Curriculum Connections
Medical Fun with Doctor Pun
based on Judy Moody, M.D., The Doctor Is In!
by Megan McDonald
Grades: 3–6
View and print the student activity sheet (PDF)
About the Book
The doctor is in. Dr. Judy Moody that is! Class 3T is learning all about the amazing human body. Judy�s teacher, Mr. Todd, has no trouble grabbing her attention with this science unit. Follow Judy as she tries to nurse her brother Stink with prunes, operates on a zucchini, and attempts to clone a guinea pig. Along the way, Judy learns a lot about the human body as she �becomes� Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman doctor. Then, Judy becomes the patient herself and must take the medicine that she has been dishing out..
Set the Stage
Get students ready to read by showing the cover and talking about the title and pictures:
- Discuss the title and cover of the book.
- Talk about why Judy might be in a mood to be a doctor.
- Look at the pictures in the book on pages 12, 26, 35, 98 and 150. Without reading the words, talk about the pictures and make predictions about what will happen in the book.
Review
After reading the book, discuss the following with the class:
- Discuss whether or not the predictions made in the pre-reading activity were accurate.
- Ask the students about their visits to the doctor. Have any of them been to the emergency room? Have any of them had a broken bone and needed a cast?
- Discuss the concept of cloning. Talk about how this is something that has been done, but it is much more complicated than a few hairs in a petri dish.
- Introduce the word pun. Talk about the humorous use of words that have the same or nearly the same sound but different meanings. Use the example in the book of the students referring to Dr. Nosier as Dr. Nosehair.
- Have students look back through the book for information about Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell. Blackwell became a doctor in 1849. Discuss with the students the difficulties she would have faced becoming a doctor at that time. How would that be different for a woman today?
- Have students share what they do at home when they are sick.
Student Activity
Students will have fun figuring out the puns used in the book and coming up with some of their own.
Related Activities
To extend students� enjoyment of the book, try these:
- Paw Power: Discuss the organization of Paws for People. Use the internet to research more information about the use of animals to help people feel better and heal. Have students look for other organizations that use animals to make people�s lives better.
- ER Fieldtrip: Arrange for the students to visit an emergency room or have a doctor or nurse come to the class to talk about their job.
- Food for Thought: Judy tried to give Stink a prune to cure him. Discuss with the students about how certain foods provide vitamins necessary for good health. Show the students the food pyramid. Have students construct their own food pyramids using pictures they cut out of magazines.
- Pun Fun: Have the students write a short story using at least one pun. Have the students draw a picture to go with their story.
(PDF)
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