Nonfiction Monday -- Sisters & Brothers

Sisters & Brothers: Sibling Relationships in the Animal World
by Steve Jenkins & Robin Page
Houghton Mifflin, 2008
review copy compliments of the publisher



We've been paying close attention to the ways nonfiction texts are organized. Some present the information by comparing similarities, while others contrast differences. Some use a time line to lay out the facts in chronological order. Most use some form of topic (usually the title or subject matter of the book) -- subtopic (often page-by-page) -- and detail (more and more the details are found in the back of the book) structure.

"Sibling relationships in the animal world" is the topic of Jenkins and Page's newest collaborative venture. The illustrations are classic Jenkins -- gorgeous and captivating cut- and torn-paper collages. Each page or spread has a sort of tab of torn paper, either at the top or bottom, on which can be found the subtopic for that page. In addition, each page has a statement, phrase, or question in large font near the illustration that summarizes the details or draws the reader into the paragraph of details about that animal's sibling relationships. For example, on the page with the New Mexico whiptail lizards, the tab is "Sisters," and the large font phrase reads, "Girls rule!" The reader is hooked into learning about an animal species that is entirely female. Only girls are born in New Mexico whiptail families, and the species reproduces without males.

In the back of the book is a paragraph of general information about each animal featured in the book: its size, what it eats, and where it lives.

This is a great book for any classroom or collection serving animal lovers, and an excellent mentor text for a study on the organization of nonfiction text, both for readers and for writers.



The Nonfiction Monday round up is at Picture Book of the Day.

Nonfiction Monday

My new favorite nonfiction book for young children is CLOSE TO YOU: HOW ANIMALS BOND by Kimiko Kajikawa. I love great nonfiction books with predictable text. This new book is a great one for new readers. Each page follows a pattern about an animal and its baby. "Polar Bears cuddle in a den of snow." and "Ducklings line up in a single row." There are photos to accompany each animal's fact.

This is also a great book for older readers because of the huge amount of info at the end of the book. One two page spread goes on to explain each of the photos that is in the book. Another addition at the end of the book is a chart with lots of animal info (number of babies, weight at birth, weight at maturity, age of Independence).

A great book --especially for young readers!

Nonfiction Monday -- Nonfiction Poetry

The World's Greatest: Poems
by J. Patrick Lewis
illustrated by Keith Graves
Chronicle Books, 2008
review copy purchased at my favorite independent seller of children's books, Cover to Cover



Monumental Verses
by J. Patrick Lewis
published by the National Geographic Society, 2005
review copy purchased at my favorite independent seller of children's books, Cover to Cover

Here are two of my new favorite poetry books. They are also two of my new favorite nonfiction books!

Kids love the Guinness Book of World Records. In The World's Greatest: Poems, J. Patrick Lewis has picked 25 world records as the topics of poems as widely varied as the styles of the poems: from the dumbest dinosaur to the most live scorpions eaten by a human, and from acrostics to limericks (aptly enough, the limerick is for the poem about the biggest potato). I dedicate the poem "The Most Plates Spinning" (Dave Spathaky, London, England, 108 plates, November 23, 1992) to kindergarten and first grade teachers everywhere.

Monumental Verses is a trip around the world to see (in gorgeous, full-color, National Geographic photographs) thirteen of the world's greatest human-made landmarks. They are as ancient as Stonehenge and Easter Island and Machu Picchu, and as modern as the Golden Gate Bridge and the Empire State Building. Again, J. Patrick Lewis treats the reader to a variety of poetic forms including three that match the monument -- a large T-shaped slab of prose poetry for Stonehenge, a pyramid of poetry for The Great Pyramid of Cheops, and a twisting S of poetry for the Great Wall of China.

Here are some bonus extras:

The official J. Patrick Lewis website.

World's Greatest: Poems reviewed at 7-Imp.

Integrating science and social studies with J. Patrick Lewis' A World of Wonders: Geographic Travels in Verse and Rhyme at Miss Rumphius.

Elaine's Wild Rose Reader interview with J. Patrick Lewis.

The Nonfiction Monday Round Up is at Picture Book of the Day.

Nonfiction Monday -- One Hen

One Hen: How One Small Loan Made a Big Difference
by Katie Smith Milway
illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes
Kids Can Press, 2008
review copy compliments of the publisher

Based on the true story of Ghanian Kwabena Darko, ONE HEN tells the story of the difference that microfinancing can make to an individual, a family, a community, and ultimately, a country.

In the story, Kojo and his mother live in a community that pools its resources and allows the families to take turns borrowing the money for a project that will help them to make a profit before they pay back the loan. Kojo's mother uses her turn to buy a cart so she can carry more firewood to market. With a part of their profit, Kojo buys one hen. The hen provides them with eggs, but also generates more profit. Kojo buys more hens, realizes he needs to finish school to better run his business and eventually gets a scholarship to an agricultural college. When he returns from college, he expands his poultry business, providing jobs for the community and paying taxes that help his country.

ONE HEN is beautifully designed. The illustrations, by Eugenie Fernandes, are bold and colorful paintings. Each double page spread is one third or one half text on a rich (pun intended), luminous gold background. On each illustration is a line reminiscent of "The House That Jack Built":

This is Kojo.
This is the loan that Kojo gets.
This is the hen that Kojo buys with the loan he got.
These are the eggs that Kojo sells from the hen he bought.

The book includes information about the "Real Kojo," Kwabena Darko, and sections titled "What you can do to help?" and "Making changes in the world, on person, one family, one community at a time..." There is also a glossary of African and economics terms.

Teaching economics has always seemed abstract and irrelevant to 10 year-olds. I think all that will change this year when I use this book as the anchor of my economics unit.

One Hen was featured on the NPR story, Child's 'One Hen' Lays Microlending Success.

Be sure to check out the One Hen website.



The Nonfiction Monday roundup is at Picture Book of the Day.

Nonfiction Monday -- Sabertooth

Sabertooth
by Patrick O'Brien
Henry Holt, 2008
review copy compliments of the publisher

Step aside, dinosaurs. Time to pay attention to the kitties.

Sabertooths of some kind or another hunted the Earth from 13 million to 10,000 years ago. The best-known, and the star of this book, was the Smilodon (3 million-10,000 years ago).

O'Brien's painted illustrations vary from full-spread to full-page to multiple panels per page. With the text in boxes that overlap or overlay the illustrations, the book almost has the feel of a nonfiction graphic novel.

You will learn how scientists know what they do about this ancient cat (the fossil record), how all cats evolved from one common ancestor, what scientists don't know about sabertooths (what color their fur was, whether they hunted alone or in cooperation), the prehistoric predators they likely competed with for food, and the food animals they might have hunted.

The book ends on a cautionary note, reminding us that we need to protect the habitats of our modern big cats, or they, too, will go the way of the sabertooths.



The Nonfiction Monday Roundup is at Picture Book of the Day.

Nonfiction Monday -- Trout Are Made of Trees

Trout Are Made of Trees
by April Pulley Sayre
illustrated by Kate Endle
Charlesbridge, 2008
review copy compliments of the author


This was a fun book to read to fourth graders. They knew what it was going to be about as soon as I read the title. "This is a food chain book, isn't it?!"

That did not prevent them from listening intently as I read. The text is simple, but poetic: "They (the leaves) snag and settle soggily down."

The illustrations tell the story of the children studying the stream as well as the story of the life in the stream. And the illustrations were painstakingly researched. Although stylized, the aquatic insects are true to life, right down to the gravel cases of the caddisfly larva.

One of our Language Arts Standards talks about writing for different purposes and audiences. When I finished the book, I asked my students who they thought was the intended audience for this book. "Kids," they said. "Little kids," someone elaborated, "Because there aren't very many words on each page."

I'm betting that another audience for this book will by fly fishers. I'm going to take a copy of the book to our next fly fishing club meeting for the raffle. I'm pretty sure there are some fly fisher dads (one is an avid member of Trout Unlimited and does lots of stream restoration) who would gladly take this book home.



April Pulley Sayre on writing nonfiction at I.N.K..
An early review of Trout Are Made of Trees at Charlotte's Library.
Our interview with April last year is here.
April's website is here.
The Nonfiction Monday roundup is here.

NonFiction Monday

As part of our writing workshop, we are doing a study of Literary Nonfiction. When I think about what that means, I think it is quality nonfiction writing --the nonfiction writing that has the qualities of good writing. It is different from encyclopedia or traditional report writing.

Knowing that this is a big focus for our grade level standards, I have been trying to pick up some good mentor texts--nonfiction books that students can learn from. I am amazed by how many great nonfiction books are out there these days. These are some of the newer ones I've picked up.

POOP: A Natural History of the Unmentionable by Nicola Davies
The version of this that I purchased is a very tiny book (3" X 5") which makes it quite fun! The illustrations are amusing and the writing has a great deal of humor embedded in it. A topic that kids love to read about and they can certainly learn from the casualness of the writing.




THE BROOK BOOK: EXPLORING SMALL STREAMS by Jim Arnosky is full of great information about brooks. The illustrations are soft and the colors work. Many features of nonfiction text (labels, question headings, etc.) are embedded throughout and there is variety in the page layouts. The language is perfect when looking at quality nonfiction writing. One page says, "As a brook tumbles and runs downhill, the moving water shapes te land it flows over." Every line seems packed with information and the writing is quality nonfiction. The author's note lets readers know that the book is set up to help you get the most out of a visit to a local brook!


A DICTIONARY OF DANCE by Liz Murphy is a fun dictionary of dance vocabulary. Each letter of the alphabet is accompanied by a dance specific word such as improvisation or kick. The pronunciation and definition are included. The illustrations give readers a visual to further explain the word.



I GET WET by Vicki Cobb is an older book (2002) that I just discovered. I purchased this one because of the writing and the page layouts. Cobb often places the words in a wave coming out of a faucet or something similar. The key is that the writing in those spaces is well-written. My students often have fun with font and word placement but forget about the quality of writing when doing so. This will show them how to tie those things together.

FROGS by Nic Bishop
The photographs in this book were what drew me to it in the first place. The writing is as spectacular as the photos. The book is packed with information and organized in paragraphs about different things. One paragraph lead says, "Some people are confused about the difference between a frog and a toad, but you do not have to be." Love that! A great index and glossary are found at the end of this book.



HOW STRONG IS IT? by Ben Hillman
I heard about this book from Karen at Literate Lives. HOW BIG IS IT? by the same author is a class favorite. This is a great second book. The illustrations are fascinating--showing strong things like lasers, sharks, and wood. The photos draw you into the text and the text goes on to tell you the information you want to know. The writing is tight--one column per photo. It is organized by paragraphs and well written. Each page can be studied by nonfiction writers and they will learn lots about organization, choice of details, and more.

HOORAY FOR INVENTORS! by Marcia Williams
I would consider this book to be a graphic novel of sorts, but not really. Each page stands alone and has the feel of a comic book. Some boxes hold isolated information while other spreads connect a story about a famous inventor. Facts are found in every white space on the page so there is lots to look at and discover. The organization is an interesting component. The index helps readers find the information they are looking for.



Nonfiction Monday roundup is at Picture Book of the Day.

Nonfiction Monday -- Triangle Shirtwaist Fire

I'm going to cheat a bit today. The nonfiction part of my post is not a book. Instead, I give you some links for nonfiction reading you might do before or after you finish Margaret Peterson Haddix's book Uprising: Three Young Women Caught in the Fire That Changed America.

Cornell University's Online Exhibit on The Triangle Factory Fire

Wikipedia entry on The Triangle Factory Fire

History of the Union Movement in America

Library of Congress Immigration Site

Scholastic Site on Women's Suffrage

Wikipedia -- What else happened in 1911?

Uprising: Three Young Women Caught in the Fire That Changed America
by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Simon and Schuster, 2007

This book should be required reading for all women and girls -- to remind us or teach us how far we've come in the struggle for equal rights.

This book should be required reading for anyone whose ancestors were immigrants in America -- to remind us or teach us about the sacrifices that were made to make our cities and our country what it is today.

This book should be required reading for anyone whose association or union is currently involved in negotiations -- to remind us or to teach us the importance of the rights of the worker.

Haddix has written a story that is very accessible. Framed in the beginning and the end by young women who are questioning a survivor of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, the story is told from three points of view -- Yetta, a Jewish girl who is a Russian immigrant, Bella, an Italian immigrant, and Jane, a high society girl. These three stories become entwined in very believable ways, and the ending, while tragic, provides hope, both for the future in the story and for our modern day future.


Anastasia Suen at Picture Book of the Day is hosting the Nonfiction Monday round up.

Nonfiction Monday

Bird, Bird, Bird! (A Chirping Chant)

by April Pulley Sayre

illustrated by Gary Locke

Northword Press, 2007

I didn't think April Pulley Sayre could top Trout, Trout, Trout and Ant, Ant, Ant, her first two chant books. But she has!

63 names of American birds, arranged in a rhyming chant and illustrated with caricatures, invite the reader to experience the diversity of bird life in America.

This is not a serious birding book. This is a book for sparking interest based on the sometimes descriptive, sometimes wacky names of the birds. In the back of the book, each bird gets 1-2 sentences of factual information.

This is also a book for word lovers and poets. April must do some serious tinkering, fiddling, and reading out loud before she has a final rhyme. And then, how fun to see it come to life in a whole new way once the illustrations are added!

How's this for a poetry stretch -- could you take the names of a group of, say, 10-20 rodents, or mammals (or even poets, authors or bloggers) and make them into a rhyming chant? I'm heading over to Miss Rumphius right now to suggest it!

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Our interview with April last year is here.
Charlotte's Library got an advanced copy of April's next book, Trees Are Made of Trout (I'm so jealous!), which she reviews here.
April's website is here.
The Nonfiction Monday roundup is here.