Mystery Boxes and other strategies

I am excited about using mystery boxes in my classroom.  I feel that this is an exciting way to introduce a new concept or book.  I can just see my students trying to figure out what things mean and how they relate to the book.  I am intrigued to see more of what you do with your fifth graders. 

Vocabulary is something that I feel I am an amateur at and I want to become a professional at it. 🙂  I like the vocab-a-gram idea and I am developing a first grade friendly version in hopes that I can use it with my students.  Vocabulary is so important, especially with our ELL students.

Thanks, for sharing all of your great ideas!

Class discussion on October 3, 2011

I enjoyed our discussion about the DRTA and I realized that I already do this but it is much more informal than what we discussed.  I would like to hear your suggestions on how to use something similar with first graders.  They are capable of having the thoughtful discussions but instead of using the smartboard or chart paper I would like something more individualized for them, as you have. 

I think vocabulary is one of the hardest things that teachers encounter as far as trying to teach it.  I think I am guilty of picking only words that I feel the children will not know and sometimes forget that even the simplest of words are difficult for some children to understand the meanings of.  I can see how the stops would be a big help when you are incorporating vocabulary.

Reading with Meaning Chapter 4

I have to say one part in the chapter that really bothered me is where Miller says, You don’t like Captain Underpants or Scooby Doo?  Don’t let them invade your classroom!  I buy my two boys books all of the time and trust me they are not all books that want to read but I am not the one reading them.  Shouldn’t children have a chance to read things they like even if we don’t like them?

I did like the idea of using the small notebooks and jotting down notes while talking with the children during the literacy workshops.  I think that this would work well so you don’t forget small things that the children say or do.  I also think the idea of the mini lessons is a good one and one that will probably incorporate into my day.

Love, Ruby Lavender

Love, Ruby Lavender was a fine example of realistic fiction.  The book opens with an article from the Aurora County News which sets up the first scene of Ruby and her grandmother, Miss Eula “liberating” chickens which is hilarious.  Throughout the course of the book, Ruby learns to cope with the death of her grandfather.  Ruby must also deal with her grandmother Eula going for a trip to Hawaii and find a way to deal with her enemy Melba Jane.  Both of these girls were dealing with a death in their family.  Ruby, the death of her grandfather and Melba, the death of her father.   These two characters remind me of Comfort and Declaration in Each Little Bird That Sings.  The book comes to a comforting end when Melba Jane and Lavender make their peace and Miss Eula returns.  The relationship between the chickens and Ruby grew even stronger because Ruby felt that was all she had left of her grandmother while she was away.   I did love the way Wiles puts Ruby’s sense of humor into her letter writing.  These letters are full of spirit and liveliness.  One criteria of realistic fiction is that the book “must embrace realistic characters, situations, and settings that reflect life in a believable way.”  Wow, this book had this characteristic.  This little town is Mississippi could have been any rural small town USA and Ruby could have definitely been any small girl that you may know.  This story was one that I could see taking place around here where we live.  The events thru out the story are believable; the death of a grandparent, having a town enemy, and the feeling of being left behind all of these events happen to ordinary people everyday.

I felt a relationship with Ruby while reading this book.  It reminded me of my childhood and when my grandfather died and how my grandmother reacted.  It was as though she somehow felt responsible for his death.  He was a truck driver and had some issues with his health, he had a heart attack while out on his last trip.  Maybe she felt like she should have not let him go, I am not sure.  Also, my Nanny was someone I had a special bond with.  I remember sitting on the front porch stringing and breaking beans with her and listening to the stories of her childhood.  I would not take one million dollars for those times with her.

I could see in a classroom using this book as a read a loud book or small group reading.  I think children second grade and up could relate to the content of this story.  Having the children break into small groups and discuss a character and take a deeper look into what they thought the character was feeling would be interesting.  The letters written back and forth between Eula and Ruby would be a great inspiration to some children to delve deeper into their writing.

I now want to read The Aurora County All Stars see if it follows the pattern of these two books and has young girls and their trials and tribulations of growing up.  I also am curious to see if there will be a death to deal with.  I enjoyed the two books by Deborah Wiles that we have read very much.

Questions for Deborah Wiles

1. When can we expect the next of the  Countdown series to be published?

2.  What do you like to read for pleasure?

3.  Obviously, your life inspires you but where else do you get your ideas from?

4.  What has been your favorite book to write so far?

 

Countdown by Deborah Wiles

Countdown is a documentary novel about a little girl named Franny Chapman, who is searching for peace during a troubled time. This story is based on historical facts, the story is skillfully blended with historical settings, historical figures, and historical events (Hancock, Marjorie).  Franny, the middle child, feels invisible but does feel secure when she is with her family.  She is growing up in an era when the threat of nuclear attack could happen especially since the Russians have started shipping missiles to Cuba, a mere 90 miles off the coast of Florida.  Franny just wants peace.  She is feuding with her best friend, has a sister whom she is afraid will just disappear, an uncle who is still fighting a war in his head and who seems a bit crazy at times, her younger brother Drew is obsessed with being an astronaut, and Franny’s school is constantly having Duck and Cover drills! Franny is a girl who is also very curious about the lives of others.   This story takes place in 1962 during the Cuban missile Crisis, this was a 2 week span of time.  This book combines history and fictional characters so well.  Deborah Wiles has done a tremendous job of combining fact and fiction.  Franny immediately was a character I had feeling for and cared what she felt and what happened to her.  When her uncle  is so anxious about building the bomb shelter and when he tell Franny about his brother, Nicholas, it made me almost cry because the pain that this man was feeling inside must have been torture.  When he says, “God help me, I killed him” I had to stop for a moment to picture this scene.  Deborah Wiles makes the characters so real and combining it with so much history is over whelming.  The book is set in Camp Springs, Maryland, just outside of Washington, D.C.  The rock quarry was also a one of the main settings in this story. Two important events in the story took place at the rock quarry. The first event was with Drew, Franny’s brother, he told his mom his first lie ever to cover for his sister about being at the quarry. The second event was when Franny ended up at the rock quarry because she was looking for her friend Margie, without her mom knowing. Franny’s friend, Margie fell into the pit and Franny almost died trying to save her.  This could lead to a discussion about bravery.  One of my favorite parts of the book is a conversation between Uncle Otts and Franny. Uncle Otts speaks to Franny about an earlier act of bravery, but she responds by telling him she is not brave.  Uncle Otts responds by telling her, “it’s an act of courage to stay with someone who needs you.  It’s a sign of character”.  A hero can be afraid, but a hero never runs away.”  Here we are back to bravery, wow.

One aspect of this book that I can relate to is what it is like being 11 years old and having things to deal with like  “love”.  My ten-year old is going thru this right now and I remember my first “love” during this time in my life also.   Franny says, “I am only good for chores in the household,” a feeling I myself had many times while growing up. So, even though I did not live thru what Deborah Wiles or Franny lived thru I did relate to Franny.  I also felt, at times, invisible to my family and friends.  I was a wall flower most of the time when I was this age.  One thing that I like about this book is that while you are finding out about Franny and her feelings and her family you can’t forget that there is an actual crisis going on!  I think this shows an even better side of what was truly happening during this time.  I also learned about people who I had never heard of like Fannie Lou Hammer and Pete Seeger.

My husband was immediately drawn to this book and wants to read it.  He is a history teacher and while I read this book he was in a chair behind me and would say “oh, let me tell you about that page”!  Needless to say I had to move away from him, but I did become very interested in parts of the book and he actually showed me the Duck and Cover video before anyone posted it.

I would probably read this book out loud to my fifth grade class, due to the complexity of the book.  I would branch off of this book and cover so much more than just the Cuban missile Crisis.  Pete Seeger, President Kennedy, Fannie Lou Townsend Hamer, and  Harry S. Truman all of these people would be great to study in the fifth grade.  I would have them break into groups and pick a major event from the book and create a power point, glog, or poster showcasing the highlights and importance of the event.  This could also be done with people from the book (real and fictional).

Wow, all the objectives you could cover in the fifth grade!

Due to the time constraints and mandates teachers face, using children’s literature to enhance content area subjects is common practice; by integrating language arts and social studies curricula, teachers are more efficient with their instruction (Olness, 2007).

2.03 Recognize how the United States government has changed over time.
2.04 Compare and contrast the government of the United States with the governments of Canada, Mexico, and selected countries of Central America
3.03 Identify examples of cultural interaction within and among the regions of the United States.
3.07 Describe art, music, and craft forms in the United States and compare them to various art forms in Canada, Mexico, and selected countries of Central America.
4.01 Define the role of a historian and explain the importance of studying history.
4.05 Describe the impact of wars and conflicts on United States citizens, including but not limited to, the Civil War, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, Persian Gulf War, and the twenty-first century war on terrorism.
4.06 Evaluate the effectiveness of civil rights and social movements throughout United States’ history that reflect the struggle for equality and constitutional rights for all citizens.
4.08 Trace the development of the United States as a world leader and analyze the impact of its relationships with Canada, Mexico, and selected countries of Central America.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W50RNAbmy3M, Kennedy addresses the nation on the Cuban missile Crisis

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhxjqM4y5f4&feature=fvst, Peter Seeger war medley

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-RoVzAqhYk, Fannie Lou Hamer’s speech to the DNC 1964

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKqXu-5jw60, Bert the Turtle and the Duck and Cover video

http://www.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=169280&title=Cuban_Missile_Crisis, Cuban Missile Crisis

Freedom Summer by Deborah Wiles and Illustrated by Jerome Lagarrigue

Freedom Summer, in my opinion, was a great book.  As stated in the chapter on Realistic and Historical Fiction: The Boundary of Reality, “Not only does historical fiction convey a sense of the period, but it shares a rousing story that actually could have taken place”.   I can actually see these events in the story taking place it really makes you think about what children went thru during this time.  This story by Deborah Wiles is fiction but based on the real events of that time, historical fiction.  This book is set during a time of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. 

John Henry Waddell was Joe’s best friend.  John’s mom worked for Joe’s mother and every morning during summer Joe waits for John Henry to arrive so they can play.  These boys are a lot alike but a lot different.  Joe’s skin is the color of the pale moths that dance around the porch light at night and John’s skin is the color of browned butter.  This makes things a bit more difficult for the boys.  They can’t go to the public pool because John is not allowed in but they do go to Fiddler’s Creek to play and swim.  After swimming they go to Mr. Mason’s general store for ice pops but John is not allowed thru the front door so Joe must go in alone.  Joe’s heart does a quick-beat when Mr. Mason asks him if he is going to eat them all by himself.  At supper, one night, Joe’s parents tell him about the local pool and that it will now be open to anyone of any color.  The boys get so excited only to have their excitement put to a halt when they go and see that the pool is being filled with asphalt.  For the first time you see and hear John Henry’s anger, heartache, and disappointment with the way the world is. Joe wants to go all the places in town that he can with John so they go back to the general store and decide to go in together both with nickels in hand.

This book was awarded the Ezra Jack Keats Award  because it portrays the universal qualities of childhood, and the multicultural nature of our world. I think this book was very deserving of this award.  It also received the Coretta Scott King Award based on the fact that it was a good book that portrays the struggles of African-Americans in the 1960s, also deserving of this one.

The illustrations in this book are captivating to me.  I never could find in the book what type of media Mr. Lagarrigue used but it seems to be oil paint.  The mix of colors is wonderful, especially in the water scenes where the boys are playing together.  Also, the picture of John Henry after he finds out he can’t swim in the town pool.  The emotions that I felt when I looked at his sad face were running thru my head.  I felt sadness, anger, and pity.  The illustrations are wonderful and so is the book.  One thing I also noticed about the illustrations was that in some pictures the faces were almost blurred as if those characters could have been me or you.  I don’t know if this was intentional but it was something that I noticed.

I will add this to my January and February collection for sure.  I will use it during my lessons on Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and Harriet Tubman.  Every year, in kindergarten or first grade we always have some fascinating discussions about how children use to not be able to attend the same schools if their skin was different.  My students this year were almost angry when we talked about this.  I remember one child saying that if their friends could not go then they would not have went either!  This book, I feel, will bring up more emotion in my students because this is a story specifically about how this era in history effected children.  This book is one of the few I have in my collection that actually gives a child’s account of how it was living during these times in our history.  I think for K-2 grade children you could really have some interesting and philosophical discussion using this book.  I think the Social Studies objectives could be looked at and covered. 

Competency Goal 3	The learner will recognize and understand the concept of change in various settings.
	Objectives3.01Describe personal and family changes, past and present.3.02 Describe past and present changes within the local community. 3.03 Compare and contrast past and present changes within the local community and communities around the world. 3.04 Recognize that members of the community are affected by changes in the community that occur over time.

Philosophical Discussion for Frog and Toad, Dragons and Giants

This discussion, I have to be honest, did not go as well as I had planned.  I had about 5-6 children who were really involved in the discussion and the rest were basically just listening to the others.  Having said that, I really do like the idea of a philosophical discussion with children. I mean we have had plenty of discussion about picture books before but I like the way this type of discussion is set up. I love the framework of this and the questions below were a great help to get the ball rolling.  I used the Guidelines for Philosophical Discussion of Dragons and Giants by Gareth B. Matthews, revised by Marissa Saltzman, listed below to lay out my plan.

We began reading the story as we would any other story and I explained we were going to talk about the book but in a little different way.  Then I got the children in a circle for the discussion time. Here is how part of it went.

When I began the discussion I asked “What do you think bravery looks like?” The children had strong expressions on their face.  JW said “You look like you are really strong”!  SR said(with brow scowling), “You look kind of mad when you’re being brave”!  I asked this child what he meant by you look mad and he said I don’t mean like you are mad at someone but you just look like it.  Some of my students had difficulty getting their thoughts organized enough to explain exactly what they wanted to say.  I think next year beginning this type of discussion at the beginning of the school year will be critical.  Practice makes perfect.  When we looked back thru the book some said that Frog and Toad looked scared instead of brave.   I assumed the role of listener for a moment and let others finishing contributing. I could tell several students knew what they wanted to say but had a hard time coming up with the words.   When I asked the question “Do you have to be doing something frightening to look brave?” RH said, “Well, yes”!  CC said, “Firefighter are brave and they fight fires everyday”.  JA said, “when I get a shot I try to look brave but it hurts bad”.  They had an idea of what they were trying to convey but again had a hard time getting it out.  When I posed the question, “Does doing something that’s dangerous show that you are brave”?  SR immediately said ,”NO, that just means you are crazy”!  Of course this led to many different discussions.  This went okay but I really wish that more children would have gotten in on the talk but I will be using this next year.

I do think this book is deserving of the Newbury Award.

Questions for Philosophical Discussion of Dragons and Giants

Looking brave:

Frog and Toad look in a mirror to see if they are brave. Frog says they look brave. Toad asks if they really are brave 

1. How do you look when you are brave?
2. Do you have a special look on your face?
3. Do you stand or walk in a special way?
4. Do some people look brave all the time?
5. Do some people look brave some of the time?
6. Do you have to be doing something frightening to look brave?
7. So, how could Frog and Toad tell that they looked brave?

The nature of bravery:

Frog says that trying to climb a mountain should tell him and Toad whether they are brave.

1. Does doing something that is hard to do show that you are brave?
2. Are there other ways to show that you are brave?
3. Does doing something that’s dangerous show that you are brave?
4. What if someone makes you do it?
5. What if you’re doing something dangerous and you don’t know it’s dangerous?

Perception of bravery:

In the story, Toad says that he is not afraid.

1. How does Toad know this?
2. How do you know when you’re being brave?
3. Does someone have to tell you?
4. How can other people tell when you are being brave?
5. Is it possible that you might think you are brave and be wrong?
6. Can other people be wrong if they think that you were not brave?

Bravery and fear:

When the snake tries to eat Frog and Toad, they jump away and Toad starts shaking.

1. Were Frog and Toad being brave even though they jumped away?
2. What else could they have done?
3. Is it ever brave to run away from something dangerous?
4. Was Toad brave even though he was shaking with fear?
5. Does being scared when you face danger show that you aren’t really brave?
6. Is it possible to be brave and afraid at the same time?

Understanding bravery and time:

When Frog and Toad get back to Toad’s house, Toad jumps into bed and pulls the cover up over his head. Frog jumps into the closet and shuts the door.

1. Does hiding under the covers or in the closet show that you are not brave?
2. Do even very brave people need some time to recover from the excitement of doing something scary?
3. Does a brave person have to be brave all of the time?
4. What does it mean to be brave?                                                                                                                                                                  

Bio poem on Katharine Wright

Katharine

concerned, caring, kind, youngest

Sibling of Orville, Wilbur, Reuchlin, and Lorin

Lover of family, teaching, inventing

Who feels concerned, excited, proud

Who finds happiness in teaching

Who needs fly with her brothers

Who gives lots of encouragement

Who fears for her brothers’ safety, disappointment, the winds of Kitty Hawk

Who would like to see her brothers fly

Who enjoys teaching

Who likes to wear an apron when cooking

Resident of Dayton, Ohio, United States

Wright

Favorite Picture Book Biography: My Brothers’ Flying Machine Wilbur, Orville, and Me

Yolen, J. (2003). My Brothers’ Flying Machine. New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company.

This book is told from the perspective of Katherine Wright, the youngest of five children in the Wright family.  I loved the quote by Orville that begins the book.  “When the world speaks of the Wrights, it must include our sister.  Much of our effort has been inspired by her.” _Orville Wright  This book’s information came from different books where information was documented about the Wrights.  Everything in this book that Katharine, Orville, or Wilbur said except “is it a bat?” came form letters, articles, interviews, or diary entries.  The book begins with the boys playing around with a little flying machine that their father had brought home.  Wilbur and Orville tried to make more of the “bats” as they had called them.  Katharine talks of standing on her tippy toes to watch them.  Will began to build kites to sell to his friends after that experience.  Orv, as Katharine called him, made a printing press with an old tombstone, wheels and cogs, and the folding top of Katharine’s baby buggy.   Orville and Wilbur made many messes but their mother never complained.  She would also go and help them build things.  When their mother died Katharine took over her roles in the family, one of which was to encourage her brothers.  Even after Katharine finished school to become a teacher she continued to do the housework her mother had done.  Indeed, history’s young heroes may be the most powerful models (Levine, 1993).  Katharine speaks of the boys and how that Orville was the neat one and Wilbur was messy.  This book goes thru the flight at Kitty Hawk and the adventures the boys went on.  I liked having  a book that was more than facts it was great.  In 1981, the Gates Learjet Corporation established the Katharine Wright Memorial Award to be  given annually to a woman, who behind the scenes, provides encouragement, support, and inspiration to her husband in the aeronautical field.  The award may be given to a woman who has made a personal contribution to the advancement of the art, sport, and science of aviation and space flight over an extended period of time.