Title: Little Gold Star A Spanish American Cinderella Tale
Author: Robert D. San Souci
Illustrator: Sergio Martinez
Publisher & Publication Date: Harper Collins Publishers, 2000
Genre: Multicultural, traditional literature, picture book
Grade Level: 2-5
Summary: This story starts by Teresa losing her mother and her father wanting to re-marry. He re-marries to a mean woman who has two daughters. They all treat Teresa badly. There is a fiesta being held in honor of the patron saint of the town and Teresa is not allowed to attend. At night Miguel opens his house to the people of the community and looks for the girl with the gold star on her head. Teresa was given the gold start by the Blessed Mary for her kind heart. She is pushed out of the house by her step-mother, so then Miguel starts to look for her. He goes to her house and her step-mother locks her in a small room. The cat ends up telling Miguel she is there and he finds her. He then requests her hand in marriage and her step-mother gives her three tasks that seem impossible to do before she will be allowed to marry Miguel. She is helped by the Blessed Mary and is successful at all of the tasks. They were then married and lived happily ever after.
Response: I thought this was a gorgeous book. The images were amazing. They were produced using watercolors. Most of the illustrations are dark, even the cover of the book. The only bright images are the last two pages of illustrations. They are also the happiest of all the pages in the story. I noticed a difference in the version of Cinderella that I have been brought up hearing and this Cinderella. This has different cultural markers in it, names, religious aspects, and some of the words and expressions used. This might be a difficult book to use in the classroom because it does involve religion. It talks about Blessed Mary. That would be my only concern about using this book in my classroom.
Teaching Ideas: Have your students write their own Cinderella story! Read several different variations of Cinderella and let the children explore concepts from the different tales. Once many versions have been read, allow students to research different cultures and start creating their own version of Cinderella. They will create a picture book of their Cinderella story so tell them to be as creative as possible!
Monday, April 7, 2008
Rosa
Title: Rosa (Caldecott Honor Book, Coretta Scott King Award)
Author: Nikki Giovanni
Illustrator: Bryan Collier
Publisher & Publication Date: Scholastic Inc., 2005
Genre: Biography, picture book
Grade Level: 2-4
Summary: This picture book biography is about Rosa Parks and the stand she took on the bus in Alabama. She was asked to move from the neutral section of the bus for a white person and she decided she was tired of doing everything for white people so she said she would not move. They had her arrested and the women of the Women's Political Council held a meeting to talk about what happened and what they should do. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was asked to come to speak with them and he did. They boycotted the buses until they were given permission to sit where ever they wanted.
Response: I thought this was a wonderful biography picture book. The text was simple and easy to read. The illustrations were amazing. The images were produced using watercolor and collage. The illustrator said he used yellow and dark hue to create the feeling of heat through his illustrations, because the heat was the main thing he noticed when he visited Montgomery, Alabama. They were almost full double-page spreads, but the text was set in a column to the side of the illustration. I was inspired by this book and I think anyone who reads it would be also. I felt the emotions of the text and images and was angry when Rosa was angry. I really enjoyed reading and learning from this book. It may seem like a simple picture book, but it is so much more!
Teaching Ideas: When I was in fifth grade my class used the whole black history month to focus on several different prominent African Americans. We had to research important African Americans in the United States and find books about them. Then we had to write a paper about their life and the things they are famous for doing. It was called a "Who Am I?" paper. We then had to dress up like the person and read our paper to the other upper elementary classes and they would try to guess who we were. I was the only student to memorize my two page paper and I was awarded extra credit. That is an option that applies from teacher to teacher. This would be a great idea for upper elementary classrooms. Rosa is a well known historical figure and this book would be a great resource for starting the unit plan.
Author: Nikki Giovanni
Illustrator: Bryan Collier
Publisher & Publication Date: Scholastic Inc., 2005
Genre: Biography, picture book
Grade Level: 2-4
Summary: This picture book biography is about Rosa Parks and the stand she took on the bus in Alabama. She was asked to move from the neutral section of the bus for a white person and she decided she was tired of doing everything for white people so she said she would not move. They had her arrested and the women of the Women's Political Council held a meeting to talk about what happened and what they should do. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was asked to come to speak with them and he did. They boycotted the buses until they were given permission to sit where ever they wanted.
Response: I thought this was a wonderful biography picture book. The text was simple and easy to read. The illustrations were amazing. The images were produced using watercolor and collage. The illustrator said he used yellow and dark hue to create the feeling of heat through his illustrations, because the heat was the main thing he noticed when he visited Montgomery, Alabama. They were almost full double-page spreads, but the text was set in a column to the side of the illustration. I was inspired by this book and I think anyone who reads it would be also. I felt the emotions of the text and images and was angry when Rosa was angry. I really enjoyed reading and learning from this book. It may seem like a simple picture book, but it is so much more!
Teaching Ideas: When I was in fifth grade my class used the whole black history month to focus on several different prominent African Americans. We had to research important African Americans in the United States and find books about them. Then we had to write a paper about their life and the things they are famous for doing. It was called a "Who Am I?" paper. We then had to dress up like the person and read our paper to the other upper elementary classes and they would try to guess who we were. I was the only student to memorize my two page paper and I was awarded extra credit. That is an option that applies from teacher to teacher. This would be a great idea for upper elementary classrooms. Rosa is a well known historical figure and this book would be a great resource for starting the unit plan.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Martin's BIG Words
Title: MARTIN'S BIG WORDS The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Author: Doreen Rappaport
Illustrator: Bryan Collier
Publisher & Publication Date: Scholastic Inc., 2001
Genre: Biography, picture book
Grade Level: 2-6
Summary: This picture book is about the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his nonviolent push for equality. He grew up in the segregated south and did not like the things that went on around him. When he was older he used nonviolent methods to obtain peace in the world around him. It talked about how he went to Alabama when Rosa Parks refused to move on the bus. It also talked about other nonviolent demonstrations he participated in while he was alive. At the end it tells how he was assassinated while speaking in Memphis, Tennessee.
Response: I thought this was a good informational book about the life of Dr. King Jr. I knew a little about the things he did, but this book helped further my knowledge of him. It made me want to go out and fight for something important in a nonviolent way as he did. I liked how it tied the story of Rosa Parks into his life story. The front cover is really interesting because it is a picture of Dr. King smiling. I thought it was the back cover at first but it is the front. I think it is moving the way the book is set up. It starts with him as a little boy talking about how he didn't like the things (segregation) were going on around him. Most of the illustrations are double-page spreads but most of the pages would have the illustration and then separate the text from the picture. The illustrations were produced from watercolor and cut paper collage. They were really moving images.
Teaching Ideas: This is an idea for upper elementary age students. Read the picture book to your students and then play a recording of Dr. King's "I have a dream" speech. Talk about the importance of his speech and how it impacted the lives of others. Then distribute the "I have a dream too!" worksheet so that your students can write their own "I have a dream" speech.
(I got this idea from http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/02/lp248-04.shtml)
Author: Doreen Rappaport
Illustrator: Bryan Collier
Publisher & Publication Date: Scholastic Inc., 2001
Genre: Biography, picture book
Grade Level: 2-6
Summary: This picture book is about the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his nonviolent push for equality. He grew up in the segregated south and did not like the things that went on around him. When he was older he used nonviolent methods to obtain peace in the world around him. It talked about how he went to Alabama when Rosa Parks refused to move on the bus. It also talked about other nonviolent demonstrations he participated in while he was alive. At the end it tells how he was assassinated while speaking in Memphis, Tennessee.
Response: I thought this was a good informational book about the life of Dr. King Jr. I knew a little about the things he did, but this book helped further my knowledge of him. It made me want to go out and fight for something important in a nonviolent way as he did. I liked how it tied the story of Rosa Parks into his life story. The front cover is really interesting because it is a picture of Dr. King smiling. I thought it was the back cover at first but it is the front. I think it is moving the way the book is set up. It starts with him as a little boy talking about how he didn't like the things (segregation) were going on around him. Most of the illustrations are double-page spreads but most of the pages would have the illustration and then separate the text from the picture. The illustrations were produced from watercolor and cut paper collage. They were really moving images.
Teaching Ideas: This is an idea for upper elementary age students. Read the picture book to your students and then play a recording of Dr. King's "I have a dream" speech. Talk about the importance of his speech and how it impacted the lives of others. Then distribute the "I have a dream too!" worksheet so that your students can write their own "I have a dream" speech.
(I got this idea from http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/02/lp248-04.shtml)
Nonfiction texts
I think that nonfiction texts are great resources for children. Some children might not even realize that they are reading something that is teaching them a great deal. I think that is wonderful. It is always good to have children thinking no matter what they are reading or doing. Informational texts provide excellent knowledge for growing minds. The simple picture books that are informational are great to introduce new or even re-teach knowledge of things. Some people might think of nonfiction texts as being boring, but I find them to be extremely interesting.
Bio Poem
Dr. Martin Luther
Ambitious, Peaceful, Loving, Courageous
Husband of Coretta Scott
Lover of freedom, peace, and equality
Who feels oppressed, separated, and unequal
Who finds happiness in bringing people of all races together in a peaceful and loving world
Who needs others to understand the power of LOVE
Who gives his life fighting for equality
Who fears violence, segregation, and
Who would like to see equality for ALL
Who enjoys standing up for is right
Who likes to wear a courageous face when speaking for civil rights
Resident of Atlanta, Georgia
King, Jr.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Cinderella Study
I read Little Gold Star a Spanish American tale and Vasilisa the Beautiful a Russian tale.
I learned about Baba Yaga from the Russian culture. She was the iconic witch of the Slavic folk tales. In Vasilisa the Beautiful Baba makes Vasilisa her slave and threatens to eat her if she does not complete all the tasks she is assigned. With the help of Vasilisa's blessed doll she is able to survive being Baba's slave and then is sent away because Baba doesn't want blessed things in her house.
I noticed the symbols of the Spanish culture used in Little Gold Star. The religious aspect of Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus, the names of the characters, and the use of donkey ears (something I relate to the Spanish culture).
I thought the use of the I poems was a good idea for this assignment. It made you have to research and understand some of the concepts the story talked about and it also made you make connections and pull differences from the two stories. You had to compare and contrast the stories using a poem instead of a regular vinn diagram. It was a neat way to make me think about the two Cinderella stories.
I knew there were other versions of many fairy tales, but I had no idea there were that many verations of Cinderella. There is so much an author can do with the simple story of a girl and her step-family. I was amazed at the two varations I read and I would like to read other varations later on when I can take time to compare and contrast all the versions I have read.
I learned about Baba Yaga from the Russian culture. She was the iconic witch of the Slavic folk tales. In Vasilisa the Beautiful Baba makes Vasilisa her slave and threatens to eat her if she does not complete all the tasks she is assigned. With the help of Vasilisa's blessed doll she is able to survive being Baba's slave and then is sent away because Baba doesn't want blessed things in her house.
I noticed the symbols of the Spanish culture used in Little Gold Star. The religious aspect of Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus, the names of the characters, and the use of donkey ears (something I relate to the Spanish culture).
I thought the use of the I poems was a good idea for this assignment. It made you have to research and understand some of the concepts the story talked about and it also made you make connections and pull differences from the two stories. You had to compare and contrast the stories using a poem instead of a regular vinn diagram. It was a neat way to make me think about the two Cinderella stories.
I knew there were other versions of many fairy tales, but I had no idea there were that many verations of Cinderella. There is so much an author can do with the simple story of a girl and her step-family. I was amazed at the two varations I read and I would like to read other varations later on when I can take time to compare and contrast all the versions I have read.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Letters From Rifka
Title: Letters From Rifka
Author: Karen Hesse
Publisher & Publication Date: Henry Holt & Company, 1992
Genre: Historical fiction, Multicultural, novel
Grade Level: 4-6
Summary: Rifka is a young, Jewish girl that does not look like other Jews. She has blond hair and blue eyes. This allows her to help her family escape the harsh Russian treatment of the Jews. Her father, mother, two brothers and her hide on a train. She is used as the deploy so they can escape successfully. She already has two brothers in America, which is where they are trying to go. They go through many horrific and humiliating situations. She is even separated from her family on the way. She has to stay with a "foster" family until she is treated for ringworm. Once she is better she is sent to America and is told that she is not going to be allowed to join her family because of her condition. Her condition that they speak of is the fact that she doesn't have any hair. They think she will not be able to marry and have a life because no man will find her attractive enough. She pleads her case and stays at the hospital to try to grow hair. Finally, she has her interview with the doctor. Her family comes in support and hopes that she will be able to join them. She is given the stamp of approval to live in America and is able to join her family. The whole story she is telling of her journey to her cousin, Tovah.
Response: This book made me laugh, cry, hate America for the way they treat people, then love America because of how good it is to people. I love reading books that are in letter or journal form because I think they are much easier to read and comprehend. Karen Hesse does a wonderful job with this style of writing. The linking of cultures was something that really stood out for me from the book. I knew about the difficult life the Jewish people had while in the country they were trying to flee, but I never knew it was so bad in other countries or at the access point to come to America. I read the author's note before I started the book so I knew Rifka made it to America, but it still made me mad the way she was treated before they let her join her family. This was such a touching book. I loved every word and would definitely read it again!
Teaching Ideas: This would be a wonderful book to use for mapping different countries. This would show location and distance between several countries. Start off using the countries named in the book and then after the students have read the book have them label the countries around the ones from the story. Labeling will allow them to become familiar with the places that Rifka is talking about throughout the story. This is a good way to incorporate social studies and the lesson on locating different countries around the world in relation to the United States.
Author: Karen Hesse
Publisher & Publication Date: Henry Holt & Company, 1992
Genre: Historical fiction, Multicultural, novel
Grade Level: 4-6
Summary: Rifka is a young, Jewish girl that does not look like other Jews. She has blond hair and blue eyes. This allows her to help her family escape the harsh Russian treatment of the Jews. Her father, mother, two brothers and her hide on a train. She is used as the deploy so they can escape successfully. She already has two brothers in America, which is where they are trying to go. They go through many horrific and humiliating situations. She is even separated from her family on the way. She has to stay with a "foster" family until she is treated for ringworm. Once she is better she is sent to America and is told that she is not going to be allowed to join her family because of her condition. Her condition that they speak of is the fact that she doesn't have any hair. They think she will not be able to marry and have a life because no man will find her attractive enough. She pleads her case and stays at the hospital to try to grow hair. Finally, she has her interview with the doctor. Her family comes in support and hopes that she will be able to join them. She is given the stamp of approval to live in America and is able to join her family. The whole story she is telling of her journey to her cousin, Tovah.
Response: This book made me laugh, cry, hate America for the way they treat people, then love America because of how good it is to people. I love reading books that are in letter or journal form because I think they are much easier to read and comprehend. Karen Hesse does a wonderful job with this style of writing. The linking of cultures was something that really stood out for me from the book. I knew about the difficult life the Jewish people had while in the country they were trying to flee, but I never knew it was so bad in other countries or at the access point to come to America. I read the author's note before I started the book so I knew Rifka made it to America, but it still made me mad the way she was treated before they let her join her family. This was such a touching book. I loved every word and would definitely read it again!
Teaching Ideas: This would be a wonderful book to use for mapping different countries. This would show location and distance between several countries. Start off using the countries named in the book and then after the students have read the book have them label the countries around the ones from the story. Labeling will allow them to become familiar with the places that Rifka is talking about throughout the story. This is a good way to incorporate social studies and the lesson on locating different countries around the world in relation to the United States.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Dragon of the Red Dawn
Title: Dragon of the Red Dawn (Magic Tree House #37 A Merlin Mission)
Author: Mary Pope Osborne
Illustrator: Sal Murdocca
Publisher & Publication Date: Random House Inc., 2007
Genre: Fantasy, Multicultural, Historical fiction
Grade Level: 3-5
Summary: In this magical story Jack and Annie are sent on a mission to help save the life of Merlin, the magician who has given the a magic wand to help them if they need it. They are sent to Japan to find one of the secrets of happiness. They being their journey by landing in the Imperial Garden. They are then faced with Samurai asking for passports and then meet Basho. Basho is a famous poet in Japan and is known by everyone. He provides safety for Jack and Annie because they do not have passports to travel alone. He lets the children stay with him. They wake in the middle of the night with the sounding of bells in the distance. They learn that the town is on fire and they use their magic to save the city. They go back to their home and realize they didn't find the secret of happiness they were looking for, but then think about the things that made them happy while they were in Japan. They realize that just taking time and listening and noticing nature is a secret to true happiness. They learned that from Basho.
Response: I loved this story. I had really enjoyed the other Magic Tree House book that I read in class, but I really liked this one. It was about finding happiness and I love to be happy so it was great! It made me happy while I was reading it. I was a little scared at times because I didn't know the dragon was a good thing. I thought something bad was going to happen and the story wasn't going to have a happy ending. It was an easy read and once again I escaped into my own fantasy world. I also learned things from the story. I did not know that much of the Japanese culture, but now I know a little bit more. There were a few illustrations in the book and they were eye-catching. They looked like they were produced with a pencil. They were basic looking, but had a great amount of detail. They were mainly single-page spread illustrations, but there was one amazing double-page spread. Overall, this was a wonderful story. I would like to read more of the Magic Tree House series.
Teaching Ideas: The Magic Tree House series is an excellent series to use for connections to history. The passport idea from the books is a great idea to use in the classroom. This book would be a good one to use with a unit on Japan. It is an adventure so the students will love finding out new things about the culture and seeing what is going to happen next in the story. You could read the book over a couple of days or a week then let the students access the passport website to update their passports. This would also be a good book to use for the term of happiness. You could ask what happiness means to the students, and then have them journal about the things that make them happy. Then they could make drawings of the one thing that makes them happier than any other and share with the class. Another idea would be to use the Haiku form of poetry. The book tells what a haiku is so you could tell your students and have them make their own haiku. A great way to integrate poetry, Japanese culture and happiness all with one book!
Author: Mary Pope Osborne
Illustrator: Sal Murdocca
Publisher & Publication Date: Random House Inc., 2007
Genre: Fantasy, Multicultural, Historical fiction
Grade Level: 3-5
Summary: In this magical story Jack and Annie are sent on a mission to help save the life of Merlin, the magician who has given the a magic wand to help them if they need it. They are sent to Japan to find one of the secrets of happiness. They being their journey by landing in the Imperial Garden. They are then faced with Samurai asking for passports and then meet Basho. Basho is a famous poet in Japan and is known by everyone. He provides safety for Jack and Annie because they do not have passports to travel alone. He lets the children stay with him. They wake in the middle of the night with the sounding of bells in the distance. They learn that the town is on fire and they use their magic to save the city. They go back to their home and realize they didn't find the secret of happiness they were looking for, but then think about the things that made them happy while they were in Japan. They realize that just taking time and listening and noticing nature is a secret to true happiness. They learned that from Basho.
Response: I loved this story. I had really enjoyed the other Magic Tree House book that I read in class, but I really liked this one. It was about finding happiness and I love to be happy so it was great! It made me happy while I was reading it. I was a little scared at times because I didn't know the dragon was a good thing. I thought something bad was going to happen and the story wasn't going to have a happy ending. It was an easy read and once again I escaped into my own fantasy world. I also learned things from the story. I did not know that much of the Japanese culture, but now I know a little bit more. There were a few illustrations in the book and they were eye-catching. They looked like they were produced with a pencil. They were basic looking, but had a great amount of detail. They were mainly single-page spread illustrations, but there was one amazing double-page spread. Overall, this was a wonderful story. I would like to read more of the Magic Tree House series.
Teaching Ideas: The Magic Tree House series is an excellent series to use for connections to history. The passport idea from the books is a great idea to use in the classroom. This book would be a good one to use with a unit on Japan. It is an adventure so the students will love finding out new things about the culture and seeing what is going to happen next in the story. You could read the book over a couple of days or a week then let the students access the passport website to update their passports. This would also be a good book to use for the term of happiness. You could ask what happiness means to the students, and then have them journal about the things that make them happy. Then they could make drawings of the one thing that makes them happier than any other and share with the class. Another idea would be to use the Haiku form of poetry. The book tells what a haiku is so you could tell your students and have them make their own haiku. A great way to integrate poetry, Japanese culture and happiness all with one book!
Monday, March 17, 2008
Venn Diagram
My Venn diagram is of two versions of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. I read Dusty Locks and the Three Bears and Goldilocks and the Three Hares. They were both wonderful versions of the original that I read when I was younger. I used a cut-out of a rabbit and a bear and then colored them and placed them on colored paper. I think this would be a neat activity to use in the classroom.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Lon Po Po
Title: Lon Po Po (Caldecott Award Winner)
Author: Ed Young
Illustrator: Ed Young
Publisher & Publication Date: Philomel Books, 1989
Genre: Multicultural, Picture book, Traditional Literature
Grade Level: 2-4
Summary: This story is about a wolf that comes to the house that three young children are staying at while their mother went to visit their grandmother. He comes to the door and acts like he is their grandmother, and gets the children to let him in the house. One of the children figures out that he is wolf and gets the other two to help her get rid of him. They climb up a tree and get the wolf to climb up it too, but every time they start to pull him up they drop the basket he is sitting in. They end up killing to wolf and their mother comes home and they tell her all about their adventure with the wolf.
Response: I thought this was a great version of Little Red Riding Hood. It was different, but still good. The illustrations were a little scary, so this might not be the best book to red before bedtime to a small child. The illustrations were boxed-in and I think pastels were used to produce the images. Many of the image were dark, but some were a bit brighter. I felt many emotions while reading this story; scared, worried, concerned, and happy. Overall this was a wonderful little story. It relates to the Little Red Riding Hood I read when I was little, because it is a Red Riding Hood story.
Teaching Ideas: I would use the book to talk about different versions of well-known children's stories. You could talk about the other Red Riding Hood, then read it and talk about it some more. After that you could read this story and talk about it and how it is related to the other story. Then to finish up the activity have your students create their own Red Riding Hood story, as a whole class. Write the story they come up with on the board or on a big piece of paper. Then discuss how all three stories are different from each other.
Author: Ed Young
Illustrator: Ed Young
Publisher & Publication Date: Philomel Books, 1989
Genre: Multicultural, Picture book, Traditional Literature
Grade Level: 2-4
Summary: This story is about a wolf that comes to the house that three young children are staying at while their mother went to visit their grandmother. He comes to the door and acts like he is their grandmother, and gets the children to let him in the house. One of the children figures out that he is wolf and gets the other two to help her get rid of him. They climb up a tree and get the wolf to climb up it too, but every time they start to pull him up they drop the basket he is sitting in. They end up killing to wolf and their mother comes home and they tell her all about their adventure with the wolf.
Response: I thought this was a great version of Little Red Riding Hood. It was different, but still good. The illustrations were a little scary, so this might not be the best book to red before bedtime to a small child. The illustrations were boxed-in and I think pastels were used to produce the images. Many of the image were dark, but some were a bit brighter. I felt many emotions while reading this story; scared, worried, concerned, and happy. Overall this was a wonderful little story. It relates to the Little Red Riding Hood I read when I was little, because it is a Red Riding Hood story.
Teaching Ideas: I would use the book to talk about different versions of well-known children's stories. You could talk about the other Red Riding Hood, then read it and talk about it some more. After that you could read this story and talk about it and how it is related to the other story. Then to finish up the activity have your students create their own Red Riding Hood story, as a whole class. Write the story they come up with on the board or on a big piece of paper. Then discuss how all three stories are different from each other.
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