Ben Clanton is the October author for the 2021 Author Study Challenge. If you’ve spent any time in the Easy Reader section of the bookstore or library, then you’ve likely seen a Narwhal and Jelly book in the past year. And if you’ve picked up a Narwhal & Jelly book then you’ve likely fallen in love with the amazing humor of Ben Clanton.
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LEARN MORE ABOUT THE 2021 AUTHOR STUDY CHALLENGE
Meet Ben Clanton
Ben Clanton is an author and illustrator best known for the Narwhal and Jelly series. He writes clever, often humorous books for kids. My favorite fact about his is that he does indeed like eating waffles – I’ve been curious since we first read about Narwhal and Jelly.
Learn More about Ben Clanton site:
http://www.benclanton.com/p/contact.html
You can see the full list of Ben Clanton’s books on his site and while yes, the Narwhal and Jelly books are his most known and are absolutely delightful, we truly love all of these books.
Board Books by Ben Clanton
The Narwhal and Jelly characters, that I’ll talk about more in a minute, have been written into darling little board books. They’re super sweet, you do not have to know the Narwhal and Jelly series to enjoy them, and I highly recommend them for toddlers.
Blankie
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Bubbles
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Picture Books by Ben Clanton
Rot: The Cutest in the World
Absolutely adorable and wonderful book about a spud with an awesome personality. This is all about self confidence and loving who you are.
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It Came in the Mail
This book is adorable. It’s about mail and magic and friendship.
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Something Extraordinary
Beautiful things are all around you – you just have to look carefully. This is a whimsical book that’s sweet and gentle.
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Rex Wrecks It!
An energetic story about Rex who has a habit of wrecking things when he tries to play. This is a great one for toddlers and younger preschoolers.
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Boo Who?
This is an adorable book that perfect for little guys at Halloween time.
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Mo’s Mustache
A monster with a mustache is setting a trend. How can you stand out when everyone wants to look just like you?
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Vote for Me
This is an annual read for our family. Every year at election time, this one comes out again. It’s a fun look at voting, opinions, arguing and finding compromises.
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Easy Readers by Ben Clanton
This is where you fall in love with Narwhal and Jelly and their world under the sea – if you haven’t already. This is an award-winning series of truly hysterical and joyful easy reader series. There are 6 in the series so far. Both of my kids adore these books. Start with Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea.
Click Here to Get the Preschool Author Study Pack
Author Study Activity Ideas
Playing with the books you read, writing and creating based on what you read, imitating an author’s style or aspects of their work is part of the fun of author studies. The options are unlimited.
When I’m deciding how to extend our reading, I think about my favorite unifying aspects of an artist’s work and themes that we love. For example, the materials they use to craft their illustrations. The theme of their work – maybe science or animals or every day life. Then I think of some creative ways to explore those with my kids. There is no incorrect direction to go with this. Explore, try things, have fun.
Art Ideas
- Listen and sing along with the Narwhal & Jelly song by Emily Arrow.
- Learn how to draw Narwhal from Ben Clanton’s site.
- Fine Motor Jellyfish Craft from Buggy and Buddy
- Learn to make Origami Narwhals – watch on YouTube
Writing Ideas
- Make up your own Narwhal & Jelly comic – there’s a short template on Ben Clanton’s website or you can make your own from scratch with these longer graphic novel templates.
- Explore writing graphic novels more. We love The Drawing Lesson, it’s a graphic novel that teaches kids how to draw and Art for Kids: Create Your Own Comic Strips from Start to Finish which is also a great guide for kids.
- If teachers want even more, here is an educator’s guide about using Narwhal and Jelly.
- Focusing on his picture books? Try this writing prompts:
Pick one vegetable and write a story about that vegetable participating in something you love to do.
STEM Ideas
- Love Rot? Try one of these fun potato activities.
- Learn more about narwhals, jellyfish, dinosaurs or whichever character you love the most.
#2021authorstudychallenge
Share your favorite books and Ben Clanton activities on Instagram with the hashtag #2021authorstudychallenge.
