Bubbly Beautiful Kitty-Corn,

Learning Goals

• Identify Kitty and Unicorn’s feelings in Bubbly Beautiful Kitty-Corn, using details from Shannon Hale’s words and LeUyen Pham’s illustrations.
• Explain how Kitty and Unicorn respond to each other and what their interactions reveal about friendship and belonging.
• Compare a character’s outward appearance with the feelings or needs revealed through the story.
• Create a picture-and-word response showing how a friend can help someone feel valued.

Activity Steps

1. 1.Introduce the cover and title. Ask: “What do you notice about Kitty and Unicorn? What might ‘bubbly’ and ‘beautiful’ mean in this story?” Record predictions without confirming them.
2. 2.Read the book aloud, pausing at moments when a character’s feelings become apparent or change. Invite students to examine facial expressions, posture, dialogue, and illustrations. Ask: “What makes you think the character feels that way?”
3. 3.Create a class chart with three columns: “Character,” “Feeling,” and “Story Evidence.” Add examples for both Kitty and Unicorn. Discuss how their actions help—or do not help—the other character feel understood.
4. 4.Have partners choose one interaction between Kitty and Unicorn and explain what it teaches about friendship. Grades K–2 can retell orally or draw the interaction; grades 3–5 can write a short explanation supported by a specific story detail.
5. 5.Create a “Beautiful Friendship Bubbles” page. Students draw Kitty and Unicorn, then add three paper bubbles containing a character’s feeling, a caring action from the story, and a caring action they could use with a friend. Younger students may dictate labels; older students should explain the connection between their chosen action and the book.
6. 6.Invite students to share one bubble. Revisit the opening predictions and close with: “What does this story suggest makes a friendship beautiful?”