Traditional Literature

The Lion & the Mouse

Author and Illustrator: Jerry Pinkney

Publisher: Little, Brown and Company in 2009

Pages: 40

Genre: Traditional Literature

Summary:

The book is almost wordless, but very captivating for young students who are just beginning to read. This story has a great message that is relayed almost solely through incredible pictures. The moral of this story is that no act of kindness is ever wasted. The lion spares the mouse and later the mouse comes to the lion's rescue.

Illustrations:

Pinkney uses watercolors in his illustrations along with colored pencils. His artwork is so captivating that in this book the reader does not realize there are no words. His artwork shows several emotions and even action. 

Content Area:

This book could be used in an early grade when students are just beginning to read. If I were to use this in my classroom, I would use this book in the subject of English. I would go through the book with my students and let them pay close attention to the details. We would have a class discussion about what each page means. I think this would be a great book to help children's imaginations expand.

Poetry

It's Raining Pigs & Noodles

Author: Jack Prelutsky

 Illustrator: James Stevenson

Publisher: Greenwillow Books

Pages: 160

Genre: Poetry

Summary:

This book is a compilation of various crazy poems. These poems will make answer child smile. The poems include crazy situations from adventures with interesting creatures to what happens in a refrigerator. These silly poems will really get children's imaginations working.

Illustrations:

The illustrations in this poem book are very simple but engage children at the same time. The illustrator, Stevenson uses pencils to create his drawings and then shades them in with colored pencils.

Content Area:

I could use this anywhere from 1st grade to 3rd grade to incorporate poetry in the classroom. This could be used to teach the characteristics of poetry. They would be taught about stanzas, lines, rhyming, and the foundational skills they need to have in order to read or write poetry.

Book trailer

Refugee

An awesome book to include in your classroom!

Informational/Nonfiction

This Is How We Do It

Author and Illustrator: Matt LaMothe 

Publisher: Chronicle Books in 2017

Pages: 52

Genre: Informational/Nonfiction

Summary

This Is How We Do It is an incredible book to show students in the United States how other children's lives look around the world. In the beginning of the book, the reader meets seven children who are each from a different country. Each child goes into grand detail about what their day to day life looks like. They talk about everything from going to school to what their plate at dinner looks like and how it differs from ours!

Illustrations

Matt LaMothe is the author as well as the illustrator. He has a degree in animation and loves illustrating. His illustrations are very lively and colorful to make the reader feel invited into the different lifestyles they get to learn about throughout the book.

Content Area

This book could really be used for any elementary grade to introduce different cultures. Depending on the grade level it is being used for, it could used to focus on dialogue in Language Arts. This book is a great way to show how people all different in their own ways and not everyone has the same lifestyles. This book could also be used to teach geography and to point out the different countries that the book discusses on a map. There are several different activities that could be incorporated in when reading this awesome book.

Historical Fiction

The Yellow Star 

Author: Carmen Agra Deedy 

Illustrator: Henri Sorensen 

Publisher: Peachtree Publishers in 2000

Pages: 32

Genre: Historical Fiction

Summary

The Yellow Star is about King Christian who is in Denmark at the time of World War II. In the book, the Nazis force the Jews to wear a yellow star. Even though this book is fictional it gives children an insight on what times were like in these days and a little piece of history that children need to be exposed to. This is a great book to incorporate in the classroom because so many upcoming generations of students do not have a clue what World War II even means and who the Nazis were.

Illustrations

Henri Sorensen is really a naturalistic artistic who makes all of his illustrations very life-like. His illustrations are not what readers are used to seeing in most picture books. He uses watercolor, oil, and pastels to create the naturalistic look in all of his books. His pictures tend to draw the reader in and make them feel as if they are in the story as they are reading it.

Content Area

This book could be used in third or fourth grade classrooms. It could be used to talk about real events that happened in history concerning World War II and the Nazis. The students could identify the theme of the story and what the overall main goal of the Nazis was in this point in history. It could also be used to involve the students in a writing assignment. The teacher could ask them to write how they would handle this point in time if they were a character in the book. This is a great book for elementary classrooms and could be used in several ways.

Contemporary Realistic Fiction

Wonder

Author: R.J. Palacio

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf published in 2012

Pages: 316

Genre: Contemporary Realistic Fiction

Summary 

Wonder is about a fifth-grader who has something called Treacher Collins Syndrome which is disfiguration of the left side of the face. He has been homeschooled up until this point in his life. His mother decides he needs to experience the world, so she enrolls him in a private school.  He faces many struggles from bullying to many prejudices. This book leaves readers young and old to wonder about friendship, compassion, empathy, acceptance and most importantly kindness in our society today.

Illustrations

The illustrations were illustrated by Palacio who is also the author. There are not illustrations throughout the book because it is a chapter book, but the author did create the book cover using art technology.

Content Area

This book would be used in the upper elementary grades; I would suggest using it in fifth grade. It could be used to teach several beneficial topics. Of course it can be used in Language Arts. The students could fulfill standards in fifth grade by making inferences and quoting text and identifying the theme and summarizing the text. This book can also be used to teach kindness and how kindness should be shown to everyone no matter what they look like. This would allow for a very positive class discussion of compassion, empathy, and friendship.

Science Fiction

Found

Author: Margaret Peterson Haddix

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2009

Pages: 336

Genre: Science Fiction

Summary

Found is the first book of a series titled "The Missing". This book is about two adopted teenagers meet each other and realize they are both adopted. They each start receiving messages and discover they were found on a plane with numerous other babies but no adults. The adventure begins and they start investigating more and more about where they came from. The FBI gets involved and the two friends discover that they are in a battle with two opposing forces they want different things for their lives. They must decide if they are going to go their separate ways or try to oppose the force.

Illustrations

There are no illustrations throughout the book, the cover is very captivating. The cover was illustrated using different technology to make it look very futuristic and invite the reader in to the world they are about to enter when reading this book.

Content Area

This book could be used in grades 3-5. This could be used to talk about prediction and how to predict what might happen in the story. The teacher could also use it to talk about collaboration with peers and how the two main characters are working together to find an answer as to where they came from.  Collaboration strategies could be analyzed in the book and the teacher could talk about how they are coming together and helping each other find a solution to the problem. In the book the parents can not find the teenagers. For language arts the teacher could have the students to write a letter to the parents of the teenagers and to give many details about where the teenagers are to help the parents find them.

Modern Fantasy

The Imaginary

Author: A.F. Harrold

Illustrated by: Emily Gravett

Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's Books

Publication Date: 2015

Pages: 224

Genre: Modern Fantasy

Plot Summary

The Imaginary is about an imaginary friend a little girl has. Although an imaginary friend is only a fantasy; this book portrays what real, true friendship looks like. The book takes the reader on an adventure in the world and paints vivid pictures for young readers to imagine. This book is easily relatable to young readers because numerous children have imaginary friends and also need to see what friendship really entails.

Illustrations

Emily Gravett illustrates captivating pictures throughout the novel to bring the reader deeper into the story. She starts by using a pencil to draw the characters then she does the finishing touches electronically. Most of her drawings are black and white and she uses transparency and opacity.

Content Area

This book could be used from ages 8-12. This could be used in the classroom at the beginning of the year to discuss friendship and how friendship can be hard, but having friends is always positive. This could be used in English to identify the protagonist in the story. This story is told in third person, so the teacher could teach what third person means and how to identify that when reading a novel. For older graders, the teacher could ask the students to write a short narrative from a different characters point of view and notice how the story might change from a different point of view.

International Literature

I Live in Tokyo

Written  and Illustrated by: Mari Takabayashi

Published in 2001 by Houghton Mifflin Company 

Page count: 32

Genre: International Literature

Plot Summary

This story tells of a seven-year-old girl who lives in Tokyo, Japan. The colorful illustrations and help depict just what life actually looks like in Tokyo. The story takes the reader through an entire year in Tokyo month by month. The reader learns about festivals, food, and simple ways to wear clothing as they read through this fun and appealing book for children. This story not only describes the culture in Tokyo, but it does so through a child's point of view!

Illustrations

Takabayashi uses colored pencils and paint to illustrate her book. She uses vibrant colors to make the illustrations jump off the page and really portray the life of Toyko. She uses lots of detail to capture young ones' eyes to the page as the story is told. She uses realistic clothing and illustrations of food that is a part of Tokyo's culture.

Content Area and Grade

This would be a great book for third grade to incorporate in the curriculum. This book could be used to help students distinguish between specific holidays celebrated in Japan versus the United States. They could also compare and contrast the culture compared to America. Additionally, they will learn about different types of food that they have never been exposed to!

Diverse Perspective Children's Book

Esperanza Rising

Written by: Pam Munoz Ryan

Illustrated by: Joe Cepeda

Page count: 259 

Published in 2000 by Scholastic Inc.

Genre: Diverse Perspectives

Plot Summary

Esperanza Rising is about a Mexican girl and how her family loses all of their riches in Mexico. Her and her family move to California which is a big culture shock for Esperanza. They have to leave her Abuela (grandmother) in Mexico until they can get someone to come for her. Pam Ryan portrays Esperanza culture and life poetically through rhyming to engage children into the story. There are several world events mentioned in the book that would be very exciting for children to learn about through what feels like pleasure reading! There are several Spanish words readers will be introduced to as well as Spanish customs that readers will learn about. Through Ryan's vivid descriptions of Esperanza's life, the reader will gain a better understanding the Spanish language and culture.

Illustrations

Joe Cepeda's illustrations are very captivating. Every picture he illustrates is moving and captures the eye of any child. He uses Japan paint for most of his illustrations. He explained how he never works with the author as he is illustrating a book because he says the illustrator needs to connect with the book and its story, not the author. He mostly uses big brushes because he says the Japan paint is too harsh on smaller brushes. He illustrations are always very complimentary to the mood of the story. His illustrations are almost so lifelike that it feels more like watching a movie than reading a book.

Content Area and Grade

This book is definitely for more mature children. This book could be read in anywhere from grades 4-8. This book could be used for an English lesson on metaphors. There are several metaphors throughout this book. It could also be used to teach or refresh on rhyming since there is a rhythmic pattern throughout the whole book. This could also be tied to a writing segment. They could be asked to make a journal entry writing from a different perspective than their own or even writing a short narrative based on a personal experience.

A Great Picture Book for Elementary Students

David Goes to School

Written and Illustrated by: David Shannon
Published in 1999 by the Blue Sky Press
32 pages
Picture Book

Plot Summary

David goes to school is about David going to school for the first time. His teacher definitely has her hands full. From yelling, to chewing gum, to being tardy; David is always getting in trouble. This book is guaranteed to bring a smile to the reader's face. The book ends with David learning that he will always receive love and support no matter the difficulties he faces or the trouble he gets himself in.

Illustrations

David Shannon uses acrylic paint in his illustrations as well as prisma color pencil. All of his books share the same type of style of illustrations. His illustrations are drawn to capture children's eyes and even adults too. He illustrates his books as if he were a child, so children can better relate to his books.

Content Area and Grade

This book could be used for grades K-2 in English. The lesson could focus on retelling and developing comprehension skills. This would be a good book for retelling because David does several different things in the book that the students could recall.  One could also use this book to teach a lesson the language used in the story. Verb endings and contradictions could be taught with this book because they are used several times throughout the book. 

Making an Impact

Did you know that the ING Foundation Survey states that 98% of people say a teacher can change the course of a student's life? That is a lot of lives a teacher can impact! When I was little I wanted to be a teacher, but that is what every other little second grade girl wanted to be too, so most people thought I would outgrow the idea. I had a dry-erase board, markers, a stuffed animal classroom, and even made "real quizzes" for all of them. All of my dramatic play time consisted of me teaching whoever was around; my grandmother, mom, friends, or of course my stuffed animals. As I have learned from personal experience passion can be found at a very young age. Of course, I strayed from the teaching idea because it was not practical. Every time I spoke with an adult about teaching, the negatives seemed to always outweigh the positives in their eyes. Therefore, my first semester of college I was a nursing major. I quickly realized nursing was not my passion. My next semester I decided to go against what everyone was advising me to do and I changed my major to Early Childhood Education. That was probably the easiest decision I have ever made, and I felt such a relief afterwards.

The reason I want to become an educator is because I have a deep love for children. I want to change the face of tomorrow by teaching our country’s future nurses, politicians, brain surgeons, pharmacists, and so much more! That alone is very exciting to me. When I become a teacher, I will strive to be the best educator for my students each and every day. I want my classroom to be a place where my students not only learn math but find their passions and build on them. I want to have an innovative classroom that is ever-changing with our society today. Most importantly I want to positively impact each child I get the opportunity to teach. I believe the best way to impact children in a positive way is to form trustworthy relationships with them, so my students feel safe in my classroom at all times. I am eager to be out in the field and to experience different classrooms throughout my college career here at Jacksonville. But, most of all I am very excited to eventually have my own classroom and be the most caring, innovative, and influential teacher I can be!

Sincerely, 

Ms. Britt