Jose! Born to Dance By Susanna Reich and Illustrated by Raul Colon
This story was about a boy named Jose who moved from Mexico to America as a kid. Before he moves it shows the different ways of dancing that he saw and dreamt about that were part of the Mexican culture. I picked this book because I love to dance and have seen flamenco dancers before which are shown in this book. Jose was not able to speak English when he arrived and kids in his class made fun of him because of this. This encouraged him to strive harder and pursue his dreams in America. This is based on a true story of the founder of the Limon Dance Academy. It is another story about accomplishing the American dream, starting with nothing moving here and becoming successful.
The illustrations were simple but still very appealing because of a textured, grainy look. The book uses some Spanish phrases like “si” and “ole” on each page. Just enough to enjoy but not get confused as to what it means, you can pretty much figure out the translation through the context clues. I liked this book because it showed another culture besides American and the main character was a male dancer instead of a girl which is unusual. It was a refreshing change.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Yummy! Eating through a day Poems selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins and Illustrated by Renee Flower
Yummy! Eating through a day Poems selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins and Illustrated by Renee Flower
This book was very cute, and the illustrations were great. All of the objects like the bowls, eggs, and cheese, had faces on them which is actually great for kids because they think everything has feelings and that everything is real life like dolls and toys. You have to use your imagination while reading this book. The illustrations use bright colors and a lot of design which creates a textured look. The people in the illustrations have green skin which is a unique but neat idea.
Each page has a poem written by a different person. They are all about foods, starting with breakfast and ending with dinner and desert. There is a good variety of poems, some are long and some are very short. The rhymes flow well which calls for a great read aloud book. My favorite poem was called Jell-o Cups. It was about jello jigglers dancing. It was a descriptive and fun poem.
This book was very cute, and the illustrations were great. All of the objects like the bowls, eggs, and cheese, had faces on them which is actually great for kids because they think everything has feelings and that everything is real life like dolls and toys. You have to use your imagination while reading this book. The illustrations use bright colors and a lot of design which creates a textured look. The people in the illustrations have green skin which is a unique but neat idea.
Each page has a poem written by a different person. They are all about foods, starting with breakfast and ending with dinner and desert. There is a good variety of poems, some are long and some are very short. The rhymes flow well which calls for a great read aloud book. My favorite poem was called Jell-o Cups. It was about jello jigglers dancing. It was a descriptive and fun poem.
Leaf By Stephen Michael King
Leaf By Stephen Michael King
This book is suited for ages four and older. It is a semi wordless story. It is open to interpretation which I believe is much like most wordless books. Leaf would be a good book to inspire a writing activity for students to see what they thought happened or what certain things represented. The pictures to me weren’t phenomenal, which I thought they should have been because there was very few words. There was a common color hue throughout the entire book. Only brown, greens, and blues, were incorporated. The characters were simple with beady eyes and had one simple line for their mouth.
To my understanding, the mom shares her knowledge and experiences with the little boy, probably her son, which is actually a seed that then starts to grow on the top of his head. He still goes on doing his own thing but is guided by his mother because she has instilled her values and morals within him in this seed. He carries it with him until he’s older and he shares it with his kids.
This book is suited for ages four and older. It is a semi wordless story. It is open to interpretation which I believe is much like most wordless books. Leaf would be a good book to inspire a writing activity for students to see what they thought happened or what certain things represented. The pictures to me weren’t phenomenal, which I thought they should have been because there was very few words. There was a common color hue throughout the entire book. Only brown, greens, and blues, were incorporated. The characters were simple with beady eyes and had one simple line for their mouth.
To my understanding, the mom shares her knowledge and experiences with the little boy, probably her son, which is actually a seed that then starts to grow on the top of his head. He still goes on doing his own thing but is guided by his mother because she has instilled her values and morals within him in this seed. He carries it with him until he’s older and he shares it with his kids.
Give Me a Kiss By Ron Van der Meer
Give Me a Kiss By Ron Van der Meer
This book is suitable for ages 4-8. It started right away on the first page, there were no title pages or anything. Give Me a Kiss is a good interactive book because you get to ring the doorbell on every page to see who’s on the other side of the door and the doorbell actually makes noise every time.
It is a very basic beginner fairytale, with only about five words per page. There are repetitions of phrases on each page which is good for new readers. These phrases were bolded on each page so if you were reading this to someone they could pick up on the line after the first few pages and read with you at those points in the book. It seemed kind of bland to me and not very exciting but my child study student wanted to read it last week and it was one of her favorites we read that day.
The main character, the frog, gets very beat up for simply asking for a kiss at each animal’s door. This was a little bit disturbing just because the frog was covered in band aids and black eyes at the end of story. It’s almost kind of sad, and then when he reaches the last door it is a princess who accepts. She turns into a frog too and they live happily ever after. You can’t help but learn the classic way to tell a fairytale as young as possible.
This book is suitable for ages 4-8. It started right away on the first page, there were no title pages or anything. Give Me a Kiss is a good interactive book because you get to ring the doorbell on every page to see who’s on the other side of the door and the doorbell actually makes noise every time.
It is a very basic beginner fairytale, with only about five words per page. There are repetitions of phrases on each page which is good for new readers. These phrases were bolded on each page so if you were reading this to someone they could pick up on the line after the first few pages and read with you at those points in the book. It seemed kind of bland to me and not very exciting but my child study student wanted to read it last week and it was one of her favorites we read that day.
The main character, the frog, gets very beat up for simply asking for a kiss at each animal’s door. This was a little bit disturbing just because the frog was covered in band aids and black eyes at the end of story. It’s almost kind of sad, and then when he reaches the last door it is a princess who accepts. She turns into a frog too and they live happily ever after. You can’t help but learn the classic way to tell a fairytale as young as possible.
Alia’s Mission Saving the Books of Iraq By Mark Alan Stamaty
Graphic Novel
Alia’s Mission Saving the Books of Iraq By Mark Alan Stamaty
I’ve never read a graphic novel before. I have read comics in the newspaper but not in a book form. This genre was new to me, I liked it. I wasn’t sure if I would or not because usually I am not into a lot of science fiction or hero stuff but this was interesting to me because it was based on true events.
Alia’s Mission is about Alia, a librarian, who is a superhero but not an ordinary superhero. Alia is so concerned with her library being destroyed in the war and the government won’t do anything about it so she starts stealing books out of the library to save them. The whole town helps get the books out and that night the library went up in flames. They saved over 30,000 books in this brigade.
It is based off of a true story and is based in Basra, Iraq. It looks as though it is an older book, but was written in 2003. The pictures are done in pencil and there is no color. There is quite a bit of diversity and learning about other cultures in this story. It doesn’t adhere to our societies stereotypes which I liked. I didn’t know they were so much like us in America. It shows televisions, cars, and phones in the illustrations. These are not objects I would normally think about being common in the Middle East. I think this would be a good book for older elementary students.
Alia’s Mission Saving the Books of Iraq By Mark Alan Stamaty
I’ve never read a graphic novel before. I have read comics in the newspaper but not in a book form. This genre was new to me, I liked it. I wasn’t sure if I would or not because usually I am not into a lot of science fiction or hero stuff but this was interesting to me because it was based on true events.
Alia’s Mission is about Alia, a librarian, who is a superhero but not an ordinary superhero. Alia is so concerned with her library being destroyed in the war and the government won’t do anything about it so she starts stealing books out of the library to save them. The whole town helps get the books out and that night the library went up in flames. They saved over 30,000 books in this brigade.
It is based off of a true story and is based in Basra, Iraq. It looks as though it is an older book, but was written in 2003. The pictures are done in pencil and there is no color. There is quite a bit of diversity and learning about other cultures in this story. It doesn’t adhere to our societies stereotypes which I liked. I didn’t know they were so much like us in America. It shows televisions, cars, and phones in the illustrations. These are not objects I would normally think about being common in the Middle East. I think this would be a good book for older elementary students.
Goldilicious By Victoria Kann
Goldilicious By Victoria Kann
This is a new book published in 2009. It is very much geared towards girls, which is why I think I liked it so much. Because it focuses on pink and supposedly only things that girls can appreciate, it may not be good for a whole class share, but I would definitely recommend it to an elementary aged girl. It just doesn’t pertain to and make connections with enough students.
Pinkalicious, the main character, has an imaginary unicorn Goldilicious aka Goldie although she thinks Goldie is real. Goldie runs away and Pinkalicious looks everywhere for her. At the end of the book Goldie turns out being in Pinkalicious’s dreams when she closes her eyes and goes to bed safe and sound.
It is an extremely imaginative book. There is the color pink drenched on every page, which is probably why I loved it so much. The illustrations use the whole page, and they start to get very creative as the story goes on. On one page Goldie and Pinkalicious are dancing in the front yard and if you look closely there are music notes and written music in the background. The grass, the houses, and the leaves on the trees all have these notes. The first time I read through this book I didn’t even notice because it is so very subtle so it’s easy to look right over the details like that. From that point in the book on there is this same idea on each page but in the background only. When I first noticed these music notes, I thought am I missing something? Is this supposed to be sung aloud? I didn’t understand the meaning of this visual music everywhere. After reading the back flap, I figured out that this story was performed as a musical in New York City which I assume then is what represents the notes.
Pinkalicious has brown hair which was actually surprising to me because usually princesses and little girly girls are portrayed as blondes with long, curly, perfect hair in most books. Pinkalicious has stick straight, brunette hair that are in pigtails. They stick straight out from under her pink pointed princess hat. The unicorn on the other hand has a perfectly curly blonde flowing mane.
This book was absolutely adorable!
This is a new book published in 2009. It is very much geared towards girls, which is why I think I liked it so much. Because it focuses on pink and supposedly only things that girls can appreciate, it may not be good for a whole class share, but I would definitely recommend it to an elementary aged girl. It just doesn’t pertain to and make connections with enough students.
Pinkalicious, the main character, has an imaginary unicorn Goldilicious aka Goldie although she thinks Goldie is real. Goldie runs away and Pinkalicious looks everywhere for her. At the end of the book Goldie turns out being in Pinkalicious’s dreams when she closes her eyes and goes to bed safe and sound.
It is an extremely imaginative book. There is the color pink drenched on every page, which is probably why I loved it so much. The illustrations use the whole page, and they start to get very creative as the story goes on. On one page Goldie and Pinkalicious are dancing in the front yard and if you look closely there are music notes and written music in the background. The grass, the houses, and the leaves on the trees all have these notes. The first time I read through this book I didn’t even notice because it is so very subtle so it’s easy to look right over the details like that. From that point in the book on there is this same idea on each page but in the background only. When I first noticed these music notes, I thought am I missing something? Is this supposed to be sung aloud? I didn’t understand the meaning of this visual music everywhere. After reading the back flap, I figured out that this story was performed as a musical in New York City which I assume then is what represents the notes.
Pinkalicious has brown hair which was actually surprising to me because usually princesses and little girly girls are portrayed as blondes with long, curly, perfect hair in most books. Pinkalicious has stick straight, brunette hair that are in pigtails. They stick straight out from under her pink pointed princess hat. The unicorn on the other hand has a perfectly curly blonde flowing mane.
This book was absolutely adorable!
Thursday, September 17, 2009
CAN YOU COUNT TEN TOES?
Evans, Lezlie. CAN YOU COUNT TEN TOES?
Can You Count Ten Toes is about counting to ten in ten different languages. This is a great way to incorporate learning about other languages. The students should master English numbers first, because English is not accounted for in this book. I don’t know if the students would be able to learn all of the other languages, but it would be a fun activity to learn a few of the numbers. One of the cool things about this book is the languages that the author chose to use. To me, the languages used are very unique dialogs that we don’t often hear about such as Zulu, Hindi, and Tagalog.
Each page counts to ten using different items such as toes, hats, and lightening bugs. There is a poem at the top of each page and it acknowledges which language is going to be used. Then numbered in English is one through ten and next to that is the featured language one through ten and also in parenthesis how to pronounce it. The font is large and spaced out so it is easy to read.
I don’t care for the pictures in this book because they are too simple and use very dull colors in my opinion. The characters have beady eyes and not much detail is put into the drawings.
Can You Count Ten Toes is about counting to ten in ten different languages. This is a great way to incorporate learning about other languages. The students should master English numbers first, because English is not accounted for in this book. I don’t know if the students would be able to learn all of the other languages, but it would be a fun activity to learn a few of the numbers. One of the cool things about this book is the languages that the author chose to use. To me, the languages used are very unique dialogs that we don’t often hear about such as Zulu, Hindi, and Tagalog.
Each page counts to ten using different items such as toes, hats, and lightening bugs. There is a poem at the top of each page and it acknowledges which language is going to be used. Then numbered in English is one through ten and next to that is the featured language one through ten and also in parenthesis how to pronounce it. The font is large and spaced out so it is easy to read.
I don’t care for the pictures in this book because they are too simple and use very dull colors in my opinion. The characters have beady eyes and not much detail is put into the drawings.
FIRST NUMBER BOOK
Kingfisher. FIRST NUMBER BOOK
This interactive book has large pictures representing different numbers and about three questions per page asking counting questions. For example, one question is “How many windows does each house have?” Although it is called First Number Book, I think it should be used with students who already know their numbers and are just getting used to applying them, because it does not actually step through the numbers. The author assumes that the audience already can count.
The pictures are bright and very simply drawn. There are about five or six large blocks of pictures on each page which is a great use of space.
I was kind of disappointed because there is not actual story. This book is more focused on thinking and working on beginning strategies in math. I think this would be a great book to use in a classroom, but not as a read aloud to the entire class. It is setup to be more of a one on one tool.
This interactive book has large pictures representing different numbers and about three questions per page asking counting questions. For example, one question is “How many windows does each house have?” Although it is called First Number Book, I think it should be used with students who already know their numbers and are just getting used to applying them, because it does not actually step through the numbers. The author assumes that the audience already can count.
The pictures are bright and very simply drawn. There are about five or six large blocks of pictures on each page which is a great use of space.
I was kind of disappointed because there is not actual story. This book is more focused on thinking and working on beginning strategies in math. I think this would be a great book to use in a classroom, but not as a read aloud to the entire class. It is setup to be more of a one on one tool.
CHICKA CHICKA BOOM BOOM
Martin, Bill Jr. CHICKA CHICKA BOOM BOOM.
I remember this book from when I was a child. It is such an enjoyable and fun book. This bright colored book is about the letters in the alphabet climbing up a coconut tree one by one. Once Z reaches the top they all fall out and it repeats the alphabet again. This is a great way to reinforce the alphabet. By seeing all of the letters twice in order is a great beginner learning tool.
This book is very simple but has powerful pictures. There is a polka dot boarder around each of the pages which I think is a good use of space since the illustrations are very plain. The letters of the alphabet are good size in the illustration so they are easy to visualize. The font also becomes bold when a letter is mentioned. Also, the story has a good rhythm and rhyme to it which makes it easy to read. All of the pages have a white background to them except for the two last pages. I think that is a strong ending and simply just the color of the background you can tell when it has changed from the day time to night in the story. This is a great book, it is so catchy and a favorite of mine growing up!
I remember this book from when I was a child. It is such an enjoyable and fun book. This bright colored book is about the letters in the alphabet climbing up a coconut tree one by one. Once Z reaches the top they all fall out and it repeats the alphabet again. This is a great way to reinforce the alphabet. By seeing all of the letters twice in order is a great beginner learning tool.
This book is very simple but has powerful pictures. There is a polka dot boarder around each of the pages which I think is a good use of space since the illustrations are very plain. The letters of the alphabet are good size in the illustration so they are easy to visualize. The font also becomes bold when a letter is mentioned. Also, the story has a good rhythm and rhyme to it which makes it easy to read. All of the pages have a white background to them except for the two last pages. I think that is a strong ending and simply just the color of the background you can tell when it has changed from the day time to night in the story. This is a great book, it is so catchy and a favorite of mine growing up!
NUMBERS IN A ROW, AN IOWA NUMBER BOOK
Pierce, Patricia A. NUMBERS IN A ROW, AN IOWA NUMBER BOOK
Each page in this book has a number 1-12 using different things that represent Iowa. This is a perfect book for classrooms in Iowa. I actually learned a lot about places and inventions in Iowa such as in a town called Burlington, Iowa there is the most crooked street in the world. After the number 12 it goes by tens through 100. The actual story is a simple counting book with only about a sentence per page. On the side of each page is a detailed description about the place, event, or invention. This reading is much more in-depth. A teacher may decide to read the side panels of each page before she reads it to the class and then simply explain a little more in detail about the event if there is time.
The illustrations are very close to real life photographs almost in a colored pencil type of look. I like how the numbers on each page are written and show the numeral. This is good to show a visual connection between the two for kids who are just learning their numbers.
I enjoyed this book. I think it was well written and good for many age groups because of the simplicity of the story and the further side information that are available but aren’t really part of the story.
Each page in this book has a number 1-12 using different things that represent Iowa. This is a perfect book for classrooms in Iowa. I actually learned a lot about places and inventions in Iowa such as in a town called Burlington, Iowa there is the most crooked street in the world. After the number 12 it goes by tens through 100. The actual story is a simple counting book with only about a sentence per page. On the side of each page is a detailed description about the place, event, or invention. This reading is much more in-depth. A teacher may decide to read the side panels of each page before she reads it to the class and then simply explain a little more in detail about the event if there is time.
The illustrations are very close to real life photographs almost in a colored pencil type of look. I like how the numbers on each page are written and show the numeral. This is good to show a visual connection between the two for kids who are just learning their numbers.
I enjoyed this book. I think it was well written and good for many age groups because of the simplicity of the story and the further side information that are available but aren’t really part of the story.
Friday, September 4, 2009
Mama’s Kiss
Mama’s Kiss by Jane Yolen
Ages 3-6
I thought this was a really sweet book. I really enjoyed this book, but probably wouldn’t read it in front of my classroom just because it may be kind of more geared towards girls. Either sex could read and enjoy it but I think it has more appeal for girls. It’s about a mom who blows her daughter a kiss and it misses her but catches her brother and then bounces around to different things and places. Near the end of the book the kiss hits a runner who then comes home and kisses his wife which is the mom from the beginning of the story, who then kisses her daughter, so it finally makes it back to who it was intended for. It’s kind of like passing love around and if you share it with someone else they will share it with someone and eventually it will make it back to you again.
The pictures are spaced around each page so they all look a little different. All of the characters look very happy, they have huge smiles on their faces which I liked. There’s only one sentence on each page, so it is a pretty basic read.
Ages 3-6
I thought this was a really sweet book. I really enjoyed this book, but probably wouldn’t read it in front of my classroom just because it may be kind of more geared towards girls. Either sex could read and enjoy it but I think it has more appeal for girls. It’s about a mom who blows her daughter a kiss and it misses her but catches her brother and then bounces around to different things and places. Near the end of the book the kiss hits a runner who then comes home and kisses his wife which is the mom from the beginning of the story, who then kisses her daughter, so it finally makes it back to who it was intended for. It’s kind of like passing love around and if you share it with someone else they will share it with someone and eventually it will make it back to you again.
The pictures are spaced around each page so they all look a little different. All of the characters look very happy, they have huge smiles on their faces which I liked. There’s only one sentence on each page, so it is a pretty basic read.
Don’t Sit There!
Don’t Sit There! By Jill Newton
Ages 5 and above
I did not care for this book. The story was about Fat Aunt Marylyn who sits on the couch and it breaks in half. The family gets a new big couch and the all of these things start randomly disappearing. I was very confused at this point in the book because people and things would just magically vanish. Then Fat Aunt Marilyn tries to sit on this couch and it again breaks in half. The catch this time was that all of the things that disappeared like the workers who brought the couch in, grandma, and her birthday cake all were back because they were stuck inside the new big couch.
I think this book was rude and sends a bad vibe towards their overweight aunt who they actually call “fat Aunt Marilyn.” The kids also make fun of how Aunt Marilyn broke the couch on the first page of the book which I think also sends off a bad message. This book in a way shows that making fun of overweight people and calling them names are okay to do.
Ages 5 and above
I did not care for this book. The story was about Fat Aunt Marylyn who sits on the couch and it breaks in half. The family gets a new big couch and the all of these things start randomly disappearing. I was very confused at this point in the book because people and things would just magically vanish. Then Fat Aunt Marilyn tries to sit on this couch and it again breaks in half. The catch this time was that all of the things that disappeared like the workers who brought the couch in, grandma, and her birthday cake all were back because they were stuck inside the new big couch.
I think this book was rude and sends a bad vibe towards their overweight aunt who they actually call “fat Aunt Marilyn.” The kids also make fun of how Aunt Marilyn broke the couch on the first page of the book which I think also sends off a bad message. This book in a way shows that making fun of overweight people and calling them names are okay to do.
There was an Old Monster!
There was an Old Monster! By Rebecca, Adrian, and Ed Emberley
Preschool-grade 2
This book is a modern version of the book: There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly. It was identical to the book except for in this story it was a monster swallowing things. I really liked There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly when I was younger, but I didn’t care for this one as much. It was a good book, but I couldn’t help but think about the original. It’s kind of like how there are a ton of versions of Cinderella but usually the original one you read is your favorite.
The illustrations were cool because it was always on a black background and so the colors that were used were neon colors. The pictures took up the entire page which I always think is more attractive when reading picture books. The print was large, and the font kind of reminded me of a Halloween writing, which matches the theme of the monster.
This story is neat because the words flow so you can sing it while you are reading it. Also written on the cover it says you can download the song off line, and it gives you a website so it is an interactive book too.
Preschool-grade 2
This book is a modern version of the book: There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly. It was identical to the book except for in this story it was a monster swallowing things. I really liked There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly when I was younger, but I didn’t care for this one as much. It was a good book, but I couldn’t help but think about the original. It’s kind of like how there are a ton of versions of Cinderella but usually the original one you read is your favorite.
The illustrations were cool because it was always on a black background and so the colors that were used were neon colors. The pictures took up the entire page which I always think is more attractive when reading picture books. The print was large, and the font kind of reminded me of a Halloween writing, which matches the theme of the monster.
This story is neat because the words flow so you can sing it while you are reading it. Also written on the cover it says you can download the song off line, and it gives you a website so it is an interactive book too.
Clang! Clang! Beep! Beep! Listen to the City
Clang! Clang! Beep! Beep! Listen to the City by Robert Burleigh
Ages 3-7
I think this would be a great book to use in the classroom if you are talking about senses. It concentrates on our hearing sense by listening to the world around us. We don’t realize that we hear these things everyday, but if we made our self stop and listen we would most definitely hear a lot of the same noises from in this book. It is a very simple word book. There are about six words on each page and they rhyme to make it flow nicely.
The noise words are written in very large text next to the object that makes the noise. For example, one page says “Bridge arms lifting, Barges drifting.” Then “Clang Clang” is written over by a picture of the barge in the water. Putting sounds and their objects together I think make it easier for the reader.
The illustrations in the book took up the whole page. The pictures were all done graphically on the computer, which gives it a very modern appeal to the book. I thought there was great use of bold colors.
Ages 3-7
I think this would be a great book to use in the classroom if you are talking about senses. It concentrates on our hearing sense by listening to the world around us. We don’t realize that we hear these things everyday, but if we made our self stop and listen we would most definitely hear a lot of the same noises from in this book. It is a very simple word book. There are about six words on each page and they rhyme to make it flow nicely.
The noise words are written in very large text next to the object that makes the noise. For example, one page says “Bridge arms lifting, Barges drifting.” Then “Clang Clang” is written over by a picture of the barge in the water. Putting sounds and their objects together I think make it easier for the reader.
The illustrations in the book took up the whole page. The pictures were all done graphically on the computer, which gives it a very modern appeal to the book. I thought there was great use of bold colors.
Recycle Everyday!
Recycle Everyday! By Nancy Elizabeth Wallace
Grades K-2
This is a fantastic book for the classroom. The characters were bunnies, and they had such unique names like Minna, and Pip. The point of the book was to learn how to recycle. It was very informational and gave a multitude of easy examples that even kids could do. It also gave the definition in simple terms of recycling so kids can learn what it is and then how to do it.
This is also a great book for learning the days of the week. It says on Monday this happened and on Tuesday this happened, and each time there is a day of the week it is bolded so that it stands out.
When Minna attends school to show off her poster of how she recycles you see the whole class of bunnies and surprising to me all of the bunnies are different colors. There are black, grey, and many shades of brown ones. To have diversity with characters even though they are bunnies is a positive for a well rounded children’s book.
I really liked the pictures in this book while I was reading it and then at the end I come to find out it was all made by recycle materials such as paper bags, inside of an envelopes, and bar code labels. What a fantastic idea for a kid’s book!
In addition to all of the great ideas inside of the book, at the end there is a recycling game and activity idea for kids. This book makes an easy recycling unit for a teacher. This is an awesome book!
Grades K-2
This is a fantastic book for the classroom. The characters were bunnies, and they had such unique names like Minna, and Pip. The point of the book was to learn how to recycle. It was very informational and gave a multitude of easy examples that even kids could do. It also gave the definition in simple terms of recycling so kids can learn what it is and then how to do it.
This is also a great book for learning the days of the week. It says on Monday this happened and on Tuesday this happened, and each time there is a day of the week it is bolded so that it stands out.
When Minna attends school to show off her poster of how she recycles you see the whole class of bunnies and surprising to me all of the bunnies are different colors. There are black, grey, and many shades of brown ones. To have diversity with characters even though they are bunnies is a positive for a well rounded children’s book.
I really liked the pictures in this book while I was reading it and then at the end I come to find out it was all made by recycle materials such as paper bags, inside of an envelopes, and bar code labels. What a fantastic idea for a kid’s book!
In addition to all of the great ideas inside of the book, at the end there is a recycling game and activity idea for kids. This book makes an easy recycling unit for a teacher. This is an awesome book!
Arthur and the Popularity Test
Series novel: Arthur and the Popularity Test #12 by Stephen Krensky
Ages 7-9
The characters in the book bring a bunch of stuff from home to school in order to make music with. Someone accidentally brings a magazine in their bag from their teenage sister. The magazine is called popular girl and two of the girls end up taking a quiz about how likable they are. The results of the girls quiz were that one draws too much attention to herself and the other not enough which means neither are likable. They end up trying to change the way they act so that they will be likable when they are teenagers. All of their friends notice these changes and are not happy with them. They like their friends the way they were before they took the quiz. This book shares a good message for kids about being yourself no matter what. Even though it may seem cool to act one way, it’s better to stay what you’re comfortable with and not change for anyone.
I really liked the descriptions in this book, it gets you involved in the story right away. It was also easy to follow along with which is needed for a beginning reader of chapter books. I think these characters were created well, they each have very distinct personalities. I think that is a necessity for books in a series. The characters in each book are the things that connect all of the books in the series together. If the characters aren’t created well so you can visually see them in the readers head then the author won’t have a successful series.
Ages 7-9
The characters in the book bring a bunch of stuff from home to school in order to make music with. Someone accidentally brings a magazine in their bag from their teenage sister. The magazine is called popular girl and two of the girls end up taking a quiz about how likable they are. The results of the girls quiz were that one draws too much attention to herself and the other not enough which means neither are likable. They end up trying to change the way they act so that they will be likable when they are teenagers. All of their friends notice these changes and are not happy with them. They like their friends the way they were before they took the quiz. This book shares a good message for kids about being yourself no matter what. Even though it may seem cool to act one way, it’s better to stay what you’re comfortable with and not change for anyone.
I really liked the descriptions in this book, it gets you involved in the story right away. It was also easy to follow along with which is needed for a beginning reader of chapter books. I think these characters were created well, they each have very distinct personalities. I think that is a necessity for books in a series. The characters in each book are the things that connect all of the books in the series together. If the characters aren’t created well so you can visually see them in the readers head then the author won’t have a successful series.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
The Fourth Floor Twins and the Fish Snitch Mystery
Chapter book:
The Fourth Floor Twins and the Fish Snitch Mystery by David A. Adler and illustrated by Irene Trivas
Ages 7-10
I found things that I liked and disliked in this chapter book. I loved that the kids in the book had huge imaginations, like most kids do. Their extravagant reasoning’s for why things were happening was amusing for me. I also liked that this book was a mystery. I think mystery books are good for kid’s minds. They make them analyze, think, and predict about what is going to happen. I think it really engages a child into the reading.
I noticed there were an awful lot of quotations by the characters. I don’t know if this is a common theme in children’s chapter books, but I felt as though I have never read a book with so many quotations. There were also a lot of characters which could be confusing for a beginning reader of chapter books. I believe this book is part of a series, so maybe if a student had read multiple books with these characters they would be able to keep them straight easier.
The kids in the book were very influenced by what they had seen in the media which is a reality of children. The kids watched a movie called Tuna Fish Snitch which was about criminals who were neighbors. After watching the movie the children assumed their neighbors were criminals, simply for the fact that they were their neighbors. They started coming up with ways that their neighbors were acting weird. Also, newspapers on door steps started to go missing which was again blamed on the neighbors. I think acting out movies and t.v. shows are something that all kids do at some point in time, so would be able to relate well to this story.
The Fourth Floor Twins and the Fish Snitch Mystery by David A. Adler and illustrated by Irene Trivas
Ages 7-10
I found things that I liked and disliked in this chapter book. I loved that the kids in the book had huge imaginations, like most kids do. Their extravagant reasoning’s for why things were happening was amusing for me. I also liked that this book was a mystery. I think mystery books are good for kid’s minds. They make them analyze, think, and predict about what is going to happen. I think it really engages a child into the reading.
I noticed there were an awful lot of quotations by the characters. I don’t know if this is a common theme in children’s chapter books, but I felt as though I have never read a book with so many quotations. There were also a lot of characters which could be confusing for a beginning reader of chapter books. I believe this book is part of a series, so maybe if a student had read multiple books with these characters they would be able to keep them straight easier.
The kids in the book were very influenced by what they had seen in the media which is a reality of children. The kids watched a movie called Tuna Fish Snitch which was about criminals who were neighbors. After watching the movie the children assumed their neighbors were criminals, simply for the fact that they were their neighbors. They started coming up with ways that their neighbors were acting weird. Also, newspapers on door steps started to go missing which was again blamed on the neighbors. I think acting out movies and t.v. shows are something that all kids do at some point in time, so would be able to relate well to this story.
Ten Rosy Roses
Ten Rosy Roses by Eve Meriam and illustrations by Julia Gorton
I really enjoyed this book. The words rhymed which makes the reading flow easier for beginning readers. The diversity in this book was noticeable. There were kids with all different hair colors, skin tones, and dress. The pictures took up the entire page which I think made the book more interesting, however the pictures were very simple, there was not a lot of detail.
This book is great for learning numbers one through ten. I liked that there was a visual count of roses on each page. This encourages interaction with the book because kids can count along if they choose to.
The story started off with ten roses and on each page a child takes one rose. By the end when there are no more roses there is a picture of all of the students giving a bouquet of ten roses to their teacher. I think this is a thoughtful story that gives off the positive message of giving and diversity.
I really enjoyed this book. The words rhymed which makes the reading flow easier for beginning readers. The diversity in this book was noticeable. There were kids with all different hair colors, skin tones, and dress. The pictures took up the entire page which I think made the book more interesting, however the pictures were very simple, there was not a lot of detail.
This book is great for learning numbers one through ten. I liked that there was a visual count of roses on each page. This encourages interaction with the book because kids can count along if they choose to.
The story started off with ten roses and on each page a child takes one rose. By the end when there are no more roses there is a picture of all of the students giving a bouquet of ten roses to their teacher. I think this is a thoughtful story that gives off the positive message of giving and diversity.
Whatever
Whatever by William Bee
All ages
The book Whatever was not a very appealing book to me. I think it gives off the wrong message to children and the pages are very plain. Most of the pages are completely white with a simple picture. The sentences are short and there are only about five words maximum on each page.
The child in the book is named Billy, and Billy’s dad is trying to make Billy happy. He shows Billy a multitude of things and all Billy replies with is “Whatever.” I don’t think this is a good phrase to teach young kids. This is especially rude because he is saying this multiple times to his father. Towards the end of the book Billy’s dad tries to scare him with a hungry tiger and Billy again says, “Whatever.” The tiger then eats Billy, starts walking away, and the dad simply says “Whatever.” This to me gives off the impression that families don’t care for each other.
All ages
The book Whatever was not a very appealing book to me. I think it gives off the wrong message to children and the pages are very plain. Most of the pages are completely white with a simple picture. The sentences are short and there are only about five words maximum on each page.
The child in the book is named Billy, and Billy’s dad is trying to make Billy happy. He shows Billy a multitude of things and all Billy replies with is “Whatever.” I don’t think this is a good phrase to teach young kids. This is especially rude because he is saying this multiple times to his father. Towards the end of the book Billy’s dad tries to scare him with a hungry tiger and Billy again says, “Whatever.” The tiger then eats Billy, starts walking away, and the dad simply says “Whatever.” This to me gives off the impression that families don’t care for each other.
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