Purple, Green, and Yellow

This story, by Robert Munsch and Helene Desputeaux, is one of my all time favorites. It's about a little girl named Brigid (really, it's amazing) who loves coloring with markers. Her mother won't buy her any markers because she thinks Brigid will color the walls, the floors, and herself. However, Brigid tells her about these washable markers that will wash off anything, so can she please have them. Her mother obliges. After a while, Brigid gets bored and wants smelly markers. Same thing happens, and she gets bored. Then she asks her mother if she colored anything but pictures, and she hasn't, so her mother agrees to buy her permanent markers. However, this time Brigid goes crazy! She colors herself, her clothes, and her father! The mother has to call the Doctor because the marker won't wash off. I think you could use this in a classroom to show kids how important it is to follow directions (in the end, she's nothing, literally). You could use this to describe colors as well, because there are many many colors in the story, as well as shapes and pictures. And it's a great book, especially, because the girls' name is Brigid!