The Importance of Love and Hope

Every I December I read Fly Away Home and December by Eve Bunting.  It is my way of teaching the students the value of sharing and giving.  I also hope they realize how fortunate they are after listening to these two serious and realistic books.  Most of all, I want the students to truly see the importance of love and hope in any situation.

Both books lend themselves to self-questioning, predicting, and inferring.  When you read them together, the students can make text to text connections.

Fly Away Home is about a homeless boy and father.  They are living in the airport because the mother died and dad can’t afford to work and take care of the preschool son.  The boy is the narrator, so the reader sees a child’s perspective of what it is like to be homeless.  A bird trapped in the airport is a beautiful metaphor for the boy.  The bird eventually escapes the airport and flies home.  The boy hopes he and his dad will leave the airport and go home like the bird.

December is a similar hope story.  A boy and his mother are homeless and living in a cardboard box because the father died.  The boy and his mother have very little.  Only a calendar with an angel on it, dad’s coat, and 2 Christmas cookies.  An old woman visits the cardboard box and they share their box  and coat with her.  The boy struggles with the conflict of whether to share the cookies or not.  He does!  Then the most beautiful miracle happens.  He sees an angel like on the calendar.  Bunting allows the reader to infer the old woman was really the angel.  After the old woman’s visit, things look up for the family.  The next year they have their own apartment but remember the previous Christmas and angel.

Both of these books send a heart-warming message of hope and love.  I hope that my students will share and give to others during the holiday season.  I also hope they are thankful for how fortunate they are to have shelter and loved ones.

Winks Here, Winks There, Winks Everywhere

I wanted to share this book with you because it helps put a different perspective on every day life “coincidences”.  People tend to interpret coincidences as some little occurence that happened once by chance-nothing more significant.  The author, Squire Rushnell, explains. “A God Wink is a message of reassurance coming when you most need it:  when you are at a crossroads in your life, and when instability is all around.  It might be said, in fact, that coincidences are the best way for God to establish a perpetual presence in your life.”  Rushnell goes on to compare the coincidences to God performing little miracles in your life.  Those are God Winks. 

I am thankful for every single little ”coincidence” in my life.  God is constantly winking at me; I am sure to thank him at that moment, before I go to bed, and the next morning.  I don’t call good things in my life coincidences because I know God makes them happen.  I was so excited to find this book because now I love calling them Winks.  It is so comforting to know He is actually winking and thinking of me.

Rushnell encourages his readers to make a list of times in the past or present God winks.  He says to write them down, but I keep track of them in my head.  I am sharing an example of my list.

The paper I need is in a locked room WINK  Sonya, the custodian is walking down the hall with the key.

I have no idea how to put data in Excel WINK Linda offers to help me.

I need someone to watch my boys WINK Sophie, Mollie, and Ashley  to the rescue.

I want to get a Masters Degree, but timid and scared WINK I meet Jacqui Murk who is full of zest and adventure.

I don’t even realize I need a break WINK Sarah and her family invite us out to dinner.

I need help with ideas and editing my papers WINK  Amy, Denise, and Elizabeth are always there.

Coincidence/winks happen for a reason; they let me know I am not alone.  From now on when a coincidence happens in your life, I hope you think of it as a wink from God.

A Photographic Fantasy

Carl Sams and Jean Stoick, a husband and wife team, photograph the pictures for these three books.  Some photos are taken in nature and others in their backyard.  Although this is the newest book in their series, I read it first.  I watch the weather reports and read it right before the first snow, hence the title.  Last year, I read this wonderful book in the morning, and like magic-it snowed in the afternoon.  The kids were so excited!  I also use this book for science to discuss animal adaptations.

Stranger in the Woods is the first book in the series.  Sams and Stoick write the story from the animals’ perspective.  They allude to a stranger they hear and see in the woods.  They have no idea who or what it is.  They are leary and do not know how it got in their woods.  Of course, the photos allow you to infer and figure out who built the snowman in the woods.  Another great feature this book offers is an expository recipe with a dash of voice for building a snowman at the end of the story.   A perfect example of a how-to expository for winter time.

The final book in the series is a heart-warming story about a newly born fawn in the woods.  I learned that fawns are born without a scent.  The authors hope people will learn that fawns found alone in the woods are not lost or abandoned.  They have to spend their first two weeks of their lives without their moms because her scent will attract hunters. 

Bambi was my all-time favorite character, so I had to have this book!  These photos truly capture the beauty of fawns and other baby animals in the spring time.

Each one of Sams’ and Stoick’s photographic fantasies honors and beautifies nature and the woodland animals.  I hope you have an opportunity to enjoy the vivid photos and heart-warming stories.

Meet the woman who saved Thanksgiving!

My friend, Sarah, and I discovered this new picture book 3 years ago.  I was so thankful to find another Thanksgiving book besides one about the Pilgrims and Native Americans.  The name of our newly found treasure is Thank you, Sarah:  The Woman Who Saved Thanksgiving.  It is FILLED with voice!  It portrays a female as a hero and ties in the character trait perseverence because Sarah Hale never gave up fighting for Thanksgiving.  The premise behind the story is Sarah Hale writing letters to many Presidents asking them to make Thanksgiving a National Holiday.  I don’t want to give the story away, but there is a part in the book where she picks up her mighty weapon-(can’t tell you what it is).  It is perfect for predicting and encouraging students that everyone can make a difference in the world especially with this certain item!   It also leads to a wonderful genre discussion because it could be a biography.  It may be historical because it happened a long time ago.  Now is it fiction or non-fiction?  We have decided on historical non-fiction because it is informational and only discusses one part of Sarah’s life.  Will you read it and let me know what genre you would assign it?

The 4th-8th teachers may know the author Laurie Halse Anderson because she has mostly written novels for older students, but she has also written a Pet Volunteers series and a few picture books for younger readers.  She will be at Anderson’s Bookstore in Naperville on Wednesday, Oct. 29th.

Sometimes I feel like a squirrel or chipmunk getting ready for winter!

Sometimes I feel like a chipmunk or squirrel  getting ready for winter.  Every fall, I clean out the garage.  My boys and I pack away the baseball equipment and beach toys to make room for the van.  The boys rake the leaves and I mow the grass and drain the gas for the winter.

Inside, I pull out the winter clothes and put the summer clothes away.  We ended up with four bags of clothes for Goodwill.  I realize once again how much my boys are growing.  I unpack and take inventory of the winter coats, snow pants, boots, hats, and gloves.  They are responsible, but I always keep extra hats and gloves on hand.  If it snows and we are in our Masters class, I need to be prepared because they are going to want to play!

At the store, I always buy lots of soup and I found these adorable mini-saltine crackers.  I also make a roast in the crockpot because I love the way it makes the house smell warm and cozy.  I also took all the pumpkin, vanilla, and sugar cookie candles out of the cabinet and started burning them again.

I love getting ready for fall, wearing warm sweatshirts, and cuddling up in blankets as I read all my Masters books and grade papers.

I chose to share these two picture books because you all know Don Freeman as the author of Corduroy.  He wrote this adorable book about Earl the Squirrel gathering acorns to store up for winter.  It is simple black and white shaded illustrations except for the scarlet scarf which is a key part of the story.

Victoria Sherrow is an author I had never heard of until I read Chipmunk on Hollow Tree Lane.  Wow, it is a fictional story jam packed with wonderful word choice and beautiful illustrations!  At the end, she has facts about chipmunks, a glossary, and index.  These features are unique but lended themselves perfectly to our animal research unit in science.

I hope you enjoy the changing seasons and get a chance to read these adorable picture books.

Magicians, Sorcerers, and Wizards- Oh my!

Mary Pope Osborne hooks kids with these mysterious, exciting words in her Magic Tree House book series.  She puts a clever twist on learning and embeds factual information into each of her adventures.  Children are so enthralled in the short bursts of adventure they don’t realize they are tackling challenging vocabulary and decoding difficult words.  Meanwhile, they are learning about factual information from different time periods and geographical places as they travel all over the world with Jack and Annie.  Jack and Annie are the two main characters in each Magic Tree House book.  They climb into their tree house and with a few spins they are all over the world solving riddles and fulfilling missions.  Young readers also learn about research because Jack and Annie have to read about the new areas and time periods to fulfill their mission and return back home to the tree house.

Osborne has also authored research guides to accompany some of her books.  Kids embark on a fictitious adventure with Jack and Annie.  Then the readers can learn even more factual information reading the kid-friendly research guides.

At the end of her books, Mary Pope Osborne includes a note from the author page explaining how she reads and researches time periods and places to inspire her ideas for more new books.   She researched the ancient world of the British Isles and learned about a famous stone in Scotland called the Stone of Destiny.  It inspired her to create Merlin’s “Diamond of Destiny.”  Merlin is one of the characters that sends Jack and Annie on missions.  In addition, she got the idea for a magic wand and riddle from from an Irish poem.

Osborne explains to her readers, “Old tales and poetry from around the world are a source of inspiration for storytellers.  Creating something new from something old allows us to link hands with people of the past (2003, p. 113).”

This series is intended for young readers, but I learn something new every time I read one of her books.  The reading lexile level may be low but don’t let that fool you.  There is a lot of factual information about animals, inventors, history, and countries jammed into each of Mary Pope Osborne’s books.

My Dog is as Smelly as Dirty Socks

My class and I had so much fun reading a picture book called My Dog is as Smelly Dirty Socks by Hanoch Piven.  It is a delightful story about a girl truly describing her family using similes.  Then she draws a portrait with the objects she used to compare the family member.  The objects are 3-D.  For example, Dad is as jumpy as a spring.  Then the spring becomes his eyebrows.  Dad is as fun as a party favor; the little party blower becomes his nose in the portrait.  She made up similes and drew portraits for her family members and dog.  Of course, the dog is as smelly as canned fish and smelly socks.   The kids absolutely loved the story.  They couldn’t wait to start writing.  One of the fifth grade teachers has the students create a 3-D collage, so I gave them magazine pictures instead.  The magazine pictures also helped them have an object to compare to.  For example, Mom’s hands are as smooth as butter or pudding.  They were totally engaged and actually having fun using similes to add details and word choice to their writing.  I was so proud of them and can’t wait to see the end product.

Life in the Stone Age!

I am going crazy without my internet access.  Last Friday, the lights went out and my internet has not worked since!  The whole week my school was on strike, I had to rely on my friends calling me and telling me what the emails and newspapers were saying.  I am not a tech savy kind of gal, so I did everything the Comcast and router people told me to try.  Still, no internet!!!!  I even drove to McHenry to swap the modem with a new one.  That happened to be the one and only day all the workers were at a conferece.  Can you believe that?  I tried everything to avoid having a Comcast technician come to my house.  It was inevitable, I needed help.  The problem is I need a new router, so I am off to buy one today in hopes I will have the internet up and running soon. 

I feel so bad for the hurricane victims because they don’t have such a simple fix.  They will be living in the Stone Age without computers, T.V., internet, and many modern electric conveniences for many weeks.  It makes me realize my problems are trivial and I shouldn’t complain about anything!!!!!!!  I am going to stop right now!

Do you use picture books in math class?

I love using picture books to help teach math concepts.  My favorite books are the Sir Cumferences series and Greg Tang’s math riddles.  I teach the third grade gifted math class, so they actually “get” the word play in the Sir Cumference books and can apply the knowledge gained to their assignments.  They also truly enjoy the challenge of solving Tang’s riddles.  Furthermore, I read books about measurement.  For example, How Big Is a Foot, Super Sand Castle Saturday, and Measuring Penny.  The Math Start series has developed a lot of books to help students understand many different math concepts.  Of course every child and teacher loves Jerry Pallotta’s candy books to teach math!   For example, Twizzlers, Hershey’s, and Reese’s Pieces books use tasty candy to help students manipulate and eat candy to learn math concepts.  My other favorites are the M&M books to teach addition, subtraction, and graphing.  If math is hard for a child, candy is a sure way to reach them!   Good luck and let me know if you find a great picture book to read in math class.

My first post :)

Wow, look I created my own blog!  I’m still not sure what I’m doing yet.  You can even add audio to this fabulous message.  My favorite author is Andrew Clements.