Green by Laura Vaccaro Seeger

Post by: Ashley Woodill

Author: Laura Vaccaro Seeger

Age: Pre-k-Grade 6

Genre: Picture book

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Summary: This book does not follow a narrative. Instead, readers are presented with the adjective green, and brought to the different places where we may find this color. However, Seeger does not just give the explanation green. Instead, readers see how this adjective transforms when we put one other word before it to modify the word. For example, we can have glow green, faded green, or never green. All of these colors offer a different illustration in an entirely different setting.

Use of book in a lesson: I would use this text in a writing lesson. Often times, students’ work lacks detail. This is an entire book explaining the different uses of green. If one book can explain this color in so many different ways, then students’ writing can explain their images and ideas in many different ways as well. This book can be used as a mentor text in any writing unit. This would address the following standard: CCSS.ELA.W.3.4.b: Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships and nuances in word meanings.

In order to assess understanding I would facilitate a “talk show” in which the students take turns playing different roles of characters. The rest of the class would have opportunities to ask each “guest” on the show different questions to enhance meaning and comprehension of the story. In his article, “What’s New With Literature Circles and What’s the next Big Thing?” Harvey Daniels (2008) explains, “We now favor performance-oriented projects over more static types: readers theater, talk shows, tableaux, found poetry, song parodies, and the like” (p.5). Since the story would certainly change if told from any other person in the family, this lesson and method of assessment will allow students to gain a deeper understanding of the story as well as point of view.

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References

Vaquero, L.(2013). Green. New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company.

Daniels, H. (2008). What’s new with literature circles and what’s the next big thing? (p. 1-8). Handout from the Walloon Institute.

National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers. (2010). Common Core State Standards for English language arts and literacy in history/social studies, science, and technical subjects. Washington, DC: Authors.

One Cool Friend

Post by Ashley Woodill

Above is a clip of One Cool Friend being read.

Author: Toni Buzzeo                                                      Illustrator: David Small

Age Recommendation: Grades K-6

Genres: Narrative

Summary: On a trip to the aquarium with his father, Elliot decides he wants a penguin. When he asks his dad if he can have one, his father obliges. Readers assume that his father thinks he wants a stuffed penguin. When Elliot brings the penguin home, he tries to accommodate it as much as possible by doing funny things like making an ice skating rink in his bedroom, sharing anchovy pizza, and reading stories. The entire time, readers are on the edge of their seats as the father keeps almost finding the pet penguin in the house when he stumbles upon it in the bathroom asking Elliot, “Young man, where did this penguin come from?” Readers assume that Elliot will be in trouble by the father’s speech described as “demanded.” Elliot’s response is an intelligent one and exactly what his father wanted: “The southern tip of Argentina.” At this moment, readers are stunned. But then we find out that the entire time his father had a pet tortuous living in the house as well. Elliot’s father is not angry nor surprised as readers had been expecting.

I would use this text in my class for many reasons, but specifically as a mentor text to teach dialogue. I love the way the author chose to show the dialogue bubbles around the words. There are also many words within the text that explain how the character is talking such as demanded, added, announced, asked, and even thought. This would address the CCSS: “Produce clear and coherent writing in which the

I would use this text in the classroom to show point of view. This would address the CCSS:
“Acknowledge differences in the points of view of characters, including by speaking in a different voice for each character when reading dialogue aloud” (CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.6). Tompkins writes, “What characters say is important, but also how they speak” (p. 281). Using a mentor text for students to recreate dialogue that explains how characters speak is an important component to narrative writing.

 

References

Buzzeo, T., & Small, D. (2012). One cool friend. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers.

Tompkins, G. E. (2013). Language arts: Patterns of practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Creepy Carrots!

Post by Ashley Woodill

Author: Aaron Reynolds                                                      Illustrator: Peter Brown

 

Age Recommendation: 4-8 years old

Genres: Fantasy

Summary: Jasper Rabbit is a rabbit who loves carrots. He eats them all of the time and chooses to eat the ones in Crankenhopper Field. Not only are they free, but he thinks they’re the best. One day, the carrots start following him. At first, Jasper thinks the he’s losing his mind, but then he knows they’re there. His parents try to tell him they’re just in his imagination. Finally, Jasper takes matter into his own hands and builds a very tall fence around the field. The last page reveals that this was the carrots’ plan the entire time and celebrate when they realize Jasper Rabbit will never eat the carrots in Crankenhopper Field again.

I chose this book in light of the creepy season of Halloween that is upon us. While this text does not mention the word Halloween, a creepy sci-fi feeling surrounds this text but in an age appropriate manner.

I would use this text in the classroom to show point of view. This would address the CCSS:
“Acknowledge differences in the points of view of characters, including by speaking in a different voice for each character when reading dialogue aloud” (CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.6). Tompkins writes, “Most teachers postpone introducing the four viewpoints until the upper grades, but younger children can experiment with point of view to understand how the author’s viewpoint affects a story” (p. 284).

Here’s an added note from the illustrator of Creepy Carrots and his inspiration for the pictures.

References

Reynolds, A., & Brown, P. (2013). Creepy carrots!. New York: Simon and Schuster.

Tompkins, G. E. (2013). Language arts: Patterns of practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Locomotive by Brian Floca

Post by Ashley Woodill

Author: Brian Floca

Age Recommendation: Five to 12 years/ kindergarten through sixth grade

Genres: Non fiction

Summary: Floca’s Locomotive is a celebrative rendition of the transcontinental railroad. This story brings readers back to 1869 when means of travel were hard and limited. Through the beautiful illustrations and the wonderful text, readers are presented with well-researched information and images that portray the landscapes of the rural U.S.

As with many non-fiction books, readers are often only presented with one side of the story. While Floca does a great job at explaining how the transcontinental railroad helped shape America and what it did for the people of 1869, the celebration is divided by lines of race. As seen in her blog, Debbie Reese explains the implications of this story in regards to Native American land and Chineese laborers. Since Floca only tells the story from one celebrative viewpoint, the problems that the transcontinental railroad had are hardly indicated.

The use of informational texts in the classroom is essential. Gail E. Thompkins explains, “Recent research suggests that reading and writing information may be as important for Kindergarten through eighth-grade students as reading and writing stories. Students enjoy reading informational books, and as they learn this knowledge about text structure supports students’ reading and writing” (p. 349). Locomotive can thus be used as an informational text in the classroom as a good source of information or as a mentor text for students to model their own work

Since Floca’s text reflects the tremendous amount of research that he put into the book, I would use this text in a classroom. I would use this text in combination with other informational texts to illustrate a number of things. First, Floca’s information is valid and well researched, so the information included is weighted and can be taken as fact. Since Floca leaves out other views such as the Native Americans, I would use this text in combination with other texts that discuss the transcontinental railroad from another perspective. This would address the CCSS:
“Integrate information from several texts on the same topic in order to write or speak about the subject knowledgeably” (CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.5.9).

 

References

 Floca, B. (2013). Locomotive. New York: Simon and Schuster. 

National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers. (2010). Common Core State Standards for English language arts and literacy in history/social studies, science, and technical subjects. Washington, DC: Authors.

Tompkins, G. E. (2013). Language arts: Patterns of practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett

Illustrated by Jon Klassen;

Post by Ashley Woodill

 

Author: Mac Barnett

Illustrator: Jon Klassen

Age Recommendation: Five to 12 years/ kindergarten through sixth grade

Genres: Fantasy

Summary: The story opens to a young girl named Annabelle who lives in a dark and dreary town. She finds a box of yarn and soon realizes that there is an unlimited supply. She makes sweaters for herself and her dog, a grumpy boy and his dog, all of her classmates and teacher, and a hat for a peculiar man who doesn’t wear any clothes. She runs out of people to make knitted things for so she starts making sweaters for things that don’t wear sweaters (which is actually known as yarn bombing— it is essentially graffiti for people who knit!)

Everything is going great for Annabelle as she performs random acts of kindness by making items for people who do not necessarily deserve them. The pictures went from dull and colorless to illustrations that are bursting with color.

Suddenly the whole mood of the book changes when a new character named The Archduke shows up. The pages turn dark and dreary and he eventually steals Annabelle’s box at night. When he gets it home to open it he finds that there is no yarn in the box and he throws it out of the window. Somehow, the box magically makes it back to Annabelle and all is well again in her own colorful world.

Here is a wonderful clip of Mac Barnett reading the ending of Extra Yarn aloud. I just love the voice that he gives to the Archduke.

The reason why I suggest that this text can be used for older students is because this text serves as a great mentor text for all ages. There are some great vocabulary that support narrative writing and dialogue, a dramatic explanation of a climax, and a fantastic demonstration of mood. If this were used as a mentor text in fifth grade, students could see an example of how to use dialogue words such as “he demanded.” If this text was used this was it would be addressing the Common Core Standard: “Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, description, and pacing, to develop experiences and events or show the responses of characters to situations” (CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.3.b).

Another way to effectively use this text in the classroom would be to identify the beginning, middle, and end. As Gail E. Tomkins in Language Arts: Patterns of Practice, “Students make a chart called a plot profile to track the tension in a story” (p. 279). This activity includes the students drawing three pictures: one of the beginning, one of the middle, and one of the end. At the end of the activity, students work with partners to discuss and analyze the charts and the  writers choice of including these events. This activity would meet the Common Core State Standard: “Describe the overall structure of a story, including describing how the beginning introduces the story and the ending concludes the action” (CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.5).

References

Barnett, Mac, and J. Klassen. Extra yarn. New York: Balzer & Bray, 2012. Print.

National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers. (2010). Common Core State Standards for English language arts and literacy in history/social studies, science, and technical subjects. Washington, DC: Authors.

Tompkins, G. E. (2013). Language arts: Patterns of practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Knock Knock: My Dad’s Dream For Me Review by Ashley Woodill

 

 

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Above, please view the video of the author’s live performance of his version of Knock Knock: My Dad’s Dream for Me. Beaty’s performance is motivating, empowering, and arresting.

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Author: Daniel Beaty

Illustrator: Bryan Collier

Age: Pre-k-Grade 6

Genre: Realistic Fiction

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Summary: This is the story brings readers into an urban setting where a little boy lives. Every morning his father wakes him up playing a game as the father  knocks on the door to find the little boy pretending he is asleep. The climax comes when the father doesn’t come one morning. The boy spends days waiting for his father to return until he finally writes him a letter and leaves it on his desk in hopes that his father will return home to find it. Eventually the father returns a letter which gives readers the idea that he did not die, but he never returns. The letter essentially tells the boy that the father’s life does not have to be the boy’s future; rather there are many possibilities that the boy can explore. Through the illustrations we can see that the boy eventually becomes a man and wears the father’s hat but in a bright yellow color. This could represent the memory of his father that he holds dearly with the bright future that he created for himself.

Use of book in a lesson: This story has a positive ending full of hope while holding the potential of touching the lives of so many children who grow up with an absent parent. While the story never tells the readers exactly where the father has gone, the author’s note gives us a clue that points towards incarceration. Since Beaty never tells readers where the father goes, the story remains universal and can be related into the lives of many children today. The vague location of the father also allows this story to be brought down to any aged child as any age could feel the emotional impact of the story without the harsh reality.

Since the message of this book is universal, I would most likely use this as a read-aloud for any class from grades K-6. As this story can be a mirror or a window book for any child, Knock Knock will certainly build community within the classroom. The way that I would incorporate this story would be different depending on the grade level. A generic direction would be to discuss the point of view of the narrator and how the story might be different if told from another perspective. For example, if this were used in a fifth grade classroom I may read this book as an introduction to a bigger literature lesson to explore point of view while addressing the Common Core State Standard for “describe how a narrator’s or speaker’s point of view influences how events are described” (CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.6) If this lesson needed to be geared down to for second graders, we could aim our discussion towards different speakers and their points of view as we see them in the story. When reading the letter aloud, the same voice would be used as the father’s dialogue since the letter is the father’s message to his son. This would address the Common Core State Standard for “Acknowledge differences in the points of view of characters, including by speaking in a different voice for each character when reading dialogue aloud” (CCSS.ELA-Literacy-RL.2.6).

In order to assess understanding I would facilitate a “talk show” in which the students take turns playing different roles of characters. The rest of the class would have opportunities to ask each “guest” on the show different questions to enhance meaning and comprehension of the story. In his article, “What’s New With Literature Circles and What’s the next Big Thing?” Harvey Daniels (2008) explains, “We now favor performance-oriented projects over more static types: readers theater, talk shows, tableaux, found poetry, song parodies, and the like” (p.5). Since the story would certainly change if told from any other person in the family, this lesson and method of assessment will allow students to gain a deeper understanding of the story as well as point of view.

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References

Beaty, D. (2013). Knock knock: My dad’s dream for me. New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company.

Daniels, H. (2008). What’s new with literature circles and what’s the next big thing? (p. 1-8). Handout from the Walloon Institute.

National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers. (2010). Common Core State Standards for English language arts and literacy in history/social studies, science, and technical subjects. Washington, DC: Authors.