Writing that lasts for more than a day | Connected: Literacy for Generation Z by Dr. Julie Wood | Blogs about Reading | Reading Rockets

Writing that lasts for more than a day | Connected: Literacy for Generation Z by Dr. Julie Wood | Blogs about Reading | Reading Rockets

Three Pigs by David Weisner

The Three Pigs by David Weisner is a wonderful deviation from the normal fairy tale. Although the story starts out  the same with the little pigs gathering materials and heading out to build their various structures the wolf ends up blowing the first little pig right out of the story. Only David Weisner with his brilliant artistic sense could create such a departure. He takes the reader in and out of stories allowing the little pig to fill his curiosity by jumping in and out of stories while the pig remains stuck. 

As a teacher I would use this book to begin "What if" discussions and see where the students were willing to go. This would be a great imaginative exercise allowing the students to flex their creative muscles. I also like the way that Weisner begins the known tale in the same way but is able to take the reader and seemingly the pigs on a wild adventure. It's exciting to read and the pictures make the adventures come alive. This is a great book for K-3 but I can also think of many activities to help older students learn to take risks in their writing. 

The Hello, Goodbye Window by Norton Juster and Chris Raschka
Caldecott Medal (2006)


This story is about a window, a magical window for one little girl. It's her Nana and Popa's kitchen window and to her it's a gateway in which everything exciting happens near it. Whether she is looking through it, beyond it or near it the window captures the ordinary and she makes it extraordinary. What a wonderful celebration of life. The pictures make the story come alive as they intertwine with the words throughout the tale.

Teachers can use this book to:

• Open up a conversation with children about their family relationships. 
• Create a magic window to use in the classroom to help "change the perspective" and get a new view of a situation.
• Begin a letter writing project in which students write to grandparents.
• Invite parents to share about their grandparents and special experiences.
• What makes a special memory.
• Work with the art teacher to create a poetry/art creation with students.
• How can artwork change the poetry and words. The power of words and pictures

Summary:

I didn't think I was going to like the book because of the type of artwork, it was very contemporary and  it's not normally my "cup of tea". As I read through the book a few times I began to understand the artwork and to me it felt like a perfect representation of the girls' vision of the magic window. This is a great book to share with children of all ages. My mother-in-law fell in love with it because of the loving  way the girl shares the story of the wonderful things that happen near the window. I think people of all ages can relate to the special memories they have from their childhood.

Technology and the classroom

In today's classroom the rules of engagement are changing quickly. Teachers are faced with more regulations, guidelines, larger class sizes and less money. The trend toward merit pay has raised the threshold and puts even more pressure on both teachers and students. That is why it is important for educators to stay on top of the changes in technology. Our students live in a world that is greatly impacted by the influence of new technology, they are able to search, create and invent in ways that we, as children, could only dream about. The Livescribe is a a wifi pen that connect the paper and pen feel to the tablet. This type of technology with its versatility can be a revolutionary tool in the classroom. Review on Notebook technology for classrooms and teachers

 There is more work to be done to make this type of technology accessible in the classrooms but that will primarily come from teacher attitudes. When teachers embrace new changes the chances of success are much higher. So often schools adopt new programs and technology to have it sit in the corner of the classroom. Check out the Livescribe and see how many uses you could find in your classroom. Livescribe site

Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai

National Book Award Finalist
Newbery 



Summary: The story takes place in Saigon in 1975. Ha, the main character is the youngest and only daughter in her family. The war has impacted her life because she fled from North Vietnam at the beginning and her father has been missing in action for years. As the fighting gets closer and Ha's mother fears the worst she allows a family friend help them to escape on a Navy ship full of refugees. The family winds up in Alabama and it's a very different world. Ha has to learn a new language, new foods and customs and new friends. Life is different and hard but Ha is still surrounded by a family who loves and supports her, this makes a big difference in the daily struggles of assimilating into a new culture in a time of controversy.

Ha is able to relate the information in verse in a matter of fact way of a child.  The verse not only gives the sense of broken language and you can hear Ha's voice throughout the story. The verse also allows the reader to gain the most important words, there is no fluff, and the choice of words and phrases become a powerful representation of Ha's consciousness. 

I loved every member of the family and the way the story unfolded. This is a book that I will go back and read over and over again because there is so much left unsaid, waiting to be discovered. 

This book is based on the author's own experiences as a ten year old. The genre of historical fiction allows her latitude in deciding about details surrounding dates and names. It also creates a beautiful platform for expressing her feelings and remembrances about that time in her life.

One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

This books carried me back to a time on the outskirts of my memories. My mom is a wilted flower child who still seems to exist in the 1970's. She is strong willed, passionate and always working for the cause, any cause. As I read the story and tried to figure out what went wrong. Why would Cecile leave right after Fern was born? Was she crazy? Did she not care about her girls? What could have been so important as to make her leave her babies and travel to the other side of the country? I read the book hoping the answer was simple that maybe she was planning on returning but didn't know how. I was transported back to a little girl wondering where her mother had gone. Why had she left? When would we see her again? 
I could feel Delphine's strength and determination to do things rights and set them straight. I understood inherently the role of the oldest sister living in a home without a mother. I wanted Cecile to say sorry that she made a mistake that it was just a miscommunication and everything would be okay. Delphine looked out for her sisters even when Cecile could not or would not. She tried to resist the "cause" and fought hard to block out the Black Panthers, poetry and news surrounding her but she slowly began to give in to the collective spirit surrounding her. Delphine found herself in a battle of will between the voices of Cecile and those of her father and Big Ma at home. It was in this struggle that resolution was found. Although Cecile didn't apologize or come back she was better understood and forgiven at the end of the novel. I felt an overwhelmingly connection to Delphine as my mother was called away in the same way. I still don't understand how it happened or why but I do forgive her and try to understand her now. 

This was a beautifully written book full of historic connections and wonderful teaching moments. 

This is a video of Rita Williams Garcia discussing One Crazy Summer

The Trouble with AR (Accelerated Reader)

My concern about the AR program has grown in the past few years. Accelerated Reader is book reading incentive program that claims to motivate readers of all levels. This is a computer based literacy program our schools us,  in which my sons attend and both schools have adopted this program and use it to exhaustion. The makers of the program claim that by leveling children they will have more success and therefore embrace reading faster thereby increasing achievement levels. I have found that although this program can help to motivate a reluctant reader by guiding them towards books that will hopefully find success in reading; it is limiting and I don't feel as though my children think of the literature they have read in meaningful ways.

For example: I recently read The Giver by Lowis Lowry to my fifth and seventh grade boys. They enjoyed the story but as I asked questions throughout the chapters their answers were low level. They were "thinking" about the concepts or symbols in the book. Mostly they wanted to understand who the characters were and what they did in order to answer the questions correctly on the AR quiz. What a shame. At that point I slowed it down and turned it into a project at home and forced them to dig deeper and find meaning in the story. They objected at first (because it was not required by school) but eventually complied with my requests. We began to have deeper conversations about what it would be like in a world filled with "sameness". I found them discussing the different situations on the car ride to soccer and debating over their own perspectives on the positives and negatives of the story line. I don't feel as though I pushed them to hard, just enough to cross the line into a state of higher order thinking. 

At this time my seventh grader has an assignment to read and test on a biography. He has looked and I have looked for books that he is interested in that are in his "level". This has been a challenge to say the least. I wish an exception could be made throughout the reading program to allow students to read books and possibly do an old fashioned book report! I don't think my boys have ever done one. The confines in which their reading education is held are too stringent and according to research done by Mallette, Henk and Melnick at Marquette University the data used to substantiate the AR programs' claims are less than solid. They are not the only researchers to come to this conclusion. I believe we, as an educated population, must allow our teachers some control in their own classrooms. It is important to individualize education and not only teach reading to improve achievement levels but to instill a love for reading for life.

In my opinion systems and programs are good to create a solid structure but the creativity and individualization of design must be fostered as well to create a high level education.

Turtle in Paradise by Jennifer L. Holm

Turtle in Paradise by Jennifer L. Holm

Newbery Honor Book (2010)

Golden Kite Award Winner

The main character Turtle is eleven years old and is sent to Key West by her mother to live with relatives. She is tough on the outside but has a tender underbelly like the creature she is named for. The story is engaging and we are rooting for Turtle throughout her trials and tribulations in dealing with her new found cousins and their rules. Turtle is proud of her shoes that her mom's boyfriend bought for her before sending her South to Florida. They stick out in her new environment as no kids where shoes in the keys. They end up being stolen and the first thing she wants to do is replace them but as parts of her life become unraveled and a sense of hope rises in her she realizes that her place is in the keys with her extended family and father and the shoes she longed for no longer fit; they are tight and pinch and inhibit her feet from being free. This is symbolic of her transition from a mainland girl to an official "Conch". 

Grandpa Green by Lane Smith -- Book Trailer

Granpa Green 
by Lane Smith

ISBN 1596436077
Caldecott Honor (2012) New York Times Best Illustrated Children's Books (2011)

Theme: Family, love, aging, memories

Grandpa Green wasn't always a gardener. He was a baby who became a boy and experienced life on a farm with chickens, pigs and eggs. He got the chicken pox in fourth grade, although his grandson will tell you it wasn't from the chickens and he loved to read. The story is sweet and the pictures make it come alive. I could imagine myself walking through Grandpa's garden and looking at the shrubs and seeing his memories come to life in the garden. The garden is Grandpa Green's journal he uses it as a comfort to help him remember the important parts of his life and share them with his grandson. We see the grandson progressing through the garden and watchful of his grandfather's ailing health and memory and in the last page we see him carrying on the tradition in the garden.

This book could be used as a springboard for creating memory books with students. Why do we write important memories down? Are there various ways to share our memories? 
Create a reflection about people in your life who are aging? What is it like to see them? How do things change? Have students tell a story about their grandparent(s) that they have shared? Research what your grandparents did when they were younger.

Writing Prompts: Write down five questions you would like to ask your grandparent or elderly friend about his/ her life growing up. Write a narrative about your favorite memory of you and a grandparent from your childhood

Similar books: The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein

Great sharing book for Grandparents day. Invite Grandparents in to share a morning with the students. Create activities to play and have the students share their written work.

Point of view in nonfiction picture books | Page by Page by Maria Salvadore | Blogs about Reading | Reading Rockets

Point of view in nonfiction picture books | Page by Page by Maria Salvadore | Blogs about Reading | Reading Rockets


This is a glimpse into a very interesting debate. Salvadore suggests that the battle between fiction and non-fiction should not exist because there will always be an authors perspective imbedded into even the most well-researched book. In the article she presents an example of a picture book called When Marian Sang: The True Recital of Marian Anderson written by Pam Munoz Ryan which she believed would help to support the Common Core Standards. The teachers she presented the material groaned that it was more like a picture book and it looked more like fiction than non-fiction. 

I believe the point that Salvadore is making is valid because all writers have their own perspective and style of writing. The words which they choose reveal their points of view even illustrators can portray people and situations in ways which touch our collective souls. It is important to teach students to listen and decipher the various voices that reside in our non-fiction resources. Finding the balance between fiction and non-fiction will serve to propel students understanding of the writing process in greater ways. There are enough battles waging in our society why pit two important genres of literature against each other. Finding ways to intertwine knowledge will only make our students stronger.

Olive's Ocean by Kevin Henkes (2003)
Grade Level: Middle School
Pages: 224

Awards: Newbery Honor (2004)

Summary: A touching tale about a young girl named Martha experiencing the ups and downs of young love while wrestling with the loss of a classmate. Through her careful analysis Martha comes to the conclusion that she needs to engage with the world around her differently than she currently does. A classmate dies suddenly and Martha comes to find out that Olive really wanted to be her friend and thought she would be nice. Martha visits her grandmother on Cape Cod an in that time searches to make sense of why she is feeling such loss over a girl she hardly knew. She works through her thoughts by writing and hopes to become a writer one day. In the course of her vacation she falls under the spell of a neighbor boy who is obsessed with his video camera and wins a bet by getting Martha to kiss him on tape. Jimmy Manning the magnetic oldest brother steals Martha's heart but she learns the hard lesson again of how easily it is to miss what is right in front of your eyes. Tate, Jimmy's younger brother, is sweet on Martha but she can't get past the excitement surrounding Jimmy. 

Personal Response: Henkes is an incredible writer and I love the way his words wrap around me like a comfortable blanket. I know he has given tremendous thought to his characters and they come alive in the book. I personally thought Martha was a little young to have such strong feelings about Jimmy. I wanted him to develop Godbee, the grandmother, more. I was distracted by Martha's relationship with Jimmy. I could recommend this book to my students but I can't see using it as part of a study because of the strong love themes in it. 

Balancing Act

I am feeling as though the balls I have been successfully juggling for the past few weeks are beginning to fall. Dr. Slick very kindly suggested that we were sliding through her class and we needed to dig deeper, do more and be specific. I totally agree, I am loving this class and although I am an avid reader I have been forced to read at a rate that is not particularly comfortable for me. I want to put more into my blog, project, annotated bibliography as well as the other balls in the air. I certainly don't want to sound as though I am feeling sorry for myself because I know that I am the only one to blame for my current situation of over commitment etc. but I will say out loud "Prioritize, organize and get it together!!" I will post at least three time this week, update my bibliography and finish another book. With that being said why is it that I feel guilty when I spend too much time studying or guilty when I am with my family that I should be studying. Is this a woman thing? I don't want to waste the time I have with my kids and husband worrying about work and school and I certainly want to be as productive as possible when studying and I don't want to feel guilty for taking time to do something that I love. Balance, hmmmm, so many talk about find the right balance in life. Diet and exercise, work and family, saving money and enjoying the moment. In time's of high stress and low tolerance I need to vent and here it is. I will post an invigorating review of more books and ideas of how to use them in the class but right now I am finding the balance by curling up with my pups and reading a book. Good night.

Dyslexia...

I have discovered recently that my five year old daughter has dyslexia. I began this journey about a year ago when I noticed that Lucy was having difficulty coloring, writing etc. She did not have a dominant hand and I thought she might be ambidextrous. I started with an occupational therapist evaluation that found she had difficulty crossing the mid-line when writing. Then I progressed to a battery of tests by a psychologist who determined that Lucy had dysgraphia. I began working with her to strengthen her hands and practice writing using a variety of multi-sensory activities. 

I am constantly amazed at her strength and determination. She is a happy, creative, caring little girl who makes me so proud. She is decidedly remarkable and I have found, through an evaluation at the Learning Solution, that she has dyslexia. I guess I knew this all along but I needed to go down my own path in order to accept it. She is being coached with the Lips program and the results have been nothing short of amazing. Her articulation and ability to decipher between different sounds that used to blend together is becoming clearer by the day. 

As for my path I am still struggling with my emotions. I know that the tutoring is the best thing for her right now and that we are building a foundation that will withstand many years of education ahead but I also fear for her. I know that our society is one that judges and labels based on differences and I want her to be viewed for what she has and offers not what she lacks. 

I would love to have the power to give all teachers the freedom to teach to students individual learning styles; bringing creativity and individualization back to the world of education. Students should not be labeled in order to make the "system" more efficient. When did we lose sight of the importance of the individual? 

This particular entry is not about the literature I have read lately but I felt an overwhelming need to share my thoughts on this subject as every time I pick up a book to read I now think of Lucy's journey.

Moon over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool (2010)

Genre: Historical Fiction, mystery

Themes: Family, Friendship

Awards: Newbery Award (2011)

Summary:

Abilene Tucker has lived a life on the road. Her father, whom she refers to as Gideon, has gotten by using his quick wit and keen sense of people but when she gets sick from a cut on her leg and almost dies he sends her to Manifest Kansas, a town with a secret. It is here that Abilene with the help of two friends reveals the deeply buried secrets that will not only fill the gaping whole she feels in her heart but heal the town as well. The girls spend the summer in search of “The Rattler” a presumed spy from long ago. The local gypsy women helps Abilene piece the stories of the old town together allowing her to bond with the past of the town and eventually finding her home, Manifest Kansas Personal Response:

This tale told by three different characters is engaging, charming and heartbreaking all at the same time. I was rooting for Abilene from the beginning and hoping that Jinx turned out to be her father. The way the letters from Ned, the Newpaper articles and Miss Sadies stories weave the tale of Abilenes past is so engaging I could barely put the book down. I want to share this story aloud with my class I believe it will engage them on many levels. The characters are diverse and have endearing qualities about them. These qualities make us feel as though we know them and the common themes of family and friendship and how they endure through hardship and stress are articulated in this story and although Abilene uncovers the mystery of the town we are left only hoping that love and family will conquer all.

The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt

The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt
(2007)
Awards: Newbery Honor (2008), Nominated for the Rebecca Caudill Young Reader's Book Award (2010)
Genre: Young Adult, Historical Fiction

Themes: Coming of Age, Friendship, Family, Acceptance

Summary: A seventh grader named Holling Hoodhood continually finds himself in situations that are not conducive to surviving middle school. He is forced to spend Wednesday afternoons with a teacher he believes "hates him". The teacher, Mrs. Baker, is unrelenting and unapologetic in her approach to education and in particular to the education of Holling. We come to find that although Hollings life has the appearance of perfection it is just a facade. The father is solely interested in appearances and the architecture firm that he owns. Every decision made in the house is based on how it will affect the business and home for Holling and his sister is filled with high expectations and low levels of love and consideration. We find Holling beginning to find his own path and Mrs. Baker helps him discover it through the study of Shakespere and the act of running. The story takes place during the Vietnam war and the echoes of that emotional time are woven into the story making the pressures of growing up even more complicated. In the end Holling finds his voice although not his path and we are left hopeful that change is inevitable for both the Hoodhood family and the country.


Personal Response: Upon first opening the book I had a difficult time relating to Holling. He believed the world to be against him and it was a paranoid, annoying journey. I found myself frustrated with his constant "woe is me" attitude until his father became a more central part. Finding the cold, sterile and disconnected home life in which Holling lived helped me to embrace his paranoia. The calculated way in which Mrs. Baker drew him out and found his inner confidence and supported him in a way that allowed him to bloom was beautiful. I think as teachers we all strive to be like Mrs. Baker in some way; hoping to illuminate the path in which a student may find his/her gifts. By the end of the story I was hooked and rooting for Holling and his sister, finding the strength in their relationship, they would eventually overcome their family situation and be better off for it. The historical aspects of the late 1960's brought me back to a time that is on the cusp of my own existence. I could feel the emotion and the anxiety that was an undercurrent in our society. I would recommend this book to upper middle school-high school students, especially those studying Shakespere.

Flotsam by David Weisner is a wordless story with pictures that stir the imagination. Weisner has a way with his images that transport you to a younger self, full of inquiry and youthful exuberance. I found myself reminiscing about my childhood at the beach with my family and the things I found along the way. Through his pictures I smiled thinking of how a lost camera at see might capture the secret world that lies beneath the waves and the wonders we have yet to discover.

My five year old began the "What if's" after we finished looking through the book and it continued the next morning at breakfast. Weisner is able to capture the spirit of curiosity itself and articulate it carefully through the details in every picture. Every time I open up the book I find something new to think about and explore.

Life on Alcatraz

How amazing would it be to move to Alcatraz when it was in its prime? The worst criminals of the time living within yards of regular families. Gennifer Choldenko the author of Al Capone Does My Shirts does a great job of setting the scene and creating a historical fiction novel that would appeal to young readers everywhere. Moose, the main character, must move to the island with his family due to financial reasons. The novel takes place during the Great Depression and work is scarce to say the least. We find ourselves learning about the do's and don'ts of living on the most notorious island in our countries history. Moose makes new friends and soon realizes that his arch nemesis Piper, the warden's daughter, is more like a crush than an enemy. Choldenko beautifully weaves the historic details of life on Alcatraz during the Great Depression and Moose's personal struggles with fitting in and starting over. This is particularly challenging because Moose has a sister named Natalie who is mentally impaired. The fact that mental illness was less understood and accepted at that time is apparent in the families struggles to keep things "normal". Moose is forced to take on greater responsibility for his sister as his parents are spread thin trying to work and make a life. Through the year he and Natalie grow closer and his understanding of her abilities and inner personality develop. He begins to understand his mothers complete devotion to his sisters cause and in the end must challenge her in order to protect his sister. The novelty of Al Capone is not lost on the reader and the quest for items touched by the convicts is a constant theme throughout the book. In the end the least likely character helps to put things right and make a positive change in not only Mooses family but in the field of mental illness as well. 

I would recommend this book to to late elementary school through middle school students. It is engaging and offers a glimpse of history through the details and the setting throughout the book. The relationship between Moose his mother and Natalie is a platform for wonderful discussions about sacrifice, determination and perception. 

A great read...

The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg by Rodman Philbrick (2009)

Genre: Historical Fiction
Themes: Civil War, Determination, Perseverance, Brotherhood and Survival

Awards: Newbery Award(2010)


Summary:

A fun and exciting read that would peak the interest of any young reader. Homer is a young orphaned boy with a terrible home life. His older brother is his hero and protector but through a shady deal is sold into the Union Army. Homer escapes from his Uncles care and sets off to free his brother from the Army. Homers telling of his adventures are hilarious as he is a gifted liar; which helps him to survive some sticky situations. The characters that he meets combined with the historical details about the Underground Railroad and a glimpse into what life may have been like during the Civil War help to make the book come to life. Personal Response: What a wonderful read aloud. I first read it to myself for a class I am taking and upon finishing could hardly contain myself to read it to my two boys, ages 10 and 12. They enjoyed the lies that Homer could create effortlessly they also liked talking about what it must have been like to live during the Civil War. This prompted many great discussions about how we live now and what things may have been like back then. I think this is a great book for a fourth or fifth grade class, especially one studying the same era in history.

Up to my eyeballs

Well another semester has begun and I am slowly collecting my list of books to share for a class called Literature and the Learner. I am so excited about this class as I have spent the past 18 months taking classes in Educational Leadership. This is not to say that School Finance was not stimulating by any measure but reading children's literature is wonderful. It's like coming home from a long day and putting on my favorite pajamas and curling up by a roaring fire on a rainy, cold day.

In picking out books to read I decided to take a Jackson Pollock approach I chose a book called Princess Academy by Shannon Hale. This is not a book that I would normally gravitate towards but I am consciously stepping outside my comfort zone. Wonderful! By the second chapter I was hooked and rooting for Miri to find her place in the world in which she exists. It is a wonderful story woven full of imagery, believable characters and an exciting twist in the end. I would recommend this book for girls ages 10 and up.