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speech and language teaching concepts for Down to the Sea with Mr. Magee in speech therapy
Frequent Speech Sounds:

/w/ initial
/l/ final
/g/ medial
/d/ initial
/m/ initial
/s/ initial

Themes:

summer
ocean
adventure
unfortunate events

Book Details:
Diverse Characters: N/A
Age Recommendation: Elementary, Late Elementary

Down to the Sea with Mr. Magee

By Chris Van Dusen

A man and his dog have a whale of a time when their boat trip leads to unexpected adventure in this charmingly illustrated verse children’s book. With enough lunch for three, Mr. Magee and his dog Dee head out to the sea. But what begins as a fun day in the sun turns a bit bumpy when one playful whale decides to say hello. Soon the crew that once was floating finds themselves flying! How will they get down? Who will come to their rescue? And when will they ever get to eat lunch? Down to the Sea with Mr. Magee is a great read-aloud book, sure to provide fits of giggles.

This adventurous summer and ocean themed book can be used in speech therapy to focus on inferencing and rhyming. It is also great for noticing character expressions and for describing using various adjectives. Discover more of the speech and language teaching concepts for using Down to the Sea with Mr. Magee in speech therapy below: 

Key Teaching Concepts

Narrative Structure:

complete episode

Narrative Concepts:

vocabulary
theme/message
illustration study
predicting
inferencing
social/emotional
adjectives
verbs (irregular past tense)
verbs (regular past tense)
text features
phonological awareness

Vocabulary:

spree, decision, dock, deck, bow, minnows, plankton, krill, bay, blast, sudden, stranded, spruce, dismay, swiftly, downhearted, hopeless, budge, spectacular, island, surround, glee, dislodge

Social/Emotional:

Mr. Magee enjoys an adventure with his dog friend, Dee. They face many obstacles and learn to enjoy the journey over the destination through the help of some new friends, the whales. They also learn that sometimes the most unlikely of characters can be the most helpful.

Grammar:

adjectives
verbs (regular past tense)
verbs (irregular past tense)

Text Features:

capitals
parentheses
dialogue

Phonological Awareness:

rhyming

Inferencing:

How do you think Mr. Magee and Dee feel about going on an adventure?
How do you think they felt when they saw the whales?
Why did the little whale leave the others?
Why did Mr. Magee and Dee not notice the whale that was right under them?
Why did the boat rise higher and higher?
How do you think they felt when the boat flew over the water?
How do you think they felt when they were stuck in the tree?
How do you think they felt when they were free?
Why didn’t they eat one bite of their food?

Predicting:

What do you think they will take with them on the water?
What do you think they will see?
What do you think the whale will do?
What do you think will happen to Magee and Dee?
How do you think they will get out of the tree?
What do you think the other whales will do?
What do you think they will do when they get home?

​If you are interested in using Down to the Sea with Mr. Magee in speech therapy, then check out the book companion with the full lesson plans and activities.

If you are interested in seeing other summer books to use in therapy, then check out the Seasonal Teaching Points Book List for a printable copy.