Highland Elementary Students Learn About Friendship [PHOTOS]

Preschoolers at Highland Elementary instantly fell in love with Jenny and her "Junkyard Dog". A Jamestown, Kentucky artist created the sculpture with scrap metal.

It was a wonderful morning reading to preschoolers at Highland Elementary. It's something that I truly love to do. I always want to find the perfect book to keep their attention, and to use their imagination. That's why I knew that I'd hit the jackpot when I found, "Jenny Makes a Junkyard Friend" at Studio 105 Art & Frame Gallery in Downtown Owensboro. I actually found the "Junkyard Dog" sculpture first and thought it was creative. It's made from scrap metal that you'd find in a junkyard. Of course, I bought them both. When I got home and read the book, I thought that Jenny looked just like my CoCo, so I knew I was on to something. I could make this story actually come to life. I knew the kids would love the book and it exceeded my expectation.

Here's the premise of the book: Jenny is lonely and wants to find a friend. She goes out looking for one and stumbles into a junkyard. She sees all of the metal parts and decides to build her own "Junkyard Dog", which comes to life. They go on adventures together and become best friends.

These are the lessons that we learned from the book, and we talked about them. If you use your imagination, you'll never be alone, whether through reading or art. They also learned about the scrap metal pieces that were recycled to sculpt the dog. Sometimes what is considered junk can be utilized for something beautiful. Now, the real FUN begins!

After I read the book, I pulled out photos of Jenny (aka CoCo) with her new friend......and then...... I pulled out the REAL "Junkyard Dog". The children went crazy. Everyone wanted to touch his tongue and hold him. The looks on their faces were priceless. I asked if they wanted to meet Jenny sometime and some of her other Junkyard friends. It was a deafening YES. Preschoolers always melt my heart.

"Jenny Makes a Junkyard Friend" is written by Rich Kolb and Allison Aboud Holzer, who also did the Illustration.

"Yardbirds" and "Junkyard Animals" are brought to life by Rich Kolb, who's been turning junk, into beautiful art for more than a decade.