Dr. Fauci: How a Boy From Brooklyn Became America's Doctor

Title: Dr. Fauci: How a Boy From Brooklyn Became America's Doctor

Author: Kate Messner 

Illustrator: Alexandra Bye 

Publisher: Simon Schuster Books for Young Readers 

Publication Date: June 29th, 2021 

Genre/Format: Nonfiction Biography/Picture Book 

GoodReads Summary: The definitive picture book biography of Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and one of the most crucial figures in the COVID-19 pandemic.

Before he was Dr. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Anthony Fauci was a curious boy in Brooklyn, delivering prescriptions from his father’s pharmacy on his blue Schwinn bicycle. His father and immigrant grandfather taught Anthony to ask questions, consider all the data, and never give up—and Anthony’s ability to stay curious and to communicate with people would serve him his entire life.

This engaging narrative, which draws from interviews the author did with Dr. Fauci himself, follows Anthony from his Brooklyn beginnings through medical school and his challenging role working with seven US presidents to tackle some of the biggest public health challenges of the past fifty years, including the COVID-19 pandemic. Extensive backmatter rounds out Dr. Fauci’s story with a timeline, recommended reading, a full spread of facts about vaccines and how they work, and Dr. Fauci’s own tips for future scientists.

What I Think: Honestly, until the Covid pandemic hit I didn't know of Dr. Fauci. One of my friends is writing a book set in the 80's and 90's which centers the AIDS pandemic and she told me how influential he was. I love that we now have this book to share his work with young people. 

     Last week I shared my review of Furia by Yamile Saied Mendez and I talked about how the snatch of text is an opportunity to think of ideas or messages from families that are passed down. Guess what? That's exactly the same activity you can do with this picture book biography from Kate Messner and Alexandra Bye. If you didn't check out Kate's Teachers Write blog post from this week, be sure to read how she thinks about the subject of a nonfiction picture book biography and looks for stories from their childhood that led to their work as an adult. You can do some reflection for yourself. I absolutely loved it! 

    And then when I read Dr. Fauci, I had to pause when there is a page where his dad gives him advice that he applies to his life. It made me think of last week and the words of wisdom I heard from my family. Asking students to think of words of wisdom from the adults in their life would be a great way to start the year and get to to know each other. It would also work at any time during the school year as a way to share what values and beliefs they bring to the classroom community. I bet there are many ways we intersect that we might not realize. 

    To take this even further, invite students to write a scene where we get to see them practicing this or an adult reminding them of this idea. Or invite them to interview that adult who shared this with them and hear how it has showed up in their lives. I can imagine this turning into a piece with the message in hand-lettered font and the text to go with it. I LOVE the funky letting for this in the book. It stands out and it can't be missed. It would be cool to show that to students and see what they notice and ask why they think this bit of text is presented the way it is.  

Snatch of Text: 

    "Anytime Anthony struggled with homework, his father reminded him that every problem has a solution. 

    'Don't get discouraged. Don't run away because you don't understand the problem. Think about it carefully and try to work it out.'

    Anthony learned to start with wondering, then gather evidence and keep an open mind."

Furia

Title: Furia 

Author: Yamile Saied Mendez

Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers 

Publication Date: September 15th, 2020 

Genre/Format: YA Contemporary Fiction/Novel 

GoodReads Summary: In Rosario, Argentina, Camila Hassan lives a double life.
    At home, she is a careful daughter, living within her mother’s narrow expectations, in her rising-soccer-star brother’s shadow, and under the abusive rule of her short-tempered father.
    On the field, she is La Furia, a powerhouse of skill and talent. When her team qualifies for the South American tournament, Camila gets the chance to see just how far those talents can take her. In her wildest dreams, she’d get an athletic scholarship to a North American university.
    But the path ahead isn’t easy. Her parents don’t know about her passion. They wouldn’t allow a girl to play fútbol—and she needs their permission to go any farther. And the boy she once loved is back in town. Since he left, Diego has become an international star, playing in Italy for the renowned team Juventus. Camila doesn’t have time to be distracted by her feelings for him. Things aren’t the same as when he left: she has her own passions and ambitions now, and La Furia cannot be denied. As her life becomes more complicated, Camila is forced to face her secrets and make her way in a world with no place for the dreams and ambition of a girl like her.

What I Think: I'm completely obsessed with this book! Camila and her story sucked me in right away and I was desperate to know what was going to happen. While this is a love story...it's more about Camila loving herself than anything else and I'm all for that! I was so invested in this book and I think it has a lot to do with the writing and how honest Camila's story is. Maybe because I'm Latina myself and have spent so much time on identity work it really resonated with me...but please, share this with students because we all need some good examples of how to navigate our complex and unique identities and this story is so great for all readers.

    As a mentor text, Camila spends a lot of time navigating her different identities. She's a daughter but she's also a footballer and she's hiding that from her family. When it comes to thinking about our own unique and complex identities, this book gives us an opportunity to do that. The book starts off with her talking about a family proverb that has been passed down and how that lives now with her. This is a great way to think about who we are in the context of our family, our ancestors, and even the place(s) where we grow up. 

    In my notebook, I started by making a list of what comes to mind when I read the snatch of text, then I made a list of places in my life, and a list of a few sayings I heard over and over again growing up. Then I chose one saying to write about and, like Yamile, I wrote about how my ancestors lived that saying and how it has become part of my life. This is a great discussion to have with students that invites them to reflect on what messages have been passed down to them by their family and where they've grown up but also an opportunity to share what ideals their family has shared with them. As a teacher, this is a great way to learn about students and honor their backgrounds. For me, and for Camila, it's important to also question what we've been taught. Not from a good or bad perspective but from a perspective of, "Is this how I want to live?" Because we always have a choice.

    If you're interesting in slides so you can try this yourself and/or with students, check out the Story Exploratory Patreon community where I share videos, writing tips, extended activities, and monthly workshops. 

Snatch of Text: "Lies have short legs. I learned this proverb before I could speak. I never knew exactly where it came from. Maybe the saying followed my family across the Atlantic, all the way to Rosario, the second-largest city in Argentina, at the end of the world.

    My Russian great-grandmother, Isabel, embroidered it on a pillow after her first love broke her heart and married her sister. My Palestinian grandfather, Ahmed, whispered it to me every time my mom found his hidden stash of wine bottles. My Andalusian grandmother, Elena, repeated it like a mantra until her memories and regrets called her to the next life. Maybe it came from Matilde, the woman who chased freedom to Las Pampas all the way from Brazil, but of her, this Black woman whose blood roared in my veins, we hardly ever spoke. Her last name got lost, but my grandma's grandma still showed up so many generations later in the way my brown hair curled, the shape of my nose, and my stubbornness - ay, Dios mío, my stubbornness. Like her, if family folklore was to be trusted, I had never learned to shut up or do as I was told. 

    But perhaps the words sprouted from this land that the conquistadores thought was encrusted with silver, the only inheritance I'd ever receive from the indigenous branch of my family tree. In any case, when my mom said them to me as I was getting ready to leave the house that afternoon, I brushed her off. 

    'I'm not lying,' I insisted, fighting with the tangled laces of my sneakers - real Nikes that Pablo, my brother, had given me for  Christmas after he got his first footballer paycheck. 'I told you, I'll be at Roxana's.'"

Writing With A Fire In My Hands

One of the challenges of writing a story is to be able to zone in on a small moment. And then from there to choose not just a small moment but a meaningful moment.

Writers use mentor texts to gather up ideas and to think about how to take those ideas and turn them into published pieces.

A Fire In My Hands is a collection of poetry written by Gary Soto. His poem Oranges is the most anthologized poem in contemporary literature. How's that for a fun fact?

To get students brainstorming, first show students four images: oranges, a bench, a football, a clock. Model how to make a list of ideas for each of them and give them time to write their own ideas that come to mind. 

Then read Oranges, Some Words About Time, and Manuel and the Football Scrubs and show students how one small moment can be a poem. Ask them to notice what stands out to them and then have them try some of these techniques and craft moves in their own writing. They might even have more ideas for stories to write after reading what Gary Soto wrote about in his poems.

Of course, I tried this myself and suggest you try it too! I decided to use the first few lines of Oranges to get myself started.

The Clock Tower

The first time I saw the Clock Tower

with my friend Mike, I was 18? 19?

We took off driving

rolling down the windows and turning up the music.

College kids with nothing to do, 

meandering through cornfields in my white Suzuki Sidekick.

Eventually we found ourselves in Rockford,

stopping to get gas at a station next to the Clock Tower.

I wrote about this with my 8th graders 

the morning of the attack on the Capitol.

It was January 6th, 2021.

I taught my 7th graders about the Bill of Rights that afternoon.

The next day I thought about how to show up for my students.

How to talk to them about freedom in America. 

How to talk to them about injustice and how to speak out against it.

I decided we'd write and we'd talk

and I'd give them space and hopefully hold them up.

I reminded them to enjoy the moments

to cherish the times

when they can be themselves

hang out with a friend

roll down the windows

turn up the music

go for a drive

through cornfield after cornfield

and end up at the Clock Tower in Rockford. 

Because it's moments like that

two friends

happy and spontaneous

not a care in the world

young and free

that remind us what we are fighting for 

in moments like this.

Whoopi and Rainer Maria Rilke

This week, we started looking for movies to watch since we are home and sheltering in place because of the coronavirus. We were scrolling through Disney + when I saw the movie Sister Act on the screen and convinced my family to watch it.

The next day, my older son started watching Sister Act 2. (Yay! He must have actually liked the first one! He's an almost teenager so it's hard to tell what he likes or doesn't like these days...)

For some background. In Sister Act, Whoopi Goldberg witnesses a crime and has to go into hiding. She pretends to be a nun and lives in a convent where she befriends the other nuns and takes charge of their choir, makes it amazing, and save the church.

In Sister Act 2, Whoopi Goldberg is invited back to pretend to be a nun and teach students and save the church this time by turning around the school's choice program.

I was working on school stuff but listened to the movie in the background and pointed out that Lauryn Hill and Jennifer Love Hewitt were in the movie too. At one point, Lauryn Hill's character can't be in the choir because her mom won't let her. Whoopi's character trackers her down and tells her about Rainer Maria Rilke and his "Letters to a Young Poet." Here's the scene:

And here's Letters to a Young Poet (The First Letter) by Rainer Maria Rilke. I just had to go look it up because how awesome is that!? I love when pop culture gives me little nuggets of ideas to look up and explore more. 

And then of course, I wanted to know more about Whoopi Goldberg. These days she can be found on The View but she's been through a lot as an actor and it was fascinating to spend some time learning about her. Here's a fascinating episode from OWN and Oprah's Master Class that's called The Hilarious One-Woman Show That Sparked Whoopi Goldberg's Career. Whoopi Goldberg is an awesome example of being who you are. She does what makes sense to her and doesn't listen to what others think of her. 

You know, 

be an actor because you love to act. 

Don't be an actor because 

you think you're going to get famous, 

because that's luck. 

-Whoopi Goldberg

No matter what it is you want to work at, do it because you love it. Not because anyone else is telling you to do it. Not because anything is telling you that you should. Do it because it rings true for you and because you believe in doing it. 

The Day You Begin

Title: The Day You Begin 
Author: Jacqueline Woodson 
Illustrator: Rafael López  
Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books 
Publication Date: August 28th, 2018  
Genre/Format: Fiction/Picture Book 
GoodReads Summary: National Book Award winner Jacqueline Woodson and two-time Pura Belpre Illustrator Award winner Rafael Lopez have teamed up to create a poignant, yet heartening book about finding courage to connect, even when you feel scared and alone.

There will be times when you walk into a room
and no one there is quite like you.

There are many reasons to feel different. Maybe it's how you look or talk, or where you're from; maybe it's what you eat, or something just as random. It's not easy to take those first steps into a place where nobody really knows you yet, but somehow you do it.

Jacqueline Woodson's lyrical text and Rafael Lopez's dazzling art reminds us that we all feel like outsiders sometimes-and how brave it is that we go forth anyway. And that sometimes, when we reach out and begin to share our stories, others will be happy to meet us halfway.
What I Think: I adore this book. It's such a simple idea but also so universal which makes it a wonderful book to share with all ages of readers. This book was the first book I read to my students this school year and it was a great way to start. At the end of class, I asked students to write me comments and one student said that he had fun even though we talked about a serious topic and I think it was partly because of this book. The story brings things like insecurity and being an outsider and similarities and differences right into the open. Sharing this book was the perfect way to start the year. 
     As a mentor text, we're going to look at the first page when she walks into the classroom when as we brainstorm and write about doors in our lives. I especially love this book to remind us of small moments connected to the feelings we related to the in book. 
     I also really love the first line (shared below). You could lift it and write your own story from there. We've all walked into a room and had to navigate lots of feelings that would be interesting to write about.

Snatch of Text: "There will be times when you walk into a room and no one there is quite like you."

Drawn Together

Title: Drawn Together
Author: Minh Le
Illustrator: Dan Santat
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion 
Publication Date: June 5th, 2018 
Genre/Format: Fiction/Picture Book 
GoodReads Summary: When a young boy visits his grandfather, their lack of a common language leads to confusion, frustration, and silence. But as they sit down to draw together, something magical happens-with a shared love of art and storytelling, the two form a bond that goes beyond words.

With spare, direct text by Minh Lê and luminous illustrations by Caldecott Medalist Dan Santat, this stirring picture book about reaching across barriers will be cherished for years to come.
What I Think: Relationships with grandparents are special. My own kids adore their grandparents and I loved mine so much. I have memories of working in the garden and mowing the lawn with my grandpa, painting with my grandma, and playing cards with my other grandma. Each of them made me feel important. They showed me how to slow down and take my time and enjoy what I was doing. Drawn Together felt so true to me because my grandmother Mamita spoke Spanish and barely knew English. I learned most of my Spanish from her but there were still so many times when I struggled to express myself accurately to her or failed to understand what she was trying to say to me. Especially her jokes. She loved to recite poetry, sing songs, and tell stories and jokes. Jokes involve complex language which made them so hard to understand. I wish I could have better understood everything she ever said to me...but the reality is that I couldn't. It's hard to explain the heartbreak of this reality but in Drawn Together, Minh Le and Dan Santat bring this feeling to life. 
     While not everyone has the same experience with a language barrier with their grandparent, I wonder if many will still identify with the idea of misunderstanding each other in some way or another. In any relationship, there are so many ways to misunderstand each other. We can feel close and still feel so far away at the same time. 
     As a mentor text, Drawn Together can be used to spark conversations about relationships. It offers an opportunity for students to think about their own relationships and whether they recognize similarities in their own relationships or not. It's also a chance to think about how things like language differences might make growing a relationship difficult and whether there might be ways to overcome this. Student writers can then think about what relationships look like in their own writing and think about how things like language differences might impact the characters or people in their writing. 
     This book relies heavily on the illustrations to tell the story with the text. It's not a wordless picture book but there are several layouts without any text. I love books like this because they make it easy to focus on visual literacy. As a mentor text, readers can think about how they might describe what is happening in the illustrations and how to show this in their writing. It's a powerful way to link reading and writing. 
    Drawn Together is an absolutely beautiful book that everyone needs to read.
Snatch of Text:

"All the things we could never say come pouring out...

...and we build a new world that even words can't describe."

When Paul Met Artie: The Story of Simon & Garfunkel

Title: When Paul Met Artie: The Story of Simon & Garfunkel
Author: G. Neri 
Illustrator: David Litchfield
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Publication Date: March 20th, 2018 
Genre/Format: Non-Fiction/Picture Book 
GoodReads Summary: From childhood friendship to brief teenage stardom, from early failures to musical greatness — the incredible story of how Simon & Garfunkel became a cherished voice of their generation.

Long before they became one of the most beloved and successful duos of all time, Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel were just two kids growing up in Queens, New York — best friends who met in a sixth-grade production of Alice in Wonderland and bonded over girls, baseball, and rock ’n’ roll. As teens, they practiced singing into a tape recorder, building harmonies that blended their now-famous voices until they sounded just right. They wrote songs together, pursued big-time music producers, and dreamed of becoming stars, never imagining how far their music would take them. Against a backdrop of street-corner doo-wop gangs, the electrifying beginnings of rock ’n’ roll, and the rise of the counterculture folk music scene, G. Neri and David Litchfield chronicle the path that led two young boys from Queens to teenage stardom and back to obscurity, before finding their own true voices and captivating the world with their talent. Back matter includes an afterword, a discography, a bibliography, and a fascinating list of song influences. 
What I Think: G. Neri completely captured the mood of Simon and Garfunkel and their music in this wonderful non-fiction picture book biography. I could hear their acoustic guitar and folk style music in my head as I read. By the end, I had tears in my eyes after learning more about Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel and their friendship. I had no idea they had been friends since they were young. 
     I love this book because it's such a great example of how an author and illustrator have created a book that characterizes their subjects so well. This book is a great mentor text for showing what mood is. I would think about word choice here and how it contributes to the mood. I would also use this as a jumping off point to talk about writing about a historical figure and how a writer can use word choice to set the mood for their piece based on what they know about the subject. 
     As a mentor text for ideas, you could read this book and think of your own favorite singers or musicians and think about writing about them and their story. Similarly, you could dive into music and different styles of music. Once I finished reading, I went and found Simon and Garfunkel singing The Sounds of Silence on YouTube. It instantly reminded me of what I know of the time period and wanting to go and learn more. I love books as opportunities to spark curiosity and inspiration for writing. Below is the video if you want to take a trip down memory lane or maybe you've never heard the song and are curious what these two are so very well known for. 

Snatch of Text:  

"When it's over,

Paul and Artie stand there,

breathless and grinning

at each other. 

If nobody ever hears it,

at least they'll have a recording

just for themselves ---

a snapshot of their friendship,

frozen for all time."

Jabber-Walking

Title: Jabber-Walking 
Author: Juan Felipe Herrera  
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Publication Date: March 13th, 2018 
Genre/Format: Poetry 
GoodReads Summary: Juan Felipe Herrera, the first Mexican-American Poet Laureate in the USA, is sharing secrets: how to turn your wonder at the world around you into weird, wild, incandescent poetry.

Can you walk and talk at the same time? How about Jabberwalk? Can you write and draw and walk and journal all at the same time? If not, you're in luck: exuberant, blue-cheesy cilantro man Juan Felipe Herrera, Poet Laureate of the United States, is here to teach you everything he knows about being a real-life, bonified, Jabberwalking poet! Jabberwalkers write and speak for themselves and others no matter where their feet may take them -- to Jabberwalk is to be a poet on the move. And there's no stopping once you're a Jabberwalker, writing fast, fast, fast, scribble-poem-burbles-on-the-run. Scribble what you see! Scribble what you hear! It's all out there -- vamonos! 
What I Think: I love this! It's part writing strategy, part humorous fiction, and part autobiographical. Juan Felipe takes us on a wonderful journey. Even though I read this in one sitting at my kitchen table, it was like I was off and zipping around with him on writing adventures. He shares ideas for how to gather up ideas around you or from things you have read. And he shares stories from his life and how he became a poet. This book exudes voice like salsa juice running down your wrist as you try to eat an over-stuffed burrito. 
     As a mentor text you can totally share this book with students as you talk through how to gather up ideas. You can ask them to try jabber walking or even go on a jabber walk with them yourself. You can also look at voice because his voice to distinctly jumps out at you. No one else could have written this book. Voice is such a hard idea to grasp and having examples like Jabber-Walking is great because it's so obvious. It's so easy to see and hear his voice so it makes a perfect mentor text to study for voice. I would pair it with another poet to show the difference. Robert Frost comes to mind because he clearly writes poem about nature and about walking around and observing things but his style is so different from Herrera. 
Snatch of Text:  
     "SCRIBBLE your burbles, your words of things --- that you see and think and feel but it is really not thinking or even feeling. It is plain ole bonified, fuzzy, puffy, blue-cheesy, incandescent, brave Jabber!
     Jabberwalking is not for the neat, polished, well-combed aesthete --- it is as stated in the epigraph by Señor Lewis Carroll at the start of this fine volume. Jabberwalking is for the Jabber Walker with "eyes of flame."
Writing Prompt: Try going for a jabber walk! Grab your notebook or anything to write on and write with. Wander somewhere new or different and jot down what you see and notice. Then turn it into a poem. 

What Do You Do With a Chance?

Title: What Do You Do With a Chance? 
Author: Kobi Yamada  
Illustrator: Mae Besom 
Publisher: Compendium Inc 
Publication Date: January, 2018
Genre/Format: Fiction/Picture Book 
GoodReads Summary: This is a story of a child who isn't sure what to make of a chance encounter-then discovers that when you say yes to new experiences, amazing things can happen. 
What I Think: I'm a fan of having a growth mindset and discussing what it means to have a growth mindset...but that doesn't mean living a growth mindset is easy. Doing something new and taking a risk is actually really hard. In fact, I don't think we talk enough about how difficult it actually is. I love how What Do You Do With A Chance? gives readers the opportunity to think about how hard it is. 

I blogged recently about using my voice to speak up and how hard it was because it's important to see how hard it is. I hope people recognize when they have a chance and that they take advantage of any chances that come their way, but I completely understand how hard it is. 

As a mentor text, I would use this book as an opportunity to brainstorm ideas for personal narratives with kids. Sometimes we don't see how important our experiences are in writing. If students can see how their memories are valued, it helps them see themselves as writers. But also, we don't always want to write about a struggle or how it felt. And guess what? Most often, writing honestly about struggle makes the most interesting stories. 

Snatch of Text: "Then I thought, 'Maybe I don't have to be brave all the time. Maybe I just need to be brave for a little while at the right time.' 
Writing Prompt: Write about at time in your life when you took a chance. How did it go? How did it feel? What did you learn from the experience?