to tell dog breeds apart.