TBR - July 8

Here is my latest to-be-read pile after a trip to the public library:

Kids, post YOUR TBR pile as a comment, along with your initials and last year's homeroom, and you can pick from the prize box the next time I see you (and add another book to your pile).

What Ms. Moore Is Reading - Vacation Week 1

Here are some of the most recent books I've read and thought my students would like. They're all available from the public library, but any donations towards getting them into our collection are most welcome! All cover images and descriptions are from Goodreads.

Board Book

Everyone knows the sun is hot. But open the flaps in this book and you may find a chilly surprise instead! Each spread of this cleverly designed board book reveals a surprising opposite that makes for a truly original way for toddlers to learn about words and concepts. Whether it be hot or cold, clean or dirty, slow or fast, this book has you covered—at least until you open the flaps. 

My take: LOVE. Ingenious. Will add to my Grade 1 Opposites lesson

Early Reader

Giraffe is bored, as usual. He'd love a friend to share things with. So he writes a letter and sends it as far as possible across the other side of the horizon. There he finds a pen pal: Penguin. 

My take: This grew on me as it went along; by the time Giraffe and Pelican were making drawings of what they thought Penguin looked like, I was utterly charmed. Will recommend to 1st and 2nd grade teachers as jumping-off points for pen pal projects.

Charlie and Mouse, two young brothers, enjoy a day out together, attending an imaginary party and collecting rocks.

My take: Old fashioned, simple, and sweet. Lots of repetitive text for the early reader. And I love that Mouse wore a tutu to the party.

Middle Grades

Eleven-year-old Fern's rundown home borders a pristine forest, where her impoverished family hunts and forages for food. It's also her refuge from the crushing responsibility of caring for her wild younger brothers and PTSD-stricken stepfather. But when a fracking company rolls into town, Fern realizes that her special grove could be ripped away, and no one else seems to care.

My take: Don't read this if you're looking for a lighthearted story. I did like that it was an "issue" novel that wasn't overly preachy. But man, Fern's house made me feel cold and hungry.

Poetry

Out of gratitude for the poet's art form, Newbery Award winning author and poet Kwame Alexander, along with Chris Colderley and Marjory Wentworth, present original poems that pay homage to twenty famed poets who have made the authors' hearts sing and their minds wonder.

My take: Should be on college syllabi for poetry classes. Will recommend to RI Mock Newbery committee. Not all the poems worked for me (in part because I'm not a fan of some of the poets being celebrated), but the sheer amount of work that went into this achievement is evident. Favorites:

• I Like Your (celebrating e.e. cummings)
• Jazz Jive Jam (celebrating Langston Hughes)
• How Billy Collins Writes a Poem (celebrating Billy Collins)
• No Idle Days (celebrating William Carlos Williams)

Also the artwork is gorgeous.

Room 4 E Book Covers

This year, first graders learned about call numbers, which work like addresses for books. Although they're called "numbers," most only have letters ... kind of confusing. We focused on th the E (for Everyone) section.

Every picture book call number has "E" as the first line, and then the first letter of the author's last name as the second line. For example, if I wrote a book, the call number would be

E
M

What would YOUR call number be?

Students figured out theirs and created an E book they "wrote" as their final library assignment. Here are some of their book covers:

What Ms. Moore Was Reading - May 2017

Here are some of the most recent books I've read and thought my students would like. They're all available from the public library, but any donations towards getting them into our collection are most welcome! All cover images and descriptions are from Goodreads.

Graphic novels

Narwhal is a happy-go-lucky narwhal. Jelly is a no-nonsense jellyfish. The two might not have a lot in common, but they do they love waffles, parties and adventures. Join Narwhal and Jelly as they discover the whole wide ocean together.

Marin loves the sandwiches his parents make for him—every day they're different and more delicious than the last. One morning, someone dares to steal his favorite sandwich: ham-cheddar-kale. Furious, Marin begins a fevered and famished investigation to unmask the thief. The days go by, the suspects multiply, and Marin's sandwiches continue to disappear. This droll, graphic caper is a funny school mystery exploring the high stakes of low blood sugar. 

Middle-grade books

11-year-old Alex Petroski loves space and rockets, his mom, his brother, and his dog Carl Sagan—named for his hero, the real-life astronomer. All he wants is to launch his golden iPod into space the way Carl Sagan (the man, not the dog) launched his Golden Record on the Voyager spacecraft in 1977. From Colorado to New Mexico, Las Vegas to L.A., Alex records a journey on his iPod to show other lifeforms what life on earth, his earth, is like. But his destination keeps changing. And the funny, lost, remarkable people he meets along the way can only partially prepare him for the secrets he’ll uncover.

Julia is very short for her age, but by the end of the summer run of The Wizard of Oz, she'll realize how big she is inside, where it counts. She hasn't ever thought of herself as a performer, but when the wonderful director of Oz casts her as a Munchkin, she begins to see herself in a new way. As Julia becomes friendly with the poised and wise Olive - one of the adults with dwarfism who've joined the production's motley crew of Munchkins - and with her deeply artistic neighbor, Mrs. Chang, Julia's own sense of self as an artist grows. Soon, she doesn't want to fade into the background and it's a good thing, because her director has more big plans for Julia! 

Meet Jaundice and Kale Bland, two sisters who avoid excitement at any cost. Together, they patiently await the return of their parents, who left on an errand years ago and have never returned.

One day, the Bland sisters are kidnapped by an all-female band of pirates. They’re unwillingly swept into a high-seas romp that might just lead to solving the mystery of what happened to their parents. With whimsical illustrations and Roald Dahl–esque wit, The Unintentional Adventures of the Bland Sisters is the visually stunning, laugh-out-loud funny start to a new series for readers who are looking for an anything-but-bland adventure.

An achingly beautiful story in the vein of Rebecca Stead and R. J. Palacio about two foster children who want desperately to believe that they’ve found their forever home.

Flora and her brother, Julian, don’t believe they were born. They’ve lived in so many foster homes, they can’t remember where they came from. And even now that they’ve been adopted, Flora still struggles to believe in forever. So along with their new mother, Flora and Julian begin a journey to go back and discover their past—for only then can they really begin to build their future.

Room 6 Final Checkout

Room 6 had their final checkout of elementary school this week. I've known most of these kids since first grade! I gave them their library cards to keep as bookmarks. It warmed my heart to see that most of them chose to start reading their books in the final minutes of class. (We do have a few more classes together, just no more checkout, since I'll be spending the next several weeks tracking down overdues.)