Ellis Island: A True Book May 12, 2008

Title: Ellis Island (A True Book)

Author: Elaine Landau

Published: 2008

Schu’s Rating: 4 J out of 4

Ellis Island consumes my thoughts. This may very well be one of the best informational text for children.  It is part of the Scholastic  “True Book” series. It opens by informing the reader that everything he/she is about to read is true except for…1. Millions of people had their names changed on Ellis Island because inspectors could not understand them. 2. An immigrant could get sent back across the ocean for having an eye infection. Both questions hook the reader and develop a reading purpose. (Which question is false?)

There is a simple explanation of the steerage section, the area at the ship’s bottom. As many as 2,000 people crowded together. There is a comprehensive chart on page 19 that shares the following information:

*A passenger and his belongings had to fit in a narrow bunk.

*Mattresses were filled with straw or seaweed?

*Floors were often covered in dirt and vomit.

*As many as 300 passengers shared two bathrooms.

*Passengers ate small portions of meat, bread, and potatoes, scooped from large kettles.

*Passengers played cards, sang, danced, told stories, and practiced English.

My students will enjoy the “Getting Around the Island” graphic on pages 24-25. It explains each section of the island. (The island is broken into Island 1, Island 2, and Island 3.) The following sections are discussed:

1.       Baggage and Dormitory Building: Immigrants left their heavy baggage in this building. They proceeded to dormitory bunk beds. The beds held immigrants who didn’t have permission to leave the island yet.

2.       Cafeteria: Here immigrants had their best meal since leaving home. Some tasted ice cream for the first time.

3.       Ellis Island Hospital: Sick immigrants were cared for at the hospital. Three hundred and fifty-three babies were born here. (Ellis Island: Ghosts of Freedom takes you inside the abandonded hospital buildings.http://mrschu81.wordpress.com/2007/11/05/ellis-island/)

4.       Stairs of Separation: Doctors watched immigrants as they climbed the staircase. They looked of signs of illness, such as sweating or shortness of breath. People with these signs had to have a more detailed checkup. Approximately 2% of immigrants were not admitted because of sickness.

5.       Registry Room: Inspectors interviewed millions of immigrants in this room. Immigrants waited, often for hours, for their turn.

6.       The Kissing Post: J This was the last stop for new Americans. Here, they had reunions with relatives already living in America. There were tons of tears and kisses!

 

 

I hit the Motherload :) April 27, 2008

I stumbled upon Kevin Jarret’s blog while looking for something totally unrelated to technology and Web 2.0. He is a K-4 Technology Facilitator in New Jersey. In the past three days, he’s posted the following sites that my students and teachers will love. Thank you, Kevin!

Storyline Online is funded by a Superpages.com grant. Members of the Screen Actors Guild read children’s books aloud. Students can watch the streaming books for free. Each book comes with a guide that includes activities. http://www.storylineonline.net/

Move over Webkinz, Minyanland has landed! According to the Minyanland website, MinyanLand is a virtual community designed to engage kids and families in games and interaction that is entertaining and educational.” The focus is financial education and economics so it’s very real-world. There are jobs, banks, investments, businesses, organizations - all waiting for kids to interact with and explore.

http://minyanland.kaboose.com/launchpad/?pg=%2F

Comics in the Classroom April 23, 2008

I am a huge fan of Time for Kids. Most students look forward to reading it and the articles serve as wonderful discussion starters. This week’s issue focuses on Comics in the Classroom. Graphic novels and comics are becoming increasingly popular in elementary classrooms and it made me smile when I read the following article! Yay for comics and graphic novels! 

Picture this: You are sitting in class and pow! your teacher turns into Superman. Thwak! Garfield is chasing Mickey Mouse around your desk. What are comic book characters doing in class?

In some places, they are part of the lesson. Schools around the country are using comic books as a way to teach reading, writing and other subjects.

Critics say comics are too simple for school. But many teachers give comics a good grade for getting their students to read.

A Colorful New Way to Learn

Third-grade teachers in Maryland are using classic Disney comics. The department of education created lesson plans for the comics.

Maryland tested the program in eight classrooms. “The teachers love it. It captures students’ interest,” says Nancy Grasmick, superintendent of Maryland schools. She adds that they believe the comics have helped improve reading skills.

Another program, the Comic Book Project, is being used in 850 schools in the U.S. Students write and draw their own comics. The project was started by Michael Bitz, of Teachers College at Columbia University, in New York City. Bitz wanted to give kids the chance to “write their own stories and create their own characters,” he told TFK, “while improving their reading and writing skills.”

Katie Van Els, 11, from Hawaii, says the project has made her a better writer. “You need to use the right words and punctuation.”

Teachers also give the program high marks. Bitz has heard stories of children who didn’t like to read. “Suddenly, they’re the star writers in their class,” he says.

Retrieved from http://www.timeforkids.com/TFK/teachers/ns/article/0,27972,1732354,00.html

Exploding Ants! April 21, 2008

Exploding Ants!, originally uploaded by Litandmore.

Title: Exploding Ants: amazing facts about how animals adapt

Author: Joanne Settel

Publication date: 1999

Dewey: 591.5 (I am obsessed with Dewey numbers…yikes)

Reading level: 6.3 ( I use it with 3^rd graders and it is just fine.)

Schu’s rating: Four J out of four

A dear friend introduced me to this book last year. She found out that my students were interested in exploding ants and ran out to her public library to check it out. My students loved it and talked about it for weeks! It tells about the ways that various animals adapt to survive. For example, worms live in dogs’ noses… some ticks take in so much blood, they swell nearly four times their  normal size…ants explode to defend the colony…birds eat throw-up!  Appetizing,eh? The perfect addition to your library or classroom collection!

 

Lookybook.com April 20, 2008

Lookybook.com allows you to ”discover, share and talk about books.” You can view entire picture books online. Books can be reviewed, rated, and purchased.

This into that April 18, 2008

This into That creates book shelves on any theme. There are a lot of crazy looking ones organized into various sections. Check it out at http://www.thisintothat.com/secondeditions.html.

 

Mama Robot April 16, 2008

                              

Title Mama Robot

Author: Davide Cali

Reading level: 2.0

Schu’s rating: 2 J out of four

A latchkey kid feels sad that he never sees his mother after school. He envisions a robotic mother who makes all of his favorite foods and never tells him to do chores or brush his teeth. The robot ends up looking like a huge vacuum, and the boy soon realizes that a robot does not give soft hugs or smell very good. In the end, he decides on a robot dog! J  

 

I read these titles today… March 31, 2008

 

Title: Curious You on Your Way

Author: Illustrated by H.A. Ray

Published: 4/08

Read on:  3/31/08

Notes: Perfect for the graduate

Schu’s rating: Four out of four

Publisher’s description:

Curious You: On Your Way! is a perfect sendoff for children of all ages entering a new phase of their lives. Follow along with George in classic scenes from many of his original books as he provides words of congratulations and encouragement to anyone who has accomplished much but still has many things to see, to do, and to dream! The ideal gift book for a graduation, a promotion, or any occasion, Curious You: On Your Way! helps to celebrate all of the milestones of our lives. This inspirational story reminds readers young and old who are moving up or moving on that they have a special someone cheering for them as far as their curiosity can take them!

                                                                                       

Title: The Rubber -Legged Ducky

Author: John G. Keller

ISBN: 978-0152052898

Published: 4/08

Read on: 3/31/08

Notes: Perfect for an elementary unit on fitting in and self-esteem.

Schu’s rating: Three out of four

Publisher’s Description:

Five is different than all the other ducklings. He doesn’t quack, and he never waddles. Instead, he bounces. And bing-boings! Being different isn’t always easy for Five, but boy oh boy, having an extra spring and s-t-r-e-t-c-h in his step sure comes in handy when an unwelcome (and hungry) visitor comes creeping.

         

Fur and feathers fly and the underduckling prevails in this hilarious barnyard yarn.    

Title: Rabbit and Squirrel: A Tale of War and Peas

Author: Kara LaReau

ISBN: 978-0152063078

Published: 5/08

Read on: 3/31/08

Notes: The perfect elementary school book to show the importance of friendship and getting along with others.

Schu’s rating: Four out of four

Publisher’s description:

Rabbit loves her garden. Squirrel loves his. But then their delicious vegetables begin disappearing. And they have only each other to blame . . . or do they? Well, Rabbit and Squirrel don’t pause to consider any other possibilities. And so, for them, there’s only one option: WAR! From the team that hatched the award-winning Ugly Fish, here is a hilarious cautionary tale about how jumping to conclusions can turn minor misunderstandings into major meltdowns.

Yay for Independent Bookstores March 26, 2008

A good friend and I often remind each other how great it would be to open an independent bookstore, particularly when the day isn’t going so well. Everyone deserves to experience how I feel at Anderson’s Bookshop, my favorite independent bookstore. LISNEWS directed me to this wonderful article about the revenge of independent bookstores in Canada.

A good independent bookstore is a place you enter looking for the latest Dwell magazine, begin flipping through Types of Canadian Women and of Women Who Are or Have Been Connected with Canada, Vol. 2, by K. I. Press (2006), strike up a conversation with a PhD student, and leave with Robertson Davies.

Such bookstores closed in droves in Toronto in the past decade, killed by the Chapters/Indigo juggernaut and Amazon.ca.

But something odd is happening in Toronto: New little bookstores are popping up like crocuses in the spring earth. Type, the eclectic bookshop that two Toronto scholars opened two years ago on Queen Street West across from Trinity-Bellwoods Park, last November opened a second store in a nook in Forest Hill Village. And two weeks ago, Book City, the 32-year-old chain of small bookstores, gave Type some competition of its own, opening a location on Queen West. Type and Book City share the same streetcar stop, Niagara Street.

Ben McNally opened a boutique bookstore on Bay Street last year, and next year Winnipeg-based McNally Robinson, Canada’s largest independent bookstore (No relation to Ben) is opening a location in Don Mills.

What gives? It appears that, Internet age be damned, a growing number of people like to read actual books, and seek them out in little shops with literate staff.

“I like that it’s small, not Indigo,” says Kyle Wyatt, 26, whom I meet browsing in Type in Forest Hill Village.

The whole strip here has a rustic feel; next door at the Forest Hill Barber Shop, a man is leaning back in an old steel chair while the barber lathers him up for a shave.

“It’s easier to find eclectic little titles,” Mr. Wyatt continues. “It’s so anonymous to just sit at home and surf the Internet and buy books. I come from a town of 1,800 people [Albion, Neb.] that was two hours from the nearest bookstore, so for me bookstores are really fantastic.”

He leaves with Katherine Barber’s Six Words You Never Knew Had Something to Do With Pigs, $16.95. Down on Queen West, Samara Walbohm, who founded Type with fellow University of Toronto Canlit PhD scholar Joanne Saul, is none too thrilled by the arrival of Book City two blocks away.

“It’s very early days,” she says of the new competition. “We think that we helped to build this community as a book-loving neighbourhood. We were definitely surprised that they decided to open shop so close. They saw the nice book community we created, that’s why they moved in.”

For Book City, the decision was simple: The firm last month closed its shop at Yonge and Charles streets, which had mostly lunchtime and weekday business, says staffer Jim Nicholson, and he and the books moved to this location, where locals have time to browse, especially weekends.

The new Book City has an improvised air: Unopened boxes of books fill part of the front, and signs reading “gift,” “art & photography” and “design & architecture” are written in felt pen on pieces of paper taped to the shelves.

“We really tried to bang out the store as quickly as possible,” says Ian Donker, 33, son of Book City founder Frans Donker. Irene Luxbacher, a children’s book author (The Jumbo Book of Art) is leafing through a kids’ book. She lives next to Type and is a regular there, she says.

“It’s nice to see that there’s another independent, smaller bookstore,” she says. She used to shop a lot at the original Book City, on Bloor Street in the Annex. How do Type and Book City compare?

“Type has a very nice selection of books. It’s edited well,” she says. “Book City, the hours are late, you can eavesdrop on some interesting conversations.”

Mr. Donker says the family isn’t in the book business to get rich. “You can make a living at it,” he says. “There’s better businesses to be in, like banking. We like our size at six stores.”

He says the rising Canadian dollar has forced publishers to charge closer to the U.S. price for books, cutting into margins. He doesn’t want to kill Type, he adds.
“It will be a great neighbourhood for book junkies,” he says.

In its basement, Type runs an after-school literacy program, Word/Play, Thursdays for 18 kids in Grades 4, 5 and 6 at three local schools. Volunteers feed the kids a snack and help them with reading. It would be nice to see Book City foster community spirit as well, rather than just sell hardcovers at 10% off.

http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/toronto/archive/2008/03/24/revenge-of-the-independent-book-stores.aspx

Wireman March 26, 2008

Wireman Comics produces high interest materials geared toward  emergent and reluctant readers. Author Sue Stauffacher came up with Wireman after listening to teachers and tutors complain that there were not enough materials for lower readers that included complex plots but low vocabulary. Wireman does not market itself as an educational tool; however, the comics include Dolch words and some teachers’ packets are avaliable. Check out the website to hear the reactions of students and teachers. http://www.wiremancomics.com/

Amulet: The Stonekeeper March 19, 2008

 

I am not a reader of comics and graphic novels but students gravitate to them. Amulet is the most sought after book in my classroom. One student started it in the morning, read during any free moment, and read it all through recess and lunch. He handed it to me in the hall on the way back from lunch and said, “When are you going to get the next one?” The student currently reading it brought it out to recess, which is where the above picture was taken.  These are the moments librarians dream about! I plan on finishing it next week so, for now, here is the publisher’s description.

Title: Amulet, Book One: The Stonekeeper

Author: Kazu Kibuishi

Format: Graphic novel

After the tragic death of their father, Emily and Navin move with their mother to the home of her deceased great-grandfather, but the strange house proves to be dangerous. Before long, a sinister creature lures the kids’ mom through a door in the basement. Em and Navin, desperate not to lose her, follow her into an underground world inhabited by demons, robots, and talking animals.

Eventually, they enlist the help of a small mechanical rabbit named Miskit. Together with Miskit, they face the most terrifying monster of all, and Em finally has the chance to save someone she loves.

Wimpy to the big screen? March 11, 2008

Fox 2000 has announced plans to bring Jeff Kinney’s bestselling “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” book series to the big screen. The film adaptation is planned as a live-action family feature with hope of it could spawn a franchise for the studio.

Fox 2000 picked up the rights to the five Kinney novels - which combine handwriting and animation to tell the story of Greg Heffley. He is a normal middle school student who chronicles his daily struggles with bullies, family members and the problems with just being a kid.

The film is being produced by former Buena Vista president Nina Jacobson with Carla Hacken overseeing the production’s development. The studio is still looking for a director and screenwriter for the film, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Kinney’s first two “Wimpy Kid” books (”Diary of a Wimpy Kid” and February’s “Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules,”) went to No. 1 on the New York Times best-seller list. Kinney’s third book, “Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw,” is scheduled to be released later in 2008. He has two more books planned for the series.

Found here

Dog Sense March 9, 2008

 

The folowing Dog Sense review is written by Frederick Muller, a middle school librarian in New Jersey. He reads all of the books before he puts them on the shelf and reviews them at http://mullerinthemiddle.blogspot.com/.

Collard, Sneed B. God sense. Peachtree, 2005 [1-56145-351-x]
Guy is 13 when he and his mom move to Montana to move in with his Grandfather. Talk about culture shock.. Montana to California. Luke, a loner in school befriends Guy who eventually accepts his friendship. Meanwhile, the school bully, Brad is picking on them both, especially Luke. While Guy’s grandfather is a little forgetful and is hard to get along with sometimes, he has lived in this town his whole life and he reads Guy well… giving him some advice. The who battle between Guy and Brad finally comes down to a Frisbee contest where there dog catches the Frisbee. Can Guy win the contest? Will Brad stop bullying them? This 176 page book is a tale about a school bully, friendship, grandparents, and single parent families, all wrapped in one.. it is also a good read.

Three Little Words March 9, 2008

I have not read Ashley Rhodes-Courter’s Three Little Words: A Memoir  but it is third in line. Here is the publisher’s description and a Youtube interview follows.

 ”Sunshine, you’re my baby and I’m your only mother. You must mind the one taking care of you, but she’s not your mama.” Ashley Rhodes-Courter spent nine years of her life in fourteen different foster homes, living by those words. As her mother spirals out of control, Ashley is left clinging to an unpredictable, dissolving relationship, all the while getting pulled deeper and deeper into the foster care system.

Painful memories of being taken away from her home quickly become consumed by real-life horrors, where Ashley is juggled between caseworkers, shuffled from school to school, and forced to endure manipulative,humiliating treatment from a very abusive foster family. In this inspiring, unforgettable memoir, Ashley finds the courage to succeed - and in doing so, discovers the power of her own voice.