Posts tagged ‘growing up’
102. How Have I Grown? by Mary Reid
Retell: A kindergartner reflects on how much she has grown.
Topics: kindergarten, growing up, babies, sharing
Units of Study: Authoring an Independent Reading Life, (This could be used during the editing process of any unit of study.)
Tribes: mutual respect, attentive listening
Writing Skills: using past tense
My Thoughts: I almost dismissed this book as being too young to be used in a fourth grade classroom. Though I probably wouldn’t read it aloud to the entire class, I would read it to a small group of writers who struggle with past tense. When the main character is looking back to her life as a baby and as a “little kid”, she uses only past tense verbs: “I wore diapers. I took two naps…Sometimes I had a hard time.” When she reflects on her current behavior she uses present tense verbs: “I can make up stories! I can listen to my friends tell stories, too.” This book has inspired me to dig deep into the libraries of my lower-grade colleagues to search for more grammar read alouds.
7. Guys Write for Guys Read
Retell: Jon Scieszka edits this fabulous collection of stories, comics, essays, illustrations and vignettes contributed by prominent male authors and illustrators. Contributors include: Stephen King, Matt Groening, Jerry Spinelli, Seymour Simon, James Howe, Neil Gaiman, Gary Paulsen and many more. Royalties from the book are used to support Scieszka’s Guys Read Program.
Topics: boys, family, growing up, reading, writing, art
Units of Study: Personal Narrative, Launching the Reading and Writing Workshop, Character, Personal Essay, Content-Area Reading and Writing, Nonfiction, Memoir, Social Issues, Fantasy, Preparing for the ELA
Tribes: Mutual Respect, Personal Best, Appreciations/No Putdowns, Right to Pass
Reading Skills: inference, making connections, interpretation
Writing Skills: writing with voice, zooming in on a small moment, observing the world for stories
My Thoughts: This book is teacher gold! Guys Write for Guys Read has a plethora of short stories that can be used for mentor texts in almost every Reading and Writing unit. One of the stories, “Reading Can Be Dangerous” by Tedd Arnold was featured on the 5th grade ELA test last year. James Howe, author of Bunnicula, writes a personal narrative about getting help from a friend on how to be a boy–a great text for personal essay or discussing gender issues. Many authors write about how they came to love reading and writing. Christopher Paolini, author of Eragon, writes about how he fell in love with fantasy–great to read when you launch a unit on Fantasy reading and writing. Patrick Jones, a librarian, writes about how being interested in wrestling inspired him to become a voracious reader. Many entries include samples of famous authors childhood work alongside their adult work. For example, Dav Pilkey, author/illustrator of the infamous Captain Underpants series, writes about a comic strip he started when he was 11. I will probably use this book for almost every unit I teach this year.
If you don’t pick up a copy of this book you must go to Scieska’s website, Guys Read. The site is dedicated to inspiring more young boys to fall in love with reading. Mr. Scieszka, you’re my hero.
Teachable Texts 