Final Reflection

I can't believe this semester is almost over (I guess I should since it is already Thanksgiving)! I have enjoyed being immersed by so many children's books. I don't always have time to sit down and read quality literature for young kids and this class gave me that chance. I also had a chance to evaluate illustrations and their connections to text--I never realized that most authors and illustrators don't work in tandem. I guess I thought they worked together bringing their stories to life. There were lots of interesting books at the library that I couldn't possibly hope to have discovered a fraction of the great picture books out there.

Having focus weeks on certain genres and types of picture books was a good chance to read outside my normal selections. I don't often read poetry anymore, so being reconnected with Shel Silverstein and other poets was fun. I was also able to revisit several of my childhood favorite authors and their newer books--James Howe and Roald Dahl in particular.

Having the blog was a great idea because being an educator is often secluded, so being able to share great books made me feel more connected to other educators. Seeing selections from other students in the class also helped expose me to new books to read! One of my favorite things about this blog was when an author thanked me for writing a nice review for her book--it was a real reminder that people actually read what you write on these things.

Hip Hop Speaks to Children: A Celebration of Poetry with a Beat edited by Nikki Giowanni

This poetry collection has a huge list of famous influential authors. Starting with Hip Hop's stars, poems by Common, Young MC, Tupac, Mos Def, Kanye West, Queen Latifah, and Lauren Hill were included. Many of these are artists our young students are familiar with--songs and poetry share so much in common.

I have long thought that using modern hip hop lyrics would be a great way to reach reluctant readers. As I am not an avid hip hop listener, I appreciate the editing Nikki Giovanni did in creating such a eclectic mix. Paired with a CD, several of the poems are read aloud by their authors, giving students another way to experience the genre.

Once readers have been lured in by the hip hop artists' work, real poetic talent can be explored by reading Maya Angelou, Langston Hughes, W.E.B. DuBois, and Martin Luther King, Jr. Some of these poems can be hard to read as they deal with difficult subjects ranging from race relations to MLK's I Have A Dream Speech.

I was pleasantly surprised how many different styles and text difficulty were included. The poems range from very short to quite long and complex. Illustrations are included with each selection and add to the book's meaning and beauty. Colorful illustrations paired with rich text, make this a very enjoyable read. This would be a great book for using as a read-aloud or paired reading. Reading the poems aloud would be fun for the kids and the natural beats of the lines would be expressed.

I have to admit I laughed out-loud when I came across Rapper's Delight by the Sugarhill Gang. Such a silly song as this would be hilarious to listen to in an elementary classroom, read by young poets.

Dirt On My Shirt by Jeff Foxworthy

I know, I know Jeff Foxworthy as a poet? I am not a redneck, but have always thought his good natured jabs were well intended and funny. I saw that he had written a book of poetry and was pleasantly surprised to find it pretty good.

I enjoyed the quick, sharp stanzas about various humerous topics close to his own childhood experiences. The watercolor pictures went along with the text wonderfully and helped increase meaning. The words used were simple, but the rhyming made them enjoyable. The light tone of these poems would be appealing to many readers, but probably best for beginning readers as the vocabulary isn't very intense.

I think my favorite poem was entitled Snakes Alive! It talks about a boy seeing a snake out in the backyard and sending his dad out to look. Dad didn't find it and the boy concluded that he hadn't looked that hard (I wouldn't either). The watercolor illustration on that page was a fun addition.

Love That Dog by Sharon Creech

I have heard the name Sharon Creech many times, but had never read an entire book by her. This was definitely a quick read--I think it took maybe 15 minutes. I think the concept is neat because it has a very stream-of-consciousness quality to it.

In my mind as I was reading, I could hear the voice a little boy who didn't want to write poetry. The various entries echo sentiments of a lot of the reactions young writers have to creating poetry. I like that this book shows how different poetry can be from what we might be familiar with. Not all poetry has to rhyme and that can be hard to get across to kids.

This book chronicles how poetry is conceived by this young boy Jack. He seems to be an ordinary boy who is asking why and talking about the love he had for his dog Sky. As he became more comfortable about his words actually being real poetry, he was able to express more and make the writing more detailed.

I think it would be great to have a favorite author come to the classroom, maybe a local poet would be more likely to be available. For kids to see the poet and interact would be a great, authentic experience they would likely remember. I can remember the writer/singer Doug Wood coming to our Earth Day celebration at school when I was in elementary school--only I was sick that day and couldn't meet him. I was heartbroken because we had sang so many of his songs and I had been so excited! Even after all of these years, I still remember the Minnesota Mosquito author visiting my school.

The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein

I have loved this poetry book for years! The story is heartwarming and really makes one think. I grew up reading lots of Shel Silverstein poetry books as his quirky style and illustrations were hilarious. The short, easy to read aloud poems made me laugh and like poetry. Unfortunately, I have forgotten about these books along the years and didn't remember how great they can be. I recently reread The Giving Tree and was quickly reminded of how poetry can touch your heart.

The story is about a boy and his tree. Much like we are with our parents, the boy asks for lots of things that the tree dutifully provides until there is nothing left. The relationship between the boy and tree is often one-sided as the boy only seems to remember his tree friend when he needed something.

I think this poem is a comment on our sometimes overzealous need to obtain more things instead of cultivating our personal relationships. As an educator, we are often lax in introducing children to poetry because of fears that it will be shunned by boys and hard to understand for all. Silverstein finds a way around this problem and gives a story complete with wit and introspection in poetry format.

The Story Goes On by Aileen Fisher

This is a beautiful and charming poetry picture book. The text was easy and fun to read. The story takes a reader through the life cyle--starting with a seed on the title page. The seed continues to leaf-bug-frog-snake-hawk-farmer-fox-crowes-sextons-and back to the soil. There is an interesting progression through this life cycle that is beautifully portrayed by the text rhymes and illustrations. The text would be easy for beginning poetry readers to read and understand. The sing-song quality would lend itself well to choral reading.

I loved the illustrations--by Mique Moriuchi, who is from Japan and lives in England. I think these living experiences molded well to create an illustrating style that is pleasing to the eye and multi-layored. There is a child-like quality to the illustrations and a lot to look at. I noticed that images were painted on newspaper and then cut out into a collage format. The colors were fresh and alive (green was the major color used). Almost every page had green as a main color except the one page totally void of green--the hunter shooting the hawk. I liked the format of text dancing around the page, often helping create the illustrations through positioning and colors (as rain drops and rays of sun).

I think kids would like reading about this content area subject in a poem format more than a simple textbook paragraph. This style of presenting the information is pleasing and informative. I would definitely use this book for a unit on life cycles--it can reach a variety of learners through the poetry, illustrations, and simple storyline.

So Far From the Bamboo Grove by Yoko Kawashima Watkins

"I competed with life and death when young. And I won." Yoko Kawashima Watkins

As a reader, it is often hard to find contrasting books about such controversial and shocking topics. I was pleasantly surprised to find that this author didn't attempt to make one race appear better than the other in the telling of her early life story.

There were so many instances where this book paralleled with Year of Impossible Goodbyes. The Kawashima family struggled like Sookan's to find food, a safe place to live, and a way to escape to the 38th Parallel. Even though their situations were completely different--the high ranking Japanese family found themselves eating out of trash cans, stealing uniforms from dead Korean soldiers, and struggling to find freedom past the 38th Parallel.

I was surprised early on in the book the way Yoko was so impulsive and unafraid to last out at those doing wrong to her--from biting a Japanese policeman attempting to steal their remaining possessions, to standing up to the horrible girls in her classroom by befriending the janitor and getting straight As on her reportcard. There is a strong sense of survival in this small girl that seems to grow as the book goes on.

I can understand her crying and fussing during their travel on the railroad and beyond because she had been badly injured (she had to stay at a hospital for awhile to recover). She was young and scared and I thought it was harsh of her mother and sister to chastise her.

"Why can't you be strong and good like your honorable sister?"

Yoko yelled, "I'm not her! She'd cry too if she'd got hit."

Ko responded, "You have done nothing but whine and fuss. This journey would be easier if you had got killed."

Whoa. That is over the line and Ko knew it--she spent the rest of her time attempting to right this wrong. How does one do that? Such a statement is so strong and hurtful it can only be undone by ceaseless acts of love. Ko was a hard worker for the two and attempted to carry the burden of providing for her family.

Even though Yoko's family was of the "Superior" race, they struggled to survive and felt no special treatment--often the opposite due to the father's role in the Japanese regime. I liked this book the best of the two and felt a connection with the characters' love for family and incessant need to be reconnected. I can't imagine going through half of what these young girls did and hope to never have to. This is a truly remarkable account of a confusing and often forgotten part of history.

Year of Impossible Goodbyes by Sook Nyul Choi

This is a very moving account of a young girl's struggle to survive during the Japanese (and later Russian) Occupation of North Korea. The main character was so mature for her age--her life depended on it. If I think back to when I was ten, I remember spending a majority of my time playing outside, reading, playing with friends and family, or watching TV. All of these activities were completely removed from the narrator's childhood (no TV anyway). If actions didn't support the Imperial Emperor's quest to defeat the White Devils, there was no use for it.

I find it hard to connect any personal experiences with that time period because in history classes we seldomly beyond WW2 in the European theatre. Being unfamiliar with the specifics about the Korean occupation and role in the war left me pretty open to learning. I can't imagine being so poorly treated and then tricked into buying rice half filled with sand as a reward for my hard work. Being an American, I sometimes forget how lucky we are in this country for our everyday freedoms--the family in this novel were stripped of all of these daily choices as a way of creating dependance and fear for the Japanese.

Even though life was hard and they were without a father or brothers, Sookan's family was very strong and determined. This family showed their strength in many small ways--from avoiding Japanese school, reading Korean, keeping the silver hair clip, and filing the glass to make jagged edges smooth. In such scary times, I don't know that I would have been able to do something against the Japanese for fear of retaliation--they seemed to know how to hit the Koreans in just the "right" place for maximum pain.

I was astonished at how patient they were--constant reminders from Aunt Tiger that "the war will be over soon. The Japanese aren't doing well" seemed to be enough to keep them going. Even after their sock girls were taken to the front lines to be spirit girls, Grandfather died, food was almost impossible to find, and their home had been ransacked by the Russians, Sookan's family remained solid in their faith for better times and eachother.

"How inviting that barbed-wire fence seemed!" I can't imagine being that excited to see something so jagged and menacing. Sookan and her brother had come so far and a new start was just past their last test of endurance--the fence could either stop them for the coming Russians or lead them to a land of new beginnings. This is a powerful mental picture and important observation from such a young, mature little girl.

Brewster the Rooster by Devin Scillian

Well, I guess I must have been on a farmyard animal kick this week at the library, because here is yet another tale about life on a farm.

The main character is a hilariously sight-impaired rooster. When hearing about a rooster that crows at the wrong time, for some reason I am reminded of one of my favorite movies: Babe. In this movie, there is a duck who is trying to be indispensible around the farm by crowing in the morning before the rooster. A huge hullabaloo insues and the mechanical rooster is victorious over the silly pig and duck.

Back to this story. Although the rhymes were quite long and sometimes hard to say in a pleasing rhythmic way, it was entertaining. I liked the ingenious twist at the end that solves this curious puzzle of a rooster crowing at all times of the day. As I was reading, I wondered why the examples given were selected, but all was made clear at the end.

I think it can be confusing to read rhythmic writing, but the illustrations were very helpful in figuring out what was happening. I liked the style of art used--maybe colored pencils? The idea of a rooster wearing bifocals is funny and kids would probably be into it. This is definitely meant for a more experienced reader as there is a lot of text on each page (especially for the style).

Barn Dance! by Pat Hutchins

I have always enjoyed being around farm animals and now I know why--they like to dance! Sometimes that's all there is to do--dance the night away.

The barn in this story is alive with the rhythms of a dancing horse, sheep, and pig. These adults dance until they can dance no more and "go to sleep in the hay where their little ones lay."

Of course there are a lot of fun rhyming coupled with expressive illustrations. Looking carefully, you can see that the little ones aren't as tired as they may seem--perhaps it is their turn to dance in the moonlight? The illustrations have an oldtime charm to them reminisant of art I've seen in books my parents had when they were young. There is a sweet illustration that shows the adult animals snuggled in the hay while the kids sneak out to dance--very sneaky!

This fun story would be great to read aloud with kids--it is fun and goofy. The idea that farm animals are dancing all night long would be amusing to many kids--they could maybe even write a sequel about the little ones and their nighttime adventures.

Thesaurus Rex by Laya Steinberg

I have said it before and I will say it again--a story conveys so much more meaning to kids than an article in a textbook! I love how this book goes about explaining synonyms (syn means same) with such a entertaining flair.

The character Thesaurus Rex is lovable and endearing for audiences young and old. The use of rhyming adds to the charm of the text. A descriptive illustration for each part also helps young readers understand some unfamiliar vocabulary.

Following Rex through his day is not only entertaining, but educational. I could see this book being a great resource for writing. The words work wonderfully with the illustrations and jump about the page--giving more action to the words. The illustrations were made by watercolor, pen and ink and crayon on thick watercolor paper by Debbie Harter.

Porcupining: A Prickly Love Story by Lisa Wheeler

I had seen this book around for awhile, but never stopped to pick up a copy to read. I was drawn to it by its illustrations--Cushion is adorable!

This is fun story about a lonely porcupine searching for a wife. I guess I never thought about porcupines as being lonely and unloved due to their quills. Out in the wild, they are ideal, but in a petting zoo--quills are not going to make people want to pet you.

This poor porcupine Cushion has a good singing voice and goes in search for his match. The little jingles he sings to potential mates were clever. I especially liked his one for wooing the pink sow--"I've been so lonesome all my life, and though you're pink and fat, I'm porcupining for a wife, so I won't mention that." I can't imagine why Cushion strikes out with the ladies...

Finding Barb (quill pun) at the end was cute as he now has found his love. I think kids would like reading this story because of the clever jingles and bright illustrations.

Max and Mo Go Apple Picking by Patricia Lakin

This would be a nice short book for a beginning reader. I liked the simple pictures and color schemes.

Max and Mo are cute little hamsters that live in a classroom. They are pretty clever as they make signs and use apples to make art. I liked that they called their human owners "the big ones." It totally makes sense because a hamster is so small and kids hands certainly are big in comparison.

I think beginning readers would enjoy the use of large text and illustrations to further understanding. The author also gives the reader instructions at the end on how to make applesauce and apple print art.

Year of Impossible Goodbyes Anticipation Guide

Look at this picture and think of the feelings that it evokes. Compare the concept of our American childhoods to that of a child in a war-torn country.

A map of the area the book takes place in. Think for 30 seconds what you know about the country of Korea. Can you find important places on a map? Think about what life was like during the Japanese occupation of Korea during 1910-1945. What kinds of things were happening?

http://http//www.lifeinkorea.com/information/history2.cfm#1910

This conflict was (and is) a very controversial topic. What is your opinion of Japanese rule in Korea? Think about if you were a Korean child living during this war--how would it effect you?

Professor Emeritus Han Seung-Jo (한승조) of Korea University wrote, "The colonial rule of Korea by Japan was actually a stroke of good fortune, and instead of hating them for it, they should be thanked. There is no reason to rebuke, denounce or make criminals of the pro-Japanese activities of 35 years of cooperation without opposition." He also said in a later interview, "At the time, if Japan hadn't taken over Chosun, Russia would have, and if that had happened the Korean people would have been scattered under Joseph Stalin's racial dispersion policy." Furthermore, he states, "I see the colonial rule by Japan as having been not a bad thing, but instead an opportunity for the strengthening of the Korean people's awareness."[79] (Wikipedia)

Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle by Brian Dennis, Mary Nethery, Kirby Larson

This book was a heartbreaker. I was on break from work, in the Barnes and Noble reading children books when I came across this one. I love dogs and the cover was so adorable that I was drawn to it. When I saw that it was about a Marine and Iraqi dog, I sat down for a truly heartwarming story.

This story got me choked up inside because it was so real. Living in Iowa, thousands of miles away from war, I don't always get the gravity of the situation in Iraq. I mean, I read the paper and watch the news, but it is so foreign to me that it just doesn't seem quite possible. I know it is a horrific war, with innocent people killed everyday and this story of an American Marine and an abused dog made me really connect more personally.

We teach tolerance and respect. We teach children to reach out to those in need, but what if you had been abused? Would you be able to reach out or respect anyone again? This brave dog saw the good in the Marine squad stationed at his fort and went out of his comfort zone to pursue what he wanted most: companionship and love. The bond between this dog and man was amazing and made me almost want to cry. Nubs at one point walks over 70 miles in the desert with nothing to find the soldier--amazing. I think this book with its real photographs of the conflict area would be a good way to show some of the audacities of war to young children. By building an understanding of what war really is, we can hopefully keep the next generation from having to actively participate in any future conflicts. Love and companionship are vital to everyone and this book illustrated it beautifully.

Alpha Oops! The Day Z Went First by Alethea Kontis

This book had a unique concept of how the alphabet could be rearranged to allow letters at the end to be closer to the beginning. I thought the idea was clever, but didn't really enjoy this book's execution. As we talked in class during our genre presentations, learning the alphabet from conventional abc books isn't always helpful. In school, letters are often selected in a seemingly random way, without concern for order. The problem could be with a secret of mine: I like to alphabetize. Yep, I like it when student papers are in abc order, signs, books, whatever. I am very orderly and organized, so letting the letters go all over the place seemed wrong.

The illustrations were digital and interesting to look at. The use of bright colors and bold designs are certainly attractive to the reader. I did think certain parts of the book were funny--one was for the letter V. "V is for ohhh--V is for violence!" was uttered by a letter as other letters struggled to be next in line.

When Randolph Turned Rotten by Charise Mericle Harper

We all have fleeting moments of jealousy and can imagine what we would like to do to those causing these feelings. This book walks through the lives of two bffs who discover what it feels like when one of them is excluded. Randolph (a beaver) and Ivy (a Canadian Goose) love hanging out and sharing everything. This all comes crashing to a skreetch when Ivy is invited on an all-girls sleepover birthday party that Randolph is of course not invited to attend. Being a beaver, I'm sure lots of trees and sticks were chewed on during this frustrating time for Randolph.

I think kids would be able to relate to this story because we have all pined for something only to have a friend receive it instead--sometimes not so graciously. The thing I liked about this story, is that Randolph does something about it, but not in a malicious way. He wanted to ruin Ivy's party, but didn't really do anything that would harm her (except maybe her arms from carrying the extras in her bag). The feeling of jealousy quickly turns into guilt and then remorse. Even though we may be really jealous of someone, if they are truly a friend, being friends should be more important than that job, husband, new house, etc. that they have instead of you.

I really liked the pictures and how the book was put together. The pictures were made from acrylic paint on illustration board (the colors and details are great). One of my favorite illustrations was when Ivy and her cousins (also Canadian Geese) play duck-duck-goose with a couple ducks, crab, and sea gull. Adding to visual interest, the format was different on each page, matching text with pictures in various ways. There were really almost two stories going on at the same time--the narration and dialogue bubbles.

Creepy-Crawly Birthday by James Howe

As I learned doing my Author Study on James Howe, he has written a lot of books! I was excited to find several more examples of his books about the characters in Bunnicula. Delighted to have found one of the Harold and Chester chapter books, I settled in for a good read. I was not disappointed.

The same crazy paranoia of Chester is alive and well, along with the easy-going nature of Harold that keeps the characters a bit grounded. Again acting as the writer, Harold tells about a special birthday for one of the Monroe boys that was disrupted by the crazy antics of their adored pets (Harold, Chester, and Howie--Bunnicula doesn't contribute to the frenzy).

This is a simple beginning picture book with lots of illustrations to supplement the text. The Monroe family is trying to have a normal birthday party, but the pets are too preoccupied with the "surprise" and wondering if another pet is on its way into their family.

Reading the story, I kept guessing what the surprise was and was unhappy about turning the page and seeing a huge snake head slithering out of the boxes. I'm not a reptile fan and it was a big snake head! The chaos these loose animals created was similar to last week's episode of Desperate Housewives where all the children went running and screaming (that was due to a monkey that had attacked a clown) and in the book due to the animals bum-rushing the kids. This was a cute story with a sweet ending and happy times again for the Monroe family.

Splish Splash by Joan Bransfield GrahamI

I was immediately drawn to this book (which is a collection of poems about water's many forms) by the cover. The illustrations were made from Adobe Illustrator 5.0 and reproduced in full color. Something about these pictures made me want to read more.

Along with the short poems about the various forms of water, there were illustrations that were integrated in meaningful ways. The one I really liked was called Crocodile Tears and the text made the shape of a crocodile in a pond. I thought it was clever and a fun surprise.

I think kids would really like to read along with this collection of poems. The illustrations work well together with the subject, thus creating a more cohesive product. This could be a great trade book to use when studying water in science (connecting seldomly read poems with content areas). Using this as a read aloud or choral reading would be fun with younger students. I think this would be fun to use as a way to introduce students to publishing poetry in unique ways.

Circle Dogs by Kevin Henkes

I was a big fan of Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse back when I was student teaching (my kiddos signed a copy of it for me as a going away gift), so I was excited to see a different style of book from Kevin Henkes. I think he is a great author who usually creates characters that give us insights into our own behaviors while also being entertaining.

This story used creative text placement to show movement and action. The format is different for almost every page. The illustrations in this story are very geometrically aware (I'm not sure that is a word). What I mean is that there are lots of purposeful circles, triangles, squares, and half circles used in the illustrations. Since the main characters are circle dogs, they inhabit a home that caters to all sorts of shapes from the recctangular doors, circular baby mouth as it cries, and square pieces of toast. The end papers also keep with the shape theme as the information is written in a circular format.

I think this would be a fun book for kids to read when they are learning about their shapes because there are lots of fun examples scattered throughout. The colors are bright and fun to find. The story is very simple and unfortunately not too exciting. There is a good smattering of rhythmic writing and word repetition that could make it fun to read aloud. I think it is really the illustrations, made from Gouache paints, that make the book special.