They Call Me Güero: A Border Kid's Poems

Title: They Call Me Güero 
Author: David Bowles 
Publisher: October 22nd, 2018 
Publication Date: Cinco Puntos Press 
Genre/Format: Realistic Fiction/Novel in Verse 
GoodReads Summary: Twelve-year-old Güero is Mexican American, at home with Spanish or English and on both sides of the river. He’s starting 7th grade with a woke English teacher who knows how to make poetry cool. 

In Spanish, “Güero” is a nickname for guys with pale skin, Latino or Anglo. But make no mistake: our red-headed, freckled hero is puro mexicano, like Canelo Álvarez, the Mexican boxer. Güero is also a nerd—reader, gamer, musician—who runs with a squad of misfits like him, Los Bobbys. Sure, they get in trouble like anybody else, and like other middle-school boys, they discover girls. Watch out for Joanna! She’s tough as nails. But trusting in his family’s traditions, his trusty accordion and his bookworm squad, he faces seventh grade with book smarts and a big heart. Life is tough for a border kid, but Güero has figured out how to cope.    
What I Think: David Bowles is one of my Latinx heroes. I appreciate everything he shares on Twitter and his overall essence. Maybe it seems weird to say but I've seen him on panels at NCTE and was at a roundtable session with him and he has a great energy. He knows a lot about Latinx history and the current state of Latinx affairs and he's passionate about sharing his ideas but he does it with such grace that he feels like an awesome big brother who is looking out for all Latinx people. If you don't already follow him on Twitter, I definitely recommend doing that. 
     As I was reading this book, I could hear David's voice on every page. I could also see my students and my family and myself. That's pretty amazing. Güero gets into lots of different predicaments and learns a few things along the way but I loved getting to know him, his friends, and his family. 
     In the snatch of text below, I enjoyed his description here and that he includes a simile even but I particularly love the idea of how words we hear transform into the way we live going forward. What an awesome image. As a mentor text, you could share this with students and ask them to think of their own similes to describe stories or advice they've received in their lives. In my Story Exploratory workshops, I talk a lot about how people, places, and experiences shape us and this is a great example of how people impact our lives whether we realize it right away or not. 
Snatch of Text: 
"Just think ---
I owe it all to those stories
my abuelita used to tell us
sitting in her rocking chair
as we shivered and thrilled.
Even then, words were burrowing
into my brain and waiting,
like larvae in a chrysalis,
to unfold their paper wings
and take me flying into the future." (p. 20)

Julián is a Mermaid

Title: Julián is a Mermaid 
Author: Jessica Love 
Illustrator: Jessica Love
Publisher: Candlewick 
Publication Date: May 22nd, 2018 
Genre/Format: Fiction/Picture Book 
GoodReads Summary: In an exuberant picture book, a glimpse of costumed mermaids leaves one boy flooded with wonder and ready to dazzle the world.

While riding the subway home from the pool with his abuela one day, Julián notices three women spectacularly dressed up. Their hair billows in brilliant hues, their dresses end in fishtails, and their joy fills the train car. When Julián gets home, daydreaming of the magic he’s seen, all he can think about is dressing up just like the ladies in his own fabulous mermaid costume: a periwinkle curtain for his tail, the fronds of a potted fern for his headdress. But what will Abuela think about the mess he makes — and even more importantly, what will she think about how Julián sees himself? Mesmerizing and full of heart, Jessica Love’s author-illustrator debut is a jubilant picture of self-love and a radiant celebration of individuality. 
What I Think: Kids are amazing. They notice things and they pay attention and sometimes, if you're a certain kind of person who they think they can trust, they'll share things with you. Not a day goes by that I don't find myself in awe of young people and thankful that I get to serve kids as my job. Not to mention that I get to be a mom to two awesome kids. 
     Reading Julián is Mermaid highlights a special moment between a boy and his grandmother and illustrates how easy it is for an adult to see a child and to encourage a child. The snatch of text I pulled below shows two lines of dialogue that I believe are pivotal. Dialogue is a powerful tool for writers. Writers in kindergarten and first grade can add speech bubbles to their drawings. Older writers can make the connection between the speech bubbles in their drawings to the text they write. And even older writers can think about how dialogue is a way to describe and show the reader a multitude of things. 
     In these two lines, we see Julián ask a question and Abuela answer him. When I read these two lines, I see so much about who they are and how they interact. Julián asks a question without revealing what he's thinking. And Abuela responds similarly. She could have dismissed him, she could have shared her thoughts - good or bad - about the mermaids, she could have judged him. But she doesn't. And in not doing so, she gives Julián space to share his thoughts. Asking writers to look at dialogue and think about how much what a character says reveals about him, her, or them helps them then think about how to use dialogue intentionally in their own writing. It's not easy to do but looking at books like Julián is a Mermaid as a mentor texts helps show young writers what is possible. 
    Also! I've been more intentional about talking to young writers about using different languages in their writing. It's important that we let students know that this is okay. If they don't get the message that this is okay, they might not ever try it. 
Snatch of Text: 

"Abuela, did you see the mermaids?"

"I saw them, mijo."

Updated November 25th, 2018:
After sharing my post, I read this blog post from Dr. Laura Jiménez which led me to think more critically about Julián is a Mermaid. I still believe it is a beautiful book and appreciate the relationship Julian has with his grandmother but I realize now that this might be an over-idealistic representation of reality for many LGBTQ+ people. I invite you to read the ideas shared in her blog post. 

Santa Bruce Giveaway Thanks to Disney Hyperion!

Disney Book Group is partnering with me for a giveaway!

Title: Santa Bruce  
Author: Ryan T. Higgins 
Illustrator: Ryan T. Higgins 
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion 
Publication Date: September 4th, 2018 
Genre/Format: Fiction/Picture Books 
GoodReads Summary: Bruce is a lot of things. He is a bear. He is a grump. He is a pretty decent cook. And he is a mother.
One thing Bruce is not?
Santa Claus.But that doesn't stop the whole forest from lining up to give him their Christmas wishes when he becomes the victim of mistaken identity - again. 
What I Think: How can you not love Bruce? He's such a lovable grump. He's still grumpy but still a good sport about it in this new book, Santa Bruce. What I really love about the Bruce books is that Bruce is that even though Bruce might be mistaken for someone else, he's definitely still himself. We all know that he's grumpy and that's just how he is. Ryan has done a great job of establishing Bruce's character and it's a great opportunity to look at character development with student writers.
     As a writer, we have to develop our characters. One way to develop characters is to use dialogue to show who our characters are. In the snatch of text below, you'll see that Bruce's words reveal his grumpiness. His sentences are short and emphatic and that gives us information about Bruce. 
     This book has a holiday theme and many people around the world are familiar with Santa. It might be neat to find a few books with Santa in them and to look at what Santa's dialogue looks like in other books. Is it similar or different from Bruce's? And again, what does dialogue tell us about our character. Then of course, try using dialogue with your own characters and see how it's a device writers can use to show the reader who the character is. 
Snatch of Text:

"And then it happened...again.

'Are you Santa?!'

A case of mistaken identity.

Bruce did not like mistaken identities.

'No. I am not. Go away.'

'Ohmygosh! I met Santa! Wait right here while I go get my friends!'

'Wait! Grrrrrrr! I am NOT Santa!'"

And now for the giveaway!
I’m giving away a copy of #SantaBruceBook 
and this amazing prize pack thanks to my partner @DisneyHyperion!

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Thanks to Disney Books

for sending me a copy of this book to review 

and for partnering with me for this giveaway.

Snow Pony and the Seven Miniature Ponies

Title: Snow Pony and the Seven Miniature Ponies
Author: Christian Trimmer
Illustrator: Jessie Sima
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: August 21st, 2018   
Genre/Format: Fiction/Fairy Tales/Picture Book 
GoodReads Summary: From Christian Trimmer and bestselling illustrator Jessie Sima comes an adorable and imaginative twist on the tale of Snow White…with lots more ponies!

Sweet Snow Pony is loved by all for her beautiful coat as white as snow and her mane as black as ebony. Children come to her farm from all over just to have her braid their hair and teach them line dancing.

But not everyone loves Snow Pony. Jealous Queenie hatches an evil plan to make Snow Pony run away from the stable by planting a trail of apples into the woods and before long Snow Pony is lost! Full of delicious apples but all alone in the woods, Snow Pony stumbles upon the home of seven miniature ponies. The mini-ponies couldn’t be cuter, especially with Snow Pony’s braids, but they don’t have quite the same moves as the kids back on the farm.

Will her new friends help her find her way home? Or will the evil Queenie get her way?
What I Think: To be honest, I'm not a huge fan of horses BUT this story and the illustrations are really sweet. I like how this is a twist on a fairy tale but also a blend of different fairy tales. At first, I thought it would mimic Snow White and the Seven Dwarves but there's a little Goldilocks and the Three Bears thrown in. 
     As a mentor text, I like looking at different versions of fairy tales and seeing how authors switch things up. I particularly like how Jessie switched the characters and made the people characters into animals and vice versa. Student writers could think about this in their own stories if they wanted to. They could write a twist on a fairy tale or even fan fiction with a similar character swap. 
     I've been working on my next young adult novel and I've spent a lot of time working on character development. I've always paid attention to my characters and who they are but this time around, I've really done a lot of character exercises and it's been fun to get to know my characters more before I start writing. Students would play with character options and think through which choice in characters they'd like to try and write. Below you'll find the first paragraph from the book that can be used as a mentor text as writers think about their own version of the story. What if the main character was a tiger or a penguin or a puffer fish? 
     In thinking about the snatch of text, I also really love how it starts with a description and then the author announces, "Her name was Snow Pony." I like how starting with a description and then naming who the character is gives the information a bit of punch. Something else to try!

Snatch of Text:
"Once upon a time there was a pony who had a coat as white as snow and a mane as black as ebony. (As you can see, the combination was quite spectacular.) Her name was Snow Pony."

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing

for sending me a copy of this book to review.

How to Code a Sandcastle

Title: How to Code a Sandcastle 
Author: Josh Funk 
Illustrator: Sara Palacios 
Publisher: Viking/Penguin 
Publication Date: May 15th, 2018 
Genre/Format: Fiction/Picture Book 
GoodReads Summary: From the computer science nonprofit Girls Who Code comes this lively and funny story introducing kids to computer coding concepts.

Pearl and her trusty rust-proof robot, Pascal, need to build a sandcastle before summer vacation is over, and they’re going to do it using code. Pearl breaks the big we-need-a-sandcastle problem into smaller steps, then uses conditionals, loops, and other basic coding concepts to tell Pascal exactly what to do. But building a sandcastle isn’t as easy as it sounds when surfboards, mischievous dogs, and coding mishaps get in the way! Just when it looks like the sandcastle might never work, Pearl uses her coding skills to save the day and create something even better: a gorgeous sandcastle kingdom!
What I Think: I'm so excited to use this when we celebrate Hour of Code next year! Our district has been doing Hour of Code districtwide for about five years and next year we have plans to expand this and integrate coding experiences throughout the year. I love how How to Build a Robot helps us think about coding outside of computers. While I sometimes work with the code on my blog, I don't have as much experience with coding that lets me see how coding can be part of other parts of my day. But this book helps me see how I can start looking for times when I can code my day and it also gives me the opportunity to think about this with students. 
     At the end of the book, you can read Pearl and Pascal's Guide to Coding where they explain code, a sequence, a loop, and an if-then-else. I've been thinking a lot about teaching students advocacy. From as simple as, if you aren't sure about something, raise your hand to ask a question, we could talk about if-then-else. I love this! Students could come up with different scenarios and think through what they could do in those situations. You could brainstorm as a group and then ask students to write their own if-then-else scenarios. Sometimes this explicit discussion of what to do in different situations helps students know what options they have in different situations. This is kind of silly but here's an example. When my 7-year-old runs to the car ahead of me and tries to open the door before I've unlocked it, he used to pull and pull and pull on the door handle to get the door open. Finally, I told him, IF he gets to the car and tries to open the door and it's still locked, THEN he should look into the passenger side window and wave at me so to remind me to unlock the door. It worked like a charm. All I had to do was explain to him what I wanted him to do instead of what he was doing. Again, this could definitely work in a school context. Students could brainstorm what to do if: they have to go to the bathroom, need a drink of water, don't understand a math problem, need help spelling a word, etc. Again, this is perfect for discussing any kind of strategies we want students to be aware of IF they encounter a certain situation. 
     As a mentor text, How to Code a Sandcastle also offers a perfect opportunity to look at problems in a story. As students stretch their stories out more, they can start to think about how stories have some kind of problem or conflict that the main character has to work through. Pearl and Pascal encounter four small problems that they have to solve in the story. It's great to pay attention to this as a reader because it helps us understand and retell a story but it's also important to pay attention to as a writer because many stories have a problem or conflict. Once readers notice that this story has a problem, they can start to look for the problem in other stories and make connections in this way while also or before thinking about the problem in their own stories.
Snatch of Text:
"But today, I've got the perfect plan. I've brought my trusty rust-proof robot, Pascal.

He'll do whatever I tell him - as long as I tell him CODE. It's not a secret code - it's special instructions that computers understand."  
Writing Prompt: Write a code for something in your own life. You can write out the steps, identify a loop, or even write an if-then-else code.

Amina's Voice

Title: Amina's Voice 
Author: Hena Khan 
Publisher: Salaam Reads 
Publication Date: March 14th, 2017 
Genre/Format: Realistic Fiction/Novel 
GoodReads Summary: Amina has never been comfortable in the spotlight. She is happy just hanging out with her best friend, Soojin. Except now that she’s in middle school everything feels different. Soojin is suddenly hanging out with Emily, one of the “cool” girls in the class, and even talking about changing her name to something more “American.” Does Amina need to start changing too? Or hiding who she is to fit in? While Amina grapples with these questions, she is devastated when her local mosque is vandalized.
What I Think: I loved reading about Amina and her story but especially how her community comes together when her mosque is vandalized. I would definitely pair Amina's Voice with Wishtree and challenge students to think about how to learn about cultures that are different from their own and to make space for people of different cultures in their school or community. I've never visited a mosque before and reading Amina's Voice made me think how interesting it would be to be able to visit a mosque. I've never thought about asking a friend if I can go with them to their place of worship to learn more about it. I'm sure there are many other things I can think about that I've never experienced but that I could ask some of my friends to tell me about. The theme of acceptance stood out to me in Amina's Voice and it was really inspiring. 
     As a mentor text, the snatch of text I pulled is a perfect opportunity to look at how a writer can use dialogue to give the reader information about different characters even when writing from first person. The girls are part of this one conversation but they all are thinking different things and the dialogue helps the writer express this. We have to explicitly show students the power of dialogue. Amina's Voice gives an opportunity to zone in on dialogue and invite students to brainstorm two or more people in a scene and how their dialogue might reveal information about their character or their point of view.
Snatch of Text: "But Soojin just says, 'I'm thinking of new names for myself.'
     'New names? That's weird. Why?' Emily starts a stream of questions. And as much as I want Emily to leave, I want to hear the answers.
     'It's not weird at all, actually. My family and I are becoming citizens soon, and I'm going to change my name.'
     'Wait. So that means you're not even American?' Emily sounds offended.
     'What?' I ask. There is no way I heard Soojin right. 'Change your name? What for?'
     Soojin smooths her hair, sips some fizzy juise, and takes a deep breath. 'We moved from Korea when I was four, and we aren't American citizens yet. but we are about to be, and I'm going to change my name. I just haven't picked one yet.'" (p. 7)
Writing Prompt: Write about how each or one of the characters might be feeling in this conversation using evidence from the excerpt to support your reasoning. 

The Girl Who Ran: Bobbi Gibb, The First Woman to Run the Boston Marathon

Title: The Girl Who Ran: Bobbi Gibb, The First Woman to Run the Boston Marathon  
Author: Frances Poletti and Kristina Yee 
Illustrator: Susanna Chapman 
Publisher: Compendium Inc.
Publication Date: June 13th, 2017 
Genre/Format: Non-Fiction/Picture Book 
GoodReads Summary: "She said she would do it, she wasn't a liar; she'd show them by running like the wind in the fire." When Bobbi Gibb saw the Boston Marathon her mind was set—she had to be a part of it. She trained hard, journeying across America to run on all kinds of terrain. But when the time came to apply for the marathon, she was refused entry. They told her girls don't run, girls can't run. That didn't stop Bobbi.

This picture book tells the true story of how she broke the rules in 1966 and how, one step at a time, her grit and determination changed the world. Created in collaboration with Bobbi Gibb and the perfect gift for would-be runners, kids of all ages, and everyone out there with a love of sport.
What I Think: I'm a runner myself so I completely connected with the love of running that Frances and Kristina bring to life by telling Bobbi's story. I didn't start running for myself until college but now I see how it's such a great activity that so many people can participate in. Running in 5ks is fun but running in a marathon is completely overwhelming in an amazing way. I've only run the Chicago Marathon once but it's an accomplishment I'm so proud of and one I will never forget.
     There is a theme of inspiration throughout this book. Bobbi is inspired and then she inspires others as well. As a mentor text, it's interesting to look at how the authors came back to this theme and wove it into the book throughout. There are several lines that come back to Bobbi and her running while the rest of the text blankets these lines and at the same time show how she was inspired. It's so interesting to me, this idea of inspiration and it's neat to look at how the authors brought this theme to a book and wove it in. Recognizing a theme or themes of our writing is important. I find it helpful to know what message I'd like to send overall because when I'm conscious of it, I can more easily weave it in. It helps me feel more grounded in my story when I know the theme as well. This can help in longer texts or short texts too. I reviewed Disrupting Thinking by Kylene Beers and Robert Probst last week and they talk about reading and paying attention to what is happening in the text, in our head, and in our heart. As writers, we need to pay attention to our craft, to what we want our readers to think but most importantly, how we want to reach our readers' hearts. To me, the theme has a lot to do with heart. 
     As a mentor text, The Girl Who Ran is a perfect example of how we can weave theme into a text. Yes, the tell the story, yes they use elements of writing we can study, but also, they use theme to touch our hearts.  
Snatch of Text:  

"One day, when Bobbi was grown, her father took her to Boston, 

where she saw...

Not a few, not a dozen, but hundreds of people, moving as one. 

Kindred spirits, all running miles together.

Bobbi knew she had to be a part of it."

Writing Prompt: Throughout the book, the author uses the word "inspire" and gives examples of inspiration. Use examples from the text to talk about what it means to be inspired.

Mapping My Day Review and Giveaway

Title: Mapping My Day
Author: Julie Dillemuth 
Illustrator: Laura Wood  
Publisher: Magination Press 
Publication Date: March, 2017 
Genre/Format: Fiction/Picture Book
Summary: Follow Flora and her family as she takes us through her day with maps — from breakfast, to school, and even through a dog agility course!

Kids love maps! Learning to read and draw maps is a fun and natural way to develop spatial thinking skills — how we think about and understand the world around us and use concepts of space for problem solving.
What I Think: I remember digging up a plastic bag with shells in it in the woods near my house and thinking I had found buried treasure. I also remember waking up with the sun streaming into my window because my bedroom was on the east side of of our house. I loved reading Mapping My Day and remembering these little bits of memories from my childhood. I anticipate young readers will make lots of of connections to Flora in this story just as I did. But if not, I'm guessing they'll be captivated by her world and will get a little more curious about their own. Map creation and map reading skills are important even though we live in the day and age of technology and GPS. As a mentor text, I would read the book with students and ask them to create their own maps about their day. Just like Flora tells about her maps, I would invite students to write and explain about their maps. 
     I also love this book as a mentor text to get students started thinking about a topic for a personal narrative. They can think of a time when they were given directions and how useful they were in helping them navigate to their destination.  
Snatch of Text: 
"To find my treasure you need to know exactly how far to go from the biggest tree in the yard. Starting there, you walk seven steps east, then three steps southeast. 'X' marks the spot!"  
Writing Prompt: Write about a time in your life when you had to follow directions to get somewhere. Who gave you the directions? What do you remember about the directions? Were they easy to follow? Did they get you to your destination?
Additional Resources: The author, Julie Dillemuth, was mystified by maps until she figured out how to read them and make them, and it was a particularly difficult map that inspired her to become a spatial cognition geographer. She lives with her family and writes children's books in Santa Barbara, California, where the west coast faces south. Visit her at her website and check out the fun activity pages there.

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Maybe a Fox Blog Tour And Giveaway!

Title: Maybe a Fox 
Author: Kathi Appelt and Allison McGhee  
Publisher: Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books 
Publication Date: March 8th, 2016 
Genre/Format: Realistic Fiction/Novel 
GoodReads Summary:  
Sylvie and Jules.

Jules and Sylvie.

Jules adores her older-by-one-year sister, Sylvie.

Sylvie: beautiful like their mother.
Sylvie: supreme maker of tiny snow families.
Sylvie: faster than fast.

Sylvie: gone.

Into thin air, Sylvie goes missing, and as Jules stumbles in grief, a fox cub is born. A shadow fox, spirit and animal in one. From the minute the cub opens her eyes, she senses something very wrong. Someone—Jules.

Jules: steadfast like their father.
Jules: supreme maker of tiny snow foxes.
Jules: collector of rocks.

Jules: heartbroken.

Who is this Jules? Who is this Sylvie she cries out for? And why does the air still prickle with something unsettled? As that dark unknown grows, the fates of the girl Jules and the fox cub, laced together with wishes and shadowy ties, are about to collide.
What I Think: You know how sometimes you read a book and it touches your heart? This book touched my heart. It's a story of two sisters but it's also a story of family and love and what that love looks like.  
     As a mentor text, I love the description in this book. Kathi and Allison bring the characters and their emotions to life so well. One thing that really struck me about how they do this is that they seem to have a really strong sense of their characters. They share what is important to each of the characters. Their description is so specific and it really makes the story shine because of this. As we work on voice and showing in writing, looking closely at what we know about the characters in the book based off of their writing is a great activity for young writers - and even for me! Showing not telling is sometimes hard to describe and clarify for writers. Activities like writing what is in your main character's closet, what songs they have on their phone, who their best friends are. Knowing your character and bringing him or her to life is a great place to start or to focus on when adding voice and developing characters.
Read Together: Grades 4 - 6
Read Alone: Grades 4 - 7 
Read With: See You At Harry's by Jo Knowles, Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine, When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead, The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson, A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness 
Snatch of Text:  
"...no matter how hard she tried, her memories of their mom grew smaller and smaller, each one folding in on itself, so that not even her 10x magnifier could see them." (p. 13)
Writing Prompts: Write about a time in your life when something unexpected happened to you.  
Topics Covered: Family, Friendship, Love, Loss, Courage, Determination 
Additional Resources:

Kathi Appelt is the New York Times best-selling author of more than forty books for children and young adults. Her picture books include Oh My Baby, Little One, illustrated by Jane Dyer, and the Bubba and Beau series, illustrated by Arthur Howard. Her novels for older readers include two National Book Award finalists: The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp and The Underneath, which was also a Newbery Honor Book. In addition to writing, Ms. Appelt is on the faculty in the Masters of Creative Writing for Children and Young Adults at Vermont College of Fine Arts. She lives in College Station, Texas. To learn  more, visit Kathi’s website at kathiappelt.com.

Alison McGhee is the New York Times bestselling author of Someday, as well as Firefly Hollow, Little Boy, So Many Days, Bye-Bye Crib, Always, A Very Brave Witch, and the Bink and Gollie books. Her other children’s books includeAll Rivers Flow to the Sea, Countdown to Kindergarten, and Snap. Alison is also the author of the Pulitzer Prize–nominated adult novel Shadowbaby, which was also a Today show book club selection. She lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and you can visit her at AlisonMcGhee.com.

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Follow all the stops on their blog tour!

Fri, Mar 4	I Read Banned Books
Mon, Mar 7	Watch.Connect.Read
Tues, Mar 8	https://www.crackingthecover.com/
Wed, Mar 9	Sharpread
Thurs, Mar 10	Proseandkahn
Fri, Mar 11	YABC
Mon, Mar 14	OWL for YA
Tues, Mar 15	Kid Lit Frenzy
Wed, Mar 16	Teach Mentor Texts
Thurs, Mar 17	Unleashing Readers
Fri, Mar 18	Mother Daughter Book Club

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*Thanks to Blue Slip Media for 

a copy of Maybe a Fox in exchange for an honest review 

and the opportunity to offer the giveaway above!*

Sunny Side Up

Title: Sunny Side Up 
Author: Jennifer L. Holm 
Illustrator: Matthew Holm 
Publisher: Graphix 
Publication Date: August 25th, 2015 
Genre/Format: Realistic Fiction/Graphic Novel 
GoodReads Summary: From the groundbreaking and award-winning sister-brother team behind Babymouse comes a middle-grade, semi-autobiographical graphic novel.

Following the lives of kids whose older brother's delinquent behavior has thrown their family into chaos, Sunny Side Up is at once a compelling "problem" story and a love letter to the comic books that help the protagonist make sense of her world.

By sister-brother team Jennifer and Matthew Holm. A 200-page, full-color graphic novel in the vein of Raina Telgemeier's Smile.  
What I Think: I'm a fan of books that stick with you even after you turn the last page, close the last book, and let out a satisfied sigh. Sunny Side Up is definitely one of those books. I loved the strong but sweet protagonist. She's tough and she loves comics and superheroes but she's vulnerable at the same time. I can see many young readers identifying with Sunny and taking a lot away from her story.
     As a mentor text Sunny Side Up definitely reminds me of Raina Telgemeier's Smile. A few years ago, I was in a workshop where Raina talked the audience through how to tell a personal narrative in six panels (or something like that...). She led us through an activity and then called on a member of the audience to tell his story about the first time he tried Vegemite. It was entertaining to watch but also enlightening. I don't usually draw pictures to represent my stories so it was fascinating to see how the process works. I love that young readers will get a story with a similar feel with Sunny Side Up. That said, they will also get a serious story that might be worthy of a conversation during or afterwards depending on the reader.
     I'm sure fans of the Holms' work will adore Sunny Side Up but I also believe any graphic novel fan won't be disappointed!
Read Together: Grades 3 - 5 
Read Alone: Grades 4 - 7 
Read With: Rain Reign by Ann M. Martin, The Center of The Universe by Linda Urban, Smile by Raina Telgemeier
Snatch of Text:   

Writing Prompts: Write about a time in your life when you had to have a difficult conversation with a friend or family member.
Topics Covered: Family, Friendship, Fear, Pain, Disappointment, Loyalty, Guilt, Courage

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Perfect Pairs: Using Fiction & Nonfiction Picture Books to Teach Life Science, K-2

Since working in a district-wide position, I get to visit schools and classrooms all over my district. Deb Perryman is one of the teachers I enjoy to visit. She's a high school science teacher and I've learned so much about inquiry-based and service-based learning from her. It's clear that she's a passionate teacher - about her subject and also her students and she brings science to life in her classroom.

Earlier this school year, Deb and her students organized a National Biodiversity Teach-In. The organized webinars for students with science experts all over the world. Melissa Stewart, the author of No Monkeys, No Chocolate hosted a National Schoolwide Read. I'm happy to share Melissa Stewart's book Perfect Pairs. Co-authored with Nancy Chesley, Perfect Pairs: Using Fiction & Nonfiction Picture Books to Teach Life Science, K-2 is a great reference tool for teachers of science. Melissa and Nancy share how to lessons linked to the Next Generation Science Standards that use inquiry to engage students and picture books to introduce and reinforce concepts. They offer links to ELA and specific examples.

Visiting Deb's classroom is great because I can see inquiry-based learning in action. She actively engages students in what they are learning. I love how Melissa and Nancy give ideas for this in Perfect Pairs as well. If I was teaching kindergarten, 1st or 2nd grade, I would love this resource. I hope they write a similar book for older grade levels, too!

Louise Loves Art

Title: Louise Loves Art 
Author: Kelly Light  
Illustrator: Kelly Light 
Publisher: Balzer + Bray 
Publication Date: September 9th, 2014 
Genre/Format: Realistic Fiction/Picture Book 
GoodReads Summary: For fans of Olivia and Eloise, this stunning debut from Kelly Light is an irresistible story about the importance of creativity in all its forms.

Meet Louise. Louise loves art more than anything. It's her imagination on the outside. She is determined to create a masterpiece—her pièce de résistance!

Louise also loves Art, her little brother. This is their story.Louise Loves Art is a celebration of the brilliant artist who resides in all of us.  
What I Think:  
We've had so much fun with Louise Loves Art in our house! We read this in November during Picture Book Month and I tried my best to grab book pics with my wild and crazy kids. 

We loved watching Art follow Louise around and were just waiting for her to find out what he was up to. Having a little brother or sister can be complicated but Louise gave us an opportunity to talk about that. Little Bean is constantly wanting to be like his older brother but it's hard for Peanut to see that. It was nice to be able to talk about Louise and how she reacted to her little brother in this book.

One character we absolutely love is their cat. That cat is awesome! It follows them around, knowing all the time what's going on and trying to help bring the siblings together. That little cat has some pretty amazing expressions. I'm not sure I've ever seen a more expressive cat before. It was fun to imagine what words would come out of the cat's mouth if it could talk. As a mentor text, this is a great opportunity to talk about personification and dialogue. Here students can see that the cat isn't able to talk and doesn't in the book, but what if we personified the cat and gave it the ability to talk? What might the cat say? This is also an opportunity to look at dialogue. What I love about dialogue is that it gives us access to the character who is talking but also to the other characters as well. What might the cat say that would reveal something about what it's thinking? What might the cat say that would reveal something about Louise and Art? Has this happened before? Has Louise had a chance to practice some patience before, too? This is a great time to talk about characters and how dialogue can play a role in developing characters.

And what I completely, totally, utterly love about this book is that it reminds us to let free our inner artist. Growing up, I painted a lot with my grandmother and my aunt but I also did all sorts of arts and crafts. I still consider myself to be very creative and love how my artsy side has evolved over the years. I write more than practice any other kind of art but I do love colors and design and painting in the backyard with my kids. Louise Loves Art reminds us that we have imaginations that we can bring to life and that our art is worth sharing. At home or at school, kids can put on their own art show, hanging up their work and inviting others to come and admire it. What a great way to celebrate art and share what kids - and maybe adults? - have created!

Read Together: Grades Pre-K - 3 
Read Alone: Grades Pre-K - 5 
Read With: Bink and Gollie (series) by Kate DiCamillo and Allison McGhee, Sam and Dave Dig a Hole by Mac Barnett, Chloe Instead by Micah Player, One Cool Friend by Toni Buzzeo, The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds
Snatch of Text:  

"I love art!
It's my imagination on the outside."

"I've done it.

So fierce! So feline! So fantastic...

a masterpiece!"

Reading Strategies to Practice: Activating Background Knowledge, Making Connections, Making Predictions, Making Inferences 
Writing Strategies to Practice: Dialogue, Characterization,  $100 Words, Personification, Point of view, Perspective
Writing Prompts: Imagine you are the cat in the story. What do you think the cat might think or say to Louise and/or Art? Think about how dialogue shows the reader about the characters. 
Topics Covered: Family, Integration - Art, Self Esteem, Determination, Forgiveness 

I *heart* It: