Test Prep

Yesterday I asked my students, "What are you doing in writing workshop that you'll be able to transfer to the writing portion of the achievement tests?"

Number one is my contribution. The class as a whole has finally hit their stride in writing workshop. They are involved in projects they care about and they hit the ground running when they get back from math. There is a quiet buzz in the classroom as they work, but it is generally conversation about their writing and not off-task chatter. All the rest are theirs:

1. The ability to focus and WORK.
2. Use good vocabulary.
3. Write a short or long story.*
4. Stick to a project.
5. Make it sound interesting.**
6. Use short and long sentences.
7. Use paragraphs.
8. Stick to the plan.
9. PLAN.***
10.Use correct grammar, punctuation, and capitalization
11.EDIT.***

*This speaks to their ability to judge the writing task and plan accordingly.
**We laughed about this one. It is obviously about engaging your reader, but they understand that even if they don't care about the topic (ie: achievement test prompt) they still must engage their reader!
***Okay, okay. I added these two. My point was, if you know how to "stick to the plan," that means you know it's important to PLAN! Likewise for editing.

What are you doing in the course of your regular instruction that your students will be able to transfer to their achievement tests?

Another Great Novel in Verse

I have a group of kids in my class this year who LOVE novels in verse. They love Heartbeat by Sharon Creech, Where I Live by Eileen Spinelli and Becoming Joe DiMaggio by Maria Testa. As a teacher, I am finding that these are great books for readers of this age (and beyond). These novels tend to have a lot of depth. Some of my students who have difficulty sticking with books until the end, have the stamina to finish a novel in verse. I am not sure if they like the fact that they feel like they are turning pages quickly or that each page is shorter than a typical novel. But, they are reading some great books in this genre and they are really changing the ways they think about what they read because of it.

So, I am currently on the lookout for books like this to add to my collection. Sometimes the books are a bit too sophisticated for 3rd and 4t graders.

This week, I read 42 MILES by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer. (She is an Ohio author which adds to the fun of finding a new book that I love!). The book is about JoEllen. JoEllen splits her time between her mother's home in the city and her father's home in the country. The book is told in first person so we get into the thinking of JoEllen and how she feels about having these two quite separate lives. The book (and JoEllen) deal with issues common to so many kids--divorce, friendship, bullies, rules, teachers and more). Many of the poems in the book can stand alone as powerful poetry. Many can be used as mentors for student writing. But the way the poems work together gives us a story about a girl and family that is a good one. Illustrations, photos, maps, etc. add to each page so there are visuals throughout. This book packs a lot in with just 73 pages.

I am excited to add this book to my collection. I am sure it will make its rounds in my classroom this week.

My favorite line in the book (in case you were wondering):
"My favorite poems
squeeze your hand
on a crowded street and say:
Look."

A Great Book to Support Test-Taking

PUT THINKING TO THE TEST is a new book coming out with Stenhouse this month. I was going to wait to review it until I had a hard copy but with test season upon us, I thought it was important to get the word out about this great book. It is due out on April 10, but you can read the entire book online now to get a sense of it and to get started thinking through tests with your students. (I love that Stenhouse lets me read bits of the book online while I am waiting for it to arrive. I am not a big fan of reading off of the computer but it helps me shop for books more effectively. When you read this one online, I imagine it will be one that you want to order so that you get it the minute that it becomes available!)

The authors took an inquiry stance to test taking and found effective ways to help their students think through the test genre. The authors are a group of teachers connected with the PEBC--the group that has done so much amazing research about the comprehension strategies. In this book, they have taken what they know about those same strategies and have worked with students to help them make sense of the test.

They begin the book by sharing their own experience--thinking through their own behaviors as test takers. Then they take you into classrooms to show how their own understanding helped them think through testing with their students, by looking at it as a specific genre.

There are not many books about testing that stay true to our beliefs about teaching. But PUT THINKING TO THE TEST does! For teachers who are committed to reading/writing workshops, for teachers who value the power of inquiry, this book is perfect for helping kids work through test taking skills in ways that are authentic and effective.

I started reading at the beginning. If you read the book online, I suggest doing the same. The first chapter explains the process that the authors went through in their own thinking about the genre of tests. Then, I read Chapter 2: Tests as A Genre. This chapter leads us through the introductory pieces of this unit in a classroom-helping kids notice things and learn about the test genre. I figure I will begin there this week and read as I teach. And hopefully, I will have my own copy of the book by the time that I get through a week or so of test prep stuff.

This book is one of the best I have seen on the topic recently. It is up to date in terms of the issues we are facing as teachers. And it takes the research that we know well--comprehension research--and uses it to help students make sense of test-taking. In a workshop classroom, this book makes sense. And the timing is perfect!

DON'T WORRY BEAR by Greg Foley

I just popped into Cover to Cover to pick up the new Pigeon book and the new Clementine book (more on those later.) But I got another nice surprise when Beth showed me this new book, DON'T WORRY BEAR by Greg Foley. This is one of the sweetest picture books I have seen in a while. And the text is predictable with great picture support so it is a great one to for new readers.

Bear and Caterpillar become friends. But caterpillar is busy making a cocoon. He tells Bear, "I'll stay inside for a while. But I promise you'll see me again." Bear visits the cocoon and worries about his new friend. Each page follows the same pattern (He came when it rained. Caterpillar said, "Don't worry, Bear. I'm not getting wet." Bear tries not to worry but then worries more when he finds the cocoon empty. A happy ending follows!

This bear is so darn sweet. You can't help but love him. And the story is just as sweet. I am not usually into sweet, but I love this new book. I bought it because it has great supports for new readers. And because I just loved it!

Maybe A Bear Ate It!

MAYBE A BEAR ATE IT by Robie Harris and Michael Emberley is a great new picture book that I couldn't resist. First of all, it is a story about reading. About what happens when you lose your favorite book. About how desperate you become when you lose your favorite book! In this story, the main character loses his/her favorite book and thinks about all of the places it could be. The text has lots of predictability because much of the book follows the pattern of "Maybe a Rhino ran away with it." So, this is a great book for early readers. It has great picture support, large text with good predictability and pattern. And, of course, there is a happy ending!

We have been collecting books for years that help us start conversations about books and reading with our students. We know how powerful a book can be to empower kids to talk about their own reading lives. This is definitely one I am happy to have in my collection. I can imagine it starting conversations about favorite books, losing favorite books, etc. (As a parent, it makes me think about my children's favorites that we had to read over and over and over and over again--so much that we sometimes hoped the favorite book would get lost for a day or two!)

2008 Notable Children's Books in the Language Arts

_____________________________________________________________
2008 Committee: Deanna Day, Chair, Monica Edinger Past Chair
Pat Austin, Sharon Levin, Janelle Mathis, Jonda McNair, Kathy Short, Edward Sullivan


Poetry and Drama

Dillons, Leo and Diane. (2007). Jazz on a Saturday Night. New York: Blue Sky Press/Scholastic.

Forman, Ruth. (2007). Young Cornrows Callin Out the Moon. Illustrations by Cbabi Bayoc. San Francisco, CA: Children’s Book Press.

Neri, G. (2007). Chess Rumble. Illustrations by Jesse Joshua Watson. New York: Lee & Low.

Park, Linda Sue. (2007). Tap Dancing on the Roof: Sijo Poems. Illustrations by Istvan Banyai. New York: Clarion/Houghton Mifflin.

Schlitz, Laura Amy. (2007). Good Masters, Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick.


Historical and Realistic Fiction

Compestine, Ying Chang. (2007). Revolution is Not a Dinner Party. New York: Henry Holt.

Ellsworth, Loretta. (2007). In Search of Mockingbird. New York: Henry Holt.

Gifford, Peggy. (2007). Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Stuart Little. Photographs by Valorie Fisher. New York: Schwartz & Wade/Random House.

Murphy, Pat. (2007). The Wild Girls. New York: Viking/Penguin.

Schmidt, Gary D. (2007). The Wednesday Wars. New York: Clarion/Houghton Mifflin.

Selznick, Brian. (2007). The Invention of Hugo Cabret. New York: Scholastic.

Sheth, Kashmira. (2007). Keeping Corner. New York: Hyperion.

Woodson, Jacqueline. (2007). Feathers. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons/Penguin.


Fantasy/Folklore

Fleischman, Paul. (2007). Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal: A Worldwide Cinderella. Illustrated by Julie Paschkis. New York: Henry Holt.

Higgins, F.E. (2007). The Black Book of Secrets. New York: Feiwel and Friends/Holtzbrinck.

Varon, Sara. (2007). Robot Dreams. New York: First Second/Holtzbrinck.


Information/Biography/Autobiography/Memoir

Bausum, Ann. (2007). Muckrakers. Washington, DC: National Geographic.

Fletcher, Ralph. (2007). How to Write Your Life Story. New York: Collins/Harper Collins.

Marcus, Leonard S. (2007). Pass it Down: Five Picture-Book Families Make Their Mark. New York: Walker/Holtzbrinck.

Sis, Peter. (2007). The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

Sullivan, George. (2007). Helen Keller: Her Life in Pictures. New York: Scholastic.


Picture Books

Baretta, Gene. (2007). Dear Deer: A Book of Homophones. New York: Henry Holt.

Gravett, Emily. (2007). Orange Pear Apple Bear. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Harrington, Janice N. (2007). The Chicken Chasing Queen of Lamar County. Illustrations by Shelley Jackson. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

Judge, Lita. (2007). One Thousand Tracings: Healing the Wounds of World War II. New York: Hyperion.

Lee, S. (2007). The Zoo. La Jolla, CA: Kane/Miller.

Messinger, Carla and Katz, Susan. (2007). When the Shadbush Blooms. Illustrated by David Kanietakeron Fadden. Berkeley, CA: Tricycle.

Tan, Shaun. (2007). The Arrival. New York: Scholastic.

Watt, Melanie. (2007). Chester. Toronto, ON: Kids Can.

Wild, Margaret. (2007). Woolvs in the Sitee. Illustrated by Anne Spudvilas. Honesdale, PA: Front Street/Boyds Mills Press.

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.

How Much Can You Love Barbara O'Connor?

So, I LOVED HOW TO STEAL A DOG. I think it is one of the best read aloud books out there for grades 3-5. So, I was very excited to see that GREETINGS FROM NOWHERE was available at Cover to Cover.

I can't tell you how much I love this book. For me, it was a cross between all of my favorites. Sometimes I felt like I was reading Cynthia Rylant. Sometimes I felt like I was reading Kate DiCamillo. It made me feel like lots of my favorites (VAN GOGH CAFE, BECAUSE OF WINN-DIXIE, WHERE THE HEART IT). Barbara O'Connor seems to have found a voice in this one that is brilliant. The story is simple--a group of people who seem to need each other and find things out about themselves because of the time they spend together.

Barbara O'Connor takes us to the Sleepy Time Motel in the Great Smokey Mountains. And she introduces us to characters who will live with us for along time. I can tell that these are characters I will think about for a very long time, even though I have finished reading the book.

I have decided to read this one aloud to my 3rd and 4th graders starting later this week. It may be a bit sophisticated for them but I don't think so. I think when you read about characters you come to love, it is big.

Really, I can't imagine loving a book more than I loved this one. It was really quite a perfect book.

(I went back to watch the book trailer on the book. I figured I wouldn't like it now that I had read the book, but I LOVED it! It is perfect. Totally captures the feel of the book. Brilliant!)

Tastes Like Chocolate: Thoughts From Young People

I received this book as a gift and what a gift it is! TASTES LIKE CHOCOLATE by Randi Allison is a collection of poems written by the children she's worked with over the years. It is a collection that is a great read--just as a great poetry read. As a teacher, it is a great reminder of how lucky we are to work alongside children every day. It helps remind us how brilliant and insightful they are! And it can also serve as a great resource for teachers of writing. Such great models of writing by kids of different ages.

The title and organization of the book are both quite clever. The back of the book reads "Like a fine chocolate sampler, this collection is filled with delectable moments of joyous wonder that melt and linger, dark musings of loss with a bitter aftertaste of longing, and simple insights filled with gooey, luscious surprises. Like any fine treat, TASTES LIKE CHOCOLATE yearns to be shared with the people you love." The Table of Contents shows us that the book is organized in the same way a box of chocolates might be--with bittersweets (thoughts about challenges), sweets (thoughts about childhood), and darks (thoughts about death and dying).

This collection is a perfect addition to your library if you are a teacher of reading, writing, poetry and/or life in general. Each poem gives the reader lots to think about. I can see using poems with kids in my class--thinking about how they might use what they learn in their own writing. I can see kids reading it on their own. And, as a teacher and parent, I can see going back to it--rereading some favorites over and over.

A great collection--this is one like I've never seen before. Because Randi is an educator, she has chosen an amazing collection of poems to share with the world. These poems were most likely written in great writers' workshops in great classrooms. It is a great reminder of the power of poetry in our students' lives. For years, I have collected my own students' writings--knowing that I will share them with future students. As a teacher, I know the power of these models in writing workshop--that reading the work of other children can have a huge impact on students' writing. In this collection, Randi shares a variety of these models for us to add to our own collections.

This is not an easy book to find but there is a website where you can order it. The website also has some great endorsements by educators like Shelley Harwayne, Cris Tovani, and Chrysse Hutchins.

That Workshop Book by Samantha Bennett

THAT WORKSHOP BOOK: NEW SYSTEMS AND STRUCTURES FOR CLASSROOMS THAT READ, WRITE, AND THINK by Samantha Bennett (Foreword by Cris Tovani)
I just discovered this new book about Reading/Writing Workshop. It is AMAZING! I would highly recommend it to anyone who has or wants to implement a solid reading and/or writing workshop.

Samantha Bennett is part of the PEBC out of Denver. She is an instructional coach for teachers in grades K-8. This book is brilliant and timely. Personally, I have been overwhelmed with professional book reading lately. I just can't keep up. So, I have been very careful about adding too many new professional books to my pile. This one is a must-have/must-read/must-keep-going-back-to kind of book. Bennett begins the book by reminding us why workshop works. She takes us back a bit to the groundbreaking work of Graves, Calkins and Atwell. She begins by reminding us that "workshop has been relegated to harsh time constraints, descriptions of activities to do in minilessons, or strict pacing guides that tell teachers how a workshop should unfold over a year...We have a problem with broad implementation with shallow understanding of the potential of what a classroom as a literal workshop means. The superficial orthodoxy around the procedures of workshop has distracted us from the core values of WHY workshop works."

She takes this issue on throughout the book--that the reason workshop works is in ritual, structure, student ownership, choice, etc. After her introductory chapter that reminds us what we seem to have lost in the workshop of today, she takes us into 6 classroom workshop and shows us why they work. There are definite key workshop elements to the workshops but there are also differences in the ways that teachers implement. Because she is a coach, Bennett is able to show us what works, why it works and to point out places for reflection. There are places in each chapter where both Bennett and the classroom teacher reflect and we are able to benefit
from being part of that reflection.

Surprisingly, this is an easy read. She takes us back to important thinking in a way that has a humor that is quite engaging. It is smart. It is important. Not only do you rethink your workshop, but there are also lots of ideas embedded in each classroom "visit". The book is a great combination of reflection, information, and things you can try tomorrow. The key though, is in remembering that workshop is not about one lesson or a daily routine. It is so much more than that when it works well.

I have to say that this is the BEST cover I have ever seen on a professional book. It is creatively done and calls you to read it. On opening the cover, you find that the art teacher at Bennett's school, Ann Loring, did the illustration on the cover and those throughout the book. The book is brilliantly done. The design and touches throughout the book are quite fun and creative for a professional book. You really feel like you know the writer and the teachers well because of it. A fun, engaging design.

Throughout the book, Bennett has created a "Teaching Fairy"--a little character who points things out about the classrooms we visit. Now, if you know me, I hate gimmicky things so I would tend to not like things like this. But in this book, the Teaching Fairy works well. It is nice to think that as teachers in schools these days, there is a little fairy helping us to the hard work we do. Because Bennett and the illustrator (Ann Loring) handle this with humor and fun, it totally works!

I can see this book being critical in staff development. So much to talk and think about. And since the examples span grades 1-8, there is something for teachers at all levels. The first chapter is one that would be good to revisit as a staff or in a workshop-getting back to the stuff of the workshop. I loved reading it on my own (although I found myself calling friends to read lines that I thought were brilliant!) and I am looking forward to talking to others about it soon!