Autobiography: Here we all Are by Tomie DePaola (Chapter Book)

In this autobiography of the author, Tomie DePaola, he takes the readers into his life as his parents prepare for the arrival of the new baby sister. He also talks about getting revenge for not being able to play Peter Rabbit in the school play as well as starting tap lessons at Miss Leah’s. As the months go by he describes all of the events in his life during this time very vividly for the readers. He has even included pictures to help the readers see what he is talking about. He shares the happy and sad times during his life and it almost makes the readers want to be a part of his family. One of the events he talks about when he was in kindergarten and no matter how many times he wanted to spell his name Tomie his teachers always spelled it wrong. I can relate to that seeing that no one ever spells my name right. I could’ve told them a million times the correct way but it could never stick. Thinking of a lesson that would incorporate this book was rather difficult. However, I thought it would interesting to have the students write their own autobiography. If they used this book as a reference they could see how the author took actual events from his life and wrote about them. The students would also have to draw pictures to go with the stories.

Science Fiction: The Green Book by Jill Paton Walsh (Chapter Book)

This book is about a girl and her family who are packing to leave the Earth before it is destroyed. They are only allowed to pack certain things and everything else will be rationed out. Each person is allowed to bring just one book on this four year journey. When everyone begins to switch their books, they make fun of Pattie because her book is empty. When they arrive at their new home the water and air is okay but something tastes funny about the vegetation. Seeing that Pattie is able to name the new city she names it Shine. When they begin to settle down they realize that something is not right about the surroundings. Nothing will grow on its own except the wheat, so then they wonder where they will get food. When the wheat harvest comes in they want to keep track of how much wheat people are getting by using Patties blank book but she will not give it to them. When her dad finally takes it he realizes that she has turned it into her own dairy and has written about her new endeavor. In a classroom I would most likely do a writing activity with the students and have them write about the things they would take on the trip if they had to leave. They would also have to explain why they chose those items.

Historical Fiction: The Watsons Go to Birmingham by Christopher Paul Curtis (Chapter Book)

From the very first chapter I could tell that the Watsons are a loving and caring family. They are all sitting on the couch huddled together under a blanket trying to keep warm. The mom is convinced that they are going to freeze to death. The story is told through the eyes of ten year old Kenny Watson. Kenny thinks that everyone thinks his family is strange and that why they are called the “Weird Watsons”. Kenny is often teased but since his brother is older, he doesn’t receive as much tormenting as his brother. Kenny is becoming a “juvenile delinquent” when he continues to get in trouble and do things that they warn him not to such as play with fire, they feel he needs to visit his grandmother in Alabama in fear of losing him. So they head to Alabama during one of the most terrifying events in history. When his sister leaves to go to Sunday school, he hears a loud boom and notices how everyone runs towards the church that his sister is in. When he goes inside he picks up a shoe that he thinks looks like hers and goes back home. Even when she comes in the house and speaks to him, he thinks its her ghost. When they return home, back to Flint, Michigan his parents talk about the accident when they think no one is listening. For some reason, he feels guilty and all of these emotions run over him. However his brother is there to comfort him during this time and he’s able to get his self together. This would be a great book to talk about the bombing of the four little girls and the struggles of African Americans. The students would be able to get a closer look at the event and how it affected many people for a long time.

Realistic Fiction: Granny Torrell make Soup by Sharon Creech (Chapter Book)

This book speaks about two friends, Rosie and Bailey who do everything together. They are like siblings instead she chose him and he chose her. When Rosie and Bailey were younger, her mother informed her that Bailey couldn’t see like she could. To demonstrate exactly how he felt her mom put a tissue over her face and said this is what Bailey sees. While Rosie is telling her grandmother just how bad she hates Bailey right now, her grandmother tell s her not to and just think about all of the good things that made Rosie like him from the beginning. As they are in the kitchen cooking soup, her granny begins to tell her of all of the adventures that she went through with her childhood friend Pardo. Granny tries to educate Rosie and provide her a some wisdom seeing that she was once in her place. When Granny tells Rosie that Pardo was killed in a accident, Rosie quickly begins to learn the value of friendship and letting them know how you really feel. In a classroom, I would discuss the importance of friendships. I would have the students write to any friend that they have and apologize for anything that may have wronged them.

Free 5: Modern Fantasy; The Flying Witch by Jane Yolen

In this book Baba Yaga, a wicked witch that flies through the country looking for plump little children to eat. The only thing that Baba has to eat is thin, cold soup that doesn't even have a turnip in it. One day a little girl, not really skinny but not really but in between comes wondering across the witches trail. Baba Yaga thought it was a lucky day and now she will be able to eat the child she had been wanting. The little girl asks if she could help her. It seems as though she has fell off her dad's wagon into the forest and he hasn't realized. The little girl tells the witch that he is going to town and if she could take her. The witch agrees but on their way, she goes to her house instead. Baba Yaga tells the girl that she wants to fatten her up and eat her, but the only problem is, the witch has no food. So, the little girl insists that the witch goes into town and buys turnips from her father. When she goes to town, the farmer realizes that his daughter isn't there which was a part of her plan was all along. The farmer decided to follow the witch and when he did he found his daughter. The little girl cooked the witch some turnips and they both ate. Whenever the girl would take a bite, the witch had to take one too. The turnips were so good to the witch, she forgot all about eating the girl. So, after the father saw that his daughter wasn't in any danger, they all decided to sit down and have dinner. When the farmer goes into town, he always stops by the witch's house to take her some turnips and even potatoes. This would be a good book to show students that even though some people have a bad reputation, there are able to change. Even though the witch was intentions were to eat the little girl, she still remained nice and kind and she was never eaten. It would be good to show the students that you don't have to evil to people when they intend to do something mean to you. Whenever you are kind or polite to someone, it could go a long way.

Biography: Harvesting Hope The Story of Cesar Chavez

This book talks about a great man, Cesar Chavez who was a very important person during the civil rights movement. The book begins to speak about his childhood and how he was very shy and soft spoken in school. On his first day of school he wanted to sit beside his sister, but when the teacher moved him, he flew out the door and ran home. Soon after Cesar started to go to school, there was a drought in Arizona causing his to move to California. They didn't have much money and some nights they had to stop along the road to pick up dandelions to eat. In the story, when he went to school the teacher made him a where a sign that read "I am clown, I speak Spanish. Instead of trying to help him she made him feel even worse. He was a migrant worker, so like the other migrants they were scared when outsiders came around. Cesar knew that something had to change. This is what brought about the National Farm Workers Association. Seeing that Cesar Chavez was actually a part of the Civil Rights Movement, he would be a great person to talk about to the students. I would do a skit in front of the class and label the students so that they could feel how Cesar must have felt.

Free 5: Mufaros Beautiful Daughters