Posts tagged ‘military’
104. Postcards from a War by Vanita Oelschlager
Retell: Brian’s mom is in the Air Force. Brian is sad that she has gone away to war. To console him, Brian’s grandfather talks about the time his own father fought in World War II. While he was in Manila he would send letters and postcards to his family to make them feel better. Brian soon receives digital letters from his mom and begins to feel more connected.
Topics: family, communication, war, World War II, letters, reconstruction, military
Units of Study: Realistic Fiction, Personal Narratives, Memoir
Reading Skills: envisionment, monitoring for sense
Writing Skills: writing from another person’s perspective, quoting written material, using photos to inspire notebook entries
My Thoughts: I highly recommend this text for any teacher who may have a student with a family member in the military. This is a particularly powerful read aloud for Writing. The text shows how important writing is and how writing can connect a family. The author includes authentic photographs that were sent by her father during World War II. It would be great to read this book to students who struggle with generating ideas. I can imagine this book inspiring young writers to go home and look through family photos in order to generate ideas for personal narratives, memoirs or even realistic fiction.
31. The Greatest Power by Demi
Retell: Emperor Ping, the boy emperor of China, appreciates honesty and harmony. He wants to appoint an honest and wise prime minister so he decides to hold a contest. The child who can think of the greatest power in the world will become the next prime minister. Children far and wide prepare presentations for the emperor. A young girl named Sing sits by a lotus pond and comes up with an answer that is quite different from the rest.
Topics: technology, beauty, military, power, money, life, life cycle, China
Units of Study: Talking and Writing About Texts, Content Area
Tribes: personal best, appreciations/no put downs
Reading Skills: interpretation, prediction
Writing Skills: repetition
My Thoughts: Fifth grade teachers at my school do this great unit on power. They examine power structures at home, in the neighborhood, in the classroom, at school, and so on. The Greatest Power could be a great companion to that unit. It will spark discussions about what makes a powerful group or a powerful nation. I could also see this book being used during a unit on the life cycle. Sing after sitting by apond and contemplating a lotus flower is fascinated by its life cycle. She determines that life is the greatest power on earth.
Teachable Texts 