Hello,
I know some of you really enjoy knowing about new books. I can be difficult to know which books you might like and which you might not like. I try to choose books that I really like and that fit the criteria we want for our SDA schools.
The Boo-Boos That Changed the World by Barry Wittenstein. 2018.
This is the story of how Band-Aids were created. This book is fun to read aloud. The first page reads “Once upon a time, in 1917 actually, a cotton buyer named Earle Dickson married his beloved, Josephine, and they lived happily ever after. The End.” I read that a stopped. The children were surprised and said, “That isn’t all!?” So I turned the page and read the next ten pages at the end of which stated “The End.” I waited again, and the protests came. The children were laughing by now, so I continued reading four more pages when I again read “The End.” Two more pages – The End. And finally read to the end of the book when it says “The End – Really!” Meanwhile, through all those ‘The Ends” comes the story of how a cotton buyer created bandages with adhesive that was easy to apply with one hand. They didn’t sell well until Johnson and Johnson decided to give them away to the Boy Scouts since boys scrape their knees and elbows. The mothers realized how handy these things were and they began to sell. There is a nice bit of history here and lots of things that you might not know just like the children. This is a book that is appropriate for all ages.
Focused by Alyson Gerber. 2019.
If you have a student in your class with ADHD, they might want to read this book. Clea can’t control her thoughts. She gets distracted; she can’t focus easily especially with others around her making noises. The other kids are beginning to notice and it is starting to affect her grades. Her parents take her to be tested and she learns that she had ADHD. I am processing this book right now and already have a student with ADHD who wants to read it. Alyson Gerber has written a story to help others know what it is like for someone who has ADHD. If you like this one, you may also like a previous book Gerber wrote titled “Braced” about a girl with scoliosis.
Since we are on a roll with medical issues, consider the book Roll With It by Jamie Sumner about a girl in a wheelchair. Not only is Ellie in a wheelchair, but she is the new girl. Add to that, she is the new girl who lived in a trailer park on the wrong side of town. Ellie has cerebral palsy and she and her mom have moved to a new town so they can help care for her grandfather who has dementia. Ellie wants to be a baker and is excited to enter a baking contest. We learn about Ellie and what life is like for her living with CP.
What I like about Focused, Braced, and Roll With It is that we learn more about what it is like for a person with those medical conditions. By learning more about the issues, we become more accepting and tolerant.
I hope you have a great week.
Audrey
Tuesday, January 28, 2020
Tuesday, January 21, 2020
Washington Children's Choice books
Hello,\
You may know about the Washington Children’s Choice program. Each year the Washington Library Association School Division (WLA) sponsors an award for the favorite picture book from a total of 20 that have been nominated. Teachers, librarians, or parents read the books to the children in grades K – 3 and students choose the one they like best. The votes are sent in and we wait as patiently as we can to hear which book won.
I look over the list of nominations and choose the ones that fit my library criteria. This year I found a few I’d like to share with you.
Saving Fiona: The Story of the World’s Most Famous Baby Hippo by Thane Maynard. 2018.
Fiona was the first baby hippo to be born prematurely at the Cincinnati Zoo in January of 2017. She was the first premature hippo to be raised by humans. This is the story of how TeamFiona committed themselves to help Fiona live. Photographs on every page illustrate each step of Fiona’s progress.
The Ugly Five by Julia Donaldson. 2017.
I admit that I almost didn’t even open this book simply because of the cover and the title. But since it was a WCC nomination, I decided I needed to at least give it a half-hearted chance. I am a fan of reading author’s notes and this one got my attention. Julia Donaldson went on safari in Africa and noticed that everyone made a big fuss about trying to spot the Big Five animals – elephant, lion, buffalo, rhino, and leopard. Julia found the Ugly Five more appealing and decided to write a story about these overlooked animals. This book features the wildebeest, hyena, vulture, warthog, and the marabou stork. At the end of this book, she asks if you went on safari would you like to see the Little Five, The Shy Five, the Big Five, or the Ugly Five? I’m glad I got it from the Scholastic Book Fair. I think you’ll like it, too.
Inky’s Amazing Escape : How a Very Smart Octopus Found His Way Home by Sy Montgomery. 2018.
If you take a look in your library, you very likely have books by Sy Montgomery. He is quite a prolific writer and usually writes about science and nature. This is a true story about an octopus caught in a lobster trap in the Pacific Ocean near New Zealand. The lobsterman took him to the National Aquarium of New Zealand. Inky enjoyed his home in the aquarium, but got curious and was able to squeeze out of his tank and through the pipes in the floor which led back to the Pacific Ocean. I just read this last week to my students and we loved it.
Can I Be Your Dog? By Troy Cummings. 2018.
Arfy is a homeless dog who lives in a cardboard box in an alley. He wants a home and writes a letter to the people who live on the street. The whole story is written in letters back and forth from Arfy to each house asking if he can be their dog. If you are teaching a letter writing unit, this would be a great book to supplement the unit. After the story ends, there is information on how you can help homeless animals.
More next week.
Audrey
You may know about the Washington Children’s Choice program. Each year the Washington Library Association School Division (WLA) sponsors an award for the favorite picture book from a total of 20 that have been nominated. Teachers, librarians, or parents read the books to the children in grades K – 3 and students choose the one they like best. The votes are sent in and we wait as patiently as we can to hear which book won.
I look over the list of nominations and choose the ones that fit my library criteria. This year I found a few I’d like to share with you.
Saving Fiona: The Story of the World’s Most Famous Baby Hippo by Thane Maynard. 2018.
Fiona was the first baby hippo to be born prematurely at the Cincinnati Zoo in January of 2017. She was the first premature hippo to be raised by humans. This is the story of how TeamFiona committed themselves to help Fiona live. Photographs on every page illustrate each step of Fiona’s progress.
The Ugly Five by Julia Donaldson. 2017.
I admit that I almost didn’t even open this book simply because of the cover and the title. But since it was a WCC nomination, I decided I needed to at least give it a half-hearted chance. I am a fan of reading author’s notes and this one got my attention. Julia Donaldson went on safari in Africa and noticed that everyone made a big fuss about trying to spot the Big Five animals – elephant, lion, buffalo, rhino, and leopard. Julia found the Ugly Five more appealing and decided to write a story about these overlooked animals. This book features the wildebeest, hyena, vulture, warthog, and the marabou stork. At the end of this book, she asks if you went on safari would you like to see the Little Five, The Shy Five, the Big Five, or the Ugly Five? I’m glad I got it from the Scholastic Book Fair. I think you’ll like it, too.
Inky’s Amazing Escape : How a Very Smart Octopus Found His Way Home by Sy Montgomery. 2018.
If you take a look in your library, you very likely have books by Sy Montgomery. He is quite a prolific writer and usually writes about science and nature. This is a true story about an octopus caught in a lobster trap in the Pacific Ocean near New Zealand. The lobsterman took him to the National Aquarium of New Zealand. Inky enjoyed his home in the aquarium, but got curious and was able to squeeze out of his tank and through the pipes in the floor which led back to the Pacific Ocean. I just read this last week to my students and we loved it.
Can I Be Your Dog? By Troy Cummings. 2018.
Arfy is a homeless dog who lives in a cardboard box in an alley. He wants a home and writes a letter to the people who live on the street. The whole story is written in letters back and forth from Arfy to each house asking if he can be their dog. If you are teaching a letter writing unit, this would be a great book to supplement the unit. After the story ends, there is information on how you can help homeless animals.
More next week.
Audrey
Monday, January 13, 2020
Parent Shelf
Hello, Friends,
I have one idea for you today. You may have some books sin your library that are a little too old for your students, but very suitable for parents. Consider setting up a shelf for parents to check out. We have one and here is how it started.
We are fortunate to have a part time counsellor who had a few books for parents to use. She asked if we would be able to process them and set up a special place for parents to check them out. She would refer parents to the library as needed. We agreed that we could work with her on this and actually bought a few of the books she felt were important for our school community. After that, parents have donated books that were also great additions to the Parent Shelf. We have promoted this in our weekly school newsletter.
The spine label has a capital ‘P’ above the Dewey number to indicate it is shelved in a special place, but they could also be shelved later on the regular shelves if we decided to make that change.
Our shelf looks like this currently.
We don’t have a lot of books, but as they come through, we add to our collection.
If you want to set up something similar, but don’t have the funds to do so, check with your church community. It may be that parents who have raised their children may donate books for your project.
Have a great week,
Audrey
Tuesday, January 7, 2020
New Books
Hello and Happy New Year!
Today I have four new books and I do mean new. They all have a copyright date of 2019. They are all books for older students. I have found that sometimes it is a bit more difficult to find books for older students that they might like.
There is a nice variety of genres represented here. I really don’t like to assign gender to books, but these are great ‘boy’ books.
Secret Soldiers by Kelly Hutton. 2019. 306 pp.
I love the tag line on this book. “Four Boys. One Deadly Mission.” Just that line got my attention. This book is about the young British boys who served in the first World War as tunnellers underground. These underage boys wanted to fight and help the war effort and lied about their ages in order to do so. Secret Soldiers follows the story of Thomas, a thirteen-year-old coal miner who enlists in order to find his older brother who is missing in action. He and three other boys are assigned to help dig tunnels beneath the battlefield. The author’s note at the end tells more about the Tunnellers’ Memorial and books that she used for some of her information.
Fighting for the Forest by P. O’Connell Pearson. 2019. 171 pp.
I admit it. I am a visual learner and the covers of books attracts me first. This cover did not. But I have learned to try to look past the cover and when I saw the center medallion and saw “Civilian Conservation Corp”, I knew that this might be a keeper. This is the story of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Civilian Conservation Corps or CCC program. The Civilian Conservation Corps was established during the Great Depression. This government agency helped save the United States from economic collapse and environmental disaster by building parks, reclaiming forests, planting around three billion trees, and restoring millions of acres of land between 1933 and 1942.
This book is like reading a documentary. Photographs and sidebar information help us to understand the time period and what people endured during the Great Depression.
The Poison Eaters by Gail Jarrow. 2019. 134 pp.
Come on! Eating poison?! What a pull to check out a book! In looking closer, we see this is about danger and fraud in our food and drugs. Still interesting. The cover illustration is perfect to grab attention, too. A human skull and the crossbones are a fork and knife.
I was unaware that until about a hundred years ago, chemicals used in embalming corpses were routinely added to foods by unregulated and unethical companies. One example tells of borax and boric acid sprinkled on meet and broken eggs to stop bacteria growth and covered up the smell of decay. Dr. Harvey Washington Wiley campaigned to protect consumers from harmful foods and drugs. The title of the book comes from the volunteers who helped test food additives and were dubbed ‘poison eaters’. Thanks to Dr. Wiley, we have much safer foods, drugs, and cosmetics.
Disaster Strikes! By Jeffrey Kluger. 2019. 208 pp.
Another interesting tag line here. “The most dangerous space missions of all time.” Over Christmas break, my husband and I watched a 13 part documentary of the space missions. We both grew up in Florida during the beginning of the space program and my husband’s father did some work at Cape Canaveral, so it is really interesting to us.
Since the title has the word “disaster” in it, you can guess that this tells about the perils of the space race. We learn of minor problems and the tragedies of the men and women who have participated in the space program from the author of Apollo 13.
I hope you have a great week.
Audrey
Today I have four new books and I do mean new. They all have a copyright date of 2019. They are all books for older students. I have found that sometimes it is a bit more difficult to find books for older students that they might like.
There is a nice variety of genres represented here. I really don’t like to assign gender to books, but these are great ‘boy’ books.
Secret Soldiers by Kelly Hutton. 2019. 306 pp.
I love the tag line on this book. “Four Boys. One Deadly Mission.” Just that line got my attention. This book is about the young British boys who served in the first World War as tunnellers underground. These underage boys wanted to fight and help the war effort and lied about their ages in order to do so. Secret Soldiers follows the story of Thomas, a thirteen-year-old coal miner who enlists in order to find his older brother who is missing in action. He and three other boys are assigned to help dig tunnels beneath the battlefield. The author’s note at the end tells more about the Tunnellers’ Memorial and books that she used for some of her information.
Fighting for the Forest by P. O’Connell Pearson. 2019. 171 pp.
I admit it. I am a visual learner and the covers of books attracts me first. This cover did not. But I have learned to try to look past the cover and when I saw the center medallion and saw “Civilian Conservation Corp”, I knew that this might be a keeper. This is the story of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Civilian Conservation Corps or CCC program. The Civilian Conservation Corps was established during the Great Depression. This government agency helped save the United States from economic collapse and environmental disaster by building parks, reclaiming forests, planting around three billion trees, and restoring millions of acres of land between 1933 and 1942.
This book is like reading a documentary. Photographs and sidebar information help us to understand the time period and what people endured during the Great Depression.
The Poison Eaters by Gail Jarrow. 2019. 134 pp.
Come on! Eating poison?! What a pull to check out a book! In looking closer, we see this is about danger and fraud in our food and drugs. Still interesting. The cover illustration is perfect to grab attention, too. A human skull and the crossbones are a fork and knife.
I was unaware that until about a hundred years ago, chemicals used in embalming corpses were routinely added to foods by unregulated and unethical companies. One example tells of borax and boric acid sprinkled on meet and broken eggs to stop bacteria growth and covered up the smell of decay. Dr. Harvey Washington Wiley campaigned to protect consumers from harmful foods and drugs. The title of the book comes from the volunteers who helped test food additives and were dubbed ‘poison eaters’. Thanks to Dr. Wiley, we have much safer foods, drugs, and cosmetics.
Disaster Strikes! By Jeffrey Kluger. 2019. 208 pp.
Another interesting tag line here. “The most dangerous space missions of all time.” Over Christmas break, my husband and I watched a 13 part documentary of the space missions. We both grew up in Florida during the beginning of the space program and my husband’s father did some work at Cape Canaveral, so it is really interesting to us.
Since the title has the word “disaster” in it, you can guess that this tells about the perils of the space race. We learn of minor problems and the tragedies of the men and women who have participated in the space program from the author of Apollo 13.
I hope you have a great week.
Audrey
Tuesday, December 3, 2019
Christmas Book ideas
Hello,
I have some Christmas books that are somewhat new to me and I thought I’d share them with you.
Miracle in a Shoebox by Franklin Graham. 1995. (I bought a used copy.)
Our school usually participates in the Operation Christmas Child program by Samaritan’s Purse and a year or so ago, I happened upon a book about the program. The story opens with a young boy who sees a TV commercial about this program and wants to participate and send a shoebox to a child. He gets his family and his Sunday School class involved, too. The story continues with the boxes going to a family that has suffered from the effects of war and the joy that the boxes bring. This book really helps demonstrate how the shoebox program works and how much they mean to the children who really have nothing.
The Christmas Tugboat: How the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Came to New York City by George Matteson and Adele Ursone. 2012.
The little girl in this story goes with her father who is a tugboat captain in the New York Harbor. Not only does he get to bring the annual Christmas tree to New York, but we also learn a little about the job of a tugboat captain. There is further information at the back of the book, too. After reading this book, go online to look at the current Rockefeller Center Christmas tree.
If you have not gotten enough about the Rockefeller Christmas Tree, here is another story for you.
The Carpenter’s Gift: A Christmas Tale about the Rockefeller Center Tree by David Rubel. 2011.
Henry and his father cut down some trees on their property to sell in Manhattan during the depression. They sell most of their trees and give the last one to some carpenters and construction workers who were kind to them. The tree is decorated. Henry picks up a pinecone that fell from the tree and put it in his pocket. When he got home, he plants the pinecone. The construction workers were so pleased with the gift of the tree that they came out to Henry’s home (a shack) and helped his father build a new home. Meanwhile the tree grows, Henry ages, and one day someone comes and wants Henry’s tree for the Rockefeller Christmas tree. Henry decided to return the joy he has had in his tree all the years and help bring joy to others. In this book we learn a little about the Rockefeller tree plus a little about Habitat for Humanity.
Any of these books would be appropriate for students in all grades.
Have a great week,
Audrey
I have some Christmas books that are somewhat new to me and I thought I’d share them with you.
Miracle in a Shoebox by Franklin Graham. 1995. (I bought a used copy.)
Our school usually participates in the Operation Christmas Child program by Samaritan’s Purse and a year or so ago, I happened upon a book about the program. The story opens with a young boy who sees a TV commercial about this program and wants to participate and send a shoebox to a child. He gets his family and his Sunday School class involved, too. The story continues with the boxes going to a family that has suffered from the effects of war and the joy that the boxes bring. This book really helps demonstrate how the shoebox program works and how much they mean to the children who really have nothing.
The Christmas Tugboat: How the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Came to New York City by George Matteson and Adele Ursone. 2012.
The little girl in this story goes with her father who is a tugboat captain in the New York Harbor. Not only does he get to bring the annual Christmas tree to New York, but we also learn a little about the job of a tugboat captain. There is further information at the back of the book, too. After reading this book, go online to look at the current Rockefeller Center Christmas tree.
If you have not gotten enough about the Rockefeller Christmas Tree, here is another story for you.
The Carpenter’s Gift: A Christmas Tale about the Rockefeller Center Tree by David Rubel. 2011.
Henry and his father cut down some trees on their property to sell in Manhattan during the depression. They sell most of their trees and give the last one to some carpenters and construction workers who were kind to them. The tree is decorated. Henry picks up a pinecone that fell from the tree and put it in his pocket. When he got home, he plants the pinecone. The construction workers were so pleased with the gift of the tree that they came out to Henry’s home (a shack) and helped his father build a new home. Meanwhile the tree grows, Henry ages, and one day someone comes and wants Henry’s tree for the Rockefeller Christmas tree. Henry decided to return the joy he has had in his tree all the years and help bring joy to others. In this book we learn a little about the Rockefeller tree plus a little about Habitat for Humanity.
Any of these books would be appropriate for students in all grades.
Have a great week,
Audrey
Monday, November 18, 2019
Native American books
Hello,
I must apologize for one thing from last week. I mentioned getting 20% off from Amazon and one of you questioned how I do that. After thinking a short time, I realized that I have Amazon Prime which give me free shipping, not a discount. The local bookstore did give me 20% off, so that must be where I got the idea in my head. I am sorry for any confusion.
This week I want to give you some information I recently received from one of the professors at WWU. She teaches Children’s Literature and found a website from their textbook on Native American literature. It is a blog by Debbie Reese, a Nambe Pueblo Indian and children’s literature specialist. Here’s the link for you. http://americanindiansinchildrensliterature.blogspot.com
I read a number of her blog posts and realized that my picture of Native Americans was very likely not a correct picture and has been colored by what I have seen about Indians in the literature I have read over the years. I have a hard time getting rid of my Thanksgiving books that stereotype Native Americans in feathers, headdresses, skimpy skin clothing, and war paint. On the other hand, I don’t want to be insensitive to the feelings of Native Americans who are insulted by being stereotyped or being called savages.
I went through my library and pulled off a few of the books that Ms. Reese found objectionable and during the next week or so, will continue to check the books I currently use for this holiday. I also ordered a number of the appropriate books on Reese’s lists.
I’m interested in your thoughts on this topic.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving vacation.
Audrey
I must apologize for one thing from last week. I mentioned getting 20% off from Amazon and one of you questioned how I do that. After thinking a short time, I realized that I have Amazon Prime which give me free shipping, not a discount. The local bookstore did give me 20% off, so that must be where I got the idea in my head. I am sorry for any confusion.
This week I want to give you some information I recently received from one of the professors at WWU. She teaches Children’s Literature and found a website from their textbook on Native American literature. It is a blog by Debbie Reese, a Nambe Pueblo Indian and children’s literature specialist. Here’s the link for you. http://americanindiansinchildrensliterature.blogspot.com
I read a number of her blog posts and realized that my picture of Native Americans was very likely not a correct picture and has been colored by what I have seen about Indians in the literature I have read over the years. I have a hard time getting rid of my Thanksgiving books that stereotype Native Americans in feathers, headdresses, skimpy skin clothing, and war paint. On the other hand, I don’t want to be insensitive to the feelings of Native Americans who are insulted by being stereotyped or being called savages.
I went through my library and pulled off a few of the books that Ms. Reese found objectionable and during the next week or so, will continue to check the books I currently use for this holiday. I also ordered a number of the appropriate books on Reese’s lists.
I’m interested in your thoughts on this topic.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving vacation.
Audrey
Friday, November 15, 2019
Wish Lists
Hello,
It is nearing the holidays and people are thinking about giving to others. This may be a great time to set up a Wish List for your classroom, classroom library, or school library. I have an Amazon Wish List with books and DVDs I want for the library. If you have a list that parents and church members can access, you are likely to receive things that you really need.
On my Amazon Wish List, I add books that students or teachers request that are not immediate needs, and once or twice a year I place an order. I know exactly what to order since the item is on my list and I have not forgotten anything. I have also printed out my list and taken it to our local bookstore where they offered me the same 20% discount that I could get from Amazon. They placed my order and called me a week or two later when all my books were in.
I was presenting library information to the Children’s Literature class from Walla Walla University yesterday and the professor had a great idea. She thought that setting out a small tree with bare branches and paper ornaments or shapes hanging from it with items you want would be a great year-round ‘wish list’. It could be any kind of tree or a pretend Dr. Seuss-like tree, or whatever works for you. Parents and visitors can see it and take off the paper with the name of the item they will purchase for you. I was at a school that used this idea at conference time. We taped large yellow stars with items on each to our classroom doors. The teacher next to my classroom laughed and put ‘teacher desk’ on one of her stars. One of her parents saw that and gave her a desk. His office was remodeling and she got a great desk. You just never know. I wished I had dreamed larger after finding that out.
Have a great weekend.
Audrey
It is nearing the holidays and people are thinking about giving to others. This may be a great time to set up a Wish List for your classroom, classroom library, or school library. I have an Amazon Wish List with books and DVDs I want for the library. If you have a list that parents and church members can access, you are likely to receive things that you really need.
On my Amazon Wish List, I add books that students or teachers request that are not immediate needs, and once or twice a year I place an order. I know exactly what to order since the item is on my list and I have not forgotten anything. I have also printed out my list and taken it to our local bookstore where they offered me the same 20% discount that I could get from Amazon. They placed my order and called me a week or two later when all my books were in.
I was presenting library information to the Children’s Literature class from Walla Walla University yesterday and the professor had a great idea. She thought that setting out a small tree with bare branches and paper ornaments or shapes hanging from it with items you want would be a great year-round ‘wish list’. It could be any kind of tree or a pretend Dr. Seuss-like tree, or whatever works for you. Parents and visitors can see it and take off the paper with the name of the item they will purchase for you. I was at a school that used this idea at conference time. We taped large yellow stars with items on each to our classroom doors. The teacher next to my classroom laughed and put ‘teacher desk’ on one of her stars. One of her parents saw that and gave her a desk. His office was remodeling and she got a great desk. You just never know. I wished I had dreamed larger after finding that out.
Have a great weekend.
Audrey
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