Animals Black and White

Phyllis Limbacher Tildes wrote and illustrated this non-fiction piece titled Animals Black and White. The book is sort of in a riddle-like, question and answer format which makes you want to continue to turn the pages. You get a small clue from the illustrations, but more importantly the text gives lots of great factual details about the animal; so as you read the book like a game, it makes learning about the traits of the animal much more fun. As you can imagine, all of the animals that are mentioned in the book are black and white, including penguins, panda bears, zebras, orca whales, skunks and butterflies. I enjoyed the art work, and the question and answer theme of the book, and I could see it being used to introduce a Science lesson, or as a fun read at the end of the day or after lunch or a special area class.

The book is suitable for Kindergarten to 3rd grade readers, and I could see kids reading this book with a buddy in a way that one student is teaching another about the animals as the questions are all answered. For a pre-activity, you could have the students think about as many animals that are black and white to see if they can predict what animals will be in the book. Make a list at the front of the board and check them of as you read the book. Later, have students break off in groups and do a little more research on each of the animals from the book, and any others that they come up with that are black and white. The kids could make posters with all of the facts, and create a classroom quilt filled with animals and their traits. This is a book that gives lots of teaching opportunities.

Ish

I wanted to add at least one book about Art, especially now that so many of these important programs are getting cut from our school districts. Peter H Reynolds (The Dot and The North Star) writes about a young boy named Ramon who continues to try and try at his career as an Artist in the story Ish. After several months, Ramon decides to give up on his artwork as nothing really looks the way that he had expected to. I saw a theme of perfection and expectations, that I see so many kids get down on themselves for. Later, his sister Marisol steals one of his crumpled up drawings, and in trying to retrieve it back from her he chases her up to her room, only to find that most of his art work was decorating her room. The title Ish came about as they would describe his art work. The  flowers weren't put into any kind of perfect vase, but they were placed in something vase-ish. They renamed most of his art work with an -ish suffix, and as they learn to appreciate the individual art work, Ramon becomes more passionate for creating art, moving on to abstract art with emotions.

This book calls on a theme of having an individual expectation, and being let down when things don't turn out how we may expect them. This art lesson could also teach a social story as art can be very expressive and relaxing, and what makes it great is the connection that we all can have with the art. Before reading this book, I would allow students to think of something that makes them happy, and then have them paint it. After painting, they could read this story and share their art work with a peer, and they could tell them what they like about it. If the artist doesn't like their work, they could re-create it to see if they can make something better with the support of their peers and the freedom in their spirit. After creating the art work, they could make a small blurb about the art that makes them happy, and then reflect on the process to see how creating something as an individual and putting your own personal touch on things is what makes art. This read is targeted towards k-2nd grade learners, and if I am ever lucky enough to teach in those grade levels, I would definitely use this book somewhere in the curriculum! :)

Brown Bear, Brown Bear What do you See?

I had to put at least one Eric Carl  (and Bill Martin!) book in here, and I chose Brown Bear Brown Bear, What do you See? because I have so frequently used it in the last few years where I have had the opportunity to work closely with students who  have special needs. The story is easy, and it is about a brown bear who looks to another animal asks what they see. The book goes on in this pattern for about 10 or different animals, and I like this book because you can teach sequencing, colors, animals, etc. and kids love all of the bright colors and the simplicity of the text that ends up becoming very memorable.

Since this book can be used for early pre-school to about Kindergarten leveled students, this might be a chance to create a fun group activity for the little ones. First they could complete a puzzle that goes along with the story as a pre-activity, and then after reading the story for practice, they could each draw a picture of the different animals, reciting the lines of each page until they get to the end with the children and the teacher. It may even be fun to have them make a little costume out of construction paper and have them each stand up in sequential order when it is their turn in the story to recite their lines.

The Paper Bag Princess

This book cracks me up! What a smart little girl Elizabeth is in the story of The Paper Bag Princess, written by the infamous Robert Munsch. The story tells a take about this young Princess Elizabeth, who loses her prince by a fire-breathing dragon. Cleverly, Elizabeth goes to visit the dragon and she has him show her all of his tricks, like blowing away 500 forests with one breath, and flying around the world in a very short amount of time. I won't tell anymore of the story because I don't want to give it away, but the ending...is quite hilarious. :)

I really like the sense of making- do, and the bravery that the character of Elizabeth shows.Michael Martchenco uses pencil and color to portray the brave Paper Bag Princess and all of her adventures along the way, and the drawings were very fun! We always hear about princesses who can't get dirty or who continues to be the damsel in distress, and in this story the roles are reversed. It would be a great book for character education or teaching a lesson of bravery, and standing up for yourself. For a pre-lesson, I would have the students think of a time that they were truly afraid of something, and to write it down. After the lesson, the students could pass their fears around, allowing different children to solve the problem in a brave, and courageous way (as long as it was safe), writing a small creative story for ways that their peers could solve their problems. Way cute book!

Boomer Goes to School

This is a wicked cute book about a dog who gets to school with his kid owner as the show-and tell presentation. Boomer is a crazy dog who gets into everything and anything at school, and bringing him into school to represent the boy's show and tell was probably a lot more difficult than he had anticipated.

Eventually down the road I would like to write children's books, but one thing I have started recently was a series of more comedic tales of my dog Lucy's crazy, almost human-priveledged life. I grew up with a yellow laboradoar, who was just a part of our family as any one of us, and people sometimes overlook the relationships that can be developed with animals and their owners. They need us just as much as we need them, and I wish more animals could feel the love that our pets do when they are welcomed into a home--granted that it be a good and loving home.

For teachable moments, this story provides a great conflict-solution theme, where as a pre-activity, students could talk about what might occur if they brought their pets to school. After reading the book, the students could come up with a new plan to bring Boomer to school, with a better and more organized plan that could keep him out of most of the trouble he had gotten into. :) This was an adorable book, another library keeper :)

the Dandelion Seed

This book actually received a Benjamin Franklin Award by the Publisher's Marketing Association. Written by Joseph Anthony, and Cris Arbo, this story tells a scientific take of a dandelion seed and it;s journey through seasons. The theme of this story could also relate to life and how people grow and change, but not to worry because in the end things have a way of working out ( or at least, we hope so). I liked how the story expressed the feelings of the dandelion seed because it makes the text more flexible to the life story, while still explaining what happens when a seed is planted by nature, and the changes it will endure in it's lifetime. There were also themes of helping, giving and taking all in a communal sense. It would be a wonderful story to introduce the concept of photosynthesis, and how life cycles reoccur.

This book could be fit for 1st through 3rd grade learners, in a Science pre- text or in a comprehension lesson. Before I would ask the students what they know about life cycles on earth, and have them draw a picture to display their knowledge. After writing the book, they could come up with another life cycle of either a plant or an animal on earth, and we could culminate the activity by making a book of life cycles to develop a respect for all living things in this world.

The Runaway Bunny

The Runaway Bunny is a little story about a son bunny who continues to challenge his mother, saying he wants to run away from her. Why he wanted to run away is beyond me, and the Mother seemed as thought she would always be there for him from the retort that she always had prepared when he explains what he'll do or become when he does run. I felt a more human connection as the animals sort of became personified as the bunny child became more creative as the story progressed. It made me think of how children grow, and how each time we think they are ready for more independence, their mothers still remind them of the direction that they had before, and the direction that they will still get from the love of a family. Another theme I saw was one of family, and how you can run away from anything in this world, but you really can't divorce yourself from family, or the ones who care about you the most. 

I would use this story for sequencing, and teaching on the theme of companionship. I would as a pre-activity collect a few different stories based on companionship, and then add this one to the mix. Later the students could see the different ways people show love, and they could come up with a creative story or poetry to emulate how they would show companionship to friends family or any other loved ones.

Margaret Wise Brown also wrote Goodnight Moon, another classic that winds up in almost every child's night stand at one point or another. She has a simple yet effective way of writing, and her stories have a really classic feel to them. 

Come on Rain!

Come on Rain by Karen Hesse, was another book I received last year for my birthday, this time from my sister. The book has a sort old-fashioned feel to it, with the main character Tess bored with the heat and wanting the rain alongside her friends as a playmate. It had that good-old days feeling, before kids became glued to their DS systems and flat screen  T.V.s. The story itself is told in a folky, sharable way with plenty of dialogue and character development. Tess is impressive because she very clearly embraces the simple pleasures in life, and the illustrator Jon J Murth creates beautiful watercolor pictures to give us a better idea of this hot southern town that just wants a little bit of rain. :)

As a pre-activity, I would allow the students to picture walk the book and piece together what they think happens as the conclusion to the story. This book permits an open opportunity for learners to create their own dialogue, which could be the post activity, sharing it with a small group of peers or a partner. This is a great and relaxing read that is suitable for 1st-3rd graders. There is also a multicultural piece woven in, where time period collides with friendships in children of different races. I enjoy how that plays almost no factor in this story, especially in the south, and though later on in the illustrations you see how the mothers were somewhat separated by race with their daughters, they didn't seem to be afraid or upset to all be in the same place, enjoying one of life's great pleasures of simplicity.

My Japan

Estuko Watanabe paints an interesting picture about Japan, and shows the readers directly what is different in the every day culture in her book My Japan. Earlier in the semester, we were asked to pick out a series of books that centered around a cultural aspect, and though my group had chosen the Hispanic culture, I wound up completely forgetting that we had picked a topic, and went on to a topic of my own. Originally I became more interested in learning about Japan after the Tsunami and then the Earthquake had hit, and all I was hearing about on the news was of the tragedy as the Japanese people come from a warm culture full of customs, and as absolutely thriving community. This book was originally intended for K-2nd grade learners, but I think it is a great Fiction-based on Non-Fiction kind of book, and kids learning about geography and cultures could enjoy this book at any age. Little details are what struck me the most, like how they start school in April instead of September and how they kept the same school bag throughout their entire school careers. The food, the drink, vacations, and traditional dress...the transportation with NO street signs ( I'd be lost!), and lids for bathtubs to keep the water warm...I mean this is a cool book. At the end of the book, Watanebe gives us symbols and the Hirigana language, which represents syllables.

I would use this book to teach about the Japanese culture, but also during geographical and cultural studies. As I said before, I would totally use this book for older students as well, but I would probably stick with the primary grade levels, maybe 2nd or 3rd grade. This would be a perfect opportunity to use compare and contrast charts, like a Venn diagram. We could have the students work in small groups, collecting what they do in this country for food, celebrations, transportation, school, etc. After reading the story, the students could contrast what they do with how the Japanese culture works. Another book that I will definitely add to my library someday! :)

Feelings

This book was written and illustrated by Aliki, who is a well known author and illustrator, and I think I chose to blog about this book because we find it as a necessity to teach about emotions with students who have any kind of P.D.D. ( Pervasive Development Disorder). For whatever reason, emotions are a hard concept to grasp, and identifying personal feelings are even more difficult. I like this book because it took a creative approach to showing kids how to feel, using effective dialogue, cartoon stories, specifically defined emotions, and ways to solve problems with our emotions when things go awry. Our population of students ave Autism, and sometimes get upset for reasons that either we're not sure of, or that they are unsure of ( and sometimes, they are just like everyone else and they get upset when things don't get their way!) , and a book like this that walks you through different emotions and why people behave the way that they do is kind of like a God-send.

I would use this book for students with special needs first, and then keep it in a classroom as a resource for when those social problems pop up amongst children every so often. As a pre-activity, I would make little bag books that could be labeled with the different emotions that we may feel in all kinds of situations. In each bag book, I would either create a scenario or develop dialogue, and have the kids work in teams of 2-4 with role play. Together they can solve the problem using the corrected behavior, and then journal about it afterwards. I think as a whole group activity, the book could be fit for K-1st grade students, however for the students to use the book personally as a resource, it would be appropriate for 2nd-5th grade readers. Aliki did a wonderful job with the creative, kid like illustrations that are friendly and welcoming.

The Listening Walk

I used this book with this week a student who I work with who has special needs. The Listening Walk by Paul Showers, is about a little girl who loves to walk with her father and hear all of the different sounds that are coming from her surroundings. She pays attention to each and every detail, and you get a feel for her environment when she is using her mind to create memories with use of sound and visuals. It was a neat book, and after I read the book with my student, we went outside on a nature walk and tried to listen to different sounds which come from our school environment. Aliki illustrated very simple but fitting pictures for the book which almost allowed the kids to see what sounds look like.

This is a fictitious book with a realistic perspective, and could be used for very non-fiction themes when teaching about environment sounds. I think to some effect it also could be turned into a lesson of paying close attention to fine details when writing and describing any kind of noun. As a pre-activity, students could simply listen to what they hear in the classroom at that given moment, and then write down 5 things that they heard. Later after reading the book, they could go out for a walk to hear all different sounds, making a checklist of things that the little girl in the story heard, and drawing connections to see if the students saw and heard the same things she did on their walk. I think this book is well fit for Kindergarten through 2nd grade learners, and it could be used for Special needs students when developing themes of describing in detail. Cute book. :)

Dear Mrs. LaRue

This is another book I absolutely adore...Mark Teague, author and illustrator of the endearing little story of Ike the dog, wrote the story about Ike and his owner Mrs. LaRue, who has shipped him off to obedience school to improve upon his somewhat naughty dog behavior. Dear Mrs. LaRue is composed of mostly letters written from Ike to his beloved owner whom he misses dearly. I love this book for the multitude of literary elements, including persuasive writing, mood and tone, character development, plot and sequencing. The illustrations are really neat, and on each page you see the darker side, of what Ike is portraying in his persuasive letters and how he tries to go home with exaggerations of how bad it is at the obedience school. Those pictures are in gray scale, while the reality of the situation at the obedience school is in color, and not nearly as bad as Ike makes it out to be. Awesome book, really.

I used this story to teach persuasive writing, and there are elements and language readily available within the story for students to pull out while learning about the unit of persuasion. The kids loved this book! As a pre-activity we read this story, and then afterwards we worked together to find persuasive and figurative language that Ike used to get himself home and back into the arms of his owner. Then we had a discussion on why we persuade, especially when writing letters and trying to get our view points across. Finally we had a post-activity of discovering other methods of persuasion through lyrical music, commercials and advertisements, pod casts, etc. to explore the many reasons why we persuade, and how to be effective persuasive writers. This story is one I found most fit for 4th graders, but in range probably as early as 2nd grade for a read aloud, and up to 5th grade for the underlying elements.

If you Give a Pig a Pancake

Laura  Numeroff and Felicia Bond have created the wonderful series of books that are framed by personification and sequencing. Other titles including If you Give a Mouse a Cookie, If you Give a Cat a Cupcake, and If you Give a Moose a Muffin, as well as several other enjoyable stories in the line. I really love If you Give a Pig a Pancake because of the friendship that this young girl has with the pig, and most of the stories in this line have a young child who complies with the animal and all of their associated requests. Simply I love it because these characters carry on as though building a tree fort with a pig is completely normal, and I think children usually very often make wonderful friends of pets and animals.

The frame work also includes aspects of cause and effect, alongside personification and sequential ordering. With all of these stories, re-telling for a comprehension would be effective, but more importantly I think as you correlate the cause and effect that comes from the plot line, students could rebuild the story with sequencing. I am thinking in terms of puzzle pieces, and for a pre-activity they could share with a friend what their predictions of the story's outcome...what will happen if you give a pig a pancake? As the book is a simple read, I would allow students to continue to work in pairs to read the book together, and as a post activity they could create a time table, ordering the events of the story from 1-10 or 15, and piecing the cause-and effect elements together. These books are all very accessible for younger readers, I would say Kindergarten or 1st grade through 3rd grade.

Oh, the Things you can Do that are Good for You

Randomhouse Publishers in unison Seussville.com created a series of Dr. Seuss-themed stories called the "The Cat in the Hat's Learning Library". Being  a Wegman's veteran, I was in the aisle one day and picked up two books from the series as the writing approach in both subject areas is usually dryer and boring, and Tish Rabe's rhyming rendition was much more appealing, and memorable as rhyming schemes seem to stick in our heads better. Oh the Things you can Do that are Good for You! covers topics of health ranging from healthy foods, to exercise, to hygiene and taking care of your body. It can sometime be difficult to incorporate themes of health into elementary lessons as everyone has become increasingly more focused on curriculum goals and we all know how limited our time is in school. This is definitely a good classroom library candidate, and again I think it could be a useful teaching tool.

As a pre-activity, we could have students evaluate their day from when they wake up to when they go to bed. They could write up a schedule, working with components of time and organizing. Later they after reading how healthy Seussville characters lead their lives, they could go through their schedules and use a high lighter to find what they do in a day that is healthy (i.e. brushing teeth before bed, eating a piece of fruit at lunch). As a post activity, they could re-write their schedules, using the already healthy things that they do, and making changes to the not-so healthy behaviors and having a guide to take home and follow for a healthier living style.

Feast for 10

A simpler read, Feast for 10 by Catherine Falwell is an easy counting book that shows a warm family working together to create a family dinner. I could see this used as a book for Pre-Kindergarten or Kindergarten students who are learning to count. Each page illustrates the number of items that is discussed in the writing, allowing children to count in a read-aloud or with a buddy. I also like the idea of helping and sharing the tasks at home, and working together to make everyone happy.

I could see this book being re-told, and readily accessible for younger students or students with special needs. As a pre-activity, we could ask the students if there was a time when they worked together with their families to complete a task. I would then read the book aloud to the students, counting different people or items in the story until we reach 10, and then count backwards. As a post activity, students could match numbers with sequencing cards to create the path of the story, as well as using math components with counting.

A Girl Named Helen Keller

The story of Helen Keller is not only inspiring beyond belief, it's a story of relentlessness and efforts towards important goals, and the obstacles we face. Unfortunately for Keller, she suffered from being born blind and deaf, and in her younger years her frustrations were displayed through her erratic behavior. She begin working with a teacher who really wanted to reach out to her, and thought she had the potential to learn using braille. Later we learn that Helen attended a prestigious college and worked to educate students who have the disabilities of deafness and blindness. Clearly she was successful and someone giving her the chance of education probably saved her life. I really liked this non-fiction piece as it gently described Helen's life, and carried out an important message of having disabilities.

This book specifically is a Level 3 reader, fit for grade levels 1 and 2. The story was written by Margo Lundell, and the illustrations by Irene Trivas depict expression with warm tones and simple watercolor weaved into the pages of the story. In the classroom I would create a post-activity with students in pairs, allowing them to first examine our 5 senses and how each are useful. After reading the story, we could ask the students to take away just one of those senses to see how difficult it may become to perform daily school activities, like reading, writing and listening. I would have students attempt to read a few words in braille, and have them reflect in a journal with their feelings of being without a particular sense, and then commenting on how Keller may have felt during her younger years of learning.

The Mitten

The Mitten is another classic that just had to be posted in my blog, and I think I have seen it used in almost every classroom I have ever taught in classrooms from Kindergarten to 3rd grade. Beyond the intricate illustrations, Jan Brett, who has been creating stories since she was a little girl, wrote this special story about a boy who loses his mitten, and the adventures of the animals who all try to use the mitten for shelter on a cold winter day. The imagination she uses is absolutely fascinating to children, and this is probably one of my favorite stories to read during our wonderful winter season in Syracuse.

I could see this being a resource for Special needs children. The Speech teacher that I work with does a lesson with The Mitten each year, and every time I've seen her carry the unit out she adds something new to do to help students build upon their reading and literacy skills. As a pre-activity, students could picture walk and make predictions, and as a post-activity, have the students re-tell the story creating puppets, and displaying the actions of what happens in the story ( especially when the mitten rips, that could be a lot of fun!). She has also had the students work with sequencing with puzzle pieces that describe different parts of the story, and for students with Special needs the tangible resources are always a necessity. Originally is a well known Ukrainian folktale, and I'm thankful for Jan Brett's rendition that is so accessible for young learners.

Come to the Great World, Poems from Around the Globe

This is a collection of beautiful poetry written by children from all around the world. Some poems followed a rhyming pattern, while others were lengthier using descriptive language. All of the poetry expressed an individual joy or experiences that come from their lives and their lifestyles, which is where we learn about the different cultures and values. I was absolutely impressed by the depth of the words teamed with bright and colorful illustrations, and I do think that this is another book that should be in everyone's classroom--especially while a classroom learns about the components of poetry. We used this book in class when studying units of poetry, and I loved that the children were the authors and that they all came from different backgrounds. As the children are the real authors, the poems in this story were selected by Wendy Cooling, who has edited short stories of Roald Dahl, and in this book she works with Shiela Moxley, a world-traveling painter who studies different cultures from all around the world.

For classroom use, I would use this as a Literacy lesson in unison with geographical and cultural studies. As a pre-activity, students could write their own poem about something they know well from where they live or what they see every day. After reading the poems, we could have the students draw relationships that they make with their poetry and the poems from around the world. When they find one that they can relate to, they could write about why they feel strongly for the poetry, and create their own picture to describe the poetry. I would say this book is more fit for 7-12 year old readers, but it could be used in most classrooms that are practicing a poetry unit.

A House is a House for Me

One thing that I am seeing, and that I had noticed before but it probably isn't brought up enough, is that children's books can fall under many categories of learning, especially as the students begin to enter different subject areas in school that are individualized. A House is a House for Me is a little tale about items and living things that simply go together. A glove is a house for a hand, and a house is a house for me...the story has perfect little rhyming schemes to keep it catchy and memorable and this is another story that is so loaded with teachable activities. The author, Mary Ann Hoberman , and seemed to find a home for almost everything and anything.

I used this book when I was student teaching in an inclusive Kindergarten classroom. For the pre-activity, I asked the kids about where they live, and they all agreed that they lived in a home or an apartment. Yes that topic can get sticky, but that's another time. Later we had the students each take an item or a living thing, and then it's corresponding home. We played a game where the object or thing had to "go home" to practice making the associations. For the post-activity, the students simply had to draw a line to match pictures with their individual homes. Here I saw a combination of Science, Social Studies and ELA components, it's impressive! I would say the reading levels are appropriate for a younger audience, Kindergarten to 2nd grade. All in all, I  enjoyed the story was so carefully put together, and it was perfect for my unit. :)

One Tiny Turtle

One Tiny Turtle describes the life cycle of a loggerhead turtle and the complexities she endures in her lifetime, starting from hatching at the sandy shore to obstacles of the ocean, and then carrying a motherly role. This story definitely focuses on non-fiction material, though in the form of a story, and with side information that is more factual. On just about each page, the author wrote the factual information about the loggerhead turtles as though it were weaved into the waves, and it was a neat way to catch the reader's eye and make them want to look at the extra text. Nicola Davies wanted to write this story because she is passionate about animals ( especially sea turtles) and she wanted to portray how we are prohibiting their natural lifestyle when turtle eggs are hunted for food, pollution destroys the water they swim in and the beaches they lay eggs in, and of course the people who build on the beaches, which takes away from the natural environment of the sea turtles. Jane Chapman, who illustrated a beloved story in the classroom I work in (One Duck Stuck), also loves turtles and was waiting for her chance to illustrate a book involving Sea turtles, and you sure can tell--the art work is gorgeous.

I would use this book to teach a sequencing activity, or teach a lesson about the natural predators of sea turtles and human predators for that matter. As a pre-activity, I would allow the students to have a discussion with what they already know about sea turtles. Later as a post-activity, I would have them sequence the story, and reflect on anything that they didn't know that they now have learned from  reading the story. I would say the reading level is at a First grade place, but it is a great book to use when teaching about different animals and reptiles.

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

Oh yea. This book had to make it to the blogs, it's such a classic. First off, I don't know any book that could define Fiction any better. Judi and Ron Barret pair up to make this insane little town of chewandswallow, which is seemingly wonderful with food falling from the sky at every meal, however like an over-kill of any kind of resource, it eventually becomes a mess, and a start over is quite necessary. I think of our Federal spending and how too much of it made a big mess of our country as well :) . This is definitely a leisurely, favorite bed time type of story that eventually became a movie due to it's overwhelming popularity.

I do think there are teachable moments that come from the story, like how with fictitious stories we can add lots of elaboration and embellishments to make our stories more rich and exciting. I also think theres a subliminal message of resources and the notion of too much of anything is never a good thing. I think as a pre-activity I would ask the students what they thought this story would be about, and then after reading it I would allow them to recreate the story, but making it better and with a different solution. For example, in the story the townspeople simply move away and build bread houses. Why couldn't they have created giant barrels to catch each kind of food, and ship out what they didn't need to people who were starving? I would turn the book into a more critical thinking piece, and maybe touch on some elements of health as raining hot dogs ( or in my case, not dogs) may seem fantastic, but what is a healthier food that could be raining from the sky? Food for thought :p

Mockingbird

I love this book. This story is written in the viewpoint of a 10 year old girl with Asperger's syndrome, and the story takes place in her community, and in the death and loss of her older brother Devon. Her older brother was wonderful with her, and he helped her out so much that now Caitlin needs to really find her own way in her new life without him. Yes, it is absolutely sad, especially with any mention of the loss of a child in a family, however the story unfolds as sort of a problem solve as Caitlin overcomes her drastic difficulties.

Kathryn Erskine originally wrote the story to help portray the message of allowing students to be heard. She wrote this story after the Virginia Tech School Shooting, and Mockingbird similarly tells the story of a school shooting as a result of a student who didn't feel important. Erskine is a school counselor and understands the importance of counseling services for children and young adults, and how a little bit of help can go a long way.

 The story being written in Caitlin's voice really taps into the mindset of a child with Asperger's Syndrome. The dialogue is not only entertaining, but it shows how literal she takes things, but more importantly how she strives to keep learning everything she encounters, inside and out. I would recommend this story for readers 10 years old and up, though really it is enjoyable at any age, and for younger grade levels the book could be used as a read aloud. I would also recommend this book for Special Educators because of the understanding that you get from just this one student who has a disability. As a pre-activity, we could discuss ways that our peers are like us, and how they are different. After reading the story, we could discuss a variety of disabilities and also how we all learn in different ways. Later students could make a chain link with the things that they have in common with their peers until the chain links connect in a full circle.

Old Bear

Kevin Henkes is a Newbury Honor writer as well as  Caldecott Book Award winner, and he writes for primary ages through young adult novel. I'm not quite sure of the illustrator of this book as it went unlisted, but if it were him I would be even more impressed with him! This is a very simple tale fit for a younger, primary aged audience about a bear who dreams of all of the seasons that he experienced when he was young, and how especially long the winter is, which leads into a science theme of hibernation. As Old Bear travels through his seasons, emotions and colors are painted in the story, and for that I think the book also touches on the different seasons and how we can sort them by not only physical changes but the emotions that you feel within those seasons.

I would read this book to Kindergarten students, and then by First grade allow most readers to take this upon their own as it is a very simple read with rich beautiful pictures. For a pre-activity, students could guess what the word hibernation means, and how it relates to seasons of the year. After we read the book, I would ask the students to define hibernation, explain how it works with seasons with a visual aide, and then maybe research other animals who hibernate, and discuss what they may do before they go in for their long sleep.
I really loved this book, my mother bought it for me for my birthday last year when I had requested strictly children's books to build up my library, and I could definitely see how I could use this particularly for younger students.

Imagine

Alison Lester wrote this adorable dreamy story of what seems to be a brother and a sister, and all of the imagination that they could possibly possess. They turn their kitchen into an ocean, their snowy backyard into the arctic, their Lego set into a farm in the countryside, and well I'd go on but I can't give away all of the adventures! What I like about the book is that once they reach their imagination destination, bordering the illustrations are all of the words of objects that you can find in the artwork, kind of like an eye spy. I read this book one night while doing some other graduate work and hanging out with my boyfriend, and we had fun searching for all of the little words and trying to figure out the names of some of the exotic animals within the illustrations. More than anything, Alison showed how something so simple could become so vibrant with life with just a little imagginnattionnn. :)

So, on to how this book could be used for teaching: creative writing all the way. This book reminds me of art class, when Mrs. W.P. would give us a squiggle with black marker on a piece of paper and we had to create something spectacular from it. She would give us that task whenever we had finished early, and it now reminds me of writing, and how you can take a simple idea and expand it's complexities to make something awesome. A pre-activity could be having the kids find something small in the classroom like a pencil sharpener, a notebook, the flag, etc. From there they could tell an elaborate story with intricate details, making a simpler object into something much more. As a post-activity, they could share their stories with the class, or put them in the hallway for other students to read up on. Sounds like fun to me :)

Math Potatoes: Mind Stretching Brain Food

What a cool book. I greatly dislike math and all of it's confusion, however math poetry? Where was this 15 years ago when math was NO fun to me!? Math Potatoes was created by Greg Tang, a Harvard graduate and an NYU graduate of Mathematics Education, ans he believes deeply in problem solving to keep our brains healthy. Each page was so creatively written, either hiding math messages in lines of poetry, or actively telling to seek out math elements within the  Harry Brigg's illustrations. I stole this book from my Mom's classroom library, which tells me that it's actually Kindergarten safe, however it may be more geared for student ages 6-10. Greg Tang has created a Math series for all age levels, and at some point I would like to collect all of his books.

This book could be used for kids who struggle with math, yet seem to be stronger in reading and writing. Word problems are usually this kind of kid's best friend when it comes to math, and the numbers not always making sense in conjunction with the words that do fit the bill seem to be a helpful way to ease math into math-phobic students. As a pre-lesson, I would have students flip through the pages and find one puzzle to solve individually. In a small group, students could then check each other's answers in the back of the book to see how they did with the puzzle. If they didn't solve the problem correctly, the corrector could help show the student how to solve the problem. As a post-activity, the students could create their own math poem, creating a question within their riddle. This book definitely made math more fun, and I'm still mad that I didn't know about this book sooner!

Children Just Like Me

This is a book that I have used previously for teaching a multiculturalism class after school to Kindergarten and First grade students. I'm crazy about this book...it's basically a collection of perspectives from children all around the world on their native cultures. In each page, the children each talk about their family lives, their pets, schools, friends, favorite foods, religion, etc. and my students loved learning about a different child from around the world every day. How wonderful, right?

The authors of this book traveled to about 30 different countries, interviewing children from each place they traveled to and getting a real feel for their culture. Barnabas and Anabel Kindersley traveled for about 2 years to create this book. Barnabas, a photographer, and Anabel, a teacher were both very passionate about telling the story behind the cultures of these children through interviews and photographs. Awesome work! I can only hope to do something as cool as they have, and what a joy it must be-- creating a way of sharing the stories and cultures with kids from all around the world.


 There is SO much you can do with this book, but for a pre-lesson, we could ask our students to describe their own lives, including all of the same mini-topics in the book (family, pets, food, etc). Later as a post activity, we could have them create a Venn diagram, where they could compare and contrast the lives of their peers with their peers from different countries. The kids could also pick their favorite page and study the culture with book or interactive sources. I could also see this book inspiring kids to write to peers in other countries when they begin making relationships with the children in the story, sharing similar interests.  Personally I think this book should be in every elementary classroom! :)

What Will the Weather Be?

So this passed weekend I went to visit my sister in Washington D.C., and on our rainy Saturday we went the the Newseum, or the Museum of News. So cool! Basically it was all about the history of news, journalism and photography and how the world of news works around the world. So on the way downstairs we stop at this little gift shop, and you'd think I would pick up a book about news writing or journalism, or even about Washington and the government, right? As always I get distracted, and I find this book Children's book called What Will the Weather Be, because alongside my other dorky passions for geography and dogs, I love learning about weather. I also have this little quirk of needing to know what the weather will be like every day and every week!

Anyways, in my little distraction I am reading and reading, and thinking wow this book is so gently informative with cute little cartoon like pictures but so graspable in concepts for kids...I had to buy it. Luckily it was on sale, but more recently I am in this habit of needing to buy a children's book from any place that I travel to. Okay onto the book, sorry...
Page by page the book talks about different tools we use to help predict the weather, and each page sort of tells a story about the different tools that are used to measure aspects of weather. The story starts with snow in D.C. and how weather can impact our every day lives, and then it walks into different kinds of weather that we have throughout the year, while explaining which devices fit where in terms of measuring aspects of weather. I thought of Syracuse, New York towards the end of the story when they discuss the purpose of a meteorologist, and how sometimes even with all the right tools we can still get the weather forecast wrong. :)

Lynda DeWitt ( a Bethesda native!) wrote the book, and Carolyn Croll illustrated this little non-fiction powerhouse,  and it could be very useful for any student learning about Meteorology and weather. Some kids love crazy thunderstorms and other kids are hiding under the blanket in their basements ( I am cuddled with my dog in bed as I am typing this as we are both not a huge fan of thunderstorms!), but which ever they may be I think there is a safety in knowing about different aspects in weather and what precautions to take in bad weather. This book could be used in a classroom with a KWL chart as a pre-activity as there are a lot of sort of loaded terms that need to be pieced together. As a post activity, students could break off into groups and each focus on one or two terms, create a picture or a diagram to explain the term, and present it to a class as a review and a reflection. I really enjoyed this book and the pictures really emulate what the text can't always get across alone. On to more blogs!

A Lucky Dog: Owney Rail Mail Mascot April 10th 2011

So I ventured up to Old Forge this weekend, and had a near perfectly relaxing weekend. We went into the town general store, which ended up having almost everything including two back rooms full of books. Of course I wandered over to the children's section as it is usually where I feel most fit ( :) ), and I found this book about Owney the mail dog. I sat down right in my place and began reading as it combined two of my passions: dogs and geography!

Dirk Wales wrote and retold the famous story, set in the late 1800's, is about this mutt that loves to sniff mail bags, and feels a connection for the local postal office in Albany. At night he would wander in and sleep on the mail bags, and by day he was traveling all over the county in the mail trains. People eventually got to know this dog and became very fond of him. A postal carrier in the office one day asked who the dog was, and since a postal man named Owen often played with the dog and fed him every once in a while, they decided to name the dog Owney after his friend. The story goes on to some of the adventures that Owney goes on and as well as the bumps on the track, and eventually we learn that Owney had traveled more than mostly anyone had in the given time period, and he becomes an international traveler nonetheless. The best part of the story is that it is based on a real life story, and I believe in one of the books they show an old photograph of Owney with a few of the Postal Service men!

I would use this as a perfect rainy day story, as it is heart-warming and endearing, and you definitely can obtain a sense of joy from Owney. Also it doest incorporate national and world geography with map tracking points so the readers can view the paths which he traveled upon. The art work is absolutely beautiful, and you can't help but feel the antiquity of the time period when flipping through the pages ( props to Dianne Kenna!). I would definitely recommend this book as a classroom library must. The comprehension could be clear enough for a 4 year old to understand, and I think the older students could place a greater value of the time period and the special character traits of Owney. For that, I would gear a lesson on this story based on comprehension and story components with plot, setting, characters, conflict and solution. As a pre-activity we could have students predict what the story of a mail dog may entail, and then after reading the story they could see how accurate their predictions were in creating a story map.

Have a great week everyone.
Andie

Coraline

Eeek...yes I am a little behind and that is probably an understatement...but that's life and it gets busy. If I stay as busy as I currently am in the future, I fear that I won't be as good at this blogging thing as I would like to be. Anyways, in class last week we were asked to pick a graphic novel for our reading groups, and due to the fact that Coraline was out at just about every library in the county, it would probably be a good investment and addition to my own library. Anyways, I really enjoyed the book, and I finished it in two sittings. Obviously the nice thing about graphic novels is that they are all visual and so it's quick, also I am much more of a visual learner so it was easy for me to connect the different plot points. I brought it to work to get some reading in during my lunch break, and the student I work with grabbed it out of my purse and took it to his lunchtime with him. He loved looking at the pictures, and he is a reader as well so he was definitely entertained by it. When that happened I realized that graphic novels could be a really useful tool with students who have special needs--I mean anyone could enjoy it but especially students who learn in the more non-traditional ways. 


 The storyline itself has a creepy feel with interesting little twists in the story. Neil Gaiman, the author of the graphic novel Coraline, wrote This fictitious suspense story which intrigued my student who is 7, though the book is thought to fit readers of 8 years or older. I don't think it is scary necessarily...the plot is based on this family who moves to new town in an old house, and Coraline is the curious, and bored only child. She decided to explore one day, and found herself further away from her parents in her own home than she could ever imagine. Okay, I guess the characters such as the "Other Mother", who wants to sew buttons into Coraline's eyes could star in a few of my own nightmares, but the story was written in a way that was very suspenseful, the characters were well developed and the book kept you wanting to know what was coming next.


As far as using the story in the classroom, I would use it with an older audience, maybe 3rd or 4th graders, but mainly for leisurely reading as it is a graphic novel. Also, for students at lower level learning in 3rd grade or above, I would allow the students to use the book for comprehension purposes if they could get more from the graphics in comparison to the text. There is much to take from the visuals as well, and P. Craig Russel uses different color schemes to create an ambiance to each page of the novel. As a pre-activity, the students could think about what it would feel like to move into a new town, and a new home. They could use creative writing to imagine as though tomorrow their families were moving, and what kind of changes would they feel in the moving process. Later they could portray Coraline's story and what she had imagined with what things went right and what things went wrong They could reflect on the graphic novel through summarizing, painting a symbolic picture or story mapping the events.

An Apple for Harriet Tubman

In class last Wednesday, we were asked to chose a story, read it with a partner and find elements within the story that were teachable and engaging. The cool part was that I discovered things I never knew about Harriet Tubman; like how she has an apple orchard in Auburn New York, which is a small city not far way from Syracuse. We also  had the opportunity to share our thoughts and create more ways that the story could be used for different teaching purposes.

This story gently describes the story of Harriet Tubman's life, without sugar coating some of the hardship she had to face. Growing up in a family of slaves, Harriet had a never ending chore list and a few big dreams. She believed in treating people fairly and working hard towards your goals. Harriet was out in the orchard picking apples one day, and though she was told never to eat the apples and to pick the best for her slave owners, she decided to take a bite anyways. When she was caught she was treated the same way most other slaves were treated when they "misbehaved", and from that point on Harriet was determined to find freedom and fairness. The rest of the story talks about her work in the Underground Railroad and her travels from the South and the North, and how she eventually achieved her dreams by helping to free family and friends from the hardships of slavery. She also went on to make her own apple orchard, and she shared her apples with whomever desired them. The book was written wonderfully by Glenette Tilly Turner, and she has also written several other stories involving the Underground Railroad. Turner beyond a great author is a well-known and well-honored Historian and Educator.

This book was beautifully illustrated by Susan Keeter, who is actually a Syracuse University graduate (woo hoo!), and though maybe one or two illustrations could be considered somewhat graphic, I think that it allows the reader to really understand the cruelty and truth in the hardships of slavery.  For a pre-activity, students could simply do a picture walk and make predictions about the elements involved in the story. After reading the story, they could pair off with another student and share their thoughts after writing about the feelings that the book evoked upon them in a journal or a notebook. Barnes and Noble thought that this book was fit for 7-9 year olds, but I think the book could be used at any Elementary grade level from 1st grade to 6th. Some of the main themes that could be discussed from reading this picture book include bravery, heroism, freedom, equality, hard work ethic and responsibility.



(The HistoryMakers website, Amazon.com)