Clementine by Sara Pennypacker posted on barnesandnoble.com
Summary: Clementine is in the third grade and she is having the worst week ever. Everytime she tries to do something helpful it gets her in trouble. In this book, CLementine spends most of the week getting trouble for helping Margaret cut her hair, then cutting her own hair to match Margarets. Clementine then helps her dad with the great pigeon war, and her parents throw her a party to celebrate her achievment and even Margaret comes to the party!
I thought this book was wonderful. I think children can easily relate to Clementine, because the story is told from a childlike perspective. I loved how in Clementine's world she was just trying to help, but from an adult perspective it seemed like she was causing trouble. I think this book is a good book for educators to use because it can help us remember that children see things very differently than we do, and also because like I said before children relate to Clementine.
Pennypacker, Sara(2006). Clementine. New York: Hyperion Paperbacks for Children.
Ruby Lu, Brave and True by Lenore Look and illustrated by Anne Wilsdorf
I thought this book was cute. It took me a little while to get into it, but overall it was an enjoyable reading experience. I thought it was interesting how there were so many little stories within the main story, but felt that Look did a good job on keeping them all connected and flowing. I think that kids would enjoy this because, like Clementine they would relate to Ruby and her adventures! I also think this would be a good multicultural book, because it deals with people immigrating to a new country, and also trying to keep their cultural influences alive while living in a different culture.
Materials:
Sophie by Mem Fox and Aminah Brenda Lynn Robinson
Pencil and journals
Thesaurus
Discussion:
Often in literature authors use their books as a means of expressing emotions. Many of these emotions come from the authors personal experiences. People often have a hard time expressing what they are feeling in words. This is especially true of young children as they do not have the vocabulary to always say what they are thinking or feeling. Allowing children to journal their ideas will help them to find a way to express the feelings that they otherwise might not be able to get out.
How to teach:
Today I going to talk to you about how your feelings can affect your writing. Have you ever been feeling something and you just could not find the words to express what you were feeling? (Wait for responses) What did you do when that happened? (Wait for responses) Well today we are going to read a book about a girl named Sophie. Sophie and her grandfather have a very special relationship and through this book you will see Sophie and her grandfather grow together and experience many different feelings. (Read story to children stopping periodically to discuss what the characters might be feeling and why we think that) Now that we have read Sophie, can anybody name a few of the ways the author or the illustrator expressed emotion in the book? (Wait for responses) Do you think that maybe the author has had a similar experience in her life, and that is why she wrote the book? (Wait for responses) I want you all to now go back to your seats and take out your journals and write about a time in your life when you felt something that you had a hard time telling people about. You can write about happy experiences, sad experiences, scary experiences, or anything you choose. But think about the words that you chose to describe your experience and use the thesaurus if you need to.
About the book:
Sophie is about a girl and her grandfather. Sophie's family is very happy when she comes into the world, and Sophie's grandfather is especially happy. Sophie grows and grows and grows until she if finally old enough to work with her grandfather. Then her grandfather starts to get smaller and weaker until finally he dies. Sophie's world is sad for a while until she has her own baby and then it is feeled with joy once again.
Stuart Goes to School by Sara Pennypacker and Martin Matje
I thought this book was good considering that it is meant to be a chapter book for young readers. I felt like children could identify with Stuart and his worries about school, and that they would find this story entertaining. Having read Clementine also by Pennypacker, I felt that this book did not have as much of the humor that I was expecting, but that the characters that she writes are similar. Both Stuart and Clementine are children who have a lot of ideas about things, and usually have a hard time fitting in at school. Stuart is different from Clementine in that he worries about everything and she is just a free spirit. The part of the story where Stuart introduces his magical cape was a little confusing, because I didn't understand the "magical" element of the story. The begining of the book makes it seem that the story is going to be a story that could possibly happen in real life. But then when Stuart starts crawling through magical holes in the wall, and forgetting to draw his teacher in the classroom and she dissappears is where I got a lost. I thought that the cape was more of a symbol of a good luck charm that gives Stuart the confidence to do things. My only concern with having my class read this book would be that they would get confused about the same things that I did and I would not be able to explain them. However, seeing that they are young children they may be able to use their imagination and look past that and enjoy the story!
What Do You Do With a Tail Like This? By:Steve Jenkins and Robin Page
I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I really enjoyed the information the book provided, and felt that the illustrations made the book more child friendly. I also liked how the book allowed for predictions to be made. You could predict what you would do with that body part, and you could predict what the animal was. I found it very helpful that there was a glossary at the end of the book that showed each individual animal, and also gave a brief description about that animal. I felt like I learned a lot from this book, but also that it could be used in many different ways in a classroom at many different grade levels.
Materials: What Do You Do With a Tail Like This? by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page Paper Crayons
Part of being a good reader is making predictions about the story and what is happening. Many times these predictions are made based on what the child has read so far, what they know from real life experiences, and context clues. The TEK's for first graders states that "First grade students listen attentively and connect their experiences and ideas with information and ideas presented in print." They should be able to use the knowledge that they already have to make simple predicitions. This lesson will build on the previous lesson of using context clues, but it will also ask the children to use their prior knowledge to make the prediction.
Start by introducing the book "What Do You Do With a Tail Like This?" to the children and asking them what animal the think the tail on the cover belongs to. Continue reading the story and ask the children on the pages that just show a picture of the body parts and not the full animals what animal they think the body part belongs to and why? Ask the children to make these predictions on their paper. Then when you read the next page that shows the full picture of the animal have them put a check mark in a different color crayon next to all the predictions they got right. At a later date you can revisit the text and have the children actually make predictions about what the different body parts are used for, and then discuss those answers as you continue reading the text.
*The first time you use this book for this lesson, the book will be used primarily for the pictures to assist the children in making predictions. The second time when you revisit the text is when you can ask the children to make predictions about the use of the various body parts.
Take Me Out of the Bathtub and Other Silly Dilly Songs, by Alan Katz and David Catrow
As with "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands," I could not help but want to sing the traditional words to these songs as I was reading the book. I really enjoyed the new twist on these old favorites- especially Take Me Out of the Bathtub and Brother Mitch. My only concern was that children these days may not be familiar with the original songs, and therefore would not be able to sing the new words to the old tune. One way you could deal with this is by teaching the old songs, and when they children are comfortable with them you could then introduce the book and let them enjoy the new versions. You could also have them make up there own words to the old songs! I thought the illustrations in the book were fun, but maybe a bit overwhelming depending on the age of the child reading the book.
He's Got the Whole World in His Hands by Kadir Nelson
I thought this book was an interesting new perspective on a familiar song. I couldn't help but hum the tune as I was reading the book. I really enjoyed the colorful pictures and how they visually represented what the words were saying. Although I definitely felt that this was a personal idea of what Nelson felt that the song meant. I think one way this could be used is for an art lesson. You could have children draw what they see when they hear the lyrics, because everybody is going to have a different mental picture of what they see when they hear the lyrics. I would like to use this book in a classroom someday, but depending on school district and the school that may or may not be possible.
DISCUSSION: Throughout literature there are words used in stories that often times the reader does not understand. This is especially true with childrens literature due to the fact that children have a more limited vocabulary compared to adults. In these cases it would be a valuable tool to know how to use the context clues given by the author to discover the meaning of the unfamiliar word. The author uses other words, phrases, or even illustrations to assist the reader in learning the meaning of the word. According to TEK's, children in grades 1-3 should be able to "use knowledge of word order (syntax) and context to support word identification and meaning".
HOW TO TEACH IT: (Grades 1-3) Today I am going to talk to you about context clues. Have you ever been reading a book and come across a word that you did not know what it meant? (Wait for responses.) What did you do to try to learn the meaning of the unknown word? (Wait for responses.) Well today we are going to learn a new way to figure out what a unfamiliar word means, so that in the future you can figure out those tricky words for yourself. Context clues are clues or hints that the author gives you to help you figure out the meaning of the word you do not understand. The author does this through several ways. Sometimes the clue with appear in the same sentence as the unknown word, and if you continuing reading the sentence you can discover the meaning of the word. It is not always in the same sentence as the unknown word, however, sometimes it is in the sentence before or after the sentence that has the unknown word. Another way to learn the meaning of an unknown word is to look at the picture. If you are reading a book with pictures this is one of the best way to figure out what the word means. In the story I chose for today, La Mariposa, there are Spanish words mixed in with English words, and I want you to use context clues to figure out the meaning of the Spanish words. When we come to a Spanish word in the story we will stop briefly to discuss what we think the meaning is and why. At that time write the Spanish word on your paper, what you think it means, and a brief reason why you think it means that. Remember that you can look for context clues in the pictures or the sentences. Once we are finished we will combine all of our definitions to come up with the best definition for each of the Spanish words and write these definitions on the chalk board. We will then use the glossary that is at the end of the book to learn the real definitions to the words, and we can see how accurate our definitions based on context clues are.
Henry's Freedom Box by Ellen Levine, Illustrated by Kadir Nelson
I felt that this was a very strong story, and helped me to understand one of the many horrible things that happened during slavery. I thought this book was interesting, because I have not been exposed to much children literature that is historically accurate. I think it is great the Levine made a book that was easy for children to understand and want to ready, and still tells a story that is true and helps us learn about that time in our country. I really liked how the illustrations helped to show how time was progressing through the story. I also think that the illustrations were a powerful tool in helping the reader understand the emotions that the character was feeling. I feel that this book could be a good tool to have in the classroom when you are trying to explain slavery to children. I think it will help them understand what slavery did to families, and maybe help them to be grateful that we live in a time and country where families are not torn apart like they were in this book. I probably would not read the book to very young children, because their knowledge of slavery is very limited. I would probably read it to older grades like fifth and sixth graders to give them something besides the general textbook material to help them understand slavery.
La Mariposa by Francisco Jimenez and illustrated by Simon Silva
I really enjoyed the story that Jimenez told with this book. I think that it was a valuable read, because we understand the challenges that children like Francisco go through everyday. I personally felt like it helped me understand how stressful it is for these children, and how the stress can affect many aspects of their life. I think that teachers would find this book valuable, because they could use it in their classroom if they had children whose primary language was Spanish. It may help the child feel included in the community that is the classroom. I also think it is valuable, because as educators we may be frustrated with the child because we don't know how to get through to them, but at the same time they are just as frustrated as we are. I think Jimenez did an excellent job at helping us see both sides of the spectrum.
Good Night Pillow Fight by Sally Cook and illustrations by Laura Cornell. I thought this book was a very colorful and interesting book for young children. I think it is definitely a good book to read when you are putting children to bed. I think it could be a good tool to use when you are trying to explain the process of what all happens when an adult is working with a child on going to bed. I think the simplicity of the words along with the rhyming that happens throughout the book is also great, because the children will remember the book better.
I graduated in May 2008 with a degree in Human Development and Family Studies from Texas Tech. I am now working on getting my post-bac in early childhood education, and I am thinking about getting my masters. On June 6, 2008 I married my best friend and love of my life. I love being married and coming home to my husband. I have a wonderful family, and they are a very important part of my life. My husband and I have a cat, and she is sassy and sweet all at the same time. We spend our time watching movies, going to football games, working on our house, or hanging out with friends.
