Literacy Now

Not only does summer provide time for teachers to catch up on sleep and devour books that they might like to use in their classrooms, but those more leisurely days and nights often give them a chance to seek out books about topics that seem interesting or provocative. Sometimes staying abreast of pedagogical trends and literacy research can be challenging during the regular school year because of the many responsibilities placed upon teachers. Now that the previous year’s grading, meetings, and classroom management concerns lie far behind us and the first days of school in August seem so far away, this is the ideal time to explore some of those professional books colleagues have been discussing or find new approaches to teaching practices. Written by members of the Children's Literature and Reading Special Interest Group, these book reviews on professional texts may encourage changes in thinking about education and they might even prompt some readers to write their own professional books. In addition to the books featured in this column, teachers might want to check out three highly recommended titles reviewed in earlier columns:

• Bullying Hurts: Teaching Kindness through Read-alouds and Guided Conversations by Lester L. Laminack and Reba Wadsworth (Heinemann, 2012)
• Both The Poetry Friday Anthology for Common Core Grades K-5: Poems for the School Year with Connections to the Common Core (Pomelo, 2012)
• The Poetry Friday Anthology for Middle School, Grades 6-8: Poems for the School Year with Connections to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for English Language Arts by Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong (Pomelo, 2013)

Whether read alone or with a teacher study group, these titles offer much academic food for thought. Teachers may be interested in reading about the Professional Development opportunities at ReadWriteThink.

Calkins, Lucy, Ehrenworth, Mary, and Lehman, Christopher. (2012). Pathways to the common core: Accelerating achievement. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Noted literacy educator Lucy Calkins and her colleagues from the Reading and Writing Project at Teachers College, Columbia, University, provide an accessible introduction and pathway to understanding the new Common Core State Standards. In their introduction they state, “This book … is written for educators who are eager to embrace the responsibilities of implementing the Common Core, who see schools as centers of professional study, and who believe that teaching well means engaging in a continual process of studying students and their work in order to strengthen teaching and learning.” The introduction cleverly goes on to question the approach and attitude that educators use when starting on this pathway – as curmudgeons or finding the gold standard? The book is divided into three main sections: Reading Standards; Writing Standards; and Speaking/Listening and Language Standards. The content of the book begins with an overview of the standards and a “nuts and bolts” look at what the standards do and don’t do for reading comprehension implementation for literature and nonfiction. From there, each standard is discussed one by one with chapter headings that include: Literal Understanding and Text Complexity; Reading Literature; Reading Information Text. Moving on to the writing standards, chapter headings continue with: An Overview; Composing Narrative Texts; Composing Argument Texts; Composing Information Texts. Concluding with the speaking/listening standards chapter headings are the Overview and the CCSS-Aligned Assessments Fuel Whole-School Reform. The detailed index makes this a useful and handy tool for implementation by teachers, literacy coaches, administrators or professional learning communities. Teachers can watch students interacting with these techniques in several videos found at The Reading & Writing Project website or listen to Lucy Calkins talk about this book at the vimeo website.

- Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

 

Kelley, Michelle & Clausen-Grace, Nicki. (2012). Reading the whole page: Teaching and assessing text features to meet K-5 common core standards. Gainesville, FL: Maupin House.

As stated in the title, this book is geared for elementary students and concepts that teach them to use text features not only in their reading but also guiding them to use text features within their own writing. Logically, chapter one opens the book with the importance of text features, how they help students, stressing the importance of teaching specific features and continuing with assessment ideas. Chapters 2, 3, and 4 offer a plethora of mini-lessons that include specific features on the use of titles, headings and subheadings, bold print italics, captions, pronunciation guides, bullets, sidebars, photographs and drawings, insets, cross-sections/cutaways, diagrams, maps, timelines, graphs, tables, tables of contents, index and glossary features. Chapter 5, the final chapter, offers ways to integrate all these text features with activities like a scavenger hunt, using them in morning messages, flap books and interviews to name just a few. The appendices (A through F) that make up just less than half the book, offer reproducible activities, a chart of the Common Core Standards relevant for student reading, charts, sort cards and more. This book is definitely a “hands-on/use tomorrow” kind of guidebook for teachers who want to get started with new ideas that are standards-based for elementary students. The book includes a CD with interactive reproducible ideas. Educators can take a look at Appendix F available on the CD in this downloadable list of resources available from the publisher’s website.

These two authors collaborated on a project and study guide for IRA entitled, “Comprehension Shouldn’t Be Silent; from strategy instruction to student independence.” The study guide is available as a download from /.

- Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

 

McGregor, Tanny. (2013). Genre connections: lessons to launch literary and nonfiction texts. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Author Tanny McGregor (Comprehension Connections, 2007; Comprehension Going Forward, 2011) has returned with a very user-friendly book for classroom teachers to invite the study of genres in today’s classroom emphasizing using concrete and abstract objects. In the opening chapter, McGregor describes the why and how of explaining genre including “launching the sequence” (p.3) to create experiences to understand and learn about genre. This same chapter explains the Concrete Experience to make genre real and moves on to the Sensory Experience featuring art and music. Chapters 2 through 8 deal with the specific genres of Poetry; Adventure and Fantasy: Beyond Realistic Fiction; Historical Fiction; Drama; Image Reading; Biography, Autobiography and Memoir; Informational Text. Within each chapter she has laid out the pattern for each genre instruction with the steps: Launching Sequence; Noticing and Naming the Genre on Their Own; Sensory Exercises; Quotations About …; and Time for Text.  From McGregor’s opening, “There are dozens of genres on the continuum between narrative (story) and expository (informational); this book will explore but a few. Any genre could be launched using the model in this book, for example, realistic fiction, mystery, or technical writing. Teachers can use the seed ideas suggested in this volume with a genre of your choice and see how it grows!” (p.2). Teachers may want to listen to the author discuss her book in an interview on EduTalkRadio.

- Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

 

McLaughlin, Maureen, & Overturf, Brenda J. (2013). The Common Core: Teaching K-5 students to meet the Reading Standards. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

Not a minute too soon, teachers can learn about the background behind the sudden appearance of the Common Core State Standards that seem to have threaded their way into state and national requirements and daily lesson plans. In the book’s two sections, the authors explain the CCSS’s key points and then suggest effective ways to use the standards in instruction. Examining the standards vertically within each grade level as well as horizontally across grade levels will help teachers understand grade level expectations. The authors even devote a chapter to assessment, discussing how formative and summative assessment connect to the CCSS, and providing examples of simple types of formative assessment such as discussions or Tickets Out that teachers can use. Using five guiding questions, they examine each College and Career Readiness Anchor Standard for Reading and its related CCSS for grades K-5 Standards. They provide examples of teaching practices and activities that teachers can incorporate as well as discussing links to technology. Although the authors admit that designing student-centered lessons that are based on the CCSS is challenging, this book provides plenty of support and encouragement for teachers to do so. The book is thorough and best understood by reading a chapter or two at a time and then digesting its contents or discussing them with a colleague.

- Barbara A. Ward, Washington State University, Pullman

 

McLaughlin, Maureen, & and Overturf, Brenda J. (2013). The Common Core: Teaching students in Grades 6–12 to meet the Reading Standards. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

As they do so effectively in their earlier title focused on earlier grades, the authors painstakingly explain the CCSS’s key points of the CCSS and provide tips on how to use the Standards effectively in literacy instruction in grades 6-12. The book is divided into two sections with the first part containing six chapters, and the second one containing ten. Chapters in the first section include “How Can Teachers Effectively Use the Standards?” “Assessment and the Common Core,” “Implementation of the Common Core Standards,” “Beginning Readers, the Teaching of Reading, and the Common Core,”  “English Learners, Students With Disabilities, Gifted and Talented Learners, and the Common Core,” and “Reshaping Curriculum to Accommodate the Common Core and the Teaching of Reading.” While exploring assessment, implementation, and curriculum, the authors also look at some of the implications of the Common Core for English language learners, students with disabilities, and gifted and talented students. One entire chapter offers suggestions for teaching students how to use disciplinary strategies to engage, guide, and extend their thinking. The second section of the book examines carefully each of the College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Reading, along with practical guidance on how to use those Standards to teach your middle school and high school students. Teachers will find the classroom applications and student examples particularly helpful in familiarizing them with the CCSS.

- Barbara A. Ward, Washington State University Pullman

 

Kucan, Linda, & Palincsar, Annemarie Sullivan. (2013). Comprehension instruction through text-based discussion. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

With a free PDF and an accompanying DVD that provide a guide for professional development meetings or teacher educators and suggested informational texts for classroom discussions, this excellent teacher resource provides tools for discussion that is text-based, allowing teachers to adhere to the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts that encourage elementary teachers to use more informational texts and promote engagement with text that “builds knowledge, enlarges experience, and broadens worldviews.” The authors provide several suggests for how to build on what students already know by supporting their understanding of the ideas they encounter as they read. After discussing the theoretical support for quality discussions based on texts that are intended to enhance comprehension, the authors explain thoroughly lessons that will help teachers know how to analyze text, plan and initiate discussions, and support students as they work with texts. There are six chapters, four of which focus on planning and discussing “Harnessing the Wind,” “Black Death,” “Coral Reefs,” and “Jade Burial Suits.” These chapters are terrific models of how teachers can stretch their students and enliven their own instructional practices with simple changes.

- Barbara A. Ward, Washington State University Pullman

 

Martinelli, Marjorie, & Mraz, Kristine. (2012). Smarter charts: K-2: Optimizing an instructional staple to create independent readers and writers. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Although commercially-produced charts have a place in the classroom, many teachers want to make sure that the charts they use are meaningful for their own students and will enhance learning. The authors have written a helpful book that shows teachers how to create their own charts while also providing examples of charts they have created. After discussing the importance of visual literacy and the appeal of advertising, the authors provide a field guide to literacy charts, including routine, strategy, process, exemplar, and genre charts. For instance, a process chart is intended to break an important skill into a series of steps (p. xxi). The authors even show teachers how to draw a pencil on a chart and include transcripts of how teachers use their charts with their students. While the charts can be excellent instructional tools, they also can provide ways to assess student progress. Ultimately, as the authors write in the conclusion, “Charts help to make our teaching explicit and clear by providing step-by-step directions and key tips and strategies for how to do something” (p. 86). Since students can use the charts to self-assess and set their own goals, the experience becomes empowering and leads to independence. After reading this book, teachers will never look at classroom charts in the same way. They’re far more part of creating a visually-appealing classroom.

- Barbara A. Ward, Washington State University Pullman

Yopp, Hallie Kay, & Yopp, Ruth Helen. (2013). Literature-Based reading activities: Engaging students with literary and informational text. Sixth Edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

This updated version of an ever-popular resource for teachers provides useful tips on how to use literature in the classroom. The book contains five chapters, one of which gives a rationale for using literature in the classroom. Chapters Two, Three, and Four offer 15 prereading, 15 during-reading, and 13 post-reading activities, and Chapter Five explores writing and bookmaking activities. After explaining what each activity is, the authors have provided examples of each activity so that teachers can easily create their own for use in their classrooms. For instance, as part of the preparation for reading, teachers might choose to design an anticipation guide, an opinionnaire/questionnaire, book box, book bits or pull out character quotes to encourage students to draw on and build their background knowledge about a topic or issue as well as motivate them to read. During-reading activities might include literature circles, strategy cards, character perspective charts, and character blogs, among others, all designed to encourage personal responses and deepen comprehension. Intended to help students make connections and to promote reflection, post-reading activities include sketch to stretch, dramatic responses, book trailers, Venn diagrams, and book charts, among others. The final chapter contains creative activities such as pop-up books, accordion books, mini fold-up books, baggie books, and digital responses to literature. Chockfull of activities that students will enjoy immensely, the book also contains a list of Internet resources and the College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for the Common Core State Standards. For teachers searching for a way to add excitement to their approach to literacy, this book is a must-have.

- Barbara A. Ward, Washington State University Pullman

 

These reviews are submitted by members of the International Reading Association's Children's Literature and Reading Special Interest Group (CL/R SIG) and are published weekly on Reading Today Online. The International Reading Association partners with the National Council of Teachers of English and Verizon Thinkfinity to produce ReadWriteThink.org, a website devoted to providing literacy instruction and interactive resources for grades K–12.

 

 

From the time of Gregorian Chants to the origination of the blues, lyrics have spread messages and served as oral language foundations for cultures for thousands of years, across the globe. Music from “Horace the Camel” to “Hey Mr. Tally Man” have been staples of music class in primary grades. By the intermediate grades, lyrics and music seem to start vanishing from instruction.

p: Ashley Rose via photopin cc

Yet lyrics play such an integral part as children transition to independent readers. They are immersed in lyrics via YouTube, iTunes, and American Idol (what ever happened to the Walkman?). Lyrics since the advent of pop music have consistently resonated with listeners. From lyrics inserted into love notes (authentic writing) to roadside tragedies (you know, the mix CDs that are flung out the car window after a breakup), students up through adulthood are actively trying to capture the messages contained within.

I hear teachers lament the loss of oral language. Language transforms and language is often coded. Lyrics (good lyrics) are always coded. Isn't that why people insert lyrics into love letters—to give the recipient something to think about, or woo them with (someone else’s) eloquent writing? What about the blues? Or country? How many songs do we sing out loud, expressing heartache, depression, or courage?

Lyrics contain the words, the language, we look for to express our feelings. When we connect to the lyrics, our communication becomes clearer, more expressive.

Music and lyrics deserve (re)consideration in the classroom. The right song, or CD, with the right purpose can take a learner miles. Linking short text lyrics to literature, be it chapter books or short stories, builds schema and creates curiosity. Using lyrics from Paul Kennerley's album WHITE MANSIONS is particularly useful when dealing with the Civil War; it can help teach concepts such as states’ rights and perspectives. Provide students with lyrics, read the song, and practice the “Fab Four” (Oczkus, 2010) strategies before discussing potential meaning locked within the text. After establishing working background knowledge, engage in shared reading with primary and secondary sources. From these in-class readings, student will discover answers to their questions, clarify interpretations, and gain deeper meaning behind historical concepts, such as the “Old South” or class structure.

Songs do not need to make perfect alignments to books. Some lines should be ambiguous or unrelated. This only helps the reader sort relevant information or invites them to ponder alternate perspectives. In a sense, when considering text-dependent questions or close reading, lyrics steer learners away from the “right there” question/answer and encourages synthesis of multiple texts and schema because lyrics do not outright explain ideas, like a text might. Allowing student to engage in such “out-of-the-box” thinking encourages creativity and widens comprehension.

Using lyrics in isolation works, too, depending on purpose. I prefer to model and practice reciprocal teaching with lyrics, particularly as a scaffold into content studies or theme-based instruction. If you use “Cherokee” by the famed hair-band Europe to introduce the Trail of Tears, students obtain the gist of the historical event and generate questions that will propel them into nonfiction reading. More specifically, students can glean from the lyrics that Cherokees were forced from their homes and moved on to reservations. They’ll likely ask questions such as “What promises were lies?” and “What does walked for many moons mean?” Encourage students to look and locate material that discusses the tumultuous relationship between the US Government and the Native Americans during the 1600–1800s, as part of in-class and independent readings. You may also invite kids to consider the time span of the march and the figurative meaning of “many moons”—a great invitation to literature discussions.

As Common Core challenges us to bring short text into the classroom, I find lyrics allows us to use short and complex text to help students acquire reading skills and motivate them to read “new” or “interesting” material.

Justin Stygles is a fifth/sixth grade language arts/humanities teacher in Norway, ME. He is an avid music fan an regularly uses lyrics to teacher literacy skills and comprehension in class. Tweet him at @JustinStygles (#closereadinglyrics).



Using Music to Inspire Young Writers

Use Movement and Music to Improve Reading Instruction

by Tammy Ryan

Graphic novels are one of the hot new genres today for young readers as well as teens. The popularity of the Manga and Anime imports from Japan started the interest in this comic book format and now biographies, histories, Shakespeare, and popular novels reformatted to the graphic novel versions have exploded onto the publishing scene. Teachers and librarians have learned more about the format and have made these new books and all the varieties and forms within the genre available to children and teens. The Children’s Literature and Reading Special Interest Group of IRA has taken a look at some of the newly published graphic novels this year and provided descriptions and teaching ideas to use in classrooms or to recommend for summer reading.

ReadWriteThink has several pages of lesson ideas to use with Graphic Novels from “An Introduction to Graphic Novels” to “Building Literacy Connections with Graphic Novels.”

The Engage blog also has lesson ideas and interviews relating to recent graphic novels: 

• "Putting Books to Work: Joseph Lambert’s Annie Sullivan and the Trials of Helen Keller"
• "Putting Books to Work: George O’Connor’s Hades: Lord of the Dead"
• "Putting Books to Work: Taylor and Towle's Amelia Earhart: This Broad Ocean"
• "Putting Books to Work: Jacobson and Colon's Anne Frank: The Anne Frank House Authorized Graphic Biography"
• "Secrets of the School Lunch Superheroes" by Jarrett J. Krosoczka, author of the Lunch Lady series
• "5 Questions With... Dave Roman (Astronaut Academy: Zero Gravity)"

 

GRADES K-3

 

May, Kyla. (2013). Lotus Lane: Coco: My delicious life. New York: Scholastic.

Intended for early readers, this second title in the Lotus Lane series focuses on Coco whose interests are animals and cooking. While her friend Kiki is fascinated by fashion and style, Coco is more down to earth and disinterested in appearances. Along with her two friends, Kiki and Lulu, she has formed the Lotus Lane Girls Club, a small group that enables the girls to meet and work on projects or activities each week. When she learns about an endangered snail species from her father, Coco decides that the group should raise money to create a garden where snails can thrive. Naturally, the three friends end up combining two of Coco’s avocations, and they decide to bake cupcakes. But a silly superstition about black cats causes problems, and they almost miss the chance to get to know new girl Mika because of Lulu's uncertainty about her. Although the story itself is sweet and fairly predictable, readers will appreciate these girls’ interest in making the world a better place instead of more superficial pursuits. The images feature three friends who support each other’s interests while also feeling secure enough to celebrate their own uniqueness. Life can be delicious when you are true to yourself.

- Barbara A. Ward, Washington State University Pullman

 

GRADES 3-5

 

Battle, Craig. (2013). Max Finder mystery: collected casebook Vol. 7. Illus. by Ramon Perez. Toronto, ON: Owlkids.

This is the 7th volume in the Max Finder series that features ten mystery comics and two short stories. Each story involves a solve-it-yourself mystery where Max Finder and a few of his seventh-grade friends from Central Meadows Junior High find the answers to mysteries and solve cases around the school. Readers are invited to gather clues and pose questions to solve these mysteries for themselves. With a 21st century graphic novel format, this could be compared to the former Minute Mysteries or Solve It Yourself books that readers solve the problem. At the end of each short mystery a Solution page lists the clues and then offers the solution in a Conclusion paragraph. The cast of characters is presented in introductory pages with a picture and short text-box “twitter-style” description of each character. Kids who like to solve mysteries will enjoy this graphic series.

- Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

 

Grine, Chris. (2013). ChickenHare. New York: Graphix/Scholastic Imprint.

The quote on the cover of this book reads, “Half chicken, half rabbit, 100% Hero” and that does a great one-line job of describing this book. Hybrid species ChickenHare and his friend Abe, a box turtle with a beard, are trying to escape the clutches of the evil Mr. Klaus, a misguided taxidermist. In this fast-paced adventure, ChickenHare meets Banjo and Meg who are also evading Klaus as future projects for stuffing. While on the run they meet Mr. Buttons who is a goat ghost that is seeking revenge against Dr. Klaus. The subtle and sarcastic dialogue is humorous that older readers will understand and the cartoon-like illustrations of the strange hybrid cast of characters add to the humor of the offbeat and macabre humor of the adventure. Fans of Jeff Smith’s Bone series will enjoy this new series as a next read. Check out the Chicken Blog that talks about the book and includes a book trailer.

- Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

 

Holm, Jennifer L. and Matthew Holm. (2013). Extreme Babymouse. New York: Random House.

The ever-popular and award-winning Babymouse is back, so grab your snowboards and get ready for the new volume and 17th adventure in the series. Babymouse’s trip to Snowy Mountain for her first snowboarding adventure begins with disappoint when she does not end up staying at the snazzy resort but at a rather shabby cabin that belongs to a school friend. She also discovers how much work and pain are involved in learning how to snowboard … and it looks so easy. Her instructor offers good advice when reminding Babymouse to go at her own pace, especially when Felicia Furrypaws dares her to attempt Half-Pipe Alley. Babymouse realizes her own beginning and limited skill at snowboarding, so when Felicia wipes out, Babymouse is pleased that she knew her own limitations. Surprise! The Lunch Lady makes a visit in this adventure as well. Check out the Babymouse website fun at the publisher’s website or even more background information at the author’s website.

- Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

 

Kipling, Rudyard. (2013).  Rudyard Kipling’s Just So Comics; tales of the world’s wildest beasts. Illus. by Pedro Rodriguez. North Mankato, MN: Stone Arch Books/Capstone Publisher.

Certainly not the original stories of Kipling, but the colorful illustrations of Rodriguez make an interesting new approach to the Kipling stories of old, including: How the Leopard Got His Spots; How the Elephant Got His Trunk; How the Rhinoceros Got His Skin; and How the Camel Got His Hump. Starting with an illustrated comic-style map of the world, the locales and habitats of the animals to be read about are introduced. Kipling serves as the narrator as a new writing team (Sean Tulien, Blake A. Hoena, Martin Powell, and Louise Simonson) put a humorous spin on the dialogue to accompany the comic boxes of illustration for this adapted version of Kipling’s work. Each short story begins and ends with research about the animal depicted in the stories.

- Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

 

Lemke, Donnie (Ed.) (2012). Tall: Great American folktales. North Mankato, MN: Capstone/Stone Arch Books.

With their exaggeration and humor, tall tales can have high reader appeal since they contain enough credible material to be believed as well as elements that leave readers shaking their head in disbelief. This graphic version of four classic American tall tales serves up Paul Bunyan, Pecos Bill, John Henry, and Johnny Appleseed deliciously. A different author and illustrator team creates their version of the familiar stories. All four graphic versions of the folktales have been published previously and then collected for this volume. From Paul's devotion to his faithful companion Babe the Blue Ox to Bill's larger-than-life stance, and further from Johnny's focus on the simple pleasures in life to John's heart of gold, strong work ethic, and determination to defeat the machine pitted against him, each of these larger-than-life men provides a good example for readers of how important attitudes toward others may be. There are plenty of humorous moments and several scenes that provide explanations for changes in the environment; for instance, readers can choose to credit (or blame) Paul or Bill for the Grand Canyon, that great rift in the Earth’s surface. Most appealingly, each story is followed by brief back matter that provides background on the legends and their real life counterparts or extends the story in some interesting way. This title will certainly spark interest in more folktales and might even prompt some budding writers to create their own. Readers will enjoy how the stories stand alone with unique interpretations, partly derived from how they are told but also from their illustrations.

- Barbara A. Ward, Washington State University Pullman

 

Lieberman, AJ. (2013). The Silver Six. Illus. by Darren Rawlings. New York: Scholastic/Graphix.

Readers interested in science fiction, orphans, and villains as well as relationships among comrades will thoroughly enjoy this graphic novel set in a dismal future where Earth's citizens live inside bubbles while relying on Hydro-2 for their energy needs. Hydro-2 is controlled by greedy Craven Mining, a company that exploits Earth's natural resources in order to enrich its own coffers. When several scientists and researchers come close to finding an alternative fuel source, they are killed. The daughter of two of those scientists, Phoebe Hemingway has been living alone with her robot Max ever since their deaths. She keeps the landlord at bay with recordings of her parents’ voices played in the background. When she ends up in an orphanage while running for her life from an assassin, the man who runs the Craven Mining group will stop at nothing to find out what she knows about her parents' work. He suspects that they sent her a message about their work, and releasing that information to the general public could be disastrous for him. Luckily for Phoebe, she makes five friends in the orphanage, Hannah, Becca, Ian, Patel, and Oliver. Oliver is slow to warm to Phoebe since he mistrusts just about everyone, but the six realize that they have something in common. Their shared connections prompt them to escape the work teams to which they’ve been assigned and the boring classroom lectures where teachers dole out incorrect versions of history. The super-smart youngsters travel to an uninhabited moon with promising clues that may help them figure out why Craven is so desperate to get his hands on Phoebe. The story is engaging, and the illustrations have eye appeal. Although it might be unlikely that these six children could be so smart and so scientifically advanced, it's still fun to watch them solve problems and conquer their own fears while bonding with others.

- Barbara A. Ward, Washington State University Pullman

 

Phelan, Matt. (2013). Bluffton. Somerville, MA: Candlewick Press.

Scott O’Dell Award-winning author (The Storm in the Barn) Matt Phelan brings another historically significant era to the graphic novel format. The star of his new book is Buster Keaton. It opens in the town of Muskegon, Michigan, in 1908 when young Henry Harrison learns that a troupe of vaudeville performers are spending the summer in the small town of Bluffton, just outside of Muskegon. Henry is enthralled with the idea of performing and is in awe of the actors. When he happens to meet young Buster when Buster and his brothers and sisters tumble out of a window, Henry begins a friendship that places him in baseball games, fishing antics, and more trouble and fun than he ever imagined. Buster’s fame is growing and his nickname “the human mop” comes from the fact he can do the most amazing slapstick routines as his body bends and twists and tumbles in all directions. Bring in Phelan’s soft watercolor illustrations, inspired by Winslow Homer and Carl Larsson, shining in the summer sun and warmth of budding friendships come to life. A book trailer is available on YouTube or read more about the graphic artist and his work at My3Books. Teachers might also like to download this Q & A with creator Matt Phelan for more background information.

- Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

 

Pierce, Lincoln. (2013). Big Nate: Genius Mode. New York, NY: Harper Collins.

In this comical graphic novel, readers meet Big Nate, who figures out the perfect formula for becoming a genius. He decides not to study during his sixth grade and save his brain instead. The book covers the entire academic year, from the start of the year to the summer vacation. To his credit, Big Nate tries several new things: giving a Valentine cookie to a girl, trying to teach Spisty (his pet dog) new tricks, and being a caddy when his dad plays golf, but something unexpected always happens. The cookie gets sent to Gina instead of Tina. Spitsy is friendlier with cats than with humans. And his dad turns out to be terrible at playing golf. Despite getting Cs in his classes, Big Nate remains perfectly content with his life until his father realizes he is making low grades in the report card, which then leads him to even more adventures. The voice of a reluctant sixth grade reader is portrayed perfectly. The struggle between turning geeky and remaining cool, the interest in girls (except Gina) and hanging out with friends, asking Mr. Rosa to mentor the kids, and the consequences of Nate's actions are all detailed admirably using both pictures and words. More Big Nate fun can be found at his very own website: Big Nate.

- Rani Iyer, Washington State University Pullman

 

Shapiro, David. (2013). Terra Tempo; The Four Corners of Time. Illus. by Christopher Herndon; Color by Erica Melville. Portland, OR: Craigmore Creations.

Everyone loves a good time travel back to the age of the dinosaurs and this new volume in the Terra Tempo series does just that. Jenna, Caleb, and Ari have returned after their adventure in Ice Age Cataclysm! This time, Ari finds the Time Map of the Colorado Plateau in the Grand Canyon of Arizona, but there are other not-so-righteous folks who want the map for themselves. Battling dinosaurs and giant fish, in addition to the bad guys, the fearless trio find themselves back in time over 500 million years ago. Author David Shapiro has a degree in natural history and so has created a story that involves the flora and fauna and geology and zoology of this time travel, and the illustrators have brought these landscapes to life through graphic novel panels. Teachers will find lesson plan and extension ideas at the publisher’s website or keep up with these Time Travelers at their website, Terra Tempo.

- Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

 

Tan, Shaun. (2013). The Bird King: An artist’s notebook. New York: Scholastic/Arthur A. Levine.

Readers of all ages were captivated by this imaginative artist’s creations and imagination in The Arrival (2007), Tales from Outer Suburbia (2009), and Lost & Found (2011), all surreal versions of the world around us. This marvelous artist’s sketchbook allows readers to peek into the mind and creative process of this unique man as they see where his ideas begin, how he sets them down on paper, and then makes revisions. There are examples of illustrations with promising starts that end up going nowhere and interesting artistic blending between reality and fantasy as the artist envisions creatures, part reality-based and part imagination, not found in everyday life. Providing even more insight into how one artist works, this notebook contains brief introductory comments to the different sections—Untold Stories; Book, Theater, and Film; Drawings from Life; Notebooks; Endpapers—from the artist himself. Budding artists will be relieved to learn that even this accomplished artist has plenty of ideas that never pan out or look the way he thought they would. Fans of Tan's work will be delighted to recognize some of the artwork contained in his other books and note images that seem to fascinate him. This is one to savor and from which to gain insight into one man's vision of the world. To learn even more and for helpful classroom connections, teachers will want to check out this helpful website.

- Barbara A. Ward, Washington State University Pullman

 

TenNapel, Doug. (2013). Tommysaurus Rex. New York: Graphix/ Scholastic Imprint.

Young Ely and his dog Tommy are best friends, though Tommy gets into mischief a great deal of the time. When Tommy is hit and killed by a truck, Ely is devastated. His parents decide he should go to his grandfather’s farm for the summer to get his mind off the death of his pet. His grandfather puts him to work pulling weeds until he drops from exhaustion. While on the farm, he meets a few other young boys who turn out to be bullies and pick on Ely and play pranks on him. They bullies, led by Randy, chase after Ely when he runs away and thinks he as escaped into a cave. Randy and his crew find Ely in the cave and shove dog doo in his mouth. Seeing Ely’s dinosaur model on a nearby rock they steal his toy T-Rex and leave Ely in misery. Ely can’t understand why these boys would treat him this way. Later, Ely returns to the cave to investigate strange sounds he had heard earlier. Cracking through the rock, an enormous Tyrannosaurus Rex breaks through and befriends Ely. Now the real trouble begins as Ely tries to explain and defend the presence of a T-Rex to the community. He tries to train and work with his new “pet” and becomes somewhat convinced that it is his dog, Tommy, come back to him in the form of a new pet … a dinosaur. Several themes run through this graphic novel as friendships, pets, and bullies are explored. Visit the author’s website to learn more about his interesting background.

- Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

 

GRADES 5-8

 

Halliday, Ayun. (2013). Peanut. Illus. by Paul Hoppe. New York: Schwartz & Wade Books.

As Sadie Wildhack enters her sophomore year in a new high school, she is looking for a way to reinvent herself as she has been an invisible entity in her last eight moves from school to school. She decides upon a peanut allergy and tells all her new friends about the severe reactions she gets when around peanut products. As her new classmates listen and hear about her “condition” she gains sympathetic friends and even a possible boyfriend. She even sends away for a medic alert bracelet to add credibility to her fabrication. However, like most lies, she gets caught in her own trap. Themes about types of friendships, peer pressure, new schools, a little romance, and the obvious consequences of lying abound. The artwork is well done and it is easy to follow Sadie’s character as she is always in red. Read more about this book and other peanut information at the author’s website.

- Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

 

McKay, Sharon E. (2013). War brothers: The graphic novel. Illus. by Daniel LaFrance. Toronto, ON: Annick Press.

Based on a previously published novel, which was, in turn, based on the real-life experiences of boys from Gulu, Uganda, this graphic novel tells the story of the boy soldiers conscripted into Joseph Kony's Lord's Resistance Army. It starts off casually enough as Jacob and his friends are excited to begin school at George Jones Seminary for Boys, but there is an ominous undertone referring to violence in the country. The new term has barely begun when the boys and their other classmates are kidnapped, tortured, and forced to participate in various atrocities. Jacob loves math, and like the others, has led a sheltered life. Although he has been aware of violence, he has never been touched directly by it until now. As he watches his friend Tony, who planned to become a priest, beat another classmate to death, he prays desperately for rescue by the government's military forces or his father. The leader of the rebels insists that no one eats unless he works, but the kind of work he requires is unthinkable for Jacob. When rescue never comes, Jacob and his friends escape with Hannah, a girl whose ears have been hacked off because she tried to escape once before. This story is powerful, moving, and prompts much introspection about humans' inhumanity to others, boy soldiers, and how quickly an individual may be persuaded to kill another or betray others in order to save his/her own life. It also contains a powerful message about the redemptive power of hope and the resilience of individuals such as Jacob. The graphic novel format makes a compelling, heart-breaking story even more compelling. Understandably, readers will find it hard to forget this story, Jacob or his slow recovery from his ordeal.

- Barbara A. Ward, Washington State University Pullman

 

GRADES 9-12

 

Yolen, Jane. (2013). Curses! Foiled again. Illus. by Mike Cavallaro. First Second Books.

Aliera Carstairs is back from her first adventure in Foiled (2010) and is again swashbuckling her way into new adventures. As the Defender of the Faerie, Aliera continues her fencing lessons, and in fact, hopes to compete in the Nationals competition. Just when she is balancing high school and fencing practice, her cousin, Caroline, is kidnapped. With the help of her sidekick Avery, high school hottie by day and troll by night, they set out to find Caroline. Cavallaro’s use of color is intriguing as the action takes readers to and from the faerie world through the eyes of humans. Each chapter name is a fencing movement or technique beginning with Engagement and on to Invito, Point in Line, and more until the final chapter, Disengagement. Yolen weaves many fairy tale references through the story line and includes a few surprises and twists along the way. The final page ends with, “And it’s not over yet” leaving readers dangling for the next installment. Enjoy an interview with author Jane Yolen with School Library Journal.

- Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

 

ADULT/PROFESSIONAL

 

Monnin, Katie. (2013). Teaching reading comprehension with graphic texts: An illustrated adventure. Illus. by Rachel Bowman. North Mankato, MN: Capstone/Maupin House.

Appropriately, this primer on how to read and teach graphic texts in today's classroom relies on text and illustrations to make its points. By first detailing the evolution of the author, Katie, as she sampled graphic texts, and then following her emerging ideas as they play out in the classroom, the book engages readers and provides support teachers as they integrate multi-modal texts in their own classrooms. Divided into two parts and six chapters focusing on the importance of graphic texts in literacy as well as providing specific lesson for how to teach them, the book is filled with excellent information about the different features of these texts such as thought balloons and gutters as well as humor. Readers will enjoy the section devoted to the meeting of the League of Extraordinary Graphic Novel Gurus featuring Dr. James Bucky Carter, Jeff Smith, Scott McCloud, Will Eisner, Art Spiegelman, Marjane Satrapi, and Harvey Pekar, all influential experts in this area and either creators or researchers of graphic novels. Most appealing of all, though, may be the author’s own admonition of her initial disdain for this type of reading, the interaction between the author and the illustrator, and the sections inviting readers to record their own thoughts on what they have read. Mind-expanding and edgy, this is a terrific book to generate possible curricular and methodological changes.

- Barbara A. Ward, Washington State University Pullman

 

These reviews are submitted by members of the International Reading Association's Children's Literature and Reading Special Interest Group (CL/R SIG) and are published weekly on Reading Today Online. The International Reading Association partners with the National Council of Teachers of English and Verizon Thinkfinity to produce ReadWriteThink.org, a website devoted to providing literacy instruction and interactive resources for grades K–12.

 

 

Every year around Earth Day, my third grade students typically do the same thing, focusing on the three R’s: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. As third graders, I noticed students were simply going through the motion, reciting the same things they learned in kindergarten through second grade. What new things were they learning? Absolutely nothing!

p: Rafa from Brazil via photopin cc

This year, instead of the typical recycling unit, I decided to implement a project-based learning approach for my students, focusing on what recycling meant on a global scale. I challenged my students to think outside of the box by using the driving question, “What does recycling mean around the world?”

By the time the projects were complete, the students had not only become experts on their country’s recycling, they had learned how to incorporate technology into their presentations and how to better interact with one another in groups, utilizing problem solving strategies when disagreements arose.

The final product impressed me because students had complete ownership of their project. As students made new discoveries, it was they who took the role of teachers as I became an eager learner. Before this project, students had no idea they had the ability to use Skype to interview recycling experts around the world or create their own webpages. As students previewed their final projects, they could be observed jumping for joy as they high-fived one another. At that point, I realized I had created a project where the students were truly engaged in their learning.

Of course, recycling isn’t something that happens once a year. So while I chose this for Earth Day, the following project could be undertaken at any time of the year.

STEP 1: Formulate the driving question. The driving question is what sparks interest and guides the students through the project. For this project, our driving question was “What does recycling mean around the world?”

STEP 2: Brainstorm countries. Allow the students to brainstorm countries or cities outside of the United States. They will research how recycling works in their country or city.

STEP 3: Gather Internet sites and contacts. Once the students have brainstormed their list of countries and cities, narrow down the list to the number of groups you are going to have in your classroom. Begin to locate reliable recycling sites students can use for their research. On the sites, look for contact information. Send e-mails describing the project and request someone who would be willing to Skype with the students or answer questions about their recycling via e-mail. The students get excited when they have a chance to correspond with someone outside of the United States.

STEP 4: Group your students. Divide your students into groups of two to four. Assign students a country or city to research, or allow them to choose from the pre-determined list.

STEP 5: Write research questions. Students should create eight to ten research questions about recycling in their country. The students need to write deep questions that will allow them to really learn and investigate ( i.e.,How often does curbside recycling occur? Why?).

STEP 6: Draft interview questions. Next, have students write eight to ten interview questions. If someone responds granting them an interview, they will need to be prepared.

STEP 7: Record the research. Students will compile their data and record it on one sheet of paper. This will make it easier for students when they incorporate their data into the technology projects.

With this phase now complete, students can use their findings to work on the following projects. My third graders completed all of them. This isn’t necessary, but having them complete all the projects allowed them to become immersed in technology, where they understood how they could use a variety of tools to authenticate their learning.

Podcast: The students will write at least one paragraph summarizing some of their research. They will use this research to create a podcast. A very easy site to record their podcast is Record MP3 (http://www.recordmp3.org/).

Prezi: The students will work together to create a presentation on Prezi (www.prezi.com). This is a presentation tool, similar to Power Point that helps you share and organize your ideas as a visual journey for your audience.

Images: The students will search for five to eight copyright-free images of their country’s recycling using Google Advanced Search (http://www.google.ca/advanced_search). When using advanced search, change the usage rights tab to free to use or share, even commercially. This ensures none of the images used are a copyright infringement. It also teaches the students about copyright and creative commons rights.

Animoto: The students will work together to create an Animoto video (www.animoto.com) to display images of their country’s recycling. They are able upload free music from the site and insert text.

Glogster: The students can also use their images to create an online Glogster poster (www.glogster.com).

Xtranormal: On this website, students will use their writing to create a 3D animated movie using one or two unique actors. They are able to select their own background for the setting of their movie and create actions for the actors they have chosen. The students will work together to construct a conversation (involving two people) about their country’s recycling. They will write it as a script. My only requirement was that they used text evidence from their research. On their Xtranormal (www.xtranormal.com), the students will choose actors, background, and voices. The kids LOVE this site. It is a great way for the students to demonstrate their creativity.

Commercial: The students will write a 30-second commercial about their country’s recycling. If a webcam is available, have the students record their commercial. The students enjoy playing with all the different backgrounds for their webcam.

Website: After all of their hard work, why not put it all together? The perfect site for your students to create their own webpage is Weebly (www.weebly.com). They can choose their own design, upload their work and add any text needed. I found students feel like they are on top of the world when they have created their own webpage and are able to share it with friends and family.

Here are some of my students’ global recycling projects:

http://germanysrecycling.weebly.com/
http://southafricarecycling.weebly.com/
http://netherlandsrecycling.weebly.com/
http://dubairecycling.weebly.com/
http://japanrecycling.weebly.com/
http://hollandrecycling.weebly.com/

I hope your students enjoy exploring recycling around the world!

Brandi Leggett is a National Board Certified Teacher in Middle Childhood Generalist. She received her Master’s in Elementary Education from Arcadia University in Glenside, Pennsylvania. She currently teaches third grade at Prairie Ridge Elementary in Shawnee, Kansas.Her classroom website is www.usd232.org/bleggett and classroom blog is http://teambleggett.blogspot.com/.



Where’s the L in STEM?

Your Classroom Got a New Tablet Computer—Now What?