It's Monday! What Are You Reading 10.31.16

This weekly post comes from Jen at Teach Mentor Texts

 and Kellee and Ricki at Unleashing Readers.  

It's a great source to find new books to use with your students.

Last Week's Adventures

I finished my blog series about reading longer nonfiction texts when you don't read cover to cover with Deborah Hopkinson's Dive.  Check it out here.

Are you doing a Mock Caldecott this year?  Here is how we started ours this year and our lists!

Have you seen Elaine Vickers' debut novel, Like Magic?  It is pure magic - make sure it's in your classroom library if you're 3rd-6th grade!

Picture Books

Nanette's Baguette by Mo Willems
4/5 stars
Another silly, yet witty, treasure from Mo!
Nanette has been given the ultimate responsibility - to get the baguette from the bakery.  But it's so warm and smells so good!  So Nanette does what you would expect her to - eat it all up!  Fun surprise at the end.


Rescue Squad No. 9 by Mike Austin
4/5 stars
A follow up to last year's Fire Engine No. 9, this time young readers see a rescue boat and helicopter in action.  I like how the end pages label and name rescue equipment that is used throughout the book.


I Love Cake! by Tammi Sauer
4/5 stars
Absolutely predictable, but perfect for showing young readers how to draw conclusions.
Rabbit, Porcupine and Moose are getting together to celebrate Rabbit's birthday.  Rabbit has a great day planned, but all Moose wants is the cake.  When the cake is eaten up and Moose is no where to be found, readers can definitely guess what happened to the cake!

Informational Texts

Build, Beaver, Build! by Sandra Markle

5/5 stars

Told in a narrative format, Markle covers a year in the life of a beaver family.  This particular family lives on a beaver dam that has been there for generations.  Each generation has added to the growth of the dam.  We see how the young beaver kit grows in his first year - we see what he needs and how he changes.  We see how the family prepares for the different seasons.  Markle cleverly adds details about how beavers protect themselves from predators, how they eat, how they grow stronger through play, how they communicate with other beavers - all of these facts but written into a narrative story that is sure to capture young readers' attention.

Graphic Novels


DC Super Hero Girls: Finals Crisis by Shea Fontana
3/5 stars
I know readers are going to really enjoy this graphic novel series.  I already have several readers in mind for this book.
Not my favorite graphic novel, but I am definitely not the intended audience....

Transitional Chapter Books


The Princess in Black Takes a Vacation by Shannon and Dean Hale4/5 stars
I love this series!
The newest one has the Princess in Black (or as my student calls her P.I.B.) is ready for a vacation after fighting 14 monsters all within this week!  She gets to take a vacation because Duff is The Goat Avenger and will help watch over things.  So glad to see The Goat Avenger again!
I've been using this series with a small group of readers and they have loved getting to know... P.I.B.   :)

Currently Reading


A Rambler Steals Home by Carter Higgins


The Poet's Dog by Patricia MacLachlan

Hoping to get some reading done in between the doorbell ringing with trick or treaters! 
Happy Halloween!

Spotlight Friday - Mock Caldecott 10.28.16

Time to get ready for the weekend!

Kick up your feet and find a good place to read.

Sharing #booklove for your classroom or library.

Spotlighting a book or two because these books deserve the spotlight!

Our Mock season has officially begun.  We've had our first Mock Newbery meeting with our 4th grade club and now we're getting ready to kick off Mock Geisel and Mock Caldecott at our school. Here's an update on how our Mock Caldecott is going this year!

As I've been reading picture books this year, I've been adding potential Caldecott books to my list. It's grown quite long, but I was able to create our Mock Caldecott LONG list from it.  Here's what we started with:

• Thunder Boy Jr. by Sherman Alexie, illustrated by Yuyi Morales
• Ada’s Violin by Susan Hood, illustrated by Sally Wern Comport
• When Spring Comes by Kevin Henkes, illustrated by Laura Dronzek
• Be a Friend by Salina Yoon
• Freedom in Congo Square by Carol Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Gregory Christie
• Tell Me a Tattoo Story by Alison McGhee, illustrated by Eliza Wheeler
• The Secret Subway by Shana Corey, illustrated by Red Nose Studio
• Before Morning by Joyce Sidman, illustrated by Beth Krommes
• Henry & Leo by Pamela Zagarenski
• We Found a Hat by Jon Klassen
• The Airport Book by Lisa Brown
• This is Not a Picture Book by Sergio Ruzzier
• They All Saw a Cat by Brendan Wenzel
• Maybe Something Beautiful by F. Isabel Campoy and Thomas Holland, illustrated by Rafael Lopez
• The Knowing Book by Rebecca Kai Dotlich, illustrated by Matthew Cordell
• The Whale by Ethan and Vita Murrow
• Daniel Finds a Poem by Micha Archer
• The Princess and the Warrior by Duncan Tonatiuh
• Shy by Deborah Freedman
• The Night Gardener by The Fan Brothers
• The Uncorker of Ocean Bottles by Michelle Cuevas, illustrated by Erin Stead
• Return by Aaron Becker
• Jazz Day by Roxane Orgill, illustrated by Francis Vallejo
• Twenty Yawns by Jane Smiley, illustrated by Lauren Castillo
• School’s First Day of School by Adam Rex, illustrated by Christian Robinson
• Are We There Yet? by Dan Santat

Fantastic books. I knew it would be hard to cut this list down. My colleague and I started having discussions, but we still had trouble cutting anything down. We decided to try something new this year.

To help us figure out the books we really wanted for the Mock list, we enlisted help from the staff. Our 2nd-4th graders participate in the Mock Caldecott each year, so we asked teachers from those grade levels to help. We set aside one afternoon after school to dig into these books and look at them with the Caldecott criteria in mind. My colleague and I pulled the books from the long list and I made up a Google survey. I asked our teachers to note the art medium the book used (thank goodness that is usually listed on the copyright page!) and evaluate the book on the following criteria:

• excellence of artistic technique
• excellence of pictorial interpretation of story, theme or concept
• appropriateness of style of illustration to the story
• you can visually see the plot, theme, characters, setting, mood or information through the illustrations

We also asked the teachers to add any additional comments about the book.

Based on their responses, we formed our official 2017 Meadowview School Mock Caldecott list. On our list this year:

• Ada’s Violin by Susan Hood, illustrated by Sally Wern Comport
• Be a Friend by Salina Yoon
• The Secret Subway by Shana Corey, illustrated by Red Nose Studio
• Before Morning by Joyce Sidman, illustrated by Beth Krommes
• Henry & Leo by Pamela Zagarenski
• We Found a Hat by Jon Klassen
• The Airport Book by Lisa Brown
• This is Not a Picture Book by Sergio Ruzzier
• They All Saw a Cat by Brendan Wenzel
• Maybe Something Beautiful by F. Isabel Campoy and Thomas Holland, illustrated by Rafael Lopez
• The Whale by Ethan and Vita Murrow
• The Night Gardener by The Fan Brothers
• The Uncorker of Ocean Bottles by Michelle Cuevas, illustrated by Erin Stead
• Return by Aaron Becker
• Jazz Day by Roxane Orgill, illustrated by Francis Vallejo
• Twenty Yawns by Jane Smiley, illustrated by Lauren Castillo

As you can see, it helped us bring down the list a bit, but it's still pretty long! We'll begin the second week of November. Teachers will have until the Friday before the awards to read the books. My colleague and I will create a padlet the teachers can use during the unit giving websites and video links.

I'm looking forward to beginning this year's unit!

Want even more information? Check out our Celebration from last year!

Thinking about holding a Mock Geisel? Check out last week's post!

Like Magic by Elaine Vickers - a review 10.27.16

Like Magic

by Elaine Vickers

published by HarperCollins

There are some universals in life, especially in middle school.  One, and maybe the biggest, is friendship.  It's hard to navigate middle school, figure out who you are, where you fit in at school and at home, and have solid friendships.  I think it's something all kids struggle with at some point or the other.

What I love about this book is how everything is woven together.  There are three main characters and each get to tell their own story in their own chapters.  The reader gets to know each girl while simultaneously piecing their stories together.  Also woven through the story is the fine arts - the power of voice, music, art and creativity.  The fine arts in this book are considered a "treasure" and the girls leave each other a little bit of themselves into a special box.  I love that they get the box from a librarian and the library is a central location for all three girls!

Even with the different voices, readers will be able to easily follow the different story strands.  I think readers will see a piece of themselves within the book and it's a story they will treasure.  Be sure to share the book trailer with students!

Goodreads summary:
This sweet middle grade novel featuring a diverse cast of characters proves that friendship can be just around the corner.

For three ten-year-old girls, their once simple worlds are starting to feel too big. Painfully shy Grace dreads starting fifth grade now that her best friend has moved away. Jada hopes she’ll stop feeling so alone if she finds the mother who left years ago. And Malia fears the arrival of her new baby sister will forever change the family she loves. When the girls each find a mysterious treasure box in their library and begin to fill the box with their own precious things, they start to feel less alone. But it’s up to Grace, Jada, and Malia to take the treasures and turn them into something more: true friendship.

Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday - Reading Longer Nonfiction Part 4 - 10.26.16

Every Wednesday I join Alyson Beecher from kidlitfrenzy and other

kidlit bloggers to share wonderful nonfiction picture books.

The intention of today's blog is to give educational professionals

new nonfiction reading material and ideas to use 

with students to promote a love of reading nonfiction materials.

The nonfiction material that is being published is absolutely amazing.  Authors are covering fascinating topics and writing with such voice that even readers who formerly despise nonfiction are coming over to the "enlightened" side!  From picture books to longer chapter books.  From graphic novels to interactive books.  Such wonderful material!  

During the month of October, I'm going to spotlight some longer nonfiction.  Just like their picture book counterparts, authors of longer nonfiction books are putting an amazing amount of detail and engaging stories into their texts.  Each week I'll share a quick summary, along with tips on how to use it if you're not reading the text cover to cover.

Part 1:  Some Writer! and Super Gear

Part 2::  Watch Out for Flying Kids

Part 3:  Presenting Buffalo Bill

Today I am turning the spotlight on history again.  This time with more of a a historical war tactic/STEM approach.

Dive!

World War II Stories

of Sailors and Submarines in the Pacific

written by Deborah Hopkinson

published by Scholastic

Goodreads Summary

Dive! World War II Stories of Sailors & Submarines in the Pacific tells the incredible story of America's little known "war within a war" -- US submarine warfare during World War II.

Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, the US entered World War II in December 1941 with only 44 Naval submarines -- many of them dating from the 1920s. With the Pacific battleship fleet decimated after Pearl Harbor, it was up to the feisty and heroic sailors aboard the US submarines to stop the Japanese invasion across the Pacific.

Using first-person accounts, archival materials, official Naval documents, and photographs, award-winning author Deborah Hopkinson brings the voices and exploits of these brave men to life.

If you aren't already familiar with Hopkinson's work, it's one I recommend taking a look at (Titanic: Voices From the Disaster, The Great Trouble: A Mystery of London, the Blue Death, and a Boy Called Eel, Courage & Defiance: Spies, Saboteurs, and Survivors in WWII Denmark).  Her newest novel for middle grade readers is captivating and suspenseful.  As in many of the other books I've reviewed this month, I'd be surprised if kids didn't read this book cover to cover.  However, we have readers that can't sustain longer nonfiction, so how can we peak their interest?  Try some of these ideas using this book:

• look to see if the book is broken up into sections.  In this particular book, it is and a section usually follows the plight of one submarine ship.  Show students they can read one section instead of the whole book.
• this is a book that will probably enhance Social Studies.  Are you a teacher that teaches World War II?  Use this book during lessons.  Find passages/stories/sections that go along with this part of history and read aloud.  Find passages for students to closely read.
• Teachers: notice the "Skipper's Recommendations" sections that Hopkinson includes.   There is often a STEM connection.  Also, good web resource.
• similar to Presenting Buffalo Bill, take a look at the headings - teach kids to read headings, think about what might be in that section, and decide if it's one that would hold their interest. My guess is they will get roped in and read more than they think!

I hope this blog series has been informative.  Longer nonfiction offers so much information and the books and authors I've covered have really done an amazing job at presenting the information in a fascinating way.  What were some of the ideas offered stuck with you?  What did you try?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? 10.24.16

This weekly post comes from Jen at Teach Mentor Texts

 and Kellee and Ricki at Unleashing Readers.  

It's a great source to find new books to use with your students.

Last Week's Adventures

I featured Part 3 of my blog series - reading longer chapter books when you don't read cover to cover.  This week I featured Candace Fleming's new book Presenting Buffalo Bill.

Are you thinking about doing a Mock Geisel?  Here are the books we're using and how it's starting.

Picture Books

Wonderfall by Michael Hall

4/5 stars

If you by chance have a collection of books to be read in the fall, make sure this one is on it!  One sentence review:  Lovely poems, each one titled with a word that is a word play on a word that ends with -ful, and includes a brightly colored Michael Hall illustration.

The Story Book Knight by Helen Docherty

4/5 stars

From the husband and wife team that brought us The Snatchabook, another fun, rhyming tale about a character that just loves to read.  This time we see the power of stories prevails over fighting.

The Journey by Francesca Sanna

4/5 stars

Powerful book.  About a family who must escape the home and country they live in when war comes too close.  The impact of war on a family and how it makes a family become refugees.  This is such an important book to talk about with kids today.  I imagine very rich conversations with students in grades 4 and up - because picture books are really meant for everyone.

Samson in the Snow by Philip Stead

4/5 stars

Everyone needs a friends like Samson.  One who gives away things to make others happy.  One who thinks about others.  One who helps others when they don't even ask.

Very sweet story.  Beautiful illustrations.

In Plain Sight by Richard Jackson

4/5 stars

Illustrated by Jerry Pinkney, which makes it a delight for the eyes.  Story about a tradition between a granddaughter and grandfather - the grandfather always hides things for his granddaughter to find... in plain sight.


First Snow by Bomi Park
5/5 stars
Perfect perfect perfect book to read on the first fall of snow of the year.
Simple text but just gorgeous illustrations.  This one is going on my must purchase list.


Bringing the Outside In by Mary McKenna Siddals
4/5 stars
I love Patrice Barton's artwork.  I had not heard of this book before, but walked past it while in the library.  Noticed it was Barton's work right away and checked it out!  Rolling poem about the seasons and how the outside tends to cling to us.  Loved the incidental diversity within this book.

Informational Texts


One Day on our Blue Planet...in the Antarctic by Ella Bailey
4/5 stars
This is the first book I've seen in this series, but it seems to be one to check out.  This narrative follows an adelie penguin as it travels to the open water.  I had no idea a penguin could live in and around the sea for as long as it does - before it comes to solid land again.  
You could certainly read this book to pick up facts about this penguin.  The illustrations are colorful, but are often very busy.  It's hard to know what information to pick up through them.  I really liked the end pages.  The end pages at the beginning spotlight animals found above the ice in the Antarctic, the end pages at the end spotlight animals found under the ice.

Currently Reading


Like Magic by Elaine Vickers
I'm almost done with this wonderful wonderful book.  I have really enjoyed getting to know the three main characters and seeing how their story is being woven together.
It's taken me awhile to read the story, but by no fault of its own.  I've been taking a lot of time reading some longer nonfiction for my blog series on Wednesdays and its cut into some other reading time.  But, it's been very informative thinking how kids might approach reading longer nonfiction texts!
I will have a review about this book on Thursday.  Come back and check in!



Excited to get back to reading some more middle grade this week.  Cross your fingers!