Never Smile at a Monkey by Steve Jenkins

Never Smile at a Monkey (and 17 Other things to Remember) by Steve Jenkins, Houghton Mifflin, 2009, ISBN 978-0-618-96620-2
This non-fiction text discusses seventeen different wild animals and how they defend themselves (and what you should know about these animals so you won't get hurt.
Steve Jenkins has many wonderful non-fiction books which will delight readers of non-fiction. See his website.

Ed Young: staying true to oneself

Donkey Trouble by Ed Young, Athenuem Books, 1995, ISBN 0-689-31854-5
PS: In this retelling of the traditional fable, a kind but simple man and his grandson, on their way to market with their donkey, find it impossible to please everyone they meet.

One teacher uses a flannel board to teach this, as the characters change places many times during the story. REarranging them shows how difficult it is to work this situation out.

There are 2 other versions of this story:
Old Man Whickutt's Donkey by Mary Calhoun, illustrated by Tomie dePaola. In this retelling of LaFontaine's fable, a man, a boy and a donkey, enroute to the miller with a sack of corn, are criticied by their neighbors no matter who walks and who rides.

The Miller, His Son, and Their Donkey, attributed to Aesop, several versions available on Amazon.

Thanks to Marcia Dressel who provided this information on LM-NET.

Hook by Ed Young, Roaring Brook Press, 2009, ISBN 1-59643-363-9
A book of few words and beautiful illustrations. A meaningful story of a baby eagle and how he "was not meant for earth", but rather, meant to soar high in the sky.

Both of these books can be used to teach the idea of "staying true to oneself". Everyone has a gift and a purpose on earth.
Ed Young is one of my favorite illustrators. Here's a list of his books.

Michael Garland books (illustrator)

The following books were written by Debbie Bertram and Susan Bloom and illustrated by Michael Garland.

The Best Books to Read, Random House, 2008, 978-0-375-94702-5.
A young boy goes to the library with his class and hears about the many kinds of books that can be found there. Great way to introduce genres to Kindergartners and first graders. Told in rhyme.

The Best Place to Read, Random House, 2003.
A young child with a new book hunts inside and outside the house before finding the right chair for reading. Also told in rhyme. Good for K-1. Note: a good companion book for this is A Quiet Place by Douglas Wood.

The Best Time to Read, Random House, 2005
A young boy who has just learned to read tries to find someone in the family who will listen to him read aloud. Told in rhyme.

See Michael Garland's website.

Michael Garland books (author)

Miss Smith's Incredible Storybook by Michael Garland, Dutton Children's Books, 2003, ISBN 0-525-47133-2. Storybook characters come to life as the reacher reads the books.
Imagination, storytelling

Miss Smith and the Haunted Library, Dutton, 2009, 978-0-525-42139-9.
Miss Smith's class takes a field trip to the library. Spooky characters come out of the "incredible storybook". Good for kindergartners at Halloween.

Miss Smith Reads Again, Dutton, 2006, 0-525-47722-5. This story takes the class to the land of dinosaurs.

See Michael Garland's website.

Americana Adventure, Dutton, 2008, 978-0-525-47945-1. TWO STARS.
From School Library Journal: "Grade 1–6—This book takes the search-and-find game to a new level, providing a fun entry into history. An opening rhyme gives readers an overview of all they're meant to find on these animated pages. They are asked to count the Uncle Sam hats, find the bald eagles, and identify all of the presidents. The faces of other famous Americans are also identifiable, such as Babe Ruth, Elvis, and Henry Ford. The final two pages list all of the individuals depicted, the authors of various quotes, and clues to the puzzles. The book is set up like a treasure hunt. Each page focuses on a new sight, be it a city such as New York, Boston, or San Francisco, or a place—a ballpark, a rodeo, or Mount Rushmore. The illustrations are delightful, full of energy, color, and thoughtful composition. They are jumbled but not random. Most of the people have cartoon faces, but interspersed among them as part of the crowd are true-to-life portraits—Louis Armstrong plays his horn on a riverboat and John Wayne watches the rodeo. This could be a treasured stepping stone to a greater understanding of American culture and history."
US travel, history and historic sites. US customs and social life. A must have*****Suggested for grades 3-4 in a geography/America lesson.

The President and Mom's Apple Pie, Dutton, 2002, 0-525-46887-0
President Taft comes to town and ends up eating in various (ethnic) resturants before he finally finds the sweet-smelling home-baked apple pie. Mentions "Hail to the Chief" and "Camptown Races". Good for grade 2 to incorporate music and Presidents.

Mystery Mansion, Dutton, 2001, 0-525-46675-4. Involves puzzles and clues, but not great for a read-aloud.

Old women and their dogs

The Old Woman Who Named Things by Cynthia Rylant, Voyager Books, 1996, ISBN 0-15-257809-9
Publisher's Summary: An old woman who has outlived all her friends is reluctant to become too attached to the stray dog that visits her each day.
Vocabulary: outlive
Expression: "Wasn't long for this world"

Night Noises by Mem Fox, Voyager Books/Harcourt, Inc., 1989, ISBN 978-0-15-257421-5
Publisher's Summary: Old Lily Laceby dozes by the fire with her faithful dog at her feet as strange night noises herald a suprising awakening.
Good source of onomatopoeia. Other tags: dreaming, sleep, night, family tree (numbers).

LMNO Peas by Keith Baker

LMNO Peas by Keith Baker, Beach Lane Books, 2010, ISBN 978-1-4169-9141-0
Publisher's Summary: Busy little peas introduce their favorite occupations, from astronaut to zoologist.
Told in rhyme. Cute, energetic illustrations take the reader through the alphabet as well as various occupations: "We're eaters, electricians, and explorers searching land. We're farmers, flaggers, and best friends in a band."

Jazz music, Louis Armstrong style

When Louis Armstrong Taught me Scat by Muriel Harris Weinstein, illustrated by R. Gregory Christie, Chronicle Books, 2008, ISBN 978-0-8118-5131-2
Publisher's Summary: After dancing to music on the radio before she goes to bed, a young girl learns how to sing scat when Louis Armstrong comes to her in a dream. Includes facts about Louis Armstrong and scat singing.
Full of "Doo-blee-ooo-doo" and "wah-wah-wah-ing", this book would be good for not only music and jazz but for a study of onomatopoeia. Make sure to have some actual Armstrong music available for playing too. "Hey, you wanna scat? Scat like a purring cat?" FAntastical, imaginative words and illustrations make this an adventure; make sure you have plenty of energy the day you read this to children! It's a tongue twister: "ooo-blee-boo-blee slippetty spun, wobbly bubble's a roseee sun gummy bun". A few words about Louis Armstrong and Scat are found in the back of the book. Probably best for Upper Elementary students.

How I Spent My Summer Vacation by Mark Teague

How I Spent My Summer Vacation by Mark Teague, Crown Publishers, 1995, ISBN 0-517-59998-8
Publisher's Summary: "A schoolboy tells his class about his summer vacation, during which he joined a group of cowboys and stopped a cattle stampede." Or not. Perfect example of where your imagination can take you! Teague's illustrations are exciting and imaginative. How to go with the flow and see where it takes you.

A Horse's Tale by Susan Lubner

A Horse's Tale (A Colonial Williamsburg Adventrue) by Susan Lubner, illustrated by Margie Moore, Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2008, ISBN 978-0-8109-9490-4
Publisher's Summary: In Williamsburg, Virginia, in colonial days, Lancer the horse runs loose and behaves oddly while his owner and owner's friends try everything they can think of to help him feel better, until Margaret the Milliner realizes that Lancer needs a friend, too.
The value of this book lies in its depiction of colonial towns, lifestyles, and occupations. The glossary in the back defines "apothecary", "counterpane", "milliner", and "shod", to name a few. Would work with 5th graders study of Colonial America.

Red Sled by Patricia Thomas

Red Sled by Patricia Thomas, Boyd MIlls Press, 2008, ISBN 978-1-59078-559-1
Publisher's Summary: A boy and his father lift one another's spirits by going sledding on a winter's night.
Book text actually starts out as a poem, a circular one at that. Good way to show children the way to illustrate a poem, and the way to select words carefully so that two words can describe a situation or event. Low-level illustrations are deceiving, as the words used are more advanced.

Every Friday by Dan Yaccarino

Every Friday by Dan Yaccarino, Henry Holt and Co., 2007, ISBN 978-0-8050-7724-7
The author's note in the front of the book says it all: "Every Friday, my son, Michael, and I have breakfast together at the corner diner. Since he turned three, this has been our special time together and our favorite day of the week. I hope that you, too, will start a tradition like ours."
On one page he writes: "Everyone is rushing, but we're taking out time." A good reminder to us all, to slow down and appreciate the routine, everyday things that we take for granted, but which can vanish in the blink of an eye. Thank you Dan, for the reminder.

Fiction/Non-fiction: Crabs

Fiction: A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle, Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1987, ISBN 0-88708-056-1
Non-fiction: Is This a House for Hermit Crab? by Megan McDonald, illus by S.D. Schindler, Orchard Books, 1990, ISBN 0-531-08455-8
A hermit crab sheds his old shell and looks for a new one. Here, two books look at that process. Eric Carle's fiction version features his stunningly creative artwork and takes the crab through the months of the year, beginning in January. To decorate his dull new shell, the crab invites other sea creatures to live "on" his shell. In wonderful Carle fashion, the book is rich on many levels: naming sea creatures, using adjectives to describe them, showing generosity and the way the crab adjusts to change. A circular story, it ends with the crab back in January (of the next year), again looking for a new home to decorate. The back of the book gives a brief description of the other sea animals mentioned in the book: sea anemones, starfish, coral, snails, sea urchins and lanternfish.
The non-fiction version, written about the same time as the fiction one, features more subdued but also more realistic illustrations. In this book, the crab is looking for a new shell, and tries all sorts of unacceptable items (a tin can, a rock, etc) before he finds the right shell. The book makes it clear that the shell is used for protection. Even though it is classified as non-fiction, it is written in a narrative style, and could confuse younger children, as it is not set up like typical non-fiction text (pictures, bold print, glossary, etc).

AIMA Summer Meeting: Fanning the Flames

Bibliography: Fanning the Flames
AIMA Summer 2010 Conference
Leslie Sharbel
Library Media Specialist
Vestavia Hills Elementary Cahaba Heights
sharbelle@vestavia.k12.al.us

Slide 3: Lee Bennett Hopkins quote: "I believe we spend too much time teaching children to read--and not enough time teaching them to love to read. Get the difference." 2/27/2008

Slide 4,5,6: article: Tanya Plibersek "Love of Reading Opens Up World of Possibilities", http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/12/11/1197135459491.html


Slide 15: Booktalks
The Magician’s Elephant by Kate DiCamillo, 2009
Weird School series by Dan Gutman,
Various Newbery winners. See list at:
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/newberymedal/newberyhonors/newberymedal.cfm
The White Giraffe by Lauren St. John, 2006
Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortensen, 2009
Lawn Boy by Gary Paulsen, 2007

Slide 16: Read-Alouds
Guys Write for Guys Read by Jon Scieszka, 2005
Jumpstart Read for the Record: http://www.readfortherecord.org/site/PageServer
Coming up: October 7, 2010: The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle, 1969
Butterflies by Joni Phelps Hunt, 1992
Where Butterflies Grow by Joanne Ryder, 1989
Flutter by, Butterfly by Densey Clyne, 1998
Butterfliesby Kevin J. Holmes, 1998
Our Living World: Insects by Jenny Tesar, 1993
Velma Gratch and the Way Cool Butterfly by Alan Madison, 2007
Monarchs by Kathryn Lasky, 1993
I Wonder What It’s Like to Be a Butterfly by Eric M. Hovanec, 2000
The Moon of the Monarch Butterflies by Jean Craighead George, 1968
Monarch Butterfly Journey North:
http://www.learner.org/jnorth/monarch
Lincoln: A Photobiography by Russell Freedman, 1987
My Brother Martin by Christine King Farris, 2003
Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope by Nikki Grimes, 2008

Slide 17: Picture Books
Teach with Picture Books blog: http://teachwithpicturebooks.blogspot.com/
All About Picture Books: A Bibliography http://www.suelebeau.com/picturebooks.htm
Picture-Book-Inspired Writing Lessons http://writingfix.com/picture_book_prompts.htm
Reading Workshop http://www.effectiveteachingsolutions.com/readingworkshop.htm
Scholastic Using Picture Books to Teach Comprehension Strategies (Grades 2-5) by
Joanne M. Zimny, 2008 I like to use this with grade 4.
Scholastic Teaching with Favorite Read-Alouds in Kindergarten by Susan Lunsford,
2004 Also available by the same author: PreK, First Grade, and Second Grade.
Scholastic Teaching Math with Favorite Picture Books (Grades 1-3) by Judi Hechtman
and Deborah Ellermeyer, 1998.
The Moon Over Star by Dianna Hutts Aston, 2008
The Scarlet Stocking Spy by Trinka Hakes Noble, 2004
Beatrice’s Goat by Page McBrier, 2001
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s Paul Revere’s Ride illustrated by Ted Rand, 1990
The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, graved and painted
by Christopher Bing, 2001

Slide 18: Novels
Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins, 2003
The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau, 2003
Crash by Jerry Spinelli,
Schooled by Gordon Korman, 2007
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney, 2007
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan, 2005

Slide 19: Reader’s Theater
The Hallo-wiener by Dav Pilkey, 1995
Script located at: http://www.timelessteacherstuff.com/readerstheater/Hallowiener.html
The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything by Linda Williams, 1986
Script located at: http://www.mrsmcgowan.com/reading/Halloween_RT.htm, written by
Lori Pratt

Slide 20: Non-fiction books
Togo (2002) and Akiak (1997) by Robert J. Blake
The Great Serum Race: Blazing the Iditarod Trail by Debbie S. Miller, 2002
Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson, 2000
An American Plague by Jim Murphy, 2003
Everest series: The Contest, The Climb, and The Summit by Gordon Korman, (2002)

Slide 21 More Non-fiction
Series: Inside Men’s College Basketball and Inside College Football, Rosen Publishing,
2008
You’ve Never Heard of Sandy Koufax?! By Jonah Winter and Andre Carrilho, 2009
Baseball Legends: Sandy Koufax by John Grabowski, 1992
Satchel Paige by Lesa Cline-Ransome, 2000
Satchel Paige: Don’t Look Back by David A. Adler, 2007
Great African American series: Satchel Paige: the Best Arm in Baseball by Patricia &
Fredrick McKissack, 2002
Extreme Snowboarding Moves by Jeri Freimuth, 2001

Slide 22: More non-fiction
Scholastic News Vol. 78, #s 15 & 16, Feb 15 & 22, 2010 www.scholastic.com/sn56
Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down by Andrea Davis Pinkney, 2010
Nature’s Children series, Grolier Publishers
Sports Illustrated Kids: Year in Sports, published by Scholastic, various years
Go, Go America by Dan Yaccarino, 2008 (cheeseburger answer on pg. 55).


Slide 23: More Non-fiction
Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco, 1994
A Soldier’s Heart by Gary Paulsen, 1998
Charley Skedaddle by Patricia Beatty, 1987
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle, 1962
Hedgie Blasts Off! By Jan Brett, 2006
Number the Stars by Lois Lowry, 1989
The Devil’s Arithmetic by Jane Yolen, 1988
The Yellow Star: The Legend of King Christian X of Denmark by Carmen Agra Deedy,
2000

Slide 25: Graphic Novels and Wordless Picture Books
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney, 2007
Captain Underpants series by Dav Pilkey
Bone series by Jeff Smith: #1 Out from Boneville
Babymouse series by Jennifer Holm
Artemis Fowl: the Graphic Novel adapted by Eoin Colfer and Andrew Donkin, 2007
Redwall: the Graphic Novel by Brian Jacques, 2007
Nancy Drew graphic novels, based on the series by Carolyn Keene
Wordless picture books by David Weisner
The Arrival by Shaun Tan

Slide 26: Websites
Websites are available on VHEC Destiny home page:
http://destiny.vestavia.k12.al.us/common/servlet/presenthomeform.do?l2m=Home&tm=Home&l2m=Home

Slide 29: Begin Somewhere
Levy, Stephen. “The Future of Reading”. Newsweek, November 26, 2007, Vol. CL, No. 22, p. 57-64.

Just a few of the Zillion websites to connect kids to books:
Book Adventure: http://www.bookadventure.com/
Guys Read: http://www.guysread.com/
Kids Read: http://www.kidsreads.com/index.asp
Read Kiddo Read: http://www.readkiddoread.com/home
The Book Seer: http://bookseer.com/
Read-Alikes: http://atn-reading-lists.wikispaces.com/Read+Alikes
Weber Co. Public Library: http://www.weberpl.lib.ut.us/content/booklists/
A Book and a Hug: http://www.abookandahug.com
Find your Favorite Series: http://www.mcpl.lib.mo.us/readers/series/juv/
Historical Fiction for Children: http://bookgirl3.tripod.com/historicalfiction.html
Internet Public Library Kidspace, Reading Zone: http://www.ipl.org/IPLBrowse/GetSubject?vid=12&cid=3&tid=4248&parent=0