WOO! Final reflection time! I can't believe that I have blogged about 60 books, that's amazing. What's even more amazing is knowing that I have read a handful of other picture books and novels throughout my time in the College of Ed... I wonder what the grand total would be! I feel like I have gained a plethora of knowledge from this course. This blog was really slick to use and it made it so much easier to submit our homework. While I was looking through my blog I was amazed at how much work was done in such a short amount of time. I am honestly considering adding to this wonderful start of reviews. I feel as though it would be extremely beneficial to my future teaching. Additionally, I enjoyed being able to personalize the appearance of my blog. I know it's a little thing but it made me excited! It's a great feeling to know that I put so much work into a project and in the end I really like the overall appearance of it. I think that's important :) In conclusion this class has been very informational and probably one of the most important classes I have taken since being admitted into the program. Books are such an important thing to read and have in your classroom. An educated background is crucial.
Thanks for the semester, Jen!
Friday, May 7, 2010
Year of Impossible Goodbyes
Written by: Sook Nyul Choi
Year of Impossible Goodbyes did pair quite nicely with So Far From the Bamboo Grove. It was interesting and somewhat refreshing for me to see two different perspectives from young girls. As I mentioned in my blog on So Far From the Bamboo Grove my knowledge on the subject on history is pathetic. These books, although not classified as non-fiction, still helped me develop a better understanding of WWII... and that is HUGE for me.
I would feel comfortable reading this story with my students (paired with So Far From the Bamboo Grove). Key word: with. As I have moved along in the College of Education I have gained confidence in my ability to deal with tough-to-teach issues. I feel as though I would have the right tools to back up my purpose for reading this book as well as the tools to answer questions or concerns that students bring up in class discussion.
In addition, I felt as though this book read really smoothly. Once I picked it up I had finished it before I knew it. This is a definite plus for reluctant readers. Especially for readers who are reluctant/nervous to read a chapter book.
100 Most Dangerous Things on the Planet
Written by: Anna Claybourne
I found this book to be seriously awesome. I purchased it for my future classroom library from a scholastic book order a month or two ago. When I saw it in the book order I figured that kids would really take a liking to it. There's an element of 'gross' and 'wow' to it that I know kids tend to appeal to. However, I didn't know that I would have the same reaction to it. There were things I read about in this book that I had not been aware of previously. For example:
-The survival rating for people being swept over a waterfall is only 20%. Also, in 1960, a 7-year-old boy miraculously survived being swept over one of the world's most powerful waterfalls, Niagara Falls. He was wearing a life vest and was rescued from the plunge pool by a tour boat.
This book is full of neat facts similar to the one mentioned above. There are also survival guides on each of the 100 dangerous things. Some of these dangerous things you might encounter are: an elephant charging you, a sinking ship, a broken power line, asteroid strike, sand storm, or a pack of wolves. There are unique and rare events as well as common events mentioned in the book. I think it's important for everyone to know what to do if they are found in a dangerous situation. I believe this book would fascinate students and really hold their attention. It may also help a reluctant reader find the motivation and desire to pick up the book.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Candy Floss
Candyfloss
Some common themes that shown through throughout this novel are listed below...
1. -Families can still be functional even after a divorce.
2. -Don’t let money and S.E.S. define who you are. Even in poverty situations, love can still, and more than likely will, be present.
3. -Friendships can occur even when you are least expecting them.
4. -Don’t follow the crowd, but instead think for yourself and make decisions on your own.
The book recommends that its audience be between 9 to 12 years of age, and I definitely agree with this age range. I believe students 9-12 years would find this book enjoyable because the font is a little larger than ‘normal’ books and a collage of pictures frontload each chapter. However, even with these aspects the book, at first appearance, does not look like a ‘younger’ students’ book, and this may be a positive aspect for its audience. Students with an interest in divorced families, step-families, poverty, or friendship may find this book enjoyable to read. Both boys and girls may found the content of this book interesting; however, the appearance of the book is a bit girlish. The cover of the book shows the feet of a girl wearing bright pink tights with hot pink sparks on them. Also, the main character, and many other characters within the book, are female, and due to this boys may be turned off by this story.
The Rabbit and the Turtle
Aesop's fables retold and illustrated by Eric Carle
Carle's illustrations shine throughout the pages of this book. They are quite unique (take a look at the picture on the left <--) and really help set up a fun and light atmosphere. This book is filled with fables that students may or may not heard before. Some of the fables included in this book are: The Cat and the Mouse, The Rabbit and the Turtle, and The Wolf and the Dog. The visuals do a nice job of aiding the written text.
I would recommend this book to individuals of all ages: children and adults alike. Carle's retelling of these fables help put a modern day twist on Aesop's version. I could definitely see myself using this book in a classroom as a read aloud.
Miss Fox's Class Earns a Field Trip
Written by: Eileen Spinelli
Illustrated by: Anne Kennedy
Miss Fox's class is trying to earn money for a field trip! Little did they know that $135 dollars would be difficult to earn. Along their way to make money they end up having to pay for things that go wrong (someone chipped a tooth, they accidentally break a gnome). Eventually they end up making enough money in order to go on a class field trip, regardless of all their depts.
While I was reading this all I could think was... this would make for such a great math lesson on adding and subtracting! And indeed it would. This book would be a good way to stretch reading across the curriculum. Reading seems to go well with other subjects, such as Science, Art, or Writing; however, one often doesn't think of Math and Reading. Throughout the book, scenarios are set up where the reader has the opportunity to figure out a math problem. It would fun to create a worksheet that coordinates with this book -- this may also increase the students' interest in the book and perhaps the subject of Math! I would consider using this book in a classroom where subtraction, addition, and story problems are already incorporated into the curriculum. (Perhaps a 1st or 2nd grade classroom).
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Love That Dog
Written by: Sharon Creech
WOW! What a fun and fast read. Holy toledo. I have never read a book quite like this before, and I absolutely loved it. I enjoyed reading it for a variety of reasons... for starters: Although this may sound silly coming from a senior in college, I felt like I accomplished something really big in a short amount of time. I can see students feeling the same way! I'm not sure how common it is for a student to finish a novel in a day or even finish a novel at all, in general. This in itself may be a huge accomplishment for many children, and in turn may motivate them to pick up another novel and give it a shot.
The poetry format was another reason I enjoy reading this book. The words were written on the page in a way that looked like poetry, however, I didn't read it as poetry. I feel like kids may get caught up in defining poetry by it's appearance. This book does an excellent job in breaking the norm of poems 'looking and sounding' like stereotypical poetry (a new 'sound' is applied to this story).
In conclusion, I also enjoyed the plot of the story. Each page is filled with diary-like entires. However, the audience is only allowed to read the entries written by the writer. There is a second party involved in the story that is responding to the writer's entries and in turn the writer is responding. Due to this I felt as though I was sort of a detective trying to figure out what the writer is responding to. This made the book unique to me. I would highly recommend this book as a read aloud to younger grades, an individual or group read in the middle grades, and as an individual read in j.h./high school/ and beyond. I enjoyed reading this book as a college student and I believe others will enjoy it as well.
The Misfits
Written by: James Howe
If I were to rate this book I would give it 3 out of 5 stars. I realize that this 'rating' is more than likely different than the opinions of my classmates. My disliking, for lack of a better word, of the book may have been due to circumstances not directly dealing with the book itself (such as where I was reading as well as the time of day I was reading it at), however, regardless this book was unable to capture or hold my attention for longer than a chapter. In fact, it often took a lot of inner conversation and courage on my part in order for me to successfully complete an entire chapter without setting the book down due to boredom.
The plot and moral of the story is a positive and effective one, however, I found it all to move way too slowly. I felt as though I was reading through quicksand, pushing aside words one by one. Perhaps this is due to the world we all live in now... for example if it takes my computer longer than 3-4 seconds to download a webpage, I tend to get annoyed and frustrated. We, although perhaps I am speaking for just myself, tend to want to experience a quick moving pace in just about everything we do. Another factor that may affect my opinion on this book is that my age, 22 years old, is not the attended age range for this book. In fact I was informed that this story is commonly read by upper elementary students. If I were a 4th or 5th grader reading this I may have a completely different view, and understandably so.
I did enjoy reading this book from a first person point of view. This perspective allows the story to seem much more personal and real. You feel as though you have been placed in a different pair of shoes. Students will benefit from this as well. I was told in my Adolescent Literature course that students have an easier time connecting with the main character if they are able to see through their eyes. Furthermore, I often found the situations in the book heart-wrenching. I strongly dislike seeing other people being teased, hurt, bullied, etc. and I know first hand how it feels. With saying that, I think it's important for students to understand and experience that feeling and this book may be a good way of accomplishging that.
Honey, I Love
Written by: Eloise Greenfield
Illustrated by: Jan Spivey Gilchist
Honey, I Love is thee only poetry book I checked out from the curriculum lab that had a continuous flow from one page to the next. It literally was a story book as well as a poetry book. One unique trait that author Greenfield incorporated into this book is his lack of ending punctuation marks. The only ending punctuation mark that appears throughout the entire book is at the very end, on the last page, after the very last word. Perhaps this why the book reads so smoothly from page to page.
The book has its recommended audience being children between the ages of 2 and 5. I agree with this age range due to the book's simple language and plot. I believe that this story could be utilized as a read out loud in a Kindergarten (and perhaps, first grade) classroom. However, I feel as though it would be more appropriate for a parent to read this book to their child at a younger age.
Brothers & Sisters: Family Poems
Written by: Eloise Greenfield
Illustrated by: Jan Spivey Gilchrist
This poetry book would be a wonderful addition to a family and/or friendship unit. The poems touch upon moments that occur between two sisters, two brothers, and between one brother and one sister. Some of these include: Wrestling, New Sibling, Twin, Mad at Dad, Teen Brother, etc. I assume that most of these topics could relate to my future students in some way or another. By allowing students to experience connections with books, they are practicing and experiencing a reading strategy!
In addition, diversity in gender, age, and ethnicity are shown throughout the pages of the book. This gives students the opportunity to see a variety of family structures and dynamics, which may or may not be similar to their own. I would recommend this book to students between the ages of 5 and 9, and I would also recommend this book to teachers and parents of younger students.
Toad by the Road
Written by: Joanne Ryder
Illustrated by: Maggie Kneen
Toad by the Road discusses a year in the life of a toad. An aspect of this book that I really enjoyed was the fact that the table of contents was split into 4 seasons. One would normally think: Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. However, Ryder breaks the life of a toad into four seasons known as 1) Spring-Summer, 2) Summer, 3) Late Summer-Fall, and 4) Winter-Spring. As you can see, the life of a toad is different that ours by just looking at how their year is broken up. One can also notice that Summer seems to be a popular and perhaps busy month for a toad.
The author does a nice job of incorporating all types of poetry styles into her book. Rhyming, repetition, alliteration, patterns, etc. are all displayed throughout the pages. I would recommend this book of poetry to students in 2nd grade or younger. This could easily be used in a science class as a supplement to a amphibian unit.
Rain Romp
Written by: Jane Kurtz
Illustrated by: Dyanna Wolcott
Rain Romp is a colorful book of poems for children 3 years of age and older. One of my favorite characteristics of this book was it's unique way of writing poetry on a page. Some of the poems within the story are written in a way that is typical of poetry. Others are written diagonally, curvy, or in different fonts scattered amongst the pages. Another aspect I enjoyed was the author's way of making the poetry have a rhythm without using rhymes. I was able to read the entire book in a smooth steady pattern without getting caught up with rhyming words.
In addition the illustrator, Wolcott, does a nice job of aiding the written text with her illustrations. The illustrations are page filling and extremely colorful. The colors are somewhat pastel in appearance and this gives the book a pleasant, soft feeling. I would recommend this book to students to read in their individual reading time as well as group-reading (perhaps in a literature group). This book is aimed toward younger students, however, I feel as though students in middle elementary could definitely benefit from it by studying the unique way poetry is written throughout this book.
I Can Draw a Weeposaur and Other Dinosaurs
Written by: Eloise Greenfield
Illustrated by: Jan Spivey Gilchrist
This book is recommended for children ages 4+. I would cap the '+' on the age of 7. The reason for this is because I read this book to my second grade buddy and she struggled to keep her interest in this story. I Can Draw a Weeposaur and Other Dinosaurs is a poem book that lists short poems (4-5 sentences in length) about different make-believe dinosaurs... such as: shoppersaurus, trickosaurus, and smellasaurus. I appreciated the creativeness the author and illustrator used throughout making this book.
I believe this book would be a good way to start a poetry unit with in a younger elementary grade because the poems are simple yet creative. However, I do have one caution: all the poetry presented in this book rhyme. I believe that it is almost 'stereotypical' for one to think that a poem has to rhyme. If I do decide to use this book in the future I will want to make sure that I make a point to the class that poetry doesn't have to rhyme. In order to help prove this, I would read un-rhyming poetry to the class perhaps from another book.
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