Speak By Laurie Halse Anderson

Hey Class,

My group chose Speak for our groups book choice. I feel as though I didn't quite give it the best representation in class. It really is a great read, coming from an adult! I know summer is approaching and you probably have your mind set on just the opposite of reading. Sooo, I wanted to recommend the movie. I'm not sure if I mentioned it in class. I rented it from Blockbuster Video, it's in the Drama section. It's only like $4.00. Speak the movie is almost an exact replica of the book. Some of you might recognize it as a Life Time movie. Rape is a very serious topic, however, the movie does a splendid job of adding some High School humor to the whole production. This movie/book is a very interesting take on this subject. I highly recommend you guys take the time to watch the movie ( 1 hour and 30 min.) or read the book (198 pages) this summer. I promise you will truly enjoy yourself! Good-luck and I hope you all have a wonderful summer!

-Megan

Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt Historical Fiction

Hopkinson, Deborah. Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1993.

This adventurous book would go along perfectly with a lesson on African-American history. Written by Deborah Hopkinson and illustrated by James Ransome, this books gives a captivating story of a young Black girl named Clara who is a slave sold away from her mother to anther plantation. After struggling to keep up with the work in the field, Clara is taught how to knit by Aunt Rachel which will allow her to work in the big house instead of the hard labor of a field hand. As Clara proceeds to master her new craft, she begins to create a quilt from left over fabric she comes across resembling the surrounding plantations leading to the underground railroad.

The illustrations in the book are phenomenal and rich in colors such as red, yellow and green suggesting warmth, excitement and renewal. From glancing at the pictures makes you feel as if you are standing next to the characters as you listen to them speak to you while feeling the hot sun beat upon your head and smelling the sweet earth they are harvesting. The illustrations not only reinforce the text they also aides the reader in understanding the life of African-Americans during the long periods of slavery.The illustrations add the emotion that could not be captured in words alone. The dialect given to the characters also help to make the story more realistic as it relates to the era and setting of how western Blacks spoke back in that time. Will Clara ever get a chance to finish her quilted map before Master finds out? Will her and her friends manage their escape, or be whipped and caught for the second time? Join Clara on her courageous journey following her beautiful quilt to freedom at the underground railroad!

What Do You Do With a Tail Like This? by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page

Jenkins, Steve and Robin Page. What Do You Do With a Tail Like This?. New York, New York, Houghton Mifflin Company, 2003.

A fun-filled nonfiction and the winner of the Caldecott Honor, which is very informative on animals and how they use their different senses; sight, smell, touch, hear, and taste. This was an entertaining book, because before the reader is exposed the actual animal, the only things shown are noses, eyes, mouths, etc; along with being educating, it also becomes a guessing game. The authors did a very good job in making this educational book enjoyable. The illustrations in this book are cut-out pictures and made into a kind of collage. The cut-outs look as though they have different textures and make the reader want to touch the animals shown. There is a large variety of different animals that are used to help the reader to understand what their noses, ears, feet, eyes, mouths, and tails are used for. The pictures alone would not be able to bring the reader knowledge about the animals because all the reader would see would be an animal, but how do they use their senses? The text in this book is very important in telling the reader what they need to know. Although the pictures in this book may seem a bit simple, it had to have taken time to get the “textures” of the animals just right, because the feel of every animal is different and the readers can all sense that from seeing the pictures. At the end of the book, it showed all of the animals that were mentioned and had more information on them so that the readers would have a better understanding of the different animals.

other sources:
Cullinan, Bernice, and Lee Galda. Literature and the Child. 5th ed. Wadsworth, 2002

Days with Frog and Toad-Arnold Lobel

Days with Frog and Toad
The book Days with Frog and Toad, written by Arnold Lobel, is a well recognized and awarded Children’s Fiction Picture book. It come from a list of various f other “Frog and Toad” books, some of which having won the Newberry or Caldecott.
This specific book of the series shares short stories about 5 different occurrences for them. Toad comes across each obstacle (from a lesson in procrastination in “Tomorrow” to a touching story of friendship in “Alone”). Every story shows how a good friend should act; children enjoy reading these stories because they can see themselves in one or the other characters shoes.
The illustrations in this book are blander than most other children’s books. The color choice is dull but still reflects their personalities by making the naïve Toad brown and wiser Frog dark green. The pictures mimic the text, making this a possible selection to give to students having harder time learning to read. The illustrations are cartoonistic, putting a focus on lines to emphasize. On some of the pages, the artwork is placed randomly around the page, and sometimes takes the same amount of space as the text. It makes the text more fun to read.
Overall, I believe the book Days with Frog and Toad would be a great book to assign students in a lower elementary level class. It could be used to go along with a theme of friendship because of the relationship Toad and Frog have with each other in the stories. Also, it is a great book to get students excited about higher levels of reading due to the books transitioning from a picture book into a chapter book form.

Lobel, Arnold. Days with Frog and Toad. New York: Scholastic Inc., 1979.

A Chair For My Mother

Williams, Vera B. A Chair for My Mother. New York: Greenwillow Books, 1982.

This is a story told by the young girl who selflessly devises a plan to donate her hard earned money to her single working mother and grandmother. She wants to help buy a piece of comfy furniture after a fire destroyed their home and belongings. The family fills a huge jar with spare coins they collect each day and optimistically count the money inside nightly until the day when the jar is full and their dream of a comfy armchair is obtained.

Vera B. Williams's (author and illustrator) use of the little girl as the narrator creates a selfless and optimistic theme of a child trying to give something of value to her mother. She plays on the child’s hopeful narration and invites readers of any age to relate to and enjoy the realistic story. The specific setting of the story is never mentioned, but obviously it is located in a city which allows for a large spectrum of readers to insert themselves into the story. Williams's Caldecott Honor illustrations enhance the story further by expressing the scenery and mood of the story through artistic color and borders. Williams's relationship between text and art helps a wide range of audiences understand visually her theme of selflessness; a solid lesson for kids and adults to learn and review which I believe is Williams’s hidden meaning behind her book.

The Day Jimmy's Boa Ate the Wash by Trinka Hakes Noble, Illustrations: Steven Kellogg

Noble Hakes, Trinka. The Day Jimmy's Boa Ate the Wash. New York: Puffin Books, 1980.

In The Day Jimmy’s Boa Ate the Wash, a little girl tells her mother about the adventures she experiences while visiting the local farm with her class. The story all begins with the mother asking her daughter how her field trip was only to get the response of “oh… boring…kind of dull…until the cow started crying.” Which then begins the story of all the debauchery, which occurs on the school field trip to the farm.

The artwork of this book is a cartoon. The colors used are vivid, and the pictures take up the entire page with little writing on each page. This is done so that the reader feels like they were on the farm, seeing this first hand The pictures really enhance the story because the words are so simple; the pictures really make the story of what occurred on the field trip come alive. The media used to create the artwork is a combination of water colors and pencils, pencil being used to show details like the beard on the farmer, while water colors are used in shadows and other large areas.

This book would be considered contemporary realistic fiction because it is often children in the modern time would go to a farm for a school field trip. This book is intended for younger children in elementary school, however adults will find the pictures and language of the book humorous and relatable to a conversation they may have with their own child about a school trip.

Henry and Mudge and the Bedtime Thumps

Rylant, Cynthia. Henry and Mudge and the Bedtime Thumps. Illus. Sucie
Stevenson. New York: Aladdin Paperbacks, 1991.

In her realistic fiction story, Henry and Mudge and the Bedtime Thumps, Cynthia Rylant tells the story of a young boy named Henry and his dog Mudge as they travel to visit his grandmother out in the country. Henry worries that since Mudge is so big he will not be able to sleep inside the house with him and protect him during the night as he sleeps in this strange, unfamiliar house. As nighttime comes closer, Henry’s parents insist that Mudge sleep outside. Herny lay wide-awake in bed realizing that he cannot sleep without the company of his best friend Mudge. Instead of sleeping inside alone, Henry decides to sleep outside with the comfort of Mudge.
Rylant’s heart-warming story highlights the importance of friendship in times of distress. When Henry is scared, spending the night in this unfamiliar house, Mudge is there to comfort him. Henry also expresses concern for not only himself, but also for what will happen to Mudge alone outside. Stevenson’s illustrations accompany the text and the colors used reflect the feelings of Henry. When Henry is with Mudge, the colors are very soothing and light. However, when Henry thinks of being apart from Mudge, the colors shift to darker shades of purple, blue, and brown. The text is very simple and easy to understand as well as read. Children around the ages of seven to eight can enjoy reading this delightful tale of companionship.

Cinderella by Charles Perrault, illustrated by K.Y Craft

Perrault, Charles. Cinderella. New York: SeaStar Books. 2000.

Cinderella by Perrault is a fantasy story about a girl who has a mean stepmother with daughters to match. She meets her fairy godmother, and is able to go to the ball, and meet the prince. They end up marrying and living happily ever after.

A theme that could be applied to this tale would be good things come to those who wait. The point of view in the book is third person. In this particular book you’ll find that every other page, and in some cases two pages in a row there will be an illustration. The illustrations are very lavish and even to the point of embellishment. This book could be read by any age. There isn’t anything a parent might see as graphic or harmful for a young child to view. Cinderella is kind to her step sister’s and helps them regardless of how they treat her. In the end her stepsisters ask for forgiveness about how they treated her. A lovely story with wonderful illustrations.

Here’s some background on the story: http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/cinderella/history.html

Math Curse by Jon Scieszka Illustrated by Lane smith

Scieszka, Jon, and Lane Smith. Math Curse. New York: Penguin Group, 1995.


In Math Curse, a girl is told by her teacher that everything could be seen as a math problem. The narrator engages the audience in one hilarious story after another of how she encounters math in her everyday life. She introduces many playful problems such as, “Estimate how many M&Ms you would eat if you had to measure the Mississippi River with M&Ms”(np).

The unique style in which the text and illustrations are presented further reinforce the intriguing nature of the book. The collage-like illustrations are big, bold, eye-catching and colorful. The font varies in size, capitalization and even position on the page. For example, on one page, the text acts as a border; the book has to be turned in order to read the words on each side. Variation in text guides the way the book is read and helps to maximize the humor. It emphasizes funny points such as, “I am now a raving math lunatic”(np).

The dedication page, price label, age group, list of other books the author wrote, etc. also incorporate the mathematical playfulness presented throughout the book and reinforce that math is everywhere. For example, a Venn diagram illustrates which books the illustrator and author have done. To top it off, the book presents answers to even the most ridiculous problems on the back cover.

I found many sources online, including these, which incorporate the reading of “Math Curse” into a lesson plan: http://www.theteacherscorner.net/lesson-plans/math/storyproblems/mathcurse.htm and http://www.k-state.edu/smartbooks/Lesson017.html

The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton

Burton, Virginia Lee. The Little House. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1942.

The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton tells of a little house in the country inhabited by the same family for generations. The house is content to be lived in and loved, watching the seasons change every year. However, the world the little house knows begins to change as a city begins to be built around it. Focalized through the point of view of the house itself, this touching story serves to show the consequences of urban development in a simple, but very clear and honest way.

The text of The Little House is simple and straightforward, presenting the observations of the little house as she watches the seasons change every year in the country and eventually the gradual process of building a big city. Yet even while being simple, the text is full of heartfelt emotion, leading the reader to connect with the plight of the little house. Accompanying the text is Burton’s Caldecott medal winning impressionistic illustrations, which provide rich, colorful detail throughout the book. The reader is presented with a clear view of everything that happens around the little house as the city grows bigger, taking over more space on the page. The little house expresses her remorse at the loss of simple joys of the country, such as seeing the stars at night. In this simple, gentle fable Burton presents an honest message reminding readers to appreciate whatever is good about the here and now because change is always sure to come.

Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus by Mo Willems

Willems, Mo. Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus. New York City: Hyperion Books for Children, 2003.

The story begins right as we open the book. In the front end-pages, a cartoon pigeon dreams of driving a bus. On the title page, a bus driver introduces himself and asks us if we will watch his bus for a short while. He adds, in what would seem like an afterthought was it not the title of the book, “Oh, and remember: Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!” That simple task becomes all-consuming when we are confronted with the persistent pigeon. The pigeon asks to drive the bus. The pigeon begs to drive the bus. The pigeon attempts to trick us into letting it drive the bus. Finally, the pigeon throws a fit of frustration when we do not allow it to drive the bus. Though the bus driver returns to a pigeon-free bus, his return is not the end of the story because on the final pages the pigeon encounters a semi-truck, which, predictably, he dreams of driving.

Willems’ simple, creative and effective use of page space, beginning on that very first end-page, is exciting because of its interactive nature. The back cover of the book proclaims, “Finally, a book you can say ‘no’ to!”An emphatic “NO!” is just how young and old readers alike are likely to react to the pleading pigeon. While the elementary word choice and the naïve cartoon drawings make the text seem childlike, they portray a cunning (and very human) pigeon whose tactics and emotions are universally recognizable.

For more information about the book, the pigeon or the author, check out: http://www.mowillems.com

Chickens on the Go by Aunt Judy

Aunt Judy, Chickens on the Go!, Petrolia, Ontario, Brown’s Graphic’s and Printing Inc., 2006



In her fantasy/fiction book Chickens on the Go! , Aunt Judy emphasizes differences in “chickens” around the world and promotes the embracing of diversity. With a universal setting and multicultural characters, the book is limitless in its audience. The plot examines many different cultures around the world, but also shows that they can live peacefully together. The illustrations are simple and cartoon-like, but still fun and entertaining. The illustrations have very thick lines and bright colors, which expresses the boldness of the text.

This book is very age appropriate for children, as it explores the critically important social theme of embracing diversity. The author uses a fun rhyme scheme, which makes it entertaining to read as well. After examining each particular culture, the author repeatedly uses the phrase “It doesn’t matter where we’re from. We’re all chickens---let’s have fun!” which highlights her main point of living peacefully and having fun with people of any culture, because underneath the outer appearances, they are all just “chickens.” This book is a good tool for teaching students about differences and how they really do not determine a person’s character or worth as a friend. Also, using the name Aunt Judy makes the book more inviting and comfortable.

Midterm book talk and review

Although there are instructions in the syllabus and I'll be giving you a rubric, I want to make a couple of comments about the midterm.

We will sign up for time slots to do the oral booktalks. You must be on time for these! (If you are absent this week, it is your responsibility to check Angel to see when you are scheduled to present. The sign up will be posted the day after class meets.)

For the review that you post:

1. Title your blog post the title of the book
2. Include the full citation for your book, using MLA format. (Although you can ignore the instructions to double space.)
3. Since there are copyright implications, do you will NOT be including pictures.
   
4. Think of the body of the review as consisting of two parts: a description/summary of the text and your response/analysis of the text. Remember that you are introducing the book to a prospective reader! What do you appreciate about the text? Is there anything about the text that you question? Since this is a short review, you will need to be deliberate in what you choose to say! Also, don't lose sight for the fact that this is a literary review, not one designed to talk about using books to teach!
   
5. You will be attaching labels to your post to indicate the genre and anything else you think appropriate. I suggest clicking on "Show all". If you see a label that works for you review, use it. Otherwise create your own.
6. Proof read your post and see how it looks up on the blog. You can edit and revise, although I will be assessing the one that you post before the midterm class session.
   

Here are some examples of book reviews. (You'll notice that some of them are longer than our 250 word limit.) What works in them for you? What doesn't?

• The Three Snow Bears. This review is more descriptive than interpretive. It would be nice to see more analysis of the illustrations, for example.
  
• The Giving Tree. This review is a little long for our purposes. I appreciate how the reviewer talks about what s/he likes and potential concerns.
• Here's a review that I wrote. (Notice that I included a picture! I should take it down...) Just as a point of reference, it is 172 words.
  
• Here are a couple of reviews from TE 448 students. (Example A , B, and C) Their focus was a little different than ours and their word limit a bit longer, but each did a nice job describing their texts and weighing in on their strengths.
  
• Here are some samples from The Horn Book. These reviews use a more complex structure. You are welcome to try this style on or go for the two paragraph review. :-)

(This is an aside, but check out this post from the editor of the Hornbook on reviewing!)

If people think it would be helpful, we can try writing a review in class.