The Hundred Dresses

APA Bibliography: Estes, E., & Slobodkin, L. (1972). The Hundred Dresses. New York, NY: Houghton Muffin Harcourt.

Readability Lexile: 870L

Book Information: https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/books/the-hundred-dresses-by-eleanor-estes/

Genre: Fiction

Author Information: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/23821.Eleanor_Estes

Illustrator Information: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/169833.Louis_Slobodkin

Summary: This classic story is about a girl named Wanda who moved from Poland to Connecticut with her father and brother. She lives in a poor neighborhood and wears the same faded blue dress to school everyday. She tells the other girls at school that she has a hundred beautiful dresses, but the other girls start making fun of her. Maddie, one of the popular girls, wants to speak up because she knows what it is like to live in poverty, but she doesn't. She thinks if she says something, she will be made fun of too. When it comes time for the annual drawing contest, everyone is surprised to find out  that Wanda turned in a hundred pictures. But Wanda wasn't there to collect the prize. When Wanda's father sends a letter to Wanda's teacher, everyone feels sorry for bullying Wanda. Maddie feels even worse to find out that she has moved away because of her. She vows to never stand by when someone is getting bullied again. 

Target Audience: The target audience for this book is children in grades 3-5. This book is appropriate for them because it relates to them. The children in the book are the same age as the target audience of this book. 

Evaluation: I think this book is great when it comes to teaching children about poverty and bullying. It is a classic story that everyone loves because of the message it sends. It shows children what it feels like to get bullied because of your living condition and you can't control it. 

Reader Response Activity: An activity you can do with this book is to have a drawing contest in your classroom just like the book did. Have the girls draw dresses and have the boys draw a motorboat. Select one boy and one girl as winners. This activity is really fun and allows the students to be creative.