Category Archives: Uncategorized

A Ticket Around the World

Title – A Ticket Around the World

Author(s) – Natalia Diaz, Melissa Owens

Illustrator/Photographer – Kim Smith

Publisher and Year – Owlkids, March 17, 2015

Number of pages – 32 pages

Tags/Themes – Rylie Loux, Culture, Diversity, Nonfiction, 2-3, 4-5

Genre – Nonfiction

Descriptive Annotation: This book is about an unnamed boy who visits friends in 13 countries, offering readers a world tour via his first-person narration as he samples foods, views landmarks, and attends cultural events, among other activities. Each country has a small map so that the readers are able to imagine they are traveling too.

Classroom Application and Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: This is a perfect resource for engaging students to get to know and understand the background and different cultures of the countries. This informational picture book brings engaging nonfiction content to younger readers by showing them how other children just like them live around the world. Students can summarize cultural attributes, like popular food, national animal, official flower and official language all while reading this story. Also students will be able to compare and contrast between the different countries and their own cultural attributes. Many students may not even know about all the different countries, so this is a way to get them involved and learning about cultural differences. “I love to travel. The more places I visit, the more friends I make and the more things I discover.” This can be applied to each students background for students to get to know each other individually.

 

A Bad Case of Stripes

Title – A Bad Case of Stripes

Author(s) – David Shannon

Illustrator/Photographer – David Shannon

Publisher and Year – Blue Sky Press, 1998

Number of pages – 30 pages

Tags/Themes – Rylie Loux, Fiction, Friendship, Emotion, K-1, 2-3

Genre – Fiction

Descriptive Annotation: “Camilla Cream loved lima beans. But she never ate them. All of her friends hated lima beans, and she wanted to fit in. Camilla was always worried about what other people thought of her.” This book shows the story of the girl Camilla Cream who loved lima beans, but was too worried of what other people thought to eat them. She was scared of her first day of school, which led to her diagnosis of a bad case of stripes. This quote starts out the story and shows readers they shouldn’t worry about what others think. Many specialists and media networks were intrigued by this outrageous case, and Camilla’s case only got worse as her stripes turned to stars, roots, and even walls. Finally, the cure for Camilla was simply lima beans as she embraced her individuality.

Classroom Application: This is a perfect resource for engaging students to prompt discussion about why we worry about what others think, bullying, and learning to respect and accept differences in others. This discussion could also lead to what makes a student worry. By doing this, the students are able to think about what they worry about when they go back to school. This demonstrates that each student has their own fears and worries and that no one should ever bully another student because of this. Another ideology that is presented is learning what respectful behavior is and learning how to apply that in the classroom.

 

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: Individuality is the main idea that is expressed in this story. This story can deliver the message of individuality in many types of cultures. Each person has their own background and culture and the goal of this story is to share that each student should be able to express themselves without worrying what others think. There is some cultural diversity present in the illustrations in this book with many different races represented.

Each Kindness

Title – Each Kindness

Author(s) – Jacqueline Woodson

Illustrator/Photographer – E.B. Lewis

Publisher and Year – The Penguin Group 2012

Number of pages – 28 pages

Tags/Themes – Rylie Loux, Emotion, K-1, Friendship

Genre – Realistic Fiction

Descriptive Annotation: This story is about a girl named Chloe who chooses not to welcome the new girl, Maya, into her friend group at school. Maya is different because she wears hand-me-downs and plays with old-fashioned toys. Every time Maya tries to join Chloe and her friends, they reject her. One day, after Chloe’s teacher teaches the class a lesson about the importance of kindness, and how the smallest acts can change the world. This causes Chloe to decide that she is going to start including Maya. However, Maya moved away so Chloe lost her opportunity to start a new friendship.

Classroom Application: This is a perfect resource for engaging students in an anti-bullying lesson. By bringing this book to the classroom, it can help express the issue of bullying into the class and how to prevent it and help kids who are experiencing it. The ideology that is presented in this story is the importance of kindness and acceptance of others. Having students understand that each and everything they do, makes a difference on someone else. “This is what kindness does, Ms. Albert said. Each little thing we do goes out, like a ripple, into the world.” To incorporate this into a lesson, it would include sticking up for your friends, acting as a leader, and analyzing how students being left out might feel. This story also describes a situation where what if you’re cruel to someone and never get the chance to make it right?

 

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: Throughout this story we see bullying and socioeconomic status are two different aspects of diversity that were displayed. The setting of this story takes place in a classroom. This gives the students the ability to see themselves in this situation. This story gives students a way to learn the importance of accepting one another and never excluding another student on purpose.

Coming on Home Soon

Title – Coming on Home Soon

Author(s) – Jacqueline Woodson

Illustrator/Photographer – E.B. Lewis

Publisher and Year – G.P. Putnam’s Sons 2004

Number of pages – 28 pages

Tags/Themes – Rylie Loux, Fiction, Emotion, Diversity, 2-3, Historical Fiction,

Genre – Historical Fiction

Descriptive Annotation: Ada Ruth’s mama must go away to Chicago to work, leaving Ada Ruth and her Grandma behind. Ada Ruth misses her mama more and more but Grandma reassures her that Mama with be coming on home soon and to just keep writing to her. It’s war time, and women are needed to fill the men’s jobs. Grandma and Ada Ruth find strength in each other, and a stray kitten even arrives one day to keep them company. Ada describes the feeling of the cat when she states “It’s a slip of a thing. But its softness is big. And warm as ten quilts on my lap. Warm as Mama’s hands” but nothing can fill the hole Mama left.

Classroom Application: This is a perfect resource for engaging students on a Social Studies lesson. This story gives an understanding of what life was like during WWII. This also gives students an insight of how communication worked in the past. Ada Ruth had no way to contact her mama other than writing to her. This is an important concept of this lesson because in today’s world it is so different due to technology. Also this story consists of three powerful female roles. This is valuable for students to understand the importance of all gender roles.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: In this powerful story Jacqueline Woodson has captured the fear, the worry and the loneliness of a young girl left behind when her mother must leave home for a job, a not uncommon occurrence in WWII. This story gives the students a glimpse of one of the ways that the war affected the lives of African American woman and children on the home front. This connects with great cultural and racial diversity.

 

A Boy and A Jaguar

Title – A Boy and A Jaguar

Author(s) – Alan Rabinowitz

Illustrator/Photographer – Ca’Tia Chien

Publisher and Year – Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, 2014

Number of pages – 30 pages

Tags/Themes – Rylie Loux, Animals, 3-4, Emotion

Genre – Biography, Non-Fiction

Descriptive Annotation: This story is a biography about the authors journey through life, from boyhood to adulthood, feeling restrained by his disability (speech impediment). He says he can only speak fluently when he is singing or when he talks to animals. He promised his pets and a jaguar at the zoo that he’d grow up to “be their voice and keep them from harm.” In college, he received assistance to help him speak fluently, formalized his study of animals, and eventually developed a specialization in wild cats and jaguars. A question and answer at the end of the book provides readers with additional context for his work, conservation efforts, and stuttering.

Classroom Application: This is a perfect resource for engaging students in a science lesson involving animals and wildlife. An example of how to connect this story in the classroom would be to have students study a specific endangered animal through writing, drawing, or speaking. Then have them talk about what is being done around the world to protect various endangered species and what we they can do to help. This story also supports students to listen and look closely, to wonder about the power of their own voices, and to consider issues of conservation and discrimination from a new perspective. This connects to the classroom to show that everyone is different in their own special way and there should never be bullying or inequity demonstrated in the classroom.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: This book represents the students knowledge of endangerment of animals. This is the scientific lesson that is being presented in the story. The other major moral of this story is the understanding of disabilities and their effects on people’s lifestyles. This story is presented in a way that is relatable for students and also connects to their emotions. “Animals can’t get the words out, just as I can’t. So people ignore or misunderstand or hurt them.” This quote relates to both of the main ideologies that are presented. The author uses the animals to help the young boy describe what he is going through. This may help students see how disabilities are not looked at as a negative, but they are able to connect it to something else. This also presents an idea of equity in the classroom. This story shows students that they are all different, but special in their own way.

 

A Wrinkle in Time

Title – A Wrinkle in Time

Author(s) – Madeleine L’Engle

Illustrator/Photographer – Ellen Raskin

Publisher and Year – January 1, 1962 by Yearling Books

Number of pages – 240 pages

Tags/Themes – Rylie Loux, Adventure, Award Book, Emotion, Family, Math, Science Fiction, 6-8

Genre – Science Fiction

Descriptive Annotation: A Wrinkle in Time is the story of the Murry children and their search for their missing scientist father. This book begins by relating Meg’s personal struggles at school and her inability to fit in with the crowd. Following the discovery of a new form of space travel as well as Meg’s father’s disappearance, she, her brother, and her friend must join three magical beings. They will accompany Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Who, and Mrs. Which to travel across the universe to rescue their father from a terrible evil. As the children move through space and time they are met with several challenges that require them to prove their worth. Meg learns that she must overcome her fears and self-serving immaturity to succeed. Overall, this is a book about the battle between good and evil and the ultimate celebration of love.

Classroom Application/Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: This is a perfect resource for showing students the importance of being independent and happy with oneself. This is a wonderful book for kids who have ever felt “different” or lonely. It celebrates the power of individuality, bravery, and love. This story explains the desire for conformity and appreciation in their own uniqueness as an individual. Also, this story could be used with science by discussing what makes A Wrinkle in Time a work of science fiction. A classroom application could be having students bring in unusual news stories about UFO sightings, psychic powers, or anything else related. Also, the characters are able to time travel through tesseracts. While our world today may not have the same advances in real life, they are still able to learn about tesseracts in a math resource. This story is classroom relatable while being a story students will enjoy.

Quotes –  

“I hate being an oddball,” Meg said. “It’s hard on Sandy and Dennys, too. I don’t know if they’re really like everybody else, or if they’re just able to pretend they are. I try to pretend, but it isn’t any help.”

“Maybe if Father were here he could help you, but I don’t think I can do anything till you’ve managed to plow through some more time. Then things will be easier for you. But that isn’t much help right now, is it?

 

Rechenka’s Eggs

Title: Rechenka’s Eggs

Author: Patricia Polacco

Illustrator: Patricia Polacco

Publisher and Year: Philomel Books, 1988

Number of pages: 30

Tags/Themes: Animals, Picture Book, Emotion, Russian, K-1, 2-3, Diversity, Fine Arts, Olivia Ruff

Genre: Fiction

Descriptive Annotation: The book is about an old woman who paints eggs for a festival every year. During the winter she feeds the caribou, and once a wounded goose found her house. She tended to the goose, and once it broke all of the eggs she had painted for the upcoming festivals. The goose then began to lay painted eggs. She laid enough eggs for the woman to take to the festival, and then the goose had to leave with her flock. She left behind an egg with a baby goose in it that would stay with the woman forever.

Classroom Application: This book does not tell any lesson, but it uses aspects from a country that does not get much air time in children’s literature: Russia. The book uses Russian words, but it does not require any previous knowledge to understand it. This book could be used in an art class to introduce the Russian tradition of painting eggs. It could be used in a different classroom to show aspects of Russian culture in the classroom.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: There are a few Russian words in the book, and it puts an emphasis on the culture. The illustrations use aspects of Russian traditions such as the designs on the eggs or the patterns of the fabric used throughout the novel. The buildings are real buildings in Russia as well. Quotations: “Babushka lived alone in a dacha, a little house in the country, but she was known far and wide for the fine eggs that she lovingly painted” (1) and “She crossed the bridge over the Moskva River and soon she could see the onion domes of Old Moskva” (18).

The Upside Down Boy

Title: The Upside Down Boy

Author: Juan Felipe Herrera

Illustrator: Elizabeth Gomez

Publisher and Year: Children’s Book Press, 2000

Number of pages: 30

Tags/Themes: Spanish, Language, Listening, Family, Agriculture, Picture Book, Emotion, 2-3, 4-5, Diversity, Bilingual, Olivia Ruff

Genre: Memoir and Bilingual

Descriptive Annotation: This is a memoir by the author, Juan Felipe Herrera of the time when his family moved into the city and he started school. He was unsure about the ways of school, but he found comfort in music through singing. He proudly displays his talents to his family at home, and he grows in confidence with the support of the teacher and his family. The story is told in both English and Spanish.  The language used is somewhat flowery, similar to language used in poetry.

Classroom Application: This book would be good to use in an ELL or ESL classroom. It is helpful to have the second language in the book. The language used in somewhat advanced, and students who know both English and Spanish would enjoy this book more. This book is a memoir, so this could be incorporated into an English lesson on memoirs as well.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: This book is a memoir, so this would be another opportunity for students to learn about a different literary form. The language in the book is beautiful and poetic, making it different from other children’s stories. The book challenges students to think about the aspects of a change in lifestyle for Spanish speaking students as they become accustomed to schools where English is mainly spoken. Quotations: “That year we were living in the mountains by Lake Wolfer, a glassy world full of sky colors” (2) and “If I learn the English words will my voice reach the ceiling, weave through it like grape vines?” (9).

Different Abilities

Title: Different Abilities

Author: Rebecca Pettiford

Illustrator: No illustrator, several photo credits

Publisher and Year: Bullfrog Books, 2018

Number of pages: 24

Tags/Themes: Disabilities, Picture Book, K-1, Diversity, Olivia Ruff

Genre: Educational

Descriptive Annotation: This book is all about children with special needs. The images are all photographs of children with special needs. There is an index in the front and back of the book, and there is a photo glossary in the back of the book as well. There is a page with a few images of sign language. The book shows children through a positive lens. Students do not need to have very advanced word knowledge in order to read this book.

Classroom Application: This book would be great to introduce students to the idea of disabilities. The book is written in a way that shows that students with disabilities are not that much different than students without disabilities, so it would be a good book for an early level social justice unit because it puts the focus on leveling the playing field for all students, showing that they are all not that much different from one another.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: This book is a good way to challenge students to think in a more positive way about students with disabilities. They would be shown that students with special needs are not that different from them. This would not fall under any specific content area but it would be an important learning experience for students in terms of teaching for social justice. Quotations: “Tony plays the violin. He practices every day. Someday he may be famous!” (8) and “Luke can talk without speaking. How? He uses his hands” (12-13).

Carlos and the Cornfield

Title: Carlos and the Cornfield

Author: Jan Romero Stevens

Illustrator: Jeanne Arnold

Publisher and Year: Northland Publishing, 1995

Number of pages: 30

Tags/Themes: Spanish, Language, Listening, Family, Agriculture, Picture Book, Emotion, 2-3, 4-5, Diversity, Bilingual, Olivia Ruff

Genre: Fiction and Bilingual

Descriptive Annotation: This book has the story written in both English and Spanish. The story is about a little boy who helps his dad plant corn. He does not listen to the instructions his father gave him, and he hastily buys a new pocket knife. After a few weeks, he notices that the corn is not growing properly in the last few rows, so he goes out and buys corn seed and replants the rows with the money from his resold pocketknife. He ends up planting the wrong type of corn and his dad gives him the pocket knife. The story uses some Spanish within the dialogue, and the people have Spanish names.

Classroom Application: This book would be good to use in an ELL or ESL classroom. It is helpful to have the second language in the book. This shows Spanish culture, and it introduces students to Spanish. The students would learn the importance of fully listening to directions as well.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: Due to the fact that the book is bilingual, it offers a unique opportunity for students to become interested in learning another language. The book uses several important cultural things such as the importance of corn. Students could become interested in corn because of this book, and a fun addition to the book is that the last page has a recipe for cornmeal pancakes. Quotations: “Mijo, my son, I have a big job for you. Now that the ground is ready, I want you to plant the seed” (6) and “Carlos could hardly believe his good fortune. With five dollars he would have enough money to buy the red pocketknife in Senor Lopez’s store” (10).