Spotlight Friday: early readers roundup 9.02.16

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!

I work with many readers.  I work with readers who are just starting to make sense of the printed word.  I work with students who are more confident with print and are ready to really dig deeper into their reading.  I work with classrooms where students are reading challenging material and are really pushing their thinking.

What does this mean?

We need a variety of texts to meet the needs of our readers.  Having picture books and chapter books aren't enough.  We need to make sure we have a variety within these formats in our libraries.

One type of texts are early readers.  Often termed "easy readers" or "leveled readers", right now I refer to them as early readers.  I'm still not sure I like that term.  I never want to put a label on a book that would mark them for a specific age group or predetermine what level of reader a book is "for".  

In the past, early readers didn't have much plot, there wasn't much character development.  Really, they didn't make readers want to read these books.  I'm so glad to see publishers change this.  Early readers now have engaging plots, characters that readers relate to, and issues that young readers understand.  

Here are some of my favorites:

        

Rabbit and Robot series

by Cece Bell

A Pig, A Fox, and a Box

by Jonathan Fenske

        

FreckleFace Strawberry series

by Julianne Moore

        

Ling and Ting series

by Grace Lin

        

Pigsticks and Harold series

by Alex Milway

        

What This Story Needs Is series

by Emma Virján

        

Poppy the Pirate Dog series

by Liz Kessler

        

Penny and Her Marble

by Kevin Henkes

        

Bink and Gollie series

by Kate DiCamillo

        

Urgency Emergency! series

by Dosh Archer

and for those who are ready for something a little bit longer, but maybe not as long as a transitional chapter book:

         

Mercy Watson series 

by Kate DiCamillo

         

Tales From Deckawoo Drive series

by Kate DiCamillo

        

The Princess in Black series 

by Shannon and Dean Hale

The Meanest Birthday Girl

by Josh Schneider

Tales for Very Picky Eaters

by Josh Schneider

        

Tales of Bunjitsu Bunny series

by John Himmelman

This summer I wrote a series featuring some new early readers.  Check these books out:

PART ONE featuring Snail and Worm by Tina Kügler

PART TWO featuring Duck, Duck, Porcupine by Salina Yoon

PART THREE featuring HMH's Green Light Readers series

Happy Reading to all!

Spotlight Friday - spotlight on early readers, part 3

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!

I am so thrilled to see books being published that are intended for early readers.  Books that contain mostly sight words and many of the words can be decoded by looking at picture clues, are often simplistic and have no plot line.  Characters are flat and do not develop.  However, there have been some books that have been recently published that show early readers can be smart, fun books!  For the next several weeks I am going to spotlight some of them.  I hope these books find a way into your classroom!

Part 1 of the series is HERE

Part 2 of the series is HERE

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt has a series that is specifically for early readers.  They are tiered in levels so readers can grow with them.  It seems to be the "it" thing to do now, and put the guided reading level on the back of the cover.  I have mixed feelings about this.  Mostly, I wish they weren't there. Unless that level is being used by a teacher for specific reading purposes, a level does not need to be attached.  

The books I've read so far in this series have characters and plots that are sure to interest young readers.  Since it's an early reader, the text tends to be controlled as far as sight words and decodable words, but most of them still have an interesting story.  I like that the longer books are early chapter books.  By introducing young readers to short chapters, they start getting the feel of remembering a plot line over a longer period of reading time.

Here are a few I've read so far.

Buster the Very Shy Dog in the Great Bone Game

by Lisze Bechtold

       

Bradford Street Buddies:

Backyard Camp-Out

Block Party Surprise

by Jerdine Nolen

illustrated by Michelle Henninger

       

Celebrating Illinois

Celebrating Florida

by Marion Dane Bauer

illustrated by C.B. Canga

Spotlight Friday - spotlight on early readers, part 2

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!

I am so thrilled to see books being published that are intended for early readers.  Books that contain mostly sight words and many of the words can be decoded by looking at picture clues, are often simplistic and have no plot line.  Characters are flat and do not develop.  However, there have been some books that have been recently published that show early readers can be smart, fun books!  For the next several weeks I am going to spotlight some of them.  I hope these books find a way into your classroom!

Part 1 of the series is HERE

Duck, Duck, Porcupine!

by Salina Yoon

published by Bloomsbury

Goodreads summary:

Big Duck likes to boss around her younger brother, Little Duck, and she fancies herself the leader of their trio--when joined by their gentle friend Porcupine. Little Duck doesn't speak yet, but through his expressions and his actions, he shows that he has a better grasp on any situation than his older sister. Told entirely through dialogue and visual storytelling with subtle humor throughout, Little Duck ends up getting the trio out of whatever jam they are in.

This book is begged to be read out loud and enjoyed over and over.  Watch your audience and notice when the clever reader picks up on the clues that Big Duck and Porcupine miss over and over.  It's the clever reader and the clever Little Duck that notice the little details that Big Duck and Porcupine keep missing.  I love how Salina Yoon uses small details in the illustrations and text to add more to her stories.  In each chapter, it's Little Duck who is always in the know.  He knows it's about to rain in the first chapter, and then shows his friends how to make a rainy day fun.  In the next chapter, Little Duck knows exactly what Big Duck forgot, yet it's Little Duck's attempts to let Big Duck know what she forgot that will make readers laugh.  Finally, in the last chapter when it's time to go camping, it's Little Duck who remembers what is important.

I am a big fan of Salina Yoon's books.  I think she has great talent in conveying the story through her bright, bold illustrations and concise text.  They appeal to so many readers.  I start my school year off with her books because they get kids excited to read.  And have you seen her books as part of Kohls Cares?  I picked up a Bear and Penguin for my young readers to share and love as we read her books next year.  Now, I am excited to share this book with young readers!  I asked her the other day about more in the series and she shared the next one will be out in January 2017 and book 3 in the fall of 2017.  Yippee! 

I'll leave you with this adorable image she sent me!  Thank you, Salina!