Over the summer, I decided it would be fun to look back through all the mail kids sent me during the 2014-2015 school year. I've picked out some of my favorites and will be posting one every Friday. They truly are inspiring.
Friday, February 27, 2015
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Behind the Books: Nonfiction Booktalking
Booktalking can be
a great way to get students excited about the books available in a library or classroom
collection. When booktalking a fiction title, you might begin by saying something
like “it’s a paranormal romance presented from multiple points of view” or “it’s
a contemporary realistic novel with an unreliable narrator.” These descriptions
give students a general idea of what they’ll encounter without giving away the
book’s plot.
Do you approach
nonfiction booktalking in the same way? Probably not. Chances are you focus on
what the book’s about. Sure, the topic of a nonfiction book is important. But
so is the plot of a novel.
The reason we focus
on a nonfiction book’s topic is because we don’t know how to do anything else.
That’s because there’s no widely-accepted categories to provide a broad
overview. But there should be, and I don’t think it would be that hard to come
up with a system that works most of the time.
Earlier this school
year, I blogged about nonfiction types (survey, specialized, concept,
biography/autobiography), styles (expository, narrative, persuasive),
and structures (description, sequence/order,
compare & contrast, question & answer, cause & effect, and problem
& solution). Over the last few weeks, I’ve been writing about voice
and point of view. Why not use them
as a starting point for booktalking nonfiction?
For example, if I
were booktalking Bugged: How Insects
Changed the World by Sarah Albee, I might say “it’s an expository survey
with a chronological structure; a lively, humorous, conversational voice; and a
second-person point of view.
Because Bugged is a book for middle-grade
readers, it’s perfectly reasonable that students could have been introduced to all
the terms I’ve used above, just as they’ve been introduced to the meaning of
“multiple points of view” and “contemporary realistic novel.” My description of
Bugged lets readers know that the
book is full of fascinating facts explained in context and that it will be fun
to read.
This sort of
terminology can also be used in written book reviews to give potential readers
a stronger sense of how the information is presented. Of course, the trick to
the success of this approach is getting everyone up to speed on the
terminology.
What do you think?
Could it work?
Monday, February 23, 2015
Teaching STE(A)M with Kidlit
A couple of weeks ago, the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) released four fantastic lists of multicultural children's books that showcase STEAM topics.
The lists were created for the organization's Diversity in Action Family Book Club program, but the books are all well suited for classroom use as well. Enjoy!
The lists were created for the organization's Diversity in Action Family Book Club program, but the books are all well suited for classroom use as well. Enjoy!
Friday, February 13, 2015
Fan-mail Friday
Over the summer, I decided it would be fun to look back through all the mail kids sent me during the 2014-2015 school year. I've picked out some of my favorites and will be posting one every Friday. They truly are inspiring.
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
Behind the Books: Nonfiction Point of View, Part 2
This week I’m
continuing my discussion of point of view in nonfiction writing. In
second-person point of view, the author engages his/her readers by addressing
them directly with liberal use of the word “you.”
Want to know more? Well, ur-ine luck!
When the author is
writing with an expository style, the voice is usually lively and
conversational. Examples include Bugged:
How Insects Changed the World by Sarah Albee, If You Hopped Like a Frog by David Schwartz and my book Animal Grossapedia. Here’s a sample:
Snot. Poop. Pee. We humans think these gross, gooey, stinky substances
are totally disgusting!
But here’s a surprise: Some animals have a very different view
of this yucky stuff. Burrowing owls collect poop. Desert tortoises use pee for
protection. And camels puke on one another when they’re mad. Yep, it’s true. Want to know more? Well, ur-ine luck!
When the author is writing with
a narrative style, his/her intent is to bring readers right into the middle of
the action. The voice is often energetic and descriptive. Examples include Journey
into the Deep by Rebecca L. Johnson, If You Decide to Go to the Moon by Faith McNulty, and Army Ant Parade by April Pulley Sayre. Here’s a sample:
If you awake in a tent
under a green canopy of trees
one morning in Panama,
and all you hear is your heartbeat
and a strange silence,
then you know they are coming.
While second-person point of view is
becoming increasingly popular in nonfiction for kids, most titles continue to
be written tried-and-true third person.
Monday, February 9, 2015
Teaching Science with Kidlit
For the past few months, Alyson Beecher, the incredibly hard-working, dedicated, and passionate literacy specialist and curriculum coordinator for the Pasadena Unified School District has been working with the amazing school librarian and teachers at Jackson STEM Dual Language Magnet School to immerse grade 1 and 2 students in the lessons included in Perfect Pairs: Using Fiction and Nonfiction Picture Books to Teach Life, K-2.
Alyson created this fun animoto photo collage to document their work. Enjoy.
Alyson created this fun animoto photo collage to document their work. Enjoy.
Friday, February 6, 2015
Fan-mail Friday
Over the summer, I decided it would be fun to look back through all the mail kids sent me during the 2014-2015 school year. I've picked out some of my favorites and will be posting one every Friday. They truly are inspiring.
Wednesday, February 4, 2015
Behind the Books: Nonfiction Point of View, Part 1
Last week, as I was
listing common characteristics of lively vs. lyrical voice in nonfiction
writing, I mentioned point of view. This week I’m going to plunge more deeply
into the topic.
Traditionally, first-person
point of view was reserved for nonfiction books in which the author shared
his/her own personal story. Examples include autobiographies like The Scraps Book:
Notes from a Colorful Life by Lois Ehlert
or memoirs like Brown Girl Dreaming
by Jackie Woodson and El Deafo by Cece Bell.
In recent years,
however, authors have been experimenting. In Blockhead: The Life of Fibonacci, published in 2010, author Joseph D'Agnese uses
first-person point of view to show us the world as Fibonacci experienced it. Brad
Meltzer’s very popular Ordinary People Change the
World series includes such titles as I Am
Amelia Earhart, I Am Abraham Lincoln, and I Am Rosa Parks in which the historic figures seem to tell very
young readers (K-2) their own stories in very simple text.
Are these books really nonfiction? The Library of Congress says yes, but I'm not sure I agree. I really think of them as historical fiction. What do you think?
Next week, I'll take a look at the incredible power of second point of view in nonfiction. Stay tuned.
Next week, I'll take a look at the incredible power of second point of view in nonfiction. Stay tuned.
Monday, February 2, 2015
Teaching Science with Kidlit
NGSS doesn't include a K-2 standard related to the butterfly lifecycle, but this topic is often included in early elementary curricula.
If you'd like to teach this concept, try these book pairs:
For more suggestions and a fall lesson, check out Perfect Pairs:
If you'd like to teach this concept, try these book pairs:
For more suggestions and a fall lesson, check out Perfect Pairs:
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