Tag Archives: K-5

Ida, Always

Posted on December 5, 2018 by | Comments Off on Ida, Always

Title: Ida, Always

Author(s): Caron Levis

Illustrator/Photographer: Charles Santoso

Publisher and Year: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2016

Number of Pages: 37

Tags: Animals, Emotion, Fiction, Friendship, Picture Book, K-5, Sarah Luce

Genre: Fiction

Descriptive Annotation:

Ida, Always is based off a true story of two polar bears in the Central Park Zoo. The story introduces the reader to Ida and Gus, two polar bears who played together, ran together, and dreamed about New York City together. Ida taught Gus about the city’s heartbeat, and how it was always around them and with them. One day, Ida got sick, and the zookeeper told Gus that Ida would die soon. Gus and Ida spent all of Ida’s remaining days together, working through their feelings; some days growling, other days laughing. Eventually, Ida died, and Gus learned how to accept her being gone, while still remembering her and feeling her heart beat there with his.

Classroom Application:

This text would likely be used best with teaching children about death, loss, and grief. While heavy topics that may not necessarily come up in curriculum and standards, they could be important to discuss depending on student experiences or situations within the classroom. Many students encounter the death of a loved one or classmate at an early age, and a book like Ida, Always could be a good tool.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis:

This book is set in the Central Park Zoo in New York City. Many students may have never been to a big city, so the illustrations and some of the text may give students an opportunity to experience the culture of a big city. Most suburban and rural areas have a lot of land that is green and natural, but many cities do not have landscapes like this. The illustrations in Ida, Always portray the landscape of big cities, where there are lots of buildings and skyscrapers surrounding the relatively small area of natural land. The polar bears also talk about the noise of the city as “the city’s heartbeat” and how “they added their snores to the sounds of their city”. I could introduce the book by asking students if they have ever been to a big city and what they noticed about the landscape there. I could also ask the students if they have ever been to a zoo and/or if they have ever seen polar bears.

Illustration:

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Roxaboxen

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Title: Roxaboxen

Author(s): Alice McLerran

Illustrator/Photographer: Barbara Cooney

Publisher and Year: Lothrop, Lee, & Shepard Books, 1991

Number of Pages: 27

Tags: Adventure, Emotion, Family, Fiction, Friendship, Picture Book, K-5, Sarah Luce

Genre: Fiction

Descriptive Annotation:

Roxaboxen is a story based on the childhood experiences of the author’s mother growing up in Arizona. It is about young kids who would play in the desert across the street from their homes as they created a town and their own little society. They made houses, streets, and businesses, had cars and horses, and even had a mayor and policeman. As the children grew into adults, they still carried their memories of Roxaboxen with them, and it was still there years later, physically and in spirit. There is an author’s note at the end, commenting on the origins of the story and how her mother’s memories helped the author and illustrator create the book.

Classroom Application:

This book could be used in classrooms to reinforce lessons about desert areas, such as Arizona, where this story originated. The illustrations depict the landscape and flora quite accurately. The book could also be used as an example to show students how to work well together in creating something. Like the children in the book played together and created a town, so could students learn to work together on things like projects and tasks in the classroom.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis:

Depending on where one lives, this book could give a class insight into what it is like to live in a desert area. It looks much different than living in the Midwest, and there are lots of different cultures in the Western United States that are not as common in places like Illinois. It could also be used to show the culture of times in the past. In today’s society, children have many things that keep them occupied inside, like phones and tablets and television. Back in 1991 when this book was written, children entertained themselves a lot by playing outside and using imagination. This book gives insight to children who grew up being creative and inventive with what they could find outside, like “a tin box filled with round black pebbles… [that] were the money of Roxaboxen” (page 6) or creating cars out of “something round for a steering wheel” (page 15). I might introduce this book by asking my students to imagine living before a lot of technology and I might ask them what things they could do to have fun without tablets and televisions.

Illustration:

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A Different Pond

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Title: A Different Pond

Author: Bao Phi

Illustrator: Thi Bui

Publisher and Year: 2017 Capstone Young Readers

Number of pages: 32

Tags/Themes: Award Book, Culture, Diversity, Family, Historical Fiction, Picture Book, K-5, Evan White

Genre: Family, Picture Book, Children’s, Cultural

Descriptive Annotation: A young Vietnamese boy and his father wake up very early one day to go fishing.  The two go to a shop to buy some bait fish.  At the shop, the shop owner asked why they came so early, and the father explained how he got another job, so they needed to fish earlier for food.  Once at the fishing pond, the boy’s father shares a story how the pond reminds him of a pond in his old home in Vietnam before the “War” (implied Vietnam War).  The father shares how he would go fishing for food with his brother, how they would fight side by side.  After his brother died, the father went to America.  The young boy feels proud of himself for catching a big fish to eat later that day with his family.  When they arrive home, the mother starts cooking the fish, while the father goes to work. The authors note explains how the author’s parents were refuges from the Vietnam War, and wanted to write a book similar to his experiences.  From the story, it is not clear the family are refugees until the reader reads the author’s note.  It might be helpful for students to know there was war in Vietnam, and possibly what a refuge is to explain why the father needed multiple jobs.

Classroom Application: This book can be used to reinforce content from history or social sciences.  The book can be used to demonstrate how families have had to leave their home country because of war, but also how those families can still keep their family tradition, in this case, fishing.  This book can stretch students’ thinking about reasons why people need to work multiple jobs.  Thereir can be numerous reasons, and the students can be open to different reasons people need to work multiple jobs and fund ways to save money to make a living.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: This book represents Vietnamese American culture, especially those who are refugees. It teaches how refugees work very hard to survive in America. “ “You’re here early today,” the bait man says.  “I got a second job,” my dad explains. “I have to work this morning.” “On a Saturday?” the bait man asks. My dad nods.” (7).  From the bait, they caught a few fish. “Dad smiles, his teeth broken and white in the dark, because we have a few fish and he knows we will eat tonight.” (18).  This quote shows how this family have to be creative to get food showing the creativity and hard work of refuges to make a living.  I might introduce this book by having the students discuss a specific location the students spend time with their family or guardians. The pond is a place of recurring fishing for the father and boy, and the students might have a location where they spend a lot of time with their family.

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Ayobami and the names of animals

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Title: Ayobami and the names of animals

Author: Pilar López Ávila

Illustrator: Mar Azabal

Publisher and Year: Shanghai Chenxi Printing CO. 2018

Number of pages: 30

Tags/Themes: Animals, Culture, Fiction, K-5, Evan White

Genre: Africa; Animals; Education; children’s picture book

Descriptive Annotation:  Ayobami and the names of the animals is about a little African girl going back to school after a war.  Her father shows her a path to get to school, but she gets confused and lost.  She then asks for help from the animals in the jungle on how to get to school.  They only help her if she promises to write their name on a piece of paper and give it to them.  When she gets to school, she learns how to read a write, and she give a piece of paper with the animal’s name as she goes back home.  There is no vocab background knowledge to know, but the only back ground the students may need to know is why Ayobami is allowed to go back to school. It may be helpful to explain how having a war  takes away students’ opportunity for education.

Classroom Application: This text can be used to reinforce current events or recent events. This book shows how excited Ayobami is about going back to school because she want able to because of the war.  It is never stated what war occurred, but I think this book could be an introduction and talking about wars across the globe and the effect on students and their families.  I think I would introduce this book by having the kids display how they get to school.  Do they walk, drive, take a bus?  Who do they encounter on their way to school?  This will get them in the mindset to understand how Ayobami gets to school.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: This book represents a group of children in Africa who can’t go to school every day.  This generates conversations about what other places in the world is like, the difficulties people face but also how they have a goal to learn to read and write.  On each page, there are letters art of the scenery, emphasizing the need to learn letters.  “When the war finally came to an end, the teacher went from house to house, telling everyone that the children could go back to school the next day.  The children ran out into the street, shouting with joy.  They laughed and they hugged each other.  They were very, very happy” (1).  This quote shows how enthusiastic the students are for school and displays how much education means to them.  What is most important is the picture associated with this quote.  On the page, there are bullets on the ground, but cracked open.  Coming out of the bullets are letters and painted flowers, showing a new age of hope for the students, along with the students dancing.  “Ayobami’s father understood that she had learned to read and write at school.  He understood that she had made the animals dream about the sound of their names.  Clutching another piece of paper and another little stub of a pencil, the little girl set off to school again, along, the path that lead to the place where hope is born” (30).  This quote shows how proud Ayobami’s father is of her.  He expects greatness from and knows the value of learning reading and writing.  Ayobami also sparked dreams in animals too, which can lead to her being an influence to others on the future.  In the photo, Ayobami is dancing under a cloud that is raining letters.  She has immersed herself in language and is so happy about it.

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Same, Same, but Different

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Title: Same, Same, but Different

Author: Jenny Sue Kostecki-Shaw

Illustrator: Jenny Sue Kostecki-Shaw

Publisher and Year: Henry Holt and Company, 2011

Number of pages: 40

Tags/Themes: Award Book, Culture, Fiction, Picture Book, Social Science, K-5, Evan White

Genre: India; Children’s; cultural; picture book

Descriptive Annotation:  Same, Same, but Different is about two pen pals named Elliot and Kailash.  Elliot lives in America and Kailash lives in India. They write back and forth about their life.  As they write they discover there are a lot of similarities between the two, like climbing trees, taking a school bus, and how they live with their families.  With every similarity, there is a photo to show the cultural differences between the two cultures and a photo of the boys doing the same activity just in different ways. The students need no background knowledge.

Classroom Application: This text can be used to reinforce social science and cultures.  Possibly when learning about continents/countries, a teacher could use this text to learn a little about India.  It can be used to encourage students to think more in similarities with humans rather than finding differences, crafting a social bonding with people of diverse cultures/communities, regardless of where they live.  This book could also be used to introduce pen pals for the classroom, encouraging the students to learn about their new friends’ culture and how it relates to theirs.  This can build appreciation in their real life.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis:  This book represents the Indian culture.  It shows beautiful drawings of Kailash living in a diverse yet similar way to Americans that highlights his value.  Kailash shows Elliot how his family, school, and city works outlining some basic cultural values and norms within India.  I think this book could be introduced by teaching the students what a pen pal is, then going into the story.  Ending the story with starting a pen pal assignment to put in practice what the story spoke about .  There is much to ask about a pen pal and learning differences and the value in those differences.  “That is my tree house where I play. I live in a red brick building with my mom, dad, and my baby sister.  I live with my family too-all twenty-three of us-my mom, dad, sister, brother, grandmother, grandfather, aunties, uncles, cousins…” (8).  This quote is awesome because it shows how what American culture sees extended family can be internal for other people.  In addition, this is common for families in America too.  “A great river flows through my village.  Peacocks dance under trees shaped like umbrellas” (13).  This quote shows how beautiful Kailash’s village is.  The page has bright colors with beautiful buildings with peacocks dancing.  It’s very elegant and shows so much value in their city Kailash loves.

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Bad Apple: A Tale of Friendship

Posted on December 4, 2018 by | Comments Off on Bad Apple: A Tale of Friendship

Title – Bad Apple: A Tale of Friendship

Author(s) – Edward Hemmingway

Illustrator/Photographer – Edward Hemmingway

Publisher and Year – Scholastic, 2012

Number of pages – 32 pages

Tags/Themes – Rylie Loux, Friendship, Emotion, K-5

Genre – Fiction

Descriptive Annotation: This story is about an apple named Mac and his unlikely friendship with a worm named Will. At the start of the book, the duo is inseparable, finishing each other’s sentences and playing games. But apples aren’t supposed to be friends with worms, so other apples in the orchard start bullying Mac calling him “rotten” and “bad apple.” In the end, Mac is a “good apple” who gains the courage to stand up to the bullies and learns the importance of being a loyal friend.

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 to 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, helping students understand that each and everything they do makes a difference on someone else. To incorporate this into the classroom, I would present it at the beginning of the school year to set the standards of bullying in the classroom. Also the students could create a venn diagram to compare and contrast Mac (the good apples) with the bullies in the story (bad apples). Also the students could also make a list of qualities of a good friend.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: The main ideology that is presented is bullying. A quote from the story is “But no one in the orchard would play with them.” This gives the students the ability to see themselves in this situation because each day they talk and play with other students in their class. “Luckily Mac knew he’d rather be a bad apple with Will than a sad apple without him.” This expresses that Mac would rather be stand out and be friends with Will rather than fit in with everyone else. This teaches children to stand up for what they want rather than what it “cool” or popular. This story gives students a way to learn the importance of accepting one another and to not bully their classmates.

 

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My Friend Has Down Syndrome

Posted on December 4, 2018 by | Comments Off on My Friend Has Down Syndrome

Title – My Friend Has Down Syndrome

Author(s) – Jennifer Moore-Mallinos

Illustrator/Photographer – Marta Fabrega

Publisher and Year – B.E.S Publishing, October 1, 2008

Number of pages – 31 pages

Tags/Themes – Rylie Loux, Emotion, Friendship, Diversity, Fiction, K-5

Genre – Fiction

Descriptive Annotation: This book is about a little girl at camp that shares her experience of meeting her best friend, Tammy. The little girl is asked to be her buddy, as Tammy will need extra help. The little girl reveals that Tammy has Down syndrome. Many of the children at the camp had many questions about Down Syndrome but after the counselors explained to them, they were ready and willing to help her feel included and happy at camp. In the end, the little girls shares that Tammy teachers her things too, and that they are a great team because they learn from each other.

Classroom Application:  This book explains to children what Down Syndrome is, in terms that they can understand. This would be a great book to read to children to teach them that it is all right to be different and the importance of being accepting of each of their classmates. “But last summer was the best camp ever, because that’s when I met Tammy.” This little girl explains how she and Tammy became best friends. This is an example of how to accept people for who they really are.  This shows students that everyone can become best friends with a student with Down Syndrome. No one else at the camp had Down Syndrome besides Tammy but she fit right in. This helps students learn that they are both good at different things and that by helping each other overcome their fears and difficulties they can accomplish anything together.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: The main ideology that is presented is that just because someone is different from you doesn’t mean they have to be judged or singled out.

The children reading this book will have lots of things to consider such as the feelings of others. “When Ms. Teresa asked me if I wanted to be Tammy’s buddy I got excited!” This quote is an example that teaches life lessons to not judge people because of a disability and that it does not define someone.One of the best things about this story is that it proves that children can help those who might have disabilities, but they can also learn a lot from them as well.

 

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The Skin You Live In

Posted on December 4, 2018 by | Comments Off on The Skin You Live In

Title – The Skin You Live In

Author(s) – Michael Tyler

Illustrator/Photographer – David Lee Csicsko

Publisher and Year – Chicago Children’s Museum, April 1, 2005

Number of pages – 32 pages

Tags/Themes – Rylie Loux, Culture, Diversity, Emotion, Family, Friendship, Poetry, K-5

Genre – Poetry

Descriptive Annotation: This story is a story which explores the concept of skin to encourage self-esteem and to celebrate the ways in which children are both unique and similar. This story uses different activities, metaphors, and examples to show children that everyone is valuable.

Classroom Application: This book can be used in the classroom to to teach children about diversity, cultures other than their own, accepting themselves the way that they are and accepting others. An important quote from the story is “Glows when it shows that it knows we love you skin.” This is an opportunity to compare skin tones and talk about how they are all beautiful. Another way to incorporate this into learning would be to have each student write something that they love about themselves as well as all of their classmates. This creates an inclusive classroom and allows the students to express what they love about each other.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: This story delivers an important message of social acceptance to young readers. On one page, the author portrays an African American little girl with the text “Hey, look at your skin” and on the next page is a Caucasian boy doing the exact same thing with text saying “The wonderful skin YOU live in.” This quote related to the themes that are presented including are friendship, acceptance, self-esteem, and diversity. There are also children’s activities for all cultures, such as swimming in the ocean, hugging, catching butterflies, and eating birthday cake. The major theme of this book is body positivity, and encouraging the idea that even though we all look different, we are all worthy.

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Pink is for Boys

Posted on December 4, 2018 by | Comments Off on Pink is for Boys

Title – Pink is for Boys

Author(s) – Robb Pearlmann

Illustrator/Photographer – Eda Kaban

Publisher and Year – Running Press Kids, June 5, 2018

Number of pages – 40 pages

Tags/Themes – Rylie Loux, Diversity, Emotion, Friendship, Poetry, K-5

Genre – Fiction

Descriptive Annotation: This story is a story explaining the importance of boys and girls can love the same colors and interests. For each new color, Pearlman shares an example of where to find the color whether that be on sports uniforms, crowns, race cars, or teddy bears. This notion is demonstrated with illustrations of boys and girls in all examples.

Classroom Application: This book can be used in the classroom to set the expectations and standards at the beginning of the year. It is important for students to know that boys and girls can like the same things. This is a standard that a teacher will want to set at the beginning of the year so that students understand and grasp the idea that is being presented in the story and connecting that to their classroom. It is also very important for all students to feel welcome and comfortable in their classroom. This book is multicultural and all inclusive. Using this story to set the tone, can help all students feel welcome.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: This book starts out saying “Pink is for boys. And girls.” This books is an important message for young ones, early on in life, to aid in explaining that girls and boys can love all the colors. This story aims at the importance of acceptance, that colors are for everyone, regardless of gender, race and cultural expectations. This book challenges gender norms and encourage kids to enjoy whatever colors or hobbies that make them happy.  The pictures in this story do the talking. Later on in the story it says, “And all the colors are for EVERYONE. Girls and boys.” This story provides a powerful message that life is not color-coded.

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Misadventures of Sweetie Pie

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Title – Misadventures of Sweetie Pie

Author(s) – Chris Van Allsburg

Illustrator/Photographer – Chris Van Allsburg

Publisher and Year – HMH Books, November 4th, 2014

Number of pages – 32 pages

Tags/Themes – Rylie Loux, Animals, Emotion, Family, K-1, 2-3, 4-5

Genre – Fiction

 

Descriptive Annotation: This story is about Sweetie Pie, a hamster, that faces many difficult times with different homes and humans. Sweetie Pie was the last of his litter to be chosen from the pet store and he is handed off when he is no longer cute or wanted. Finally he ends up in a classroom, where the students take care of him. But one day, a student leaves him on the playground. The next morning, when the student rushes to look for Sweetie Pie, he is nowhere to be found. None of the children seem to care that Sweetie Pie is gone, because they just move on and get a guinea pig for their classroom. The good news is Sweetie Pie was rescued by squirrels and now has a great life with squirrel friends in a tree. The bad news is that there are no consequences for all the children that just left Sweetie Pie behind.

 

Classroom Application: This is a perfect resource for engaging students in a lesson involving animals and respect. It is important for students to know how to treat, respect, and care for their animals at a young age. Children also need to know what happens when the neglect to their duties as a pet owner. It also covers emotional connections and how they would feel if they were tossed between parents and not taken care of properly. This can also be used in the classroom to talk about the author’s purpose and point of view. Each author has a purpose behind their story and this book does a good job of expressing that purpose. This can be used in the classroom to teach the definition of author’s purpose and provides a great example. Also this story is shown in the perspective of the hamster and this presents to the children different ways a story can be written.

 

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: This book represents the students emotional connection to animals in the story. “He’s soooo sweet! squealed the pigtailed girl. The hamster had heard these words before.” This quote expresses that since he has heard the same things over and over and had never been treated correctly, the compliment doesn’t even phase Sweetie Pie. This is implying that sometimes when people say the same things without changing, it is hard to still believe them. The other major moral of this story is the understanding of how to treat animals. This story is presented in a way that is relatable for students and also connects to their emotions. “Since it was the only time he was let out of his small cage, he pretended to like it.” This quote relates to the idea that Sweetie Pie doesn’t get treated the right way and is always traveling from house to house in his cage. He is never played with or set free and this is not the way to treat a pet. The author uses Sweetie Pie to help the children understand what his life is like. This story shows students that to have a pet, you must treat it the best you can.

 

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