Amos and Boris written by William Steig is a great story of friendship and loyalty. Amos, a mouse, goes on a journey into the ocean and meets Boris along the way. Both end up needing the assistance of the other and thus, their friendship is built. Boris saves Amos and Amos saves Boris and both vow to be friends forever.
This book is a great way to introduce key lessons to elementary students, including comparing and contrasting, picking up on key themes, and analyzing vocabulary words. Including storyboards in these activities will enhance creativity and comprehension due to the visual nature of storyboarding!
A mouse named Amos lives on land near the ocean. He loves the ocean and wonders about the faraway places across the water. He decides to build a boat so he can venture across the sea. Amos works extremely hard on his boat and when it is finished he loads it with all the necessities a little mouse would need to navigate the seas.
On the sixth of September, Amos decides to set sail. With all his strength he pushes the boat into the water and starts his journey on the Rodent. After only one day of seasickness, Amos, proves to be a natural sailor.
One night, little Amos, who was overwhelmed by the beauty of his surroundings, rolls right off the deck of his boat! The boat evades his grasp and he is stuck treading water alone in the big ocean. He thinks about his options and decides to just stay afloat and hope that something would save him.
The next day, Amos, who is still alone wonders what it would be like if he drown. He feels very bad for himself until a giant creature looms out of the water. It is a whale named Boris. Boris and Amos introduce themselves and Amos asks if Boris could bring him to shore. Boris, being a very nice whale, agrees to help Amos and they start off on their journey back to shore.
On their journey, Boris and Amos talk about everything. They develop a deep admiration for one another. Boris delivers Amos to shore and they discuss how they are going to miss each other and how they wish they could be friends forever. They decide that they will be friends forever but one has to live on land and one has to live in the sea. Amos is so grateful to Boris for saving his life that he tells Boris if he ever needs help that he will be there for him. Neither one knew how Amos could ever help the big whale.
Many years later, a hurricane comes and washes Boris on to the shore. Boris cannot get back into the water. He sees Amos and cries for help. Amos runs away and comes back with two elephants that push Boris back into the ocean. Amos’ quick thinking saved Boris. Amos and Boris say what could be their final goodbyes but each one knew that they would be friends forever.
