Final Reflection

This class has been a really great experience and I cannot wait to take what I have learned into my future classroom. I plan to use a variety of different books in my classroom in order to discuss difficult issues. I think that it is a really great way to break the barrier when issues arise that are tough to discuss. I loved being able to see all of the different styles that authors use in order to interest and educate children in their books. I loved doing in class activities and discussions because it was good to see that so many people have a variety of different opinions on particular issues. This is something that I think is very important to remember in a classroom because all children come from a variety of different backgrounds and have so many opinions. Teachers need to remember to not let their own opinion overlook the opinions of their students. I also really like that you brought up the "no TV" week in school because I do agree that television can be very educational and many children use TV as a form of entertainment when parents are gone. Sometime, I got frustrated that I had to blog each week, but in the end it really opened my eyes to explore a variety of books that are great and at times not so great. I think the biggest thing that I will take from this class is the text sets. I hope to use everyone's text sets throughout the year. It is such a great idea to teach a unit by including books as a great introduction and resource for students to look through. I really enjoyed this class and your enthusiasm for wanting us to explore the world of books.

My Song is Beautiful

All of the poems throughout this book teach that it is important to be proud of who you are, what you look like and where you came from. All of the poems are very different but talk about the same things. They teach children that in fact all kids have many similarities amongst all of their differences. The pictures are great because they do not go together, some look like actual photographs, some like paintings and some very animated. All of these differences are brought together by the poems that include people who are happy with being themselves. My favorite poem in this book is called Me, and is from the voice of a little girl stating all of the imperfections about herself. Then at the end she says that she is very lovely. This is a great way to teach students that children come in all shapes and sizes although everyone looks different on the outside, they are each wonderful no matter what. I also really like the poem called, I know someone. It includes many different kids stating funny things that they can do individually and in the end they say that they can all do those things. This teaches kids that many of the things that they do that they think are very unusual are actually similar to what others can do. A great activity to do with this poem would be to have each student write down something that they think they have in common with all the other students and something they think is very unusual. Then, the teacher could read them off at random and the kids can raise their hands if it applies to them. This can show kids that other students actually have similar interests and abilities that surprise them.

Noisy Poems

I think that this book is a great way to bring poetry alive in the classroom. One of my main focuses is to bring in differentiated learning to my classroom. I think that this could help with bring drama in and allowing for kids to play with voice. They could get with partners or groups and read the poems aloud. Students could decide how they want to deliver the poems just like we did in our class. They could include sound effects exchange loud and soft voices or even rap them. They could even sing them or we could sing them as a class. These poems are all really fun and I think that this would be a good way to get children excited about poetry. I love that these poems are not very educational and are just there for the fun of poetry. The poem called The Yak really has no meaning to it and is just a bunch of funny sounding words. I think that kids would just love this and laugh and try to memorize this just so they can say it throughout the day. Everything in this book is really silly and all of the pictures are very jumbled and fun. This is a great way to bring some fun into a poetry unit.

Days to Celebrate

This is another great poetry book to have in the classroom year-round. It has poetry for all of the months of the year and the important dates and holidays. I think that it would be great to read poetry from this book on each date that is included. The dates include many important birth dates of different people that many elementary classes would benefit from learning about. For example, on January 15th, the class could be celebrating Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday and read the poem about him from this book. The teacher could allow students to take turns having the chance to read one of the poems aloud to the class on each day. There is so much diversity throughout this book. It celebrates Chinese New Year's which is something that the teacher should at least mention because some students might also celebrate that. There is also a whole calender of important birthdays in each month and it includes what is celebrated during that month, like women's history month and National poetry month. One of my favorite poems, Casey at the Bat is also included in the month of August for the birth date of the poet. I really like the poem that is included for Halloween because it sounds really creepy. I thought it was strange that the book included poems for every holiday, except for Christmas. I wonder if it is because it would make it religious. The last poem is really fun because it talks about the year coming to the end and the words are going downward the whole time and then all of a sudden they pop back up and say "Happy New Year". This book is a great way to include poetry in the classroom throughout the year.

Come to the Great World

The very first poem in this book is a really great introduction piece. It talks about all of the differences that there are between children and how we all come from different backgrounds. This would be great to read aloud to the class in order to discuss diversity and the importance of not judging each other. The book goes on to include poetry about all the different places around the world and what they are like. I love this because it is a fun way to open up our kids eyes to seeing new things and understanding other people's backgrounds. I love that each poem does not state where in the world it is from until you read where the author is from at the bottom. This leaves the poem to interpretation as to where the poem is talking about. I think that a lot of students would be surprised to learn where each poem is from because some of them sound so much like America. This can also show students that a lot of places that they think are very different from their home, actually have many similarities. The pictures throughout the book are very bright and powerful and give a great image of different places and customs and people around the world. The author also includes some poems that deal with racism and poverty issues. I think that this is a great way to include the topic in class without being too blunt. Many teachers feel very uncomfortable with discussing these topics and I think that poetry is something that can really help break this barrier.

Eric Carle's Animals Animals

This book is full of such a large variety of animals. The pictures are great and intriguing to the eye. This would be a really good teaching book for talking about animals or poetry or even both. It would be great to ask students to write a poem about their favorite animal and draw inspiration from this book.
I really like that Carle uses poetry from many different sources and not just his own. This can teach children that poetry is everywhere and anyone can write it. This also can teach students to appreciate other people's poetry and not just their own. Another great thing to do with this, would be to have students search for their favorite poem, write it out and draw a picture to go with it. I also like that this book has all different types of poetry. This is good for kids to see because they need to know that there is not one right form of writing poetry and it can come in many different shapes.
This is a book that I would love to have in my future classroom. I would refer to maybe a poem a day out of it just to let my students listen to poetry in a fun way. I think that a lot of time, kids do not like poetry because it is put into one single unit and they are on poetry overload for 2 weeks time. Teachers should refer to poetry regularly and give a wide range of how it can be done. We should not just teach haikus or lunes. I would recommend this book to be in every elementary classroom!

The year of Impossible Goodbyes

This is the story of a 10 year old girl names Sookan, living in North Korea during World War II when it was occupied by the Japanese. Her family ran a sock factory. When the war ends, the family thinks that they are free until they hear that the Russians are threatening to take over. In order to escape, her, her mother and her younger brother, Inchun take a journey to South Korea. Along the way they get separated from their mother. After a few terrible weeks, they make it to the South.

I really did not enjoy this book as much as the other but I feel like it may have been because I read that one first. I felt like I was really able to get to know each of the characters and feel the emotions that each of them went through. Sookan was so strong throughout the journey and there were some parts that were very hard for me to read. The fact that this book consisted of many real parts of the author's life only further created that emotional attachment. It was hard to believe that two young kids could be so mature and have to go through so much all by themselves.

I think that this book would be good to teach along with So Far From the Bamboo Grove because it has a different viewpoint of the war. It would be great to let kids see two sides of an issue. This could help them to understand that not everything that happens in war is black and white. Although we feel like we are hurting the bad guys for a legitimate reason, those people being hurt have real emotions and lives just like us. I think that this would be hard to do with kids under 5th grade, but it definitely needs to be addressed in upper elementary.

Mighty Max by Harriet Ziefert

The drawings throughout really make this book a fun and interesting children's book. They all look like they have been drawn by little children which makes it very relateable for the student that is reading it. This could be a great example/reference of what students can do with their writing. It is important to be able to put drawing into writing in order to make it more exciting. It is really cute how the bubbles of what Max is picturing in his head show him really big and bulky like a real superhero. This really relates to dreams and imaginations that kids may have about being big and strong and saving the world. There are many things that Max does and then imagines himself doing. When he rides his bike, he imagines himself riding a motorcycle. When he jumps in the air, he imagines himself flying. The entire time Max is running around, his dad is chasing after him telling him to stop. It is really funny because he doesn't like to listen to his dad and has a mind of his own. The author adds really great sound effects in order to add to the story and make the reader connect more to the story. I also really like that the words are all over the pages and not in one standard order.

Atomic Ace by Jeff Weigel

This is a great book for any little boy who loves superheroes. It is fun because the pictures are full of actions and little captions of what each person is saying. It seems like a comic strip made into a picture book, which is great because it is much bigger and has actual reading along with the pictures and captions. This is great for kids that do not like to read but love comic strips. The author even included some inset pictures to show what the superhero dad is doing while the rest of the family is at home being normal. This is a very unusual superhero story because instead of saving everyone, the hero got defeated by a villain. The little boy is always sad because his dad is never there since he is always off fighting crime. He is embarrassed that his dad lost against the villain but when his dad saves the day and captures the villain, he becomes really proud. This teaches kids a lesson not to be ashamed of where you come from. Throughout the entire book, the author makes it fun and easy to read by adding rhyme in every couple of lines. I love seeing rhymes in children's books because it really keeps the reader's attention, flows well and makes the read seem really fast. I would definitely recommend this book to one of my students that has an interest in superheroes.

Love that Dog by Sharon Creech

I really enjoyed reading this book. It was great to see something written from a kid's point of view. I think this would be great to bring into my classroom during my poetry unit in order to show kids that poetry does not have to take on one particular form. Just writing down your thoughts can be a form of poetry. I also like how Jack puts in everything he is thinking and never would have expected Mr. Walter Dean Myers to actually come to his school and then he actually does. This shows children that they should embrace their dreams and ideas, even if they seem impossible to reach. It is great to see Jack grow in becoming more and more comfortable with poetry. At one point, he says "I guess it does look like a poem when you see it typed like that" and at another part he is finally able to allow his teacher put his name on his poetry. It is also great to see the development of the dog throughout his poetry. This shows that seeing examples of poetry really does have a great impact on students because he was able to take what he saw in class and use it in his own poetry. He starts to add descriptions and images and finally is comfortable enough to talk about the death of his dog. It is great how much Jack's mind changed through the course of the year about his view of poetry. In the beginning he refuses to even write an poetry and by the end of the book, he is so inspired by poetry that he takes his favorite and puts it on the wall above his bed. Also, he is scared at first to show Mr. Myers his poem inspired by him but in the end you can really see how much more confidence he has in his own writing when he decides to send his poem. I like how the author of this book let it be all of Jack's thoughts and did not put any of her own writing into the book. This book teaches students the many different functions of writing including; letters, poetry, getting out your feeling, etc. It is a great read for students to be inspired and also for teachers to learn a great way to go about poetry. The poems in the back are a great resource for teachers to use.

Spoken Memories by Aliki

This book is upside down and in the back of the previous picture book that I read. I like this because it is a sequel to the first book but instead of having to check out a separate book, the child can have both of them at the same time. The little girl, Mari tells the class all about her life. I really like that the author takes the reader back in time to the little girl's previous home when she was younger. The pictures seem so realistic that I started to believe that the book was taking place in that time period. All of a sudden, Mari starts to talk about war and the pictures turn to black and white and have a depressing feel. This part begins to be very sad and Mari even tells about her baby brother that died in the famine. Having this be a memory and not the actual present is a subtle way to bring about such a tough topic. This book is great because the little girls tell her classmates about living such a hard life. Normally, kids would read this and just think that it is just something that does not affect them. However, since it is from the perspective of a little girl in a regular classroom, it is very relateable. She even talks about losing her father and being told that she shouldn't go to school because she is a girl. This is a very sad story that most kids don't ever have to deal with. Reading a book like this would be a great way to show kids that everyone comes from different backgrounds and they should be aware that their classmates may have been through many hard times without even knowing it.

Painted Words by Aliki

This is a book about a little girl that goes to a new school and does not speak English. I love that the author shows the story from the girl's point of view and shows the impact that the other teasing children have on her. The little girl slowly began to become more comfortable with the people around her by leaning how to communicate without words. Other children smile at her and she learn to paint in order to express how she feels. One day after she was teased by a classmate, she drew a picture of herself with an arrow through her heart. When the other classmates saw this picture, they began to realize how much they had heart her. The little girl is finally able to learn English and tells the other classmates her story of who she is. This is a great way to teach children not to bully. This book could be used when there are bullying problems within your classroom or even at the beginning of the year for prevention. This also teaches children that they need to accept children that may not be able to fully communicate with them. All children come from different backgrounds and I think that this is a topic that really needs to be addressed in an elementary classroom. A picture book is a great, easy way to talk about this topic without picking out certain students in particular.

So Far From the Bamboo Grove

This horrifying story was told in a really great way through the eyes of a little girl, which makes it really relateable for elementary students to read. i think that this is a topic that does not get given enough attention. When talking about WWII, I normally just think of Pearl Harbor. I think that a lot of times history is just seen as something that does not effect me. War doesn't seem to effect me because I live in a place where I do not have to experience it. I think that it is really important for kids to see that war does not just effect people that go off to the army. To hear the story of a child at such a young age would be very eye-opening for many elementary students. It was hard for me to read some parts of this little girls story. She had to grow up so fast and learn to take pain, act like a boy and be separated from family. I really loved how Yoko's personality really showed starting in the beginning when the soldiers came and she bit them. You can tell that she is independent and doesn't like to be told what to do. I also saw this when her sister would yell at her to keep up and instead of thinking that her sister is just watching out for her, she gets really upset and says that her sister is being really mean. I love the part in the story when they are crossing the bridge and Ko ran ahead of Yoko and their mother. Yoko gets really mad and tells mother that she is beginning to hate Ko. Then, she sees Ko running back to take Yoko and mothers bags so that they can get across easier. This is an important lesson that Yoko learned about trusting family members during hard times to help each other out. It really surprised me to see that the three girls dressed in boy's uniforms and cut off their hair. I little girl reading this part would probably be really surprised to see that they had to do such hard things to get by. Along with them looking like boys, it also shocked me to see that they had to pee like boys in order to not be taken advantage of by the drunken Koreans. This is another thing that most little girls would not feel comfortable doing and boys would be surprised to see that they had to do this. It is also crazy to me to see Ko act like the father now that Hideyo is not in the picture. She is always pushing Yoko and mother to keep going and is always running ahead to see what is coming. In the end of the fifth chapter when they are on the boat and they think that everything is going to be fine from now on. It is sad as a reader to know that the book is not even half over, so their hope is only going to turn into more tragedy. I like that the author also brings in Hideyo's story because it gives more than one perspective and makes the book also interesting for boys to read. A really hard part for children to read would be when the mother dies. It is terrible to think that these two girls are left alone without their brother or both of their parents. This could be a good opportunity to bring up the death of a parent for discussion in the class. As a teacher, I would rather discuss it when we come across it in a book, instead of waiting for it to actually happen to one of my students.
I do believe that at times this book can get a little too graphic but I think that it is important for children to be exposed to these stories because it is no like they don't see violence and tragedy on the T.V. everyday. Kids need to know how lucky they are to live in a country that they do not have to be afraid of their own government and where they get to see their family members on a daily basis.

Danny Diamondback by Barry E. Jackson

This is another great snake book that has a twist and some creativity. For my child study, the little boy I am working with loves to learn about snakes and is beginning to write a story from a snake's point of view. I brought him this book, in order to see a how he could go about writing his story. The pictures are great because they take up the entire page and look very realistic, even though this is a make-believe story.
The snake does not understand why no one will be his friend and is very sad and lonely. The only one that will be friends with him a little prairie dog that cannot find his glasses to be able to see that he is a snake. He welcomes him and gets the other prairie dogs to like him. They form a band and the snake makes a maracas sound with his tail. He eventually gets banned from the prairie dogs, but is able to return when he saves them from being eaten by coyotes. The prairie dogs learned to love him and he became a member of their family.
This story is very imaginative and fun for little kids. The little boy that I work with decided to use some ideas from it to make a story about a snake who saves the humans from some bat-coyotes. This is a great alternative to some of the more boring non-fiction books about snakes. I also like that there were a few Spanish words throughout the book. This brings in a different culture and teaches a child a few simple new words.

Gum Chewing Rattler by Joe Hayes

This is a great book because the picture are so animated and fun. I love that there is a picture of the author on the first and last pages telling a story to a bunch of little kids. This gives it a real storytelling feel and makes the reader wonder whether this interaction with a snake really took place. Hayes tells a story of when he was a little boy and he was living in Arizona. The pictures are great to show what Arizona looks like for those children that have never seen or heard anything about the state. I also like that the pictures take up the entire page and the words just seem to be accessory details to the story. This is a really fun twist on an interaction with a snake that could have been very dangerous and deadly. The little boy accidentally stepped on a rattlesnake's tail. The snake tried to bite the boy but ended up biting into the gum that was in his pocket. He got the gum stuck between his teeth and was not able to bite the little boy. Instead, he blew a huge bubble with the gum. This part is really entertaining and fun because it is not something you would normally see a snake do. Then the boy passed out and when his mom got there and he told her the story, she did not believe him. It is cool that Hayes talks to the reader directly on the last page and asks if the reader believed his story. This leaves the question open, as to whether or not it is a true story. This is a great twist on a story about a snake. It even teaches children that do not know what a rattlesnake is, what it looks like and that it uses it's tail to warn people of it's bite.

A River Dream by Allen Say

In this book, a little boy receives a gift from his uncle and it sparks a memory of his first fly fishing experience. When the memory is described, it is so vivid that I was able to picture it in my mind. Mark is very sick and everything around him begins to change. He looks out the window and instead of his usual view of houses, he sees a river. Say does a wonderful job of sweeping the reader away in this dream that the little boy is having. This book is so fun because you know that the entire time the little boy is floating around the river, it is a dream because he is still in his pajamas. All of the text has a sense of laughter in it. The uncle says that it must have been magic that he was able to send him real flies in a box. It is hard to tell if he is serious or just joking. The uncle tells the boy that it is the magic hour and lets him try to catch a fish. Mark catches a fish that is so big, it looks unreal. I like that the boy makes his own decision not to kill the fish and is not told whether or not he should. This is really relatable to all children because it does not just talk about fish. It brings in a sense of magic with the references to mermaids and shows that fishing is not all about killing what you catch for food. It is funny in the end because the parents see what the uncle sent Mark and say that they are just fishing lures and not real flies. This shows a sense of imagination and creativity that children have.

The Sign Painter by Allen Say

This is another one of Say's autobiographical books. I like this one because it is about Say himself and he takes on a third person narrative in the he refers to himself as "the young man". It is cool to know things about the author before reading this because this is actually the story of how Allen Say became a painter. I really like that he refers to the teacher as, "the man" instead of using his specific name. This gives the book more of a story-like feel instead of getting technical with specifics. The pictures that he has painted look once again very realistic and take the reader on a trip along with the characters. The book tells how the young boy went on a long road trip with a man to paint murals in the middle of nowhere. They never really know what they are painting but they are getting paid for it. One day, they come upon a huge roller coaster. I love the metaphor that is made when the man says that the clouds are just passing by like him and the boy and the builder who all have big dreams. Then, on the very last page the boy says, "just passing by..." This is a cool way to end the book because it shows the reader that this was just a short random thing that inspired the boy to go on and become an amazing artist.

The Lost Lake by Allen Say

This is great for any kid to see that although parents do tend to be boring, they also oftentimes have a fun side. The little boy goes to live with his dad for the summer and is always bored because his dad never talks to him. His dad decides to take the boy to see the Lost Lake and tells him that it can be their little secret together. They begin to hike and the boy is surprised by how much of an outdoorsmen his dad is. He is pushed really hard to keep up with his dad's fast pace. They find a lake but it has too many people so the dad decides that they should keep hiking to find another place. Throughout the story, you can tell that the boy and the dad are not close and this may be one of the first times they have ever spent this much one on one time together. The boy doubts the dad the entire time but never once says, let's go back or I don't want to do this anymore. He also begins to learn things about his dad that he had no idea about, like the fact that he is a really great cook. This is a very unusual quality to just now be learning, so I am thinking that he normally lives with his mother. When they stop to camp for the night, the boy is doubting that they will ever find the lost lake, but when they wake up the next morning, it is right in front of them. This book would target many different children because many kids have distant relationships with their parents, whether they are married or divorced. The main message seems to be that kids should give their parents more opportunities to open up and not just judge them as boring.

Stranger in the Mirror by Allen Say

I liked this book because it is something different for Say to not do an autobiographical book. The topic of respecting elderly people and not treating them like old people is something very important that does not seem to get addressed enough with kids. This would be a great read aloud. In this book, a little boy hopes that he never has to get old and then turns into an old man. Everyone stares and makes fun of him for looking so funny. Even his parents are talking about it behind his back. He feels terrible and decides to run away from home. Before he leaves, he spots a skateboard and decides to go for a ride. As he is riding, he forgets all of his troubles and doesn't have a care in the world. Then, he jumps off and is instantly reminded that he looks old because all of the kids are staring at him. This part is great because Say doesn't tell the reader that the kids are staring but the picture shows this. He then goes home and his sister teases him by putting his bag into his grandpa's room. I love the part when he says, "who cares what I look like, I am Sam." This is something that I think a lot of elderly people can relate to because when they get older, people begin to forget them for who they are and just look at them as an old person. After just a day, he returns to his old body and is so relieved to be himself again. The pictures are very detailed and realistic looking and are great to get the reader to feel sympathetic for the little boy.

Glogster

Glogster

Link to my glog:
http://kpid.glogster.com/allensay/

Grandfather's Journey by Allen Say

This is such a great book. I loved all of the pictures so much because when you read the book, it feels like you are swept away on a trip around the world. The story is amazing and needed to be told. I love that Allen takes it from his own perspective and is his own character in his story. He tells the story of his grandfather as he traveled to America for the first time to explore. He loved it and even raised a family in California. Later in life, he becomes very homesick and returned to Japan with his family. His daughter then raised a family in Japan and had a son who is actually Allen. Allen tells of how he loved to visit with his grandfather. His grandfather told him all about California and how he wants to go back soon. His grandfather never makes it back so Allen moved to California to get a feel for why his grandfather loved it so much. He raised his family there but tells the reader how he still gets homesick for Japan and goes back every now and then. I think the main message is that anywhere you travel can be made into a home and you are always going to miss the places that you move away from. I think this would be great to read to young children and help them to understand how others feel that were not born here. This would also be great for those who have had to move to understand that a home can be made anywhere you go.

Tree of Cranes by Allen Say

This story is very unusual and fun to read. Say does a good job of capturing the character because he does it from the perspective of the little boy. The water colored pictures are really wonderful. I also like that Say sets up his books to have just writing on the left and the right page completely filled with a single picture. It really does look like the picture has been snapped from a camera. The book is about a little boy who lives in Japan. He comes home to find his mother making something and is eager to know what she is doing. He thinks she is acting very strange because she is decorating a tree that she has dug up from the backyard. The mother tells him that she wants to celebrate the tradition that she has from her home of California. The very last line, the boy says, "it was my first Christmas". I like that Say leaves this detail to the very end in order to let the reader wonder what tradition the mother might be celebrating. This is another example of a person living in a place other than the country that they grew up in and feeling homesick. I think that this is a big message that Say brings up a lot in his books. That many people may look like they are from a certain place, but they could have grown up with completely different customs than they people they live around now and people need to be respectful of each others customs. It is also cool to see this family celebrating Christmas in Japan because this is not something very common to see.

Tea with Milk by Allen Say

This was a really interesting book to read. I love that all of the pictures have a very realistic feel to them. Say tells the journey of a little Japanese girl who lives in America but her parents speak Japanese. This is very prevalent in today's society with many foreigners coming here to raise a family. Oftentimes the native language is spoken at home while the child speaks English and learns American customs outside of the home. It is funny because a Japanese girl is seen as the foreigner here because she does not know the customs of Japan. She follows her heart and refuses to have an arranged marriage. She is very strong-willed and does things her own way and gets ridiculed for it. In the end, she meets a man who is in the same predicament of not being able to speak the language and they find common ground. On the very last page, Say comes in and says that the little girl was his mother and the man she met was his father. I like that the author leaves this to the very last page. This makes reading a non-fiction seem more intriguing and not just like a biography of a person's life. I also like the title of the book because it is something that reminds the reader that the girl never forgot where she came from. This book is good for kids to understand the perspective of those who are foreign to our country.

Class Reflection

So far, I have really enjoyed reading all different types of children's literature. I have opened up to a lot of books that I would have never thought to want to read. I'm so glad that we read the graphic novels because I normally would have no desire to read one. I ended up having my child study student read one and he loved it. I will remember this type of book for my future classroom because it would be a great recommendation for a student that is bored with books and artistically talented. I am also glad that we read the controversial books because I have always though about some of those controversial topics but have been concerned about how I would address them in my classroom. I plan to bring this books in to introduce the topic. This would be much easier and may answer a lot of questions that kids may have on the subject. I also have started to notice so many new things in picture books, like the illustrations and how they support the text, the author's target audience and how I can incorporate some books into activities for students. I really enjoyed reading both, The Giver and Misfits. They are both great books for a 5th or 6th grade class. They both touch on very important topics of name-calling and also the problems with same-ness. Learning about the different genres was very helpful for me because I have learned in block A that bringing in a variety of different genres into my classroom is very important. I had no clue that there were so many different kinds. I think that this is very important in order to widen the child's book choice and spark the interests of all students. So far, this class has really overlapped and supported me in my other classes. I cannot wait to see what will come next.

The misfits

I absolutely loved this book and think that every sixth grade class should get a chance to read it. It is great because it is written from the perspective of a misfit junior high kid himself. The boy is fat and gets called a lot of names pertaining to his size. It is good to see how normal his life is and to see that he is able to survive the name calling with the support of his friends. This teaches a really good message, that as long as you have friends, it does not matter how popular you are. The character development throughout the book is awesome for all of the characters. It would be great to do a character tracking activity with the students in order to lessen the confusion.
I love Joe and how his character develops slowly. It took me a while to realize that he was gay, which shows that homosexuals are very normal. The first thing that really caught my eye was the beginning of chapter 4, when Joe has the word faggot written on his locker and then a boy calls him a fairy. These are two typical words that are used to put down homosexuals. It is important for children to see how damaging something as small as name calling can be. I really did not like that the author made Joe so stereotypically gay. He loves the color pink and act very girly often. This reinforces stereotypes that kids may already have. I also did not like that in the end, Joe is able to reveal that he likes Collin and everything just works out perfectly. Everyone goes to the dance. This is not very realistic, because typically kids at that age would be very scared to come out, let alone tell another member of the same sex that they like him/her. Then, of course Collin ended up being gay also and was just as comfortable with going to the dance with Joe. This is very unrealistic.
This book is great because it teaches children that any kind of name calling is bad. All kinds of kids would be able to relate to the name calling, because the author includes so many different personalities. I really liked doing the activity in class, where we thought back on high school to think about what names we were called. It made me realize that even though "goody too shoes" is small and innocent, it did hurt me and I would have liked for the name calling to stop.
The book also teaches kids that if they want to make a change, they should speak up and fight for what they believe in. I love that Bobby, the quiet, shy kid, was the one with all of the great ideas. This could cause other kids to stand up for what they believe in.

Hair in Funny Places by Babette Cole

This book is a great way to introduce the changes your body goes through when it enters puberty. The book touches on every single thing that could happen to a child experiencing puberty. This teaches the child that they are not the only one going through these changes and that some of these things they are experiencing can be blamed on their hormones and are not just their own fault. I do not like that Mr. and Mrs. Hormone are made to look really gross and mean. This may teach children that hormones are scary and not a good thing to go through. Puberty should not be made into a negative experience that all kids should fear. I actually was surprised that the graphics were so modest because I had just gotten done reading another book by Babette Cole, in which the graphics are appalling. I like that this book does not just focus on girls going through puberty, but it also brings in the boys and in the end teaches children that puberty is something that you have to go through if you ever want to grow up to be a parent someday. This book is great for a parent to read to their child who is about to experience puberty in order to prepare them. I like that the book touches on every aspect but does not go into detail. For instance, the book talks about the girl bleeding but does not go any further than that. This leaves the topic open for the parent to explain to their child however they may want.

Mommy Laid an Egg by Babette Cole

At first, I thought this book was harmless because the parents are making up goofy ways to explain to their kids how babies are made. They tell them things like; mommy lays an egg that hatches, a dinosaur drops them off at the doorstep and that some are even made like little gingerbread men. This seemed so innocent until the children decided to explain to the parents how they think babies are made. It is kind of weird that the children are the ones who already know all these things and that they are the ones drawing graphic pictures. Then, when it got to the part that said, "this fits in here", it became a little too graphic with pictures of all the different positions that mommy and daddy can fit into each other. I honestly would be surprised to see a parent actually want to show this to their child. It is one thing to explain the process, but to actually teach them positions and show such graphic pictures would not be okay with me. The book seems to have good intentions in trying to make it easier for parents to talk with their children. However, the pictures that are drawn are unnecessary. I also noticed that not once, did the story talk about when a man and woman are in love they choose to have a baby together. This book makes sexual intercourse seem like an everyday activity that has no sentimental value.

I Never Knew Your Name

This book confused me at first because I was trying to spot the controversy right away. I didn't realize that it had been building all along with the kid always being so lonely and being made fun of by others. Then, the boy sees him crying and it hit me that this boy is really lonely and depressed. I like that the book is so simple and normal, yet it goes into such a big issue. Suicide is an issue that I do think needs to be addressed in the classroom before any event like this happens. It is important for kids to realize that when they do not reach out, they are losing the opportunity for friendship. Just by talking to someone who seems lonely, can make a huge impact on someone's life. Yes, death is a tough issue to deal with but I think that a lot of times teachers think that the issue needs to be ignored and dealt with by the parents. This is also a good book to go along with the issue of bullying. Students need to be aware of the actions that they make. This is a very powerful book that can teach students how much of an impact they can have on each other. I love that the author never fully comes out and says that the boy has committed suicide. This gives the reader's a lingering wonder and lets him/her infer what has happened when the obituary is in the paper. Seeing that the little boy regrets not becoming friends with him, may help students to open up to others that they may just be too scared to talk to.

The Un-Wedding by Babette Cole

This book does a great job of touching on the subject of divorce. This is something that is very common and will most likely appear with students in my class. The book gives a fun and enjoyable way to bring up the issue and not ignore it. The fact that the parents hate every little thing about each other can show kids that sometimes it is just not a good idea to live with someone that does not agree with you. You could show the students this by saying, one student that hates cats would probably not like living with another student that loves cats. When the students post a sign to have other kids that have the same problem meet and discuss, a bunch of other kids turn up. This can show students that they are not weird because they have divorced parents and that many other students are just like them. They also talk about how, at first they thought it might be their fault, but they come to the realization that it really is just their parents being immature. It is great because in the end, instead of showing the parents signing divorce papers. The author makes things more simplistic and sugar-coated, by having an un-wedding for the parents. The book also shows, the kids much happier in the end when their parents are not fighting all the time. This is a great way to see the positives in such a negative situation and to teach kids that do not have divorced parents, that it is also common to have parents that do not live together.

William's Doll by Charlotte Zolotow

Just by looking at the front cover, you can tell that this book is going to be controversial. The title of the book is William's Doll, but there is a picture of the little boy throwing a basketball. This shows right off the bat, that boys are supposed to play with balls, not dolls. The picture is this book, tell a thousand words. William is looking really silly because he is doing activities with an imaginary doll in his hands. The boys in the background are laughing and pointing at him throughout the book. All of the activities that his father has him do are typical of what most fathers would like their sons to be doing. These activities show that even though he wanted a doll, that did not mean that he couldn't be perfectly fine partaking in other masculine activities. I can see why this would be so controversial in our current society. Many people are just like this little boy's father and would not agree with the grandma for giving him a doll to play with. The fact that she justifies the doll by saying that it will teach him to become a good father is also controversial. I completely agree with the grandma. However, many might believe that this desire means that the little boy is going to grow up to be a homosexual. I think that this is an important book to read because it teaches people that males and females should not be expected to do only masculine or only feminine things. Another thing I noticed was that the little boy refers to the doll in that he wants to undress it, put it to bed, pull down the shades and kiss it goodnight. The brother also calls him a "creep" for wanting a doll. I could see why some may believe this to be characteristic of a child molester. I think the main point of the book is great, but I think that it could be given in a little bit more of a settle way.

Crocodiles are the Best Animals of All by Sean Taylor

This book is really fun and corky because all of the animals are talking and competing with each other throughout. I like that the book starts and ends with the donkey saying, "nothing is better than being a donkey". Throughout the whole book, the crocodile thinks that he is a better animal than everyone else because he can do all the same things that the other animals can do. It is comical to see the crocodile climbing through the trees like a donkey and hopping like a kangaroo. The author personifies the animals through the lawn-mowing rabbits and the snow-skiing goat. It looks like the words are splattered at random throughout the page to make this book more appealing to young children. The colors of the pictures are also very child-like. Throughout the story, the author gives a pattern of rhymes. This makes the story flow like a song which is enjoyable to the ear. It is funny in the end, that the crocodile finds out that he is not better than everyone because he does not have ears to wiggle like a donkey. Even though the crocodile has been defeated, the last picture shows all the animals together hanging out as friends. Something that the reader can take away from this story is that each individual has his/her own special qualities and none make him/her better than another. This would be a good book for very young ages to be read to before learning to read. It is very short and has lots of fun pictures, but also has difficult words throughout.

Rose's Garden by Peter H. Reynolds

The pictures in this book start out in all black and white. This sets up the scene for the fantasy world that the author is trying to create. It is so creative to have the girl travel around a tea pot instead of an ordinary boat or ship. She collected seeds on her journey and filled her teapot with them. She came along a large city and decides to go explore it. Instead, of showing her walking all over the city and showing all the wonderful things about the city, the author shows Rose's creativity by having her find an alley and dream of all the wonderful things that could become of that dark, dull place. Rose's patience and faith that the garden will someday grow is shown when Rose sits and waits through all the different season. It is so great to see that when others find out the Rose needs help with her garden, they come from all over to bring her a little bit of hope. This really shows how one small favor can spread and grow into a whole abundance of help. Soon, Rose's garden is completely filled with all different colors of paper flowers. I like that the author chose to only bring color in when the flowers appear. This is a good visual representation of how a little bit of hope can spread to form a whole garden. The overall message of the story is shown when the author says, "each flower had appeared around her because she believed". This is a great metaphor to teach children to have patience and stick to what they believe in and never give up. I love that so many different meaning and interpretations can come from this story.

Rainy Day by Patricia Lakin

I absolutely adored this book. The characters are 4 crocodiles that are named Sam, Pam, Will and Jill. Right from the start, the author puts in a good rhyme schema. This is great for emerging readers because so many of the words rhyme and are very simple. A lot of the phrases are repeated and changed just a little by each of the crocodiles. This makes it easy for a reader to be confident in his/her reading and guess a word that is unfamiliar. When a word needs to be emphasized, the author puts it in all caps or bold in order to get the reader's attention. It is so great because it describes all the different things that these four friends try to do on a rainy day instead of laying around inside. Everything that occurs is so crazy and unexpected. When they are driving in the rain, they end up in the clouds and then they see a pirate ship, a whale and a monster. At this point, the reader could be asked to make predictions about what they think will happen next. I expected the book to continue in this scary, mystery place. However, as I turned the page, I found that the place really wasn't scary at all. The monster, whale and pirate ship were actually just parts of a miniature golf course. They then see a creature that looks like a monster but turns out to be a friendly dog with a baseball in his mouth. I like how the dialogue is separated in order to place each phrase next to the crocodile that is doing the talking. This helps the reader to know who is saying what at all times. Next, while playing baseball, what the crocodiles think are falling baseballs, becomes hail. They decide to follow the dog and he leads them to the library. This is another really unexpected occurrence. It is a great wrap-up at the end, that each crocodile is reading a book about one of the activities that they did in the rain. It is also helpful that the author ends the pattern of the book by stating each crocodile's name one last time.

The Giver

I know that I probably read this book in junior high, but I am very glad that I got the chance to re-read it because I really didn’t remember all that much from it. The author does a really great job of painting the picture of the world that these people live in by making it seem fairly normal at first. Sharing feelings at the dinner table did not strike me as unusual, because that is something that most families do. It took me a while to begin to recognize some of the weird rituals and rules that were present in this community. I thought it was really weird that people that were punished were released from the community. I like that the author lets the reader assume that “release” means to be exiled into another community. It is a shock to the reader toward the end, when Jonas realizes that his father is actually killing the baby when he releases it. Some other unusual things about the community are that each family is given one boy and one girl for their children. The mother does not actually give birth to the children because they have women that give birth as their occupations. Also, when children become 12 years old, they are given the occupation that they will hold for the rest of their life. It is as if childhood ends right then during the ceremony of 12. I also thought that it was interesting that when children begin to get hormones and have feelings for members of the opposite sex, they are forced to take pills to stop those desires. The parents seem to be brainwashed into believing everything that the rules say and making sure they enforce the rules. I like that the author begins to explain everything that the reader is wondering about through the interactions between Jonas and the giver. When the giver transmits a memory of the past to Jonas, the author describes each memory in such detail that you feel like you are actually in that moment. My favorite description is, “crystals in the air around him, gathering on his back like fur”. It was at this point, that I began to realize, these people are from the future and they have completely wiped out all of their memories from the past in order to make a perfect world. The author keeps the reader questioning things throughout. I had questions like, “what is significant about the river?” and “How did this world become so sheltered?”. I also like that Lowry did not just come out and state that the people could not see colors. Instead, he gets the reader wondering, through Jonas seeing the apple differently and then the people’s faces and then Fiona’s hair. I hadn’t thought about how weird it was to have the old go off to live in a separate place until I read the memory about family. The people in the community do not stay close to their families all their lives. This would be very relatable for any reader because family is so important to most people. To think, that one day my great-great grandchildren will have no clue where they came from, is terrifying. I still am a little confused as to why, only people with pale eyes are able to receive the memories. It is interesting that Jonas begins to remember his own memories of joy towards the end of the book. I really like that Lowry ends the book with a lot of opportunities for different interpretations. Jonas begins to see love and Christmas and hear music. This could be a place that he has discovered that lives just the same as people in the past. It could also be his old town because the Giver might have helped the people to bring back colors and family and music.

Princess Hyacinth by Florence Parry Heide

The informal way that the author has set up the words in this book really adds to the unusual setting it has. Unlike most princesse who have lovely lives and beautiful dresses, this litttle princess has to stay inside all of the time and when she does leave, she has to wear an ellaborate wardrobe in order to weigh her down. This is because she floats. The author's use of sarcasm throughout the book makes this a fun read and intrigues the reader to see what will happen next. A little boy tells the princess that he like her and she thinks that instead of saying, "I like you" he may have said "Toodle-oo" or "Yike-a-doodle-doo". The princess is very bored in the castle and decided to go out in her weighed-down clothes and decides she wants to float into the sky with a bundle of baloons. She takes off everything but her "royal underwear". The little princess floats into the air and everyone in the castle goes chaotic to try and figure out how they will get her down. The little boy that likes her finally uses his kite to laso her down to earth. From there on out, she is allowed to go outside and float, as long as the little boy flew his kite in the air to catch her. Then. she was never bored again.

Max Counts His Chickens by Rosemary Wells

This is a great counting book to use with children that are just learning their numbers because it only goes up to ten. It is very simple and is about two little bunnies looking for marshmellow chicks on Easter morning. A child could really realate to this because this it a ritual that many children take part in on Easter. Ruby looks in all the right place for the marshmellows, while Max cannot find a single one throughout the hunt because he is looking in all the wrong places. While Max is looking, he is making a huge mess because he keeps pouring things out onto the floor. Next to the large number of how many chicks they have found, there are that many chicks all lined up. This would be great to have the child point to each chick and count them up on each page. When Ruby finds all ten chicks and Max has none, grandma calls the Easter bunny to tell him what has happened. This would probably get children excited to see that parents can actually call the Easter bunny. Then the Easter bunny brings Max his chicks and he starts counting them all out of order. I think this is also something good for a child learning to count to notice. He/she could point out that Max is counting wrong and try to help him by counting up to ten the right way.

Hurricane by Jonathon London

The pictures in this book are absolutely gorgeous. They are all hand-painted and are done in watercolors which give them a very relaxed look. The little boy and his brother live in Puerto Rico next to a mountain and he tells the reader about how they swim in the ocean and check for scorpions everyday. This sets up the scene for what Puerto Rico is like. When the boys are swimming, the pictures describe how the sky changes colors from light blue to deep purple to dark black and blue. The pictures become darker and scarier as the story goes on. The trees are swaying and there is lightening in the distance. This is great for kids who have no idea what a hurricane is or what damage it can do. The author describes that his family had to drive almost underwater. When they are in the shelter with other people from the community, they begin to sing silent night. The author puts it in Spanish to let the reader know that many people in Puerto Rico speak Spanish. After the storm is over, the family goes back to their home and have to clean up. They are lucky that they did not lose everything. I think that this is a good book to use when teaching about hurricanes because it somewhat sugar coats all the really terrible things that come from such a horrendous storm. This would also be a good book to use in order to bring in other cultures and backgrounds to the classroom.

The Magic School Bus on the Ocean Floor

I love that this book tells a story of the class exploring and learning about oceans while at the same time, it has little facts written on pieces of paper throughout the pictures. Each fact is written by one of the students. This is a great way to teach non-fiction without just giving out information. Another thing that is occurring besides the regular text is a lot of dialogue in little captions to show that the students are actually conversing. I also thought that it was very clever how everything that is said is made very literal through the pictures. Jake feels crabby as he is touching a crab and Mrs. Frizzle is cold because her dress has ice cubes and fans all over it. It is fun how the kids dream about going to the ocean and suddenly the teacher makes those dreams come to life by taking them on a trip there. At first, it seems like the class is just going to the beach, but then the teacher keeps driving the school bus into the ocean. The class explores everything on the ocean floor and the reader is able to learn new things through facts that each student shares. Every creature is labeled so that the child is not wondering what things are. They have a variety of adventures in the ocean and the entire time, the class is freaking out while the teacher is completely calm. When they get back, the students draw pictures and maps of what they have learned. The very last page has a multiple choice quiz with answers on the next page. This lets children know that the things that happened in the book cannot really happen in real life. This book would be great to incorporate into a science lesson and contains a lot of great information in a fun way. It does not get boring and is a great example of how fun exploring can be.

Nova's Ark

This is a great science fiction book that takes place in a futuristic world of robots. I like that the author tells the story in 1st person, through the eyes of the robot. The little robot boy could relate to other little boys because he is always dreaming about becoming a pilot. Nova's father spends his entire life searching for a planet that has enough crystal to energize them forever. Nova decides to fly a spaceship without permission and lands on a planet. He is very creative and begins to build animals that come to life so that he won't be lonely. As if this book isn't creative enough, when Nova finds his father dying, him and his animal friends sacrifice certain parts of their bodies for the father to come back to life. The father realizes that Nova has found the planet that he had been searching for. The go back home and Nova is a hero. This book seems to be geared toward kids in grades 4-6 because it contains a lot of challenging words, like "menagerie", "spires", "sphere", "consciousness", etc. It also is written in a language that contains a robotic theme with many unusual names for things. The author also is very descriptive in order to always remind the reader that they are robots. He says, "his mother clanked his steel cheek with a kiss", instead of just saying that she gave him a kiss. The pictures are very bright and colorful and I like the scheme the author has chosen of having some pages contain words with a small inset picture on the left and a whole picture on the right. While other pages are filled with one long panoramic picture. I particularly love the full spread picture of the new world that Nova has found. The image looks so real and majestic with its shades of purple and pink. I also noticed that each page that contains writing and an inset picture, also contains a small picture pertaining to what the page is about next to the page number.

Jimmy's Boa and the Bungee Jump Slam Dunk

This book is really wild because it is very unrealistic for a pet boa constrictor to be slithering around basketball practice. It is really funny to see the snake trying to do all the activities that the kids are doing. I also like that the author made the snake have feelings and get sad when he is told he cannot dance. Everything about the basketball practice is really wacky. The dance teacher is playing, Jimmy uses a trampoline to make a jump shot and the snake plays really well. The snake helps everyone by wrapping himself around them to put them in the basket. Then, rabbits from the playground come in to play. The pages are filled with chaotic pictures of everyone running around the basketball court. In the end the pet boa constrictor is put on the basketball team and the rabbits are put on the dance team. The whole story is told through one of the classmates retelling her day to her mom. Her mom is completely appauled by everything and the author ends with everyone at her house to celebrate. By the last page, there is even a pig and a seal to help celebrate. The pictures really make this book come alive and I like that the boa is slithering around everyone in each one. This book would be good for 2nd or 3rd graders because it does not seem too challenging but there are a few hard names here and there.

Lunch Lady and the League of Librarians

Before reading this graphic novel, I was very apprehensive because I assumed that it would just be like a bunch of comic strips. I never really liked reading the comics when I was little so I was not very excited to read this. I was suprised to see that this book was not filled with a bunch of seperate comic strips, but had one long story throughout. It is full of actions and new funny things that occur. I think that this would be a great book for a strong reader that is just not interested in reading. The little boy in my child study is a very good reader but is scared away by large texts or chapter books. He loves drawing and videogames, so I plan to have him read this book at our next meeting. I think it would be great to have him create his own graphic novel after he is finished with the book. Another thing I really liked about this book, is that all of the sound effects are written out. Things like, "beep beep", "thump" and "FWOOM". This helps the reader to feel like they can actually hear the noises instead of just seeing actions occur. I also like that all the text is put into captions. This makes the reading seem faster and easier. I love the storyline to this book. The librarians are the bad guys and are trying to destroy all of the videogames. Their deadly weapons are that the books come alive and destroy the games. The lunch lady tries to stop them using food as her weapon. The pictures are great during the battle and one page even just shows a huge explosion where the kids and lunch lady attack. The author ends the story by combining the two activities. The kids have to read while waiting to play the new video games. It is also great that the whole book is in black and white with yellow here and there. The yellow helps focus the reader's attention on that particular object.

Wacky Wednesday by Theo LeSieg

This book has a really good rhyming scheme throughout the entire story. It is a creative way to talk about those days when nothing goes right. This is also a great counting book because every new page contains a new thing that is wacky or out of place. The child can look at the pictures to try and find all of the wacky things on the page. The illustrations are really fun and it is actually pretty tricky to find all of the things that are out of place. The wacky details are things like; a missing door, tiger in a stroller, girl with no legs, shoes on the ceiling, a teacher on roller skates, etc. The number of wacky things goes up to twenty and things get extremely chaotic. It is funny because the pictures show everyone acting like all of these wacky things are completely normal. I really liked how the author ended the story with the child back safe in her bed with all the wacky things gone. She then refers to the very first wacky thing the little girl saw being gone. This would be great for a beginning reader, maybe in kindergarten. It teaches things like rhyming and counting. All of the words are beginner level.

Bored Bill by Liz Pichon

This is a great science fiction book that is geared towards males and females because it features a dog going into space. This book is funny and imaginative right off the bat because the dog not only is able to talk to his owner, but has a bitter personality that never wants to do anything. He thinks that everything the owner wants to do with him is completely boring. When he is out on a walk with his owner, they are both gusted off their feet by the wind. He is blasted into space and becomes very excited because he thinks that space will not be boring at all. Bill's facial expressions and personality completely change because he is excited to explore and experience fun things. I like that the author does little exerts of what is happening with his owner back on earth. The author shows that Bill is yelling about the gross alien food and how boring their lives are, by putting certain words in all caps. Bill realizes that his owner was right that you have to do things in order to have fun. He tries to do the things with the boring aliens that his owner likes to do. Bill realizes that he really miss his owner and goes back to earth to do fun activities with her. I really like that the last page shows the aliens sitting down to dinner with Bill and his owners. The book is a great way to teach kids that in order to have fun, they have to try new things and have a positive attitude. This book would probably be aimed towards grades 1-3 because it only contains a few challenging words here and there.

Clifford Follows his Nose

This book tracks Clifford as a puppy going from place to place because he is lost. He is so small that it is hard to spot him. This book would be good for very young kids to try and point out Clifford on each page. Clifford makes a mess everywhere he goes and the people get very angry at home. Even though he causes a lot of trouble, he is always smiling because he doesn't realize he is causing any harm and usually just does it by accident. Clifford ends up in a florists shop and jumps into a box. This is fun because the child might be excited to see where Clifford will end up next. Then, at the end the woman that received the flowers turns out to be Clifford's owner's mom. The two are reunited and very happy to see each other. The story is really basic but easy for a child to comprehend. This book is very short and would be good for children with a very small vocabulary. It is definitely not one that I would be interested in, but i was surprised to see that the boy in my child study was really excited to read it. This shows how different children's perceptions may be from ours and we cannot choose books based on whether we will like them.

The Princess and the Beggar

This is a Korean folktale that would be really good for introducing the Korean culture into the classroom. The illustrations are all in water color, which really shows the setting of the fairy tale. The book is also set up as a fairy tale on the first page with the cutout description of where the story is and what it is about. The illustrations are wonderful for showing different aspects of the Korean culture, such as the houses, the landscape and the way they dress and wear their hair. This is a story about the weeping princess who cried about every little thing. One day, she sees a beggar boy and cries because she feels bad for him. Her family believes that she will not be wanted by men because she cries too much. When the daughter turns 16, the father announces that she will be put into an arranged marriage. The daughter does not want to be married because she wants to be able to study secretly. She tells her father that she will go marry the beggar. Her father is furious and sends her into exile. She goes to the beggar and asks him to marry her. He refuses at first, but after she learns his way of life, they begin to like each other. She teaches the beggar skills to be a hunter. The beggar enters in the king's hunting contest and wins. When the king realizes that the beggar is the man that has won the contest, he is astonished that a beggar could be that good. The beggar explains to the king that the weeping princess is the one that has taught him to hunt. The father becomes happy and accepts her back into his life. The very last picture shows the beggar on horseback going home to greet the princess and their 4 children. This book teaches a lot of things about the Korean culture. Arranged marriage is customary, women are not supposed to study and beggars are expected to be weak and incapable of manly tasks. This book also teaches that the most simplistic people end up the happiest in the end.

Horrible Harry in Room 2B

I love that this book is from the perspective of one of Harry's classmates, Doug. It makes you feel like you are really there in school with him, seeing all the bad things that Harry does. It is so funny and typical of the cootie stage that Harry gets back at a kid by tickling him until he says, "I love Girls", twice. The pictures throughout the book help to give the reader some concrete images of what is going on. The pictures also make this more of an enjoyable read for those kids who still are uneasy about reading chapter books. While I was reading the book, I thought that Doug really hated Harry, so it surprised me when he said, "Harry is my best friend". It is helpful that there is a picture of the stub people because I had no idea what they were. It is funny that Harry and Doug think that they are going to cause so much chaos with the stub people and then everyone ends up playing with them or ignoring them. Harry's Halloween costume, as a snake, is really creative and different from what most kids would choose to be. I like that, even Harry, the class clown likes to read books. Harry is very goofy at many times throughout the book. For the thanksgiving play, he asks to be a dead fish. It is cute that he tells his crush, who is too shy to play any other parts, that she can be a fish like him and not say anything. Harry and Doug's friendship throughout the book is really funny because they claim to be best friends but Doug always talks about how horrible Harry is. Then, Harry leaves Doug to be partners with his crush on the field trip. In the end, Harry realizes he would rather have Doug as a partner. Harry helps Doug by getting rid of a bee on his sandwich but then in the end gets stung by the bee. Doug realizes that Harry actually is a good friend and sticks up for Harry when he gets teased. This is a really fast read that would be great for kids that are just beginning to read chapter books.

Sparky's Bark El Ladrido de Sparky

This book is a great way for teachers that may have ESL or ELL students with a Hispanic background to feel more comfortable with reading. The teacher could use this book as a read aloud by reading the English part and then the Spanish part. It is fun for kids to hear things spoken in a different language. The teacher could also teach the children a few words to say in Spanish. Throughout the English part, there are a few phrases in Spanish. The teacher could use this to ask the kids to guess what those Spanish phrases might mean. The little girl goes inside to take a siesta. This would be a great way to bring in the Hispanic culture by telling the kids that in many Hispanic countries, it is customary for people of all ages to take a short nap in the afternoon. This book also can help English-speaking children to understand how hard it is for those that do not speak English as their first language. The little girl feels stupid when she does not say an English word correctly and her cousin laughs at her. The little girl wants to be able to communicate but just doesn't know how. Then, her cousin teaches her English so that they can communicate. This might help children in the class to make an effort to be patient with those that do not understand and maybe even try to teach them. I love this book and plan to add it to my collection for my future class. I think that spanish is something that needs to be addressed with all ages because it has become so prevelant.

When Giants Come to Play

This book is really fun and can help tap into a child's imagination. I like that all of the illistrations are in water color to add to the imaginary world. This book is definitely based on the pictures because it would be hard for kids to imagine what the giants are really like without seeing the pictures. It is fun that the little girl is hiding in the giants shirt pocket when they are playing hide and seek. This may help children with understanding how big these giants really are. The author portrays the giants as being really friendly by showing them play with the little girl and not try to hurt anyone. This may change a child's perception whom may have thought that all giants were mean and scary before reading this book. It is funny when they are picking peaches and the giants just pick up the tree from the ground and shake the peaches out. It is also really comical that they use Anna's sister to play dolls and her brother in his car to play cars. When the giants leave Anna at her house at the end of the day, it made me think that they come to play very rarely. I like that in this imaginary world, anything can happen. So when Anna hopes that they will stay, the last page shows them sleeping in her front yard.

The Sunday Blues by Neil Layton

This book does a great job of capturing how everyone may feel on Sunday's because they know that they have a full week ahead of them. This would be a great book for a teacher to read aloud on Monday morning, to get the kids excited about the week because school really isn't a dreadful place. I really like that the front cover invites all different readers to enjoy this book by saying who the book is for. I like that the pictures are hand-drawn and look like a child may have drawn them. The author sets the mood by having a picture of Steve's house with a dark rain cloud above it and the windows showing everything outside to be blue. It is clever that the things Steve does all look like they have been drawn on paper. Once again the rain cloud is brought up midway through the story when the family is driving home and there is a black cloud above their car. I thought that it was funny that when Steve is dreaming about pirates he sees a pirate school and pirate teacher so he immediately wakes up. Throughout the entire book, Steve is completely dreading school and is so certain that no matter what he will have a terrible time there. Then, when he arrives and the children are nice to him and invite him to do things, he realizes that school will not be as bad as he thought. This could be a good way to teach, especially young kids, that if they have a bad attitude about school, they won't have any fun. This book would be good for kindergartners that are still terrified to leave their parents for the whole day.

Arthur's Pet Business

At first glance, I actually thought that this was not a good pick for kids to read because it is so common and old. However, I have learned that sometimes, depending on the kid, they need that familiarity in order to feel comfortable when reading. The book starts out by showing the relationship that Arthur and his little sister D.W. share. Arthur tells her not to tell mom and dad that he wants a puppy and on the very next page, she blurts it out at dinner. This is relateable to little kids because after dinner, while the parents are discussing, the kids are standing out in the hall trying to eavesdrop on the conversation. Arthur has to get a job in order to show that he is responsible enough to have a dog. He comes up with the idea of taking care of people's pets. This is really fun because a lot of little kids think that it would be great to have their own business. To little kids, $10 is a whole lot of money, so they would probably be pretty surprised when they read that Arthur will get that much for watching one dog. It is really silly that Perky is so mean and is always growling, but his owner is so crazy about her that she has pictures of her everywhere and luggage with her name on it. Showing that Arthur is exhausted from taking care of Perky is a really good way to teach kids how much work it is to care for a dog. Then more pets are brought to his business and it is funny to look at the picture of chaos that occurs with each pet. When Arthur cannot even go out and play with friends, the reader might start to realize that having a business and making money isn't all that fun after all. Instead of ending the book with Arthur giving Perky back and receiving his $10, the author puts a spin on things. Perky goes missing and everyone runs around frantically trying to find her before her owner shows up. Perky is found with puppies and Arthur gets his perfect ending of being given one of the puppies to keep.

Picasso and the Girl with a Ponytail by Laurence Anholt

This book is a great way to introduce Pablo Picasso to a student. It shows his culture and different parts of his artistic style. I really like that all of the illustrations are done in water color because it shows the artistic look of Europe. This author does a great job of presenting a biography of Pablo Picasso in a fun and kid-related way. Throughout the book, there are many pictures of his actual work. It is funny because the book starts out with the kids all sitting around talking about how amazing Picasso is, and then they look over the balcony to see that Picasso is yelling to them and showing them a picture that he has just sketched of Sylvette, the girl with the ponytail. He invites them into his studio and begins to draw a picture of Sylvette. The book shows his first painting of the girl as completely normal. Then the painting gradually starts to change, but the same image of the girl can still be seen. The third picture is actually done in his cubist style. This is something that a teacher could use to then show the kids more of his paintings in this style. Picasso teaches Sylvette that she can paint whatever she would like and not to be scared of failing. He shows her picture that he paints when he is in different moods. This part is cool also, because they are some of Picasso actual famous paintings. The author brings in a fact, that Picasso made sculptures from old junk, by showing him searching through a pile of junk. Sylvette tells Picasso many of her secrets and Picasso makes a sculpture of her with a key in hand, symbolizing that she can open new doors. On the very last page, the author reveals that Sylvette is a real girl and Picasso really did paint pictures of her that became famously known as, "The girl with the ponytail". There is also an actual photo of Sylvette as a teenager. This book would be a great read-aloud for a teacher when studying art history. Something fun the teacher could do with the class would be to look up more of Picasso's work on Sylvette.

The Pink Refrigerator

This book by Tim Egan, is very simple with a formal format. Each page has a picture that takes up the top part and a little bit of writing at the bottom. Dodsworth is a mouse that lives a very simple life and does not do anything new or exciting. He basically does the same things everyday. He goes to the junkyard to try and find things for his thrift store. One day he finds a pink refrigerator with a magnet and a not on it. Each day the note reads a new activity for him to try and there is something different inside the refrigerator to be used for the activity. This is really fun for a child because it keeps them interested in what the refrigerator note will say next. I like that the book follows a pattern of Dosworth reading the note, trying to pull off the magnet, looking inside the refrigerator, putting the item for sale in his store and then refusing to sell it in order to do the activity. After a while, he stops putting things up for sale in his shop and goes straight to trying out the activity. I noticed that at the beginning of the book, Dodsworth never had a smile on his face, but once he started discovering new things to do, he was always smiling. After a while, the note on the refrigerator says keep exploring and there is nothing inside the refrigerator. Dodsworth gets mad because he has nothing more to do. Then, he realizes that he needs to keep trying new things. He goes to his store and leaves a note that says, "Went to find an Ocean". This is a great way to see if the child was paying attention when reading because they would have to remember that Dodsworth painted an ocean earlier in the book and said that he had never been to the ocean. This explains his curiosity for finding an ocean. This book is a great way to teach children that sometimes making life easy by doing the same things every day is not that great. Children can learn to try new things even if they fear that they will fail or not be good at something.

Man on the Moon

I really like that the author starts out the book with Bob being an ordinary man in regular clothes in his house. The first picture shows him holding a cup of coffee and waving. This teaches kids that astronauts really are normal people that do normal things. It is so fun that he goes to work every day like anyone else would, but actually works on the moon. It is also funny that Bob reads the newspaper on the way up to the moon, like it is no big deal. His job is to clean the moon. I love the part where it says, "there's no such thing as aliens". Then you turn the page and the whole next page is filled with an image of aliens with no words. It is creative that there is also a man on Mars and a man on Saturn that he eats lunch with. Everything is very imaginative which makes it science fiction but is based on the truth, that people really do go to the moon. It is funny that throughout the book, Bob talks about there not being any aliens, but the little kid reading could probably point out that there are aliens hiding in most of the images. Then at the very end, it shows Bob as an alien and then shows his house surrounded by little aliens popping out. It is interesting that the book leaves the reader to wonder whether or not there really is such thing as aliens. It also gives the reader an imagination to think about what goes on on the moon.