Celebrating Raina Telgemeier! #GNCelebration

We are excited to begin our monthlong celebration of Graphic Novels.  Every Thursday in October, we'll be celebrating Graphic Novels here on our blog.  We are teaming up with blogger friends at Kid Lit Frenzy and Assessment in Perspective, so you'll want to check out their blogs every week too!  If you want to know more about our monthlong celebration, read our Nerdy Book Club post announcing it.  We also hope you'll join our Google Community where the party will come together!  We love Graphic Novels and we want to share that love with the world.

It was not easy for me to fall in love with graphic novels, but once I read Babymouse and fell in love with that character, I gave others a try.  (Thank you Jenni and Matthew Holm!).  I still find them a bit tricky as I have to constantly remind myself to spend time with the visuals--I tend to want to read quickly through the words and move on.  But knowing Graphic Novels and having many in my classroom has changed our Reading Workshop. I have several baskets of favorite authors and series in the Graphic Novel section. I have graphic novels in a variety of genres and I have graphic novels that span a variety of levels. So there are graphic novels for everyone.  I find that these are fabulous additions to our classroom and I am so glad I listened to Mary Lee and let her show me how to read these.  In preparation for today's post, I dug into the Graphic Novel tag on our blog and was amazed to see how many graphic novels we've shared on the blog over the years.  

To kick of our Graphic Novel Celebration, let's celebrate Raina Telgemeier!  I discovered Raina's work in 2010 when I read Smile. I fell instantly in love with it and couldn't wait to read more by this author. The idea of a Graphic Novel memoir was something I hadn't considered and I found the story to be fascinating.  This was one of the first graphic novels I read that helped me understand that graphic novels were not a "genre". Instead they could be any genre and Raina wrote a genre I had never read in a graphic novel.  It totally drew me in!

Since then I've read all of her books and have loved every one. She is already a favorite in our classroom as my children can identify her art and notice when they see a new piece in a graphic novel anthology (such as Comic Squad Recess!). My student relate to her stories and talk about "Raina" like she is sitting with us sometimes. Her writing and art combine to create some of the most amazing stories I've read.  She really changed my whole understanding of what a graphic novel could be and the impact it can have on readers.

Raina is a rock star in the graphic novel world. She was one of the authors who changed the way we thought about graphic novels and she continues to create amazing works.  If you did not get a chance to hear her interview on The Yarn about Graphic Novels, it is so worth listening to. It is an amazing interview by Colby Sharp and Travis Jonker.

Lately, Raina has been updating the Baby-Sitters Club books by Ann M. Martin. I love that these books that so many of us loved years ago, are back in graphic novel form. This gives students two ways to fall in love with the characters. A few years ago, Raina  did black and white versions of a few of the Baby-Sitters' Club books but now they are being published in FULL COLOR. And they are fabulous.  It is amazing to see my kids pick these up BECAUSE they know and love Raina's work.  I love that they can see the power of her work in so many different stories.  

I can't imagine what it takes to create one of these full color Baby-Sitter Club graphic novels. Needless to say, they are not being released as fast as we would all like as I am sure they take a while to create! But this week, the full color edition of book #3 was released:  Mary Anne Saves the Day. And we are giving away a copy as part of today's celebration! Complete the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win. Comment on this post for an optional entry!  

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Celebrate graphic novels with us today by reading or sharing one of Raina's books with students or colleagues! Go Raina!

Bully on the Bus by Kathryn Apel

Bully on the Bus
by Kathryn Apel
University of Queensland Press, 2014
review copy purchased for my classroom library

It's hard to know what to do when a bully is making your life miserable. Katheryn Apel captures the emotional upheaval and the unwillingness to tell trusted adults perfectly in her verse novel for younger readers. An older girl is bullying Leroy every day on the bus and he feels wretched. His big sister Ruby tries to help, but ultimately, Leroy is the one who must reach out for help.

This is a book that might help a child who is being bullied have the courage to tell a trusted adult or stand up to a bully. In an interesting parallel, Leroy's teacher gives him a book that contains HIS secret weapon against the bully!

There are just a few Aussie words that might be unknown to a US reader, but nothing that can't be understood with just a bit of inference.

How's That Workin' For You? -- Classroom Design Edition

Just about a month ago, I was setting up my classroom and imagining how all of the spaces I'd designed would be used once the students came.

Last week, during independent work time in science, when students had the choice to work on some anchor charts for the classroom, or on a 3-D energy pyramid, I looked around the room and was thrilled to see that every single space I had imagined was being used! YAY!

The small round table

Standing desk

Back table

Tile

Room for more than one group on the tile

Table group

Lap desk and meeting area

The other standing desk

Poetry Friday -- Eclipse

Flickr Creative Commons Photo by John 'K'

As If to Demonstrate an Eclipse

by Billy Collins

I pick an orange from a wicker basket
and place it on the table
to represent the sun.
Then down at the other end
a blue and white marble
becomes the earth
and nearby I lay the little moon of an aspirin.

(read the rest of the poem here)

Mark your calendar and set your alarm -- there's going to be a total lunar eclipse this Sunday night peaking about 10:00 PM. It's an eclipse of a Supermoon! Way cool. The eastern half of North America will be able to see the entire eclipse. Read more about it here and here.

This week, Janet Wong is hosting the Poetry Friday roundup at Sylvia's blog Poetry For Children.

Join us for #GNCelebration in October

We'll be celebrating graphic novels every Thursday in October! Head over to The Nerdy Book Club for 10 Reasons to Join Us in Our October Graphic Novel Celebration! 

I Don't Like Snakes by Nicole Davies

I don't remember where I heard about the book I Don't Like Snakes but I am always looking for good nonfiction and I pretty much buy anything and everything written by Nicola Davies.  Thank you to whoever it was that posted about this book because I am so happy I discovered it!

A little girl is part of a family who has snakes. Everyone in her family LOVES snakes but she does not like them. At all.  She has lots of reasons for not liking snakes--they slither, their skin is slimy and scaly, they have flicky tongue, and more.  There are so many reasons not to like snakes!

But on each 2 page spread, the little girl is spending time with her family, letting them know why she doesn't like snakes. They start to explain to her why the things she doesn't like, are actually pretty cool things.  The right side of each spread is more informational and takes the reader outside of the story to learn more about the characteristic that the family is explaining.

Predictably, the little girl decides that she "really, really, reeeeealllly" likes snakes by the end of the book and readers may do the same. I love the way this is written and the way that the information is embedded in a story.  It is a book that will answer lots of kids' wonders about snakes.  The illustrations by Luciano Lozano are quite fun and will draw readers in who may not typically read books about snakes.  A great combination of story, information, and art.

Fuzzy Mud by Louis Sachar

Fuzzy Mud by Louis Sachar is not the kind of book I would typically pick up. It looked like more of an adventure than anything else to me and I read more for character than plot. But this book is getting a ton of buzz and I LOVED Holes and Sachar's other books so I picked it up.  Well, I was hooked on page 2 and am so glad I read it! What a great read!

The book is about Tamaya, a 5th grader.  Her friend, Marshall walks home with her each day but one day, (due to a bullying-type incident), Marshall decides that they need to take a shortcut through the forbidden woods. Needless to say, it doesn't go well and Tamaya discovers something in the woods that will change their city.

The writing is fascinating as Sachar moves between Tamaya's story and excerpts from secret Senate Hearings.  Sachar weaves this story together in a way that builds suspense and gets you to care about the characters.

I don't want to give lots away as I loved reading this story and seeing how it unfolded without knowing too much about it.  My thinking is that this would be a fabulous read aloud for 5thish grade. So much to talk about in terms of choices, consequences, how we treat others, etc.

I also think this is the perfect book to hand to kids who love adventures, fantasy, science fiction, etc.  I know that much of what I read is a more realistic, quiet, sad,hopeful type of reading and I love finding more books for readers who want more adventure.  5th grade seems to be a great age to introduce kids to science fiction/dystopia and this seems to be a good transition to that genre.

Really, one of my favorite reads of the year!

Poetry Friday -- To My Students

TO MY STUDENTS

You be the leader, and I'll be the cheer,
You be the pilot; I'll let you steer.

You be the talent, and I'll be the scout,
You be applause; I'll be a shout.

I'll be the sleep, and you be the dream,
I'll be the banks; you be the stream.

I'll be the roots, and you be the pine,
I'll be the fence; you be the vine.

©Mary Lee Hahn, 2015



I've had fun with this form, introduced to us by Tabatha a couple of weeks ago.

This week, Michelle has the Poetry Friday roundup at Today's Little Ditty, and next week, Janet Wong will be the guest hostess at Sylvia Vardell's blog, Poetry For Children.

Another "Pair Share" Pair

I had so much fun with Monday's "Pair Share" post, that I thought I'd highlight another new pair I just put in the tub!

Austin, Lost in America
by Jef Czekaj
HarperCollins, 2015
review copy provided by the publisher

Austin is a pet store dog who wants a real home, so he sets off to check out every state to see if that's where he is meant to be. Readers get an interesting fact or two about each of the 50 states. With a name like Austin, you can imagine in which state he winds up, but I won't spoil the entire surprise ending.

Austin, Lost in America pairs well with the oldie but goodie

Go, Go America
by Dan Yaccarino
Scholastic Press, 2008

This book has one of the most fun table of contents ever -- it is a map of the U.S. with the path the Farley family takes from state to state drawn with a dotted white line and the page number for each state written in a road sign shape! The Farleys drive from Maine to Hawaii and there is a page or a double page spread filled with factoids about each state, its notable inventions and famous people,  and its wacky laws.

The "Pair Share" Tub in My Classroom Library

I started building the "Pair Share" tub one year when I had a group of students who were crazy about partner reading. I wanted to give this social approach to reading a little more depth, a little more meat.

Rather than letting pairs always read one book together, I found pairs of books that went together in obvious or subtle ways. Then, when students wanted to partner read, they also had books that were partners! They could read each of the two books together and talk about them as they went, or they could sit side by side, each reading a different book, and compare their thinking after reading. They could also create an (optional) small project to share their reading and thinking with the class. Because the "Pair Share" books are picture books, this partner reading is a short term break from a reader's typical 5th grade reading goals, but also serves to honor a Wide Reading goal in a fun way.

When I received a review copy of Fab Four Friends, I knew I had the perfect book to pair it with for the "Pair Share" tub!

Fab Four Friends
by Susanna Reich
illustrated by Adam Gustavson
Henry Holt and Company, 2015

Starting with John Lennon, Susanna Reich gives the reader a glimpse into each of the Beatles' (amazingly similar) Liverpool, England childhoods, right up to the point when they create or join the band. The book ends in 1963, with the "Fab Four" close friends on a still rising path to stardom. Today's youngsters (and anyone of an age and geographic background to have grown up on Johnny Cash and John Denver instead of John Lennon *points finger at self*) might have the impression that the Beatles' success happened suddenly, even magically. This book clearly shows that the Beatles' success was actually a lucky convergence of the the childhood dreams and hard work of four working-class city kids from not-so-ideal home lives.

The book includes a helpful glossary (I didn't know what Scousers were, nor what a skiffle band was), and sources for the direct quotations in the book. (Yay! A children's biography without fake dialogue!) There are also book and web sources for further exploration. And if you want a more thorough, Fab Four Fan review of the book plus author interview, click over to Jama's Alphabet Soup.

John's Secret Dreams
by Doreen Rappaport
illustrated by Bryan Collier
Hyperion Books for Children, 2004

I'll pair Fab Four Friends with John's Secret Dreams. This book takes a totally different approach, both in the writing and the illustrations. The focus is entirely on John Lennon, so the reader gets to see both his and the Beatles' entire lifespans. The illustrations are dreamy, impressionistic, and accompanied by snippets of song lyrics -- a definite change of style for Bryan Collier, but perfect for the topic. I was worried that today's students wouldn't have enough background knowledge of the Beatles or their music to understand how the lyrics work with the text and the illustration, but I should never second guess -- the details in the illustrations pull a reader in and slow them down to think, and the change of font and size for the text and the lyrics clearly sets them apart. Every page is an opportunity to make connections (and to wish for a soundtrack).

It's even interesting to compare the backmatter of the two books. Rappaport includes a Selected Discography, paying homage to how important the music and lyrics are to the book. And with a publication date of 2004, it's historically interesting that she does not list specific websites, simply cautioning the reader to be careful about sites that aren't official Lennon, Beatles or history of rock and roll websites, "...for information and and lyrics may be inaccurate."



Here are the other pairs in the "Pair Share" tub (because I know enquiring minds will want to know!):

Dreaming Up: A Celebration of Building by Christy Hale
The Story of Buildings by Patrick Dillon

The Great American Dust Bowl by Don Brown
The Dust Bowl Through the Lens by Martin W. Sandler

Sacred Places by Philemon Sturges
If You Lived Here: Houses of the World by Giles Laroche

Love, Mouserella by David Ezra Stein
Postcards From Camp by Simms Taback

The Lion and the Mice by Rebecca Emberley
Mouse and Lion retold by Rand Berkert

Cecily G. and the 9 Monkeys by H.A. Rey
The Journey That Saved Curious George by Louise Borden

A Call for a New Alphabet by Jef Czekaj
Al Pha's Bet by Amy Krouse Rosenthal

Maybe a Bear Ate It by Robie H. Harris
The Woods by Paul Hoppe

The 13 Nights of Halloween by Guy Vasilovich
Little Goblins Ten by Pamela Jane

The Tiger Who Would Be King by James Thurber (illustrated by Joohee Yoon)
Louis I: King of the Sheep by Olivier Tallec