New Math Literature

2 years ago, I purchased the book GREAT ESTIMATIONS and LOVED IT! The kids in my 3rd/4th grade class LOVED it! It had the feel of an "I Spy" Book but had so much to teach us about math. I know that books often help kids make sense of math concepts and this is one that can help all of us think differently about estimating. So, yesterday, I was thrilled when Beth at Cover to Cover showed me GREATER ESTIMATIONS-- a second book about estimating!

Bruce Goldstone (who I was happy to learn grew up in Ohio!) is quite the genius. You don't realize it at first, but these books are teaching books. Goldstone takes us through the process of learning to make good estimates. But you are so busy having such fun looking at the amazing photos and trying to make a good estimate, that it almost takes many reads to pick up all of the great things that you can do to make better estimates.

Bruce Goldstone chooses some pretty cool things to photograph and for us to estimate. He chooses a variety because he teaches us the different ways to estimate--clump counting, estimating length, etc. Readers spend time looking at rubber ducks, honeybees, skydivers, dominoes, hairs on a cat, and blades of grass.

Lots of interesting facts as well as humorous talking bubbles fill the pages. The author also includes a note at the end of the book. He talks about the fun of estimating, but also about how helpful it is in everyday life. He shares times when estimation is critical that I hadn't really thought about.

I had just assumed that Goldstone used computers to create these images but, from his author blurb in the back of the books that Beth pointed out to me, it seems that he spends hours and hours setting real things up for photographing! Very cool.

Goldstone has a fun website that includes info about him, his books and more. It also includes a fun game called "Estimatron" that allows you to practice those estimation skills!  If you like the ducks in the book, you'll be happy to see them again (and again) on the site!

Lessons From a Beer Goddess

For those of you who loved Franki's bootcamp metaphors for teaching struggling readers, head over to Carol's Corner and check out what a teacher can learn from a tattooed Beer Goddess while pouring beers for 8 hours straight.

TRADING (our favorite) SPACES Round-Up

We love to see all of the great spaces that people create in their classrooms and libraries. So, last month, we asked anyone who had a space that they loved to share it with other bloggers and then we would round up the links today.

Well, we have seen some great spaces and have also heard some of the thinking that goes behind these spaces for kids. Teachers and librarians working hard to create the best spaces for student learning. Consider this a virtual tour of some great spaces for children! We had fun collecting them and were able to try some new things in our own spaces. We hope this sharing of spaces does the same for you.

Karen of Literate Lives lets us tour several areas of her 5th grade classroom. She has created several spaces that support student learning in great ways.

Bill from Literate Lives invites us into his library where he has created some great open spaces for students as well as some other spaces that make everyone feel welcome.

Stella at My World-Mi Mundo shares spaces she's created for her ELLs--spaces for reading, writing and listening as well as the spaces she's created with her students' photos!

Mary Lee shares her two favorite spaces in her classroom this year.

Katie D shows us the many smart way that she displays and organizes books in her first grade classroom.

I shared my new library space and a few of the things I did to create more space for books on display.

Jenny of Elementary, My Dear, or Far From It shares lots of great spaces for books and reading!

Stacey at Two Writing Teachers shares 2 of her favorite new spaces. Hers include conference tables, meeting area, technology and more.

Mrs. Beaver of Blogg'n With Mrs. Beaver let us take a peek into the transformation of her room from start to finish.

We hope that you enjoyed the tour!

Great Post for School Librarians

As a new school librarian, I have been reading blogs a bit differently. I LOVED this post at BookMoot about hopes for the School Library. This is the way I think. I need the big picture. What am I shooting for in the school library. She captured my hopes and I will keep this close by throughout the fall months to remind myself of the big picture of the school library. Such great thinking!

TRADING (our favorite) SPACES: My New Space

I have spent the last few weeks getting my new space ready. Last spring, when they cut my job as a Curricular Support Teacher, I decided to apply for a school library position in our district. I love the classroom but I also loved the idea of working with all K-5 kids in the library. Since the principal's vision for the library was exactly what I wanted, I applied for the job and got it. So, for the last few weeks, I have been playing around with the space.

It is nice to move into a totally new space once in a while--it is like moving into a new house. I found myself having things that I needed to change right away and things that I might do down the road. My big goal this year was to create lots of spaces for books on display--places where kids could see lots books they might not know, touch lots of books and read them in a comfortable space. Here is what I've done so far.



This used to be a space that housed teacher resources. Because it was a place that you saw when you entered the library, I rearranged a bit so that I could use this space for books and a comfy reading spot. For now, I have lots of books on display. As the year begins, I can see this space housing baskets of books by authors we've discussed, new books, etc. I can see kids spreading out here to look at favorite books, read with friends, preview new books, etc.



I added a small coffee table near the window in the Everybody Section to give kids another comfortable place to browse books or read books. I can see this table with a basket of books on top--one that changes often.



I had a space like this in my classroom--a space with favorite series book characters. I think that the wall space can start great conversations between kids and I hope that this one invites kids to talk about the series book characters they love. I purchased several small black baskets to house books that were part of a series. This will help kids find the books and think about the characters that they might want to read about again and again.



I added a corner space for magazines. Our library gets several great children's magazines subscriptions. As a classroom teacher, I realized that I could use kids' love of magazines to teach lots about nonfiction. The magazines are in their own little spot and kids can find lots of topics to read about.

This coming week will be my first week with kids and I think the library is ready to go! I am excited about spending my days with children and books!

Poetry Friday -- Labor Day

For all the workers who take off their coats and hats and tackle the jobs no one else will do, no one else can do, or that no one thinks can even be accomplished:


It Couldn't Be Done
By Edgar Guest

Somebody said it couldn't be done,
But he with a chuckle replied
That "maybe it couldn't," but he would be one
Who wouldn't say so till he'd tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing and he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, and he did it.

Somebody scoffed: "Oh, you'll never do that;
At least no one has ever done it";
But he took off his coat and he took off his hat,
And the first thing we knew he'd begun it.
With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,
Without any doubting or quiddit,
He started to sing and he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, and he did it.

There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,
There are thousands to prophesy failure;
There are thousands to point out to you, one by one,
The dangers that wait to assail you.
But just buckle in with a bit of a grin,
Just take off your coat and go to it;
Just start to sing as you tackle the thing
That "cannot be done," and you'll do it.

(first published in 1914)


The round up this week is at Charlotte's Library.

TRADING (our favorite) SPACES Reminder

We have had several people post favorite spaces in their classrooms and libraries. Earlier this month, we thought it would be fun to collect all of those to share. So, we invited bloggers to share their favorite spaces. We'll compile all of the links in a post on September 1. So, if you haven't had time to take photos and post about your favorite classroom/library space, we'd love to have it for our September 1 round-up!

Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears

Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears
by Emily Gravett
Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers
On shelves September 9, 2008
Winner of the 2007 Nestlé Children's Book Prize Bronze Award and
the 2008 Kate Greenaway Medal
review copy provided by the publisher


What's it with book characters taking the pencil (or the red marker) and revising the author's work?!? Chester messes with Mélanie Watt's writing, and now Little Mouse is messing with Emily Gravett's -- writing and drawing on the pages, chewing on the pages, and more.

Ms. Gravett has created a perfectly good self-help book for those who have fears and phobias. It is intended to be a sort of workbook for the phobic to face his/her fears with writing, drawing and collage. And Little Mouse takes her up on this.

I know we shouldn't laugh at others' fears, but this is a really funny book. Little Mouse's fears have literary references (Three Blind Mice and Hickory Dickory Dock), have real (Acrophobia) and imaginary (Whereamiophobia) names, and are so problematic to Little Mouse that his red pencil is a mere stump by the end of the book.

There are flaps, die-cuts, "chewed" edges of pages, "folded" page corners, and a VERY funny fold-out map of The Isle of Fright to keep the reader poring over the pages of this book. Every time you read it, you'll find a detail you had missed before.

I'm not sure this would be a therapeutic book for anyone with bonafide phobias, but the rest of us who have our share of fears and worries will completely empathize with Little Mouse, and in the end, with Emily Gravett.


Shelf Elf reviewed Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears last October. She must have gotten ahold of a British copy.
Visit Emily Gravett's website, where there's an activity for making your own collage of your fears, and a couple of page shots to give you a feel for the unique illustrations.

New Series Book Character-AMY HODGEPODGE

I like to keep up on new series books that are available for transitional readers. I just finished AMY HODGEPODGE ALL MIXED UP. It is the first in this series. Amy Hodge has been home schooled up until now. But now she wants to go to school and be part of all the things that school brings. But the first few days are a little tough for Amy until she makes a great group of friends. Lots is tackled in this book--feeling new at school, the "mean girls", fitting in,etc.

One of the things that I really like about this series is that Amy's family is multiracial. Amy is part Asian, part Caucasian and part African-American. I am finding that it is often hard for kids to find themselves and their families in the books they read. Especially children who are mixed race. Amy Hodgepodge and the friends that she makes at her new school help to fill this gap in children's books--especially those for transitional readers.

I was stunned to see some statistics in a blog post titled "Why Are Children's Books Still So White" about books that featured African American, Latino, and American Indian characters. The numbers are unsettling.

I liked reading about Amy and her troubles at her new school. She is a likable character and the series is perfect for the age group that it is intended for. I am excited to add this series to our shelves and look forward to more books about Amy Hodge.

Chester's Back!

Chester's Back!
by Mélanie Watt
Kids Can Press
September, 2008
review copy provided by the publisher

Mélanie Watt does her best to give us a new book starring Chester, the gigantic tortoiseshell cat with the equally gigantic attitude. But he's got his red marker in high gear and he hardly lets her get a word in edgewise. In the end, he lets down his guard and Mélanie gives him exactly what he asked for. Exactly. To his great dismay.

Both Chester and Chester's Back would make a great books for reader's theater for two voices. I get to be Chester, okay?