On Beyond Bugs! All About Insects

On Beyond Bugs! All About Insects

by

Tish Rabe

Summary: This is a very cute nonfiction book all about insects. The Cat in the Hat and his friends give readers an up close view of life as a bug. Readers learn how insects see, communicate, smell, and pollinate. They also see how much of a pests some bugs can be but all in all make life better for us here on earth.

Evaluation: This is a wonderful nonfiction book about insects. It teaches young children interesting facts about insects through rhyme and bright illustrations. For example,

Watch these honey bees and I am sure you'll agree that these bees are as busy as busy can be! Worker bees collect food and they keep the hive clean. They protect it from danger and wait on their queen. She must stay in one place. It is her job to lay dozens and dozens of eggs every day.

The pictures do an amazing job of depicting what the words are saying. The illustration that goes along with this picture is of a big bee happily laying on her side eating while she is surrounded by smaller bees with fake stick guns and other bees are cleaning up with brooms around her.

It is a great beginning middle reader because it has minimal words on each page, which are larger print  and they are spread out so the child will not get over whelmed when reading. When it comes to the hard words such as chrysalis it has a glossary in the back to help them understand and pronounce the word. 

The topic is right on target for its age group of 5-8 years old. Most boys and some girls are fascinated by insects. Even my 4 year old has asked me why fly's buzz. This book gives the young reader the interesting facts without boring them. Being a Cat in the Hat book also might capture the attention of young readers who normally would not read a book about insects. The pictures draw the reader in and rhyme keep the reader engaged. 

Overall there is nothing negative that I can say about this book. I would highly recommend it!

Nonfiction Mondays

Lindy's Happy Ending

Lindy's Happy Ending

by

Valerie Tripp

Summary: Lindy always has great ideas that her classmates usually go along with. The only problem with her ideas is that they usually are more work then necessary and Lindy never finishes what she starts. When she forgets to put the lid back on the ducklings' cage, her classmates have had enough. They decide that it is time to help Lindy become a responsible young lady.

Evaluation: This is a great early chapter book! The vocabulary in it is easy and age appropriate and the plot keeps the readers attention. Responsibility even at a young age is crucial and this book does a great job teaching it. I really liked how her classmates helped her learn this valuable lesson. Even though they get frustrated with her they help to teach her how to finish what she starts and be responsible. This book is very relate able to its target audience. I think first and second graders have all known someone like Lindy and this shows them the appropriate response to the problem. The illustrations and story line all help keep the reader engaged. I would highly recommend this book!

Raising Yoder's Barn

Raising Yoder's Barn

by

Jane Yolen

Summary:

 This book is about an eight year old Amish boy, named Matthew Yoder. His family's barn and windmill is destroyed by a fire when lightning strikes it one night. The community gathers and help the Yoder's rebuild their barn. 

Evaluation:

 This is a wonderful book. It is also an excellent book for children to learn about the Amish culture.The main character in the story is an eight year old Amish boy who is telling about an awful event that took place on his farm one summer. When lightning strikes his family's barn they do not have a phone to call the fire department. Instead, his little brother has to ring a bell to summon the neighbors to come help try to put out the flames. Being Amish they did not arrive in cars but in wagons, on horseback, and on foot. They had to form two lines to try to put out the fire with buckets of water. For students who have been exposed to the Amish culture this is an excellent story to expand their understanding of their lifestyle and faith. For those children who have never been exposed to Amish culture this is a great story to introduce them to another culture within the United States of America. 

It is a very age appropriate even though he is from a very different culture his fears and feelings are much the same as any eight year old boys would be. He is worried that people will think he is too little to help rebuild the barn. But, he ends up with one of the most important jobs of the day, relaying instructions to the men. Throughout the story the reader see's Matthew dealing with the issue of losing part of their lively hoods and dealing with adolescent fears in a positive way. For instance when they are finished building the barn instead of gloating he simply whispers "Amen," which speaks volumes to his feelings of accomplishment and self worth. 

This book celebrates the worth of interdependence, tradition, hard work, cooperation and communities coming together to help each other out. It is a definite must read for children in kindergarten and up!

Genre and Age:

Realistic Fiction Picture Book 

Ages 5-8 and up

Kids Pick the Funniest Poems

Kids Pick the Funniest Poems

Bruce Lansky

Summary:

 This is a collection of hilarious poetry for children ages 6 years and up. The poets in this collection range from Dr. Seuss and Shel Silverstein to Anonymous.

Evaluation:

This collection is a must have in every elementary classroom as well as household staple for those with young children. This is a great introduction to poetry because it captures the child's attention, appeals to their sense of humor, and comments on various aspects of their life.  I remember reading this collection when I was in elementary school and laughing my head off. 

A couple of my favorite selections are:

Who, Me?

There is a kid who lives with us 

Who no one's ever seen.

He's the guy who broke our vase

And painted Fluffy green.

He drew the funny pictures

On my brother's bedroom door,

And left those worms to shrivel up

Inside my dresser drawer.

He also took my favorite cookies

From the cookie jar,

And put a tuna sandwich

In the brand new VCR.

In fact, he does most everything

That you might think is bad.

Of course he isn't really real...

Just don't tell Mom and Dad.

                                    Joyce Armor

A Student's Prayer

Now I lay me down to rest,

I pray I pass tomorrow's test.

If I should die before I wake,

That's one less test I'll have to take.

                               Anonymous

Freddie

I don't like doing homework,

I know that it will bore me.

But now I am much happier

'Cause Freddie does it for me!

He greets me at the door each day

When I come home from school.

He just can't wait to read my books-

I think that's pretty cool!

I give him all my homework,

Like history and math.

And when he's done I give him

A nice warm bubble bath!

My grades are so much better now

Which makes my parents glad.

Freddie is the smartest dog

That I have ever had!

                           Phil Bolsta

Book Details
     Reading Level: Ages 6-up
     Hardcover: 115 pages
     Publisher: Meadowbrook; First edition (November 15, 1991)
     Language: English
     ISBN-10: 067174769X
     ISBN-13: 978-0671747695

Visit Life is Better with Books for other Poetry Friday posts!

President Adams' Alligator and Other White House Pets 

by Peter W. Barnes and Cheryl Shaw Barnes

Summary:

President Adams' Alligator and Other White House Pets by Peter W. Barnes and Cheryl S. Barnes  is a story about the United States presidents and their pets. It starts off with Mrs. Tucker's classroom talking about what their favorite pet is. She then starts to tell the children about the different pets presidents have had in the White House from George Washington to Bill Clinton.

Evaluation:

 This is a great book for teaching children about presidents in a not so boring way. It also introduces the concept of voting by having a ballot at the end of the book that the reader can fill out for their favorite White House pet. I had no idea that there were some pretty non conventional pets in the white house. For example, Thomas Jefferson had two pet grizzly bears and a pet mockingbird named Dick. Jefferson would let Dick eat food out of his mouth and sing along when he played the violin. President Lincoln loved all kinds of animals and gave many to his children. President Lincoln gave his son Tad two goads named Nanny and Nanko, who Tad would tie up to a kitchen chair and race through the halls of the White House. The illustrations in this book are very colorful color pencil drawings that are delightful to the reader. This is a great book for teachers when teaching about the U.S. presidents, Presidents Day, as well as the electoral process.

Genre & Age Group:

Nonfiction

5-8 and up

Thumbeline

Summary:
Thumbeline retold by Susan Jeffers is a traditional fairy tale about a tiny girl no bigger than your thumb. Thumbeline was born in a flower and has to live her life in a dangerous and very big world. Through her acts of kindness and bravery she is eventually taken to a land of people who are all her size.  

Evaluation:
This is a wonderful version of Hans Christian Anderson's classic fairy tale. I would not suggest reading this book to children under the age of 5 due to some of the scary scenes and events in the book. The illustrations in this book are beautiful and engaging to the reader. 

Age & Genre:
fairy tale
5-8 years

Classroom extension activities:
http://www.kelseyatmccc.org/thumbelina.pdf
http://www.ehow.co.uk/list_6311855_fairy-tale-crafts-children.html

Where can I buy this book? 
http://www.amazon.com/Thumbelina-Amy-Ehrlich/dp/0525475087/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1358639521&sr=1-2&keywords=thumbelina