Velma Gratch and the Way Cool Butterfly

A delightful story of a little red-haired girl trying to find her place in the world. Velma Gratch has lived in the shadow of her older sisters, and desperately wishes to be known for something that she alone has accomplished. The frustrated first grader learns that she will take a field trip to the Butterfly Conservatory. Her sisters have never been there. She becomes excited and learns as much as she can on the subject of butterflies. While at the conservatory, a beautiful little Monarch Butterfly takes a liking to Velma, and decides to perch itself on her finger for quite a few hilarious days. Velma will now be remembered as the Gratch sister with the way cool butterfly.Alan Madison weaves a magical story which keeps readers guessing what will happen next. The reader will not just be entertained. They may accidently learn some really cool facts about butterflies.The illustrations of Kevin Hawkes are comical as well as scientifically accurate.My classroom full of 5 year olds loved this story. It was a wonderful addition to our study of Butterflies.

This book is so fun to read to students! It's a perfect text to promote meaningful discussions, personal connections, or an insect unit. Velma Gratch is the youngest of the Gratch sisters. All the teachers at her school remember her sisters for their outstanding accomplishments, but Velma feels like she has nothing to offer that's outstanding to remember. Then, her world changes with a terrific discovery. Students love this one. The pictures are adorable. Also, this book lends itself to vocabulary instruction of Tier 2 and 3 words. The story is multi-layered and fun to analyze, both with the author's style of story-telling and the actions of its characters. Enjoy!

This book is awesome. We read it initially at the natural history museum and enjoyed it so much we purchased our own copy. The story is about a little girl, the youngest of three, who is having trouble standing out as she enters the first grade. Without any spoilers, Learning about butterflies helps Velma through the adjustment period. The book is relatable, well rotten, nicely illustrated, and contains unusual vocabulary ("metamorphosis!"). My child is three and loves this story, but I could see older children liking it as well. (Mommy likes it as well, so it's not a chore to read this slightly lengthy story before bedtime.)

This is a super fun book. We originally read this from the local library. My 6 year old son liked it so much I bought it. Velma is always living in the shadow of her older sisters, but she comes into her own fame when she meets a beautiful Monarch butterfly. We have consistently been reading this book for the past year and a half, great purchase!

This book is beautifully illustrated and is an excellent book to read to elementary classes as an introduction and read- aloud when introducing migration of monarch butterflies . I have used it in grades two through six and then followed by a deeper study of these phenomenal insects!!

We purchased a variety of butterfly books and distributed them to several schools in which we had also planted "Monarch Waystations" on their school grounds. Out of all the books we purchased we had two absolute favorites: Velma Gratch and Gotta Go Gotta Go. Both are wonderful read aloud books filled with terrific illustrations and great stories.

I love this book. My four year old granddaughter loves it too. When she comes over she always asks me to read it. One day, I let her take it home. She's still asking me to read it. I may need to get another for my house. It took us reading it three times before she settled in to the story and was ready to listen to the whole book at once.

Cute story but a little boring! My 2 & 5 year olds love butterflies so we purchased all butterfly books we could find! This one wasn't a favorite

Love you this book. It's empowering, educational with a great sense of fun. OK, it's a bit American but we just change some of the language a bit. It's a huge hit with my four year old.

My students loved this story. Perfect for teaching a butterfly unit...also for those students who feel overshadowed by their siblings. We all have special and valuable gifts to share.

Just perfect for a granddaughter that has an interest in anything in nature that moves.