Based on the true story of a young Jewish girl living in Paris during the horrific days of the Nazi invasion, Odette’s Secrets is a poignant and thoughtful depiction of one child’s life and death experience. As is stated on the flap copy, “Inspired by the life of the real Odette Meyers – and written… Read more »
Tool Box
Teaching Diversity Through Oral Storytelling
Teaching with Story: Classroom Connections to Storytelling (August House, 2013) is a celebration of a family who has joined together to share their delight in oral storytelling and all of the diversity that comes with it. Author Margaret Read MacDonald has devoted her career to sharing the joys of storytelling with parents, educators, and librarians. Inspired by… Read more »
“New Arrivals” – An Important Genre in the KidLit Arena
Children are children. Whether they wear a turban or track shoes, they share the same human need for a sense of belonging, acceptance, and understanding – no matter what culture they hail from. Well-crafted books are the place in which a bridge of cultural understanding can be established. Most especially, books crafted with America’s refugee… Read more »
Lara’s Gift, by Annemarie O’Brien
Lara’s Gift (Knopf, 2013), written by Annemarie O’Brien, is the type of book that will find a lasting place in the hearts of contemporary children and those who care for them. This timeless tale, loaded with family tradition and pride, takes place in snow-bound Russia during the early 1900’s. There we find a young girl… Read more »
Genre Connections: POETRY
Like her previously published, Comprehension Connections (Heinemann, 2007), Genre Connections: Lessons to Launch Literary and Nonfiction Texts by Tanny McGregor (Heinemann, 2013) is a great go-to resource for teachers looking for concrete, hands-on lessons that introduce students to “Big Idea” concepts. I particularly love Tanny’s idea of launching a unit of study on poetry by asking, “How is a poem like a… Read more »
Forest Has a Song by Amy Ludwig VanDerwater
The forest is a living, breathing entity, alive with noise and song. Subtle music that can be missed if one is not quiet and still, with ears to hear. Debut author Amy Ludwig VanDerwater has beautifully captured the forest’s delicate melody in her tender Forest Has a Song. Click HERE to access a Poetry Activity Kit in… Read more »
Cowboy Up! by Nancy Bo Flood
Teachers, librarians, and cowpokes alike! Pony up and access this CCSS Annotated Educational Activity Guide for Cowboy Up!, then let ’em ride! Right out of the chute, let the vivid richness of Nancy Bo Flood’s poetry and Jan Sonnenmair’s provocative photographs inspire your young ‘uns to connect with the rodeo experience on a lively literary level. Along with a… Read more »
