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Mrs. Spitzer's Garden
A beautiful, moving story and the perfect teacher appreciation gift. Mrs. Spitzer is a wise teacher who knows many things. She knows about gardens. She knows about children. She knows how similar they are, and how both will flourish if tended lovingly. There are many remarkable teachers like Mrs. Spitzer in the world, and Edith Pattou's simple, moving story along with Tricia Tusa's inspired, whimsical illustrations celebrate all they do, year after year, to help our children grow and blossom.
32 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2001
10 people are currently reading
255 people want to read
About the author
Edith Pattou
8 books852 followersEdith Pattou is the author of several fantasy novels, including East, an ALA Top Ten Best Book for Young Adults. She is a graduate of the Francis W. Parker School, Scripps College (B.A., English), Claremont Graduate School (M.A., English) and UCLA (M.L.I.S.). She is married to Charles Emery, a professor of psychology at The Ohio State University. They have one child, a daughter.
For more information, please see http://www.answers.com/topic/edith-pa...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 88 reviews
April 4, 2011
Category: Grades K-3, Book #8
This book is a great read-aloud to use for students on the first day of school, or even on the last day of school. The book is about Mrs. Spitzer, who is a teacher. Every year her principal walks down to her room and gives her a packet of seeds. She plants the seeds and takes care of the plants all year. Some of the plants grow quickly, others take their time. All the flowers are an analogy for students in a teacher's classroom and how she takes care of her students all year. It is such a beautiful book! At the end, she has to let them go, but they continue to grow and get bigger and brighter! What a great tribute to teachers AND students! I typically read this book at the beginning of the year and then ask my students to draw a picture of what they would look like as a flower, and then we "plant" their drawings in my room, where they stay all year. And then at the end of the year, the I read the book again, and ask the kids to draw themselves as flowers again. Then the kids are asked to compare what they looked like at the beginning of the year and at the end and how they are alike and different.
Critic Review taken from Barnes and Noble.com:
"I love this book! Every teacher in the universe should have a copy." - Mem Fox (I thought this was a pretty reputable source, Mem Fox!)
This book is a great read-aloud to use for students on the first day of school, or even on the last day of school. The book is about Mrs. Spitzer, who is a teacher. Every year her principal walks down to her room and gives her a packet of seeds. She plants the seeds and takes care of the plants all year. Some of the plants grow quickly, others take their time. All the flowers are an analogy for students in a teacher's classroom and how she takes care of her students all year. It is such a beautiful book! At the end, she has to let them go, but they continue to grow and get bigger and brighter! What a great tribute to teachers AND students! I typically read this book at the beginning of the year and then ask my students to draw a picture of what they would look like as a flower, and then we "plant" their drawings in my room, where they stay all year. And then at the end of the year, the I read the book again, and ask the kids to draw themselves as flowers again. Then the kids are asked to compare what they looked like at the beginning of the year and at the end and how they are alike and different.
Critic Review taken from Barnes and Noble.com:
"I love this book! Every teacher in the universe should have a copy." - Mem Fox (I thought this was a pretty reputable source, Mem Fox!)
March 18, 2010
This is really an adult story hidden in an illustrated picture book. The book was inspired by the author as a teacher gift and, to me, that is really the audience for this story.
Read
February 3, 2018How I love Mrs. Spitzer's Garden! Illustrated by the amazing Tricia Tusa, Mrs. Spitzer's Garden is a must have for classrooms around the world. Not to mention a great end of school year gift for a teacher or anyone taking care of a child or children. Children will appreciate the understanding Mrs. Spitzer has towards her students (and seedlings) as they grow and evolve through the year at their own pace. The faces of the flowers are whimsical and enchanting. A beautiful, unique book.
March 28, 2017
"At the end of summer, Mr. Merrick, the principal, walks down the hall to Mrs. Spitzer's room and gives her a packet of seeds" (np). Every year, Mrs. Spitzer is given her packet of seeds and others wait on to see her work her magic. Will she able to tend to her garden no matter the circumstances?
There are a number of reasons why this book deserves 5 stars. At first glance, it seems like a good fit for introducing seasons to children (which it is). However, its real value is that it is a great fit for any person who will ever be put in a role of leadership. Mrs. Spitzer is a prime example of someone who knows what it takes to see growth and is willing to be there, no matter the weather.
I loved seeing the metaphors for the different types of students that will be encouraged through flowers. I will be honest, when I first went through this book, the art threw me off a little bit and I didn't fully understand the message. But going through it again allowed me to see that first glances aren't everything. That, like garden tending, things take time.
While this book is 15 years old, the message is one that doesn't diminish over time. I know that this would be a cherished book in any collection and I plan on having it in my own.
There are a number of reasons why this book deserves 5 stars. At first glance, it seems like a good fit for introducing seasons to children (which it is). However, its real value is that it is a great fit for any person who will ever be put in a role of leadership. Mrs. Spitzer is a prime example of someone who knows what it takes to see growth and is willing to be there, no matter the weather.
I loved seeing the metaphors for the different types of students that will be encouraged through flowers. I will be honest, when I first went through this book, the art threw me off a little bit and I didn't fully understand the message. But going through it again allowed me to see that first glances aren't everything. That, like garden tending, things take time.
While this book is 15 years old, the message is one that doesn't diminish over time. I know that this would be a cherished book in any collection and I plan on having it in my own.
July 14, 2014
Beautiful book about teaching. It was first recommended to me by a mentor teacher (thanks Maria Walther!), and then my first-grader brought it home as her library pick--she absolutely loved the story, especially as she realized that the seeds were really students. We talked about how everyone learns in their own way at their own pace and how different kids need different things from their teacher. We must have read it a dozen times that week. It would make a great gift for an elementary teacher.
February 21, 2015
Mrs. Spitzer's Garden is a great book for teachers. This book talks about a teacher that sees a resemblance between her students and the plants in a garden. Different plants in a garden grow at different paces, some grow in almost any setting, others need more care and attention. The teacher in the book tends to all of her plants and cares for them just like she does her students. She recognizes that they are all unique. I think this is a great book and it could be read to a class, helping students understand it is ok to be different.
July 30, 2016
I'm a retired first grade teacher. My last year of teaching, I used Mrs. Spitzer's Garden as the theme of my classroom. The children were welcomed by my classroom door saying -- Welcome To Mrs. Elstad's Garden. The book is about a teacher who is given a "pack of seeds" at the beginning of the year by her principal. It's a story of how Mrs. Spritzer plants and nurtures her "little seeds" all year long! A darling story and my classroom looked awesome as a beautiful little garden! Children, parents and I loved it! Give this book a go!
February 6, 2012
I get it. The flower seeds are her students, and blah, blah, blah. It's just not written very well, and is a bit clunky.
The illustrations are nice, but a bit messy.
It's an OK story, but there are others out there that take this message and make it shine. This story doesn't shine, it just sort of sits there like a lost crayon under the teacher's desk.
The illustrations are nice, but a bit messy.
It's an OK story, but there are others out there that take this message and make it shine. This story doesn't shine, it just sort of sits there like a lost crayon under the teacher's desk.
June 19, 2008
One of my favorite "teacher books!" I read this over and over to my class during the year, especially near the last day of school.
October 10, 2021
The plot of the story takes place in a school in Mrs. Spritzer's classroom, describing the layout of her room. The principal comes down the hallway before school starts to give each teacher a packet of seeds for the school year. The story tells Mrs. Spritzer as a gardener tending with her tools to help support her garden to grow. All the seeds grow in different ways and that is just okay, she gives them the support that each one needs. The character is really just Mrs. Spritzer and her garden but really it is just her throughout the story. The structure through the story is the narrator so the reader telling the story, with illustrations that are cute and bubbly drawings filled with color and detail. There is nothing I dislike about this book. What I do like is how the students are portrayed as beautiful plants and flowers who grow in their own and different ways with the support and guidance of their teacher. I can use this book in the classroom through writing activities and also using it as literacy activities like retelling a story. This book was refreshing and also such a cute way to describe the process of the school year in a fun and imaginative way. I think using the idea of students being all sorts of different flowers where some grow upright and straight while others may need more watching and support. It touches on the fact that all students you have in your classroom are unique and grow/ develop in their own way.
September 11, 2018
Mrs. Spitzer's Garden by Edith Pattou is about a teacher who is starting a new school year. However, instead of students coming into her classroom on the first day, the principal gives her seeds to plant. She plants, waters, and watches the seeds grow into several different types of plants. Not one is the same. They all are different colors and sizes, and Mrs. Spitzer has to tend to each one a different way. In the end, it says Mrs. Spitzer's job is done. However, even though her job is done, the plants will keep growing on their own.
I loved this book! It was one of my favorite picture books. I would read this to my class if we were learning about symbolism. The plants symbolize all the different students of Mrs. Spitzer's classroom. Not one of them is the same, and they are all unique in their own way. This book teaches students that there is no one else like them. It will also reassure them that no matter who they are or where they come from, I will be there for them to help them grow as a person and as a student every day of the year.
I loved this book! It was one of my favorite picture books. I would read this to my class if we were learning about symbolism. The plants symbolize all the different students of Mrs. Spitzer's classroom. Not one of them is the same, and they are all unique in their own way. This book teaches students that there is no one else like them. It will also reassure them that no matter who they are or where they come from, I will be there for them to help them grow as a person and as a student every day of the year.
May 10, 2020
Cool book that honors teachers for cultivating kids so that they can bloom. Mrs Spitzer is a wise lady teacher who gets seeds from Principal Merrick every once in a while, and she then heads for a patch of ground on school grounds and begins to grow a nice garden, where smiley face flowers and veggies are popping out of the dirt and eager to greet Mrs Spitzer and anyone from her class. This book is advertised as "perfect for your favorite teacher". It should be given as a gift to your favorite kids, too, if they accept. As they say, we read what we sow into a kid's heart.
Four stars
Spitzer Plants the Dance!!!
Four stars
Spitzer Plants the Dance!!!
December 14, 2018
Mrs. Spitzer is a kindergarten teacher. This book uses garden seeds as a way to show what teachers do with, and for, children in their classrooms to protect them and nourish them while they are in her care. The illustrations are whimsical and beautiful as well. As an elementary teacher, I enjoyed reading this.
May 22, 2019
A sentimental tribute to a kindergarten teacher. The illustrations are attractive and the story is warm and clever. I was looking for a story about gardening to read with young children. This is not that book, but it was a nice discovery. If I wanted to use it in the classroom, I might use it as a mentor text for metaphor.
March 22, 2020
I read this book virtually to my Kindergarten students since we haven’t been in class all week because of the COVID-19... the words truly speak volumes to me about my students in so many ways...
•they bloom differently
•some will bloom wherever, some need more nurturing and care
•they leave my class and I still get to watch them bloom and grow
❤️
•they bloom differently
•some will bloom wherever, some need more nurturing and care
•they leave my class and I still get to watch them bloom and grow
❤️
October 15, 2022
No children are mentioned in this book, but the connection between what the teacher does to nurture and help children grow spoke to my heart.
This would be a great book to give someone when they graduate in education or when they retire. The author write up says that she wrote it originally to give to her daughter's kindergarten teacher.
This would be a great book to give someone when they graduate in education or when they retire. The author write up says that she wrote it originally to give to her daughter's kindergarten teacher.
November 6, 2022
Edith Pattou is a favorite of mine and when I saw this one on Goodreads, I immediately asked for it at our library. What a heart-melting treasure it turned out to be!
Give this one to every teacher you know! Pattou sees to the heart of what good teachers do and Tricia Tusa's illustrations are a whimsical perfect match. I'm ordering this one to own and to give.
Give this one to every teacher you know! Pattou sees to the heart of what good teachers do and Tricia Tusa's illustrations are a whimsical perfect match. I'm ordering this one to own and to give.
October 30, 2017
Genre- Realistic Fiction
Grade- 2-4
Unique- Practices with growth mindset and allows for students to expand understanding through reading. Also, many activities are available online that allow for extensions to writing.
Grade- 2-4
Unique- Practices with growth mindset and allows for students to expand understanding through reading. Also, many activities are available online that allow for extensions to writing.
August 3, 2023
The story sucks.
The illustrations are amazing and I love all of the bugs and the worms and the pests and oh they are so cute. They are so so cute. The Illustrations are the only thing that makes people buy this book.
The illustrations are amazing and I love all of the bugs and the worms and the pests and oh they are so cute. They are so so cute. The Illustrations are the only thing that makes people buy this book.
September 16, 2023
Absolutely every teacher in elementary should have this book and read it aloud to their students. This is a beautiful symbolic book about the way teachers tend to their garden of students every year. I cried tears of happiness!
May 23, 2017
I love this book!
February 23, 2018
Wonderful read-aloud for first or last day of school. Excellent book to boost morale and read to teachers when they need inspiration.
March 20, 2018
Love, love, love! Every teacher should have this book!
April 12, 2018
A unique way to look at a teacher & her class.
May 4, 2018
Excellent book, flowers in the garden as metaphor for growing students in an elementary classroom. Would make a great gift for any Elementary Teacher.
July 3, 2018
Charming story using a well-tended garden as a metaphor for a dedicated kindergarten teacher and her students.
March 24, 2019
What a delight. I start every year with this book and they love it.
April 26, 2019
This is a beautifully illustrated book and the extended garden metaphor is sweet, but it seems like a book that should be more a gift book for a teacher rather than a picture book for children?
May 21, 2019
Another sweet story about teachers and their classes.
November 13, 2019
its okay
Displaying 1 - 30 of 88 reviews