Eve of the Emperor Penguin

In order to save Merlin, Jack and Annie must continue their quest to find the secrets of happiness.  In this mission the Magic Tree House takes them to a place they have never visited before:  Antarctica.  It is here that they meet scientists, reporters, and penguins.  There goal is to find the Cave of the Ancient Crown.  This book was awarded Children's Choice in 2009.

Reading Level:
     Lexile: 530

Genre/Theme:
     Fiction
     Penguins
     Antarctica

Subject:
     English Language Arts
     Science

Teaching ideas for a 3rd Grade Classroom:
     Web Resources:   http://www.magictreehouse.com/#- students can use this site to create their passport, play games, or watch book trailers.

http://www.magictreehouse.com/#teachers-guide-40-penguin - teachers can use this site to get ideas that will help increase students comprehension through various activities.

http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/animals/creaturefeature/emperor-penguin/ is another great website which students can use to research facts about the Emperor Penguin.

Suggested Delivery:  Small Groups

Before Reading:
     Vocabulary to introduce: cloak, enchanters, Gondwana, petrels, parkas, altitude sickness
Provide students with an anticipation guide that has the following three questions: 1) What do Jack and Annie have to look out for on Mount Erebus?  2) What scientific research station do Jack and Annie visit in Antarctica?  3) Eons ago, Antarctica broke away and drifted south from what supercontinent?

During Reading:
Have students use split-page notetaking to write down the main idea on one side and supporting details on the other.  Also, have students (after the main idea) state whether they believe this is fact or fiction.  This will help them as they conduct their research after the reading.  Have each student share their notes with their group.

After Reading:
Introduce the research guide that accompanys this book, Penguins and Antarctica.  Have students use the information from both books to conduct research about the Emperor Penguin.  Students may also use the website from above from National Geographic Kids.  Students may continue working in small groups as they take notes, write, edit, and revise their research findings.

Osborne, M. P., & Murdocca, S. (2008). Eve of the Emperor penguin. New York: Random House.

Pink and Say

This picture book takes place during the Civil War.  When 15 year-old Sheldon Curtis is wounded badly and left for dead, African-American Pinkus Aylee comes to his rescue.  Even though both boys are fighting for the Union, both are fighting for different causes. 

Reading Level:
     Lexile: 590

Genre/Theme:
     Diversity/Friendship
     Historical Fiction
     Civil War
     Courage

Subject:
     Social Studies
     English Language Arts

Teaching ideas for a 5th Grade Classroom:
     Web Resources: http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/lesson-plan/pink-and-say-lesson-plan offers a lesson plan which gives the idea for this book to be used as an initiation for the Civil War.

http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/acquiring-vocabulary-through-book-170.html?tab=3#tabs also offers a lesson plan which helps students aquire new vocabulary through the reading of this book.

Suggested Delivery:  Small Groups

Before Reading:
     Vocabulary to introduce:  mahogany, winderlight, marauders, vittles, spectacles, inconsolable
Using a KWL Chart, ask students what they know about the Civil War.  Record their responses.  Ask students what they hope to learn.  Record their responses. 

During Reading:
Students should continue working on KWL Chart.  Students should use highlighting tape to mark any unfamiliar words they come across, or keep a list of unfamiliar words in their reading journals.

After Reading:
Students will complete KWL Chart.  Students will pretend to be reporters working during the Civil War.  There job is to interview either Pink or Say at Andersonville Camp.  They must ask (and answer) atleast 5 questions.

Polacco, P. (1994). Pink and Say. New York: Philomel Books.

Who's Got Game? The Lion or the Mouse?

This graphic novel is an interpretation of The Lion and the Mouse, one of the most famous Aesop fables.  The lion claims to be the baddest in the land until he steps on a thorn.  None of the other animals want to help lion except the mouse.  The mouse helps lion and then quickly feels like he is the baddest in the land.  It's at this point that lion can see how he was acting.  The last line sends the message as lion says, "Is he who wants to be a bully just scared to be himself?"

Reading Level:
     Lexile: 490

Genre/Theme:
     Graphic Novel
     Aesop's Fables
     Bullying

Subject:
     English Language Arts

Teaching ideas for a 3rd Grade Classroom:
     Web Resources:
http://authors.simonandschuster.net/tagged_assets/ak01_0743222490_648.pdf gives teaching ideas for before, during , and after reading.

http://www.hbavenues.com/highpoint/library/LevLib.asp?CollectionID=1- offers teaching strategies for cause and effect, making inferences, summarizing, and paraphrasing.

Suggested Delivery:  Paired Reading

Before Reading:
     Vocabulary to introduce:  strutting, savannah, bounded, sauntered, contraption, pestering
Have students make predictions based on the title and cover of the book.  Ask students what is meant by "got game".  Explain that it means "who's better".  Ask students what makes someone a bully.  Have them pair-share a time when they themselves were being bullied or they know someone that was being bullied.  Explain that throughout this story the characters change.  The purpose of this reading is to see if students can identify the various cause and effect relationships. 

During Reading:
Have students use a cause and effect graphic organizer.  After reading each section, students should work with their partner to identify any cause and effect relationships and fill in their chart. 

After Reading:
Have students check their predictions.  Since this story is a graphic novel, students can work in pairs to create a comic strip that explains what happened next to mouse or to lion.  Have the students share their completed comic strips with the class. http://www.readwritethink.org/parent-afterschool-resources/games-tools/comic-creator-a-30237.html offers a way for students to use technology and create their own comics.

Morrison, T., Morrison, S., & Lemaître, P. (2003). Who's got game?: the lion or the mouse?. New York: Scribner.

Library Mouse A World to Explore

Sam is a mouse that lives in the library.  He loves to read and research subjects and then write about them.  Sam quickly meets another mouse named Sarah.  She is quite the explorer. She loves to climb to the tops of shelves and explore the darkest corners of the building. Sam is too afraid to climb up far. Sarah doesn’t know much about writing or research, but could reading and research help her learn more about the places she wishes to visit?

Reading Level:
     Lexile: NC 830 - This book is ideal for students who are in 3rd grade and reading at a higher level.  The  Lexile Level is higher than the author's intended audience. 

Genre/Theme:
     Fiction
     Research/Writing

Subject:
     English Language Arts
    
Teaching ideas for a 3rd Grade Class:
     Web Resources:  http://issuu.com/hnabooks/docs/librarymousefinal offers a teaching guide including discussion questions, journal activity, and research project.

http://www.danielkirk.com/ is the author/illustrator of Library Mouse A World to Explore.  His website offers ideas such as having students create their own books.

Suggested Delivery:  Read aloud

Before Reading:
     Vocabulary to introduce:  reference books, gazing, gracefully, research, pharaohs, clenched
Ask students to brainstorm what they know about libraries.  What types of books will they find?  Introduce the text and have students make predictions based on the cover.  Introduce to students a Word Scavenger Hunt in which they are to listen for any words that relate to the library.

During Reading:
Pause throughout the reading and have students share any words they have found that relate to library. 
Have students check their predictions.

After Reading:
Have students share their responses to the Word Scavenger Hunt.  Write their responses on chart paper.  Did any of them mention research?  Sam loved to research various places and things and then write about them.  Have students choose a topic to research and write about.  Topics may include a current event, person, place, or thing.

Kirk, Daniel. (2010). Library Mouse A World to Explore. New York: Abrams Books for Young Readers.

Kakapo Rescue: Saving the world's strangest parrot

On a remote island off the coast of New Zealand live the last 91 kakapo parrots on earth. Humans brought predators to the island which has brought this species near the brink of extinction.  Now this island serves as a refuge and a team of scientists are trying to restore the kakapo population.

Reading Level:    
     Lexile: 950
   
Genre/Theme:    
     Nonfiction
     Birds

Subject:    
     Science
     English Language Arts

Teaching ideas for a 4th Grade Class:
     Web Resources:  http://www.kakaporecovery.org.nz/ is a great website for students to visit.  This website offers a Kids Track to follow the Kakapo rescue.  It also lets students meet the people who are working to save this beautiful bird. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbQgu0ilg8U Stephen Fry offers a 2:14 minute insight to the Kakapo and Codfish Island. 

Suggested Delivery:  Read aloud

Before Reading: 

     Vocabulary to introduce:  extinction, conservationists, quarantine, autopsy, predators, incubator

Give students an anticipation guide that will have the following questions:  What makes the Kakapo the world's strangest parrot?  What are some of the reasons they are near extinction?  Where is Codfish Island?  (Locate on world map)  Where is Lisa's nest?  What is meant by "mast years"?  What are nest-minders and why are they important?

During Reading:

Have students work on anticipation guide questions.  Help students take notes by using a split-page note taking technique.

After Reading:

Have students visit the Kakapo Recovery website from above.  Students can then compare information from their split-page note taking to the actual website.  Have students write a paragraph that entails the current status of this beautiful bird.

Montgomery, S., & Bishop, N. (2010). Kakapo rescue: saving the world's strangest parrot. Boston Mass.: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children.

Little Audrey

The story is told through the eyes of 11-year-old Audrey.  Audrey is beign raised in a coal mining camp in South/West Virginia during 1948.  She wants to "live better" than she does.  It isn't until Audrey's father is killed in an automobile accident that she will have the chance to "live better". 

Reading Level:
     Lexile: 630

Genre/Theme:
     Historical Fiction
     Jewell Valley Coal Mining Camp

Subject:
     Social Studies
     English Language Arts

Teaching ideas for 6th Grade Class:    
     Web resources:  http://www.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?title=Little_Audrey_by_Ruth_White&video_id=164399&vpkey= offers a short video to introduce the story's setting.

http://www.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?title=Little_Audrey_by_Ruth_White&video_id=164399&vpkey= students can view actual pictures from today of Jewell Valley.

Suggested Delivery:  Independent

Before Reading:
     Vocabulary to introduce:  starch, stumped, creek, prissy, exasperating, hysterics
Have students watch one of the two videos from above to introduce the setting of this story.

During Reading:
Have students use a graphic organizer to keep track of the various characters and conflicts. 

After Reading:
Have students write a paragraph in which they Question the Author.

White, Ruth. (2008). Little Audrey . New York: Farrar Straus Giroux.

The Barefoot Book of Dance Stories

   

Combining art with storytelling, this book has eight different stories that each represent a different culture.  From witches to fairies, each story is full of adventure and mystery.  Included in the "Contents" is information on the country and dance that each story is focused around.  There is also a section on all the different dances that were represented in the book.   

Reading Level:
     Lexile:  700-1000
   
Genre/Theme:
     Diversity    
     Folktale
     Dance

Subject:
     English Language Arts
     Social Studies:  Germany, Japan, West Indies, Spain, Czech Republic, Egypt, Scotland, Mali

Teaching ideas for 4th Grade Class:
     Web Resources:  http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/exploring-world-cultures-through-91.html offers a lesson plan using folktales which could be incorporated.

http://www.myfreshplans.com/2010-12/twelve-dancing-princesses-lesson-plans/ offers ideas when using the first folktale "The Twelve Dancing Princesses".  These ideas include ways to incorporate Math, Science, and Critical Thinking skills.

Suggested Delivery:  Guided Reading

Before Reading: 
     Vocabulary to introduce:  proclomation, concealed, celestial, diabolical, spindle, tartan
Using SKYPE, students can participate in an online chat with Jane Yolen to help further their understanding of dance stories.

During Reading:
Students will participate in a jigsaw activity.  Each reading group will be responsible for reading one of the eight stories and serve as an expert in their group.

After Reading:
Students will write an exit slip answering the following:  Which folktale was your favorite and why? 
Students will then participate in Readers' Theatre in which dance can be incorporated. 


Stemple, H. E., & Yolen, J. (2009). The Barefoot book of dance stories. Cambridge: Barefoot Books.