My Buddy

 

Author/Illustrator: Audrey Osofsky/Ted Rand

About the Author:
Audrey Osofsky is a published author of children's books. Some published works include My Buddy and Dreamcatcher.

Genre: Nonfiction, Special Needs

Grade Level: K-3
Theme: Helping Others

Synopsis:

This book is about a boy who has muscular dystrophy and is in a wheelchair.  It talks about how he got Buddy, his working dog, and how he trained him to listen to only him.  Buddy does everything for him. He turns on and off lightswitches, gets his books, pencils if they fall, opens doors, gets the phone for him and many other helpful things.  No one is allowed to touch Buddy when he is working so he is able to stay focused.  There are times where Buddy plays tee ball with him and keeps him company.  He sleeps with him in case he needs help going to the bathroom and is just that...his Buddy!

Pre Reading Activity:

Activity:
Ask the students if they have ever seen someone in a wheelchair.  Bring a wheelchair to class and have them see what it involves.  Ask them what they would do to help someone in a wheelchair.

Post Reading Activity:

Activity:
After reading the story, have students sit in a wheelchair and use it for a few minutes around the school or classroom to let them see just how difficult it really is for someone who experiences this everyday.  Have them brainstorm to think of ways they can improve their school for someone who may need a wheelchair.  Then talk to your principal about putting these ideas in effect!

Reflection:

I think this is a great book to use because it allows students to see how difficult something can be and to not take things for granted.  It also allows students to see how beneficial a trained dog can be to someone who has a disability and cannot do everything for themselves.

Scotty's Way

Author/Illustrator:  Jennifer Fura/Samantha Smith and Matthew Ulrich

About the Author:

http://www.jacketflap.com/profile.asp?member=jen219
Jennifer lives in Syracuse, New York with her husband and two children, Scotty and Carly.  She spends an enormous amount of time with her family and created a book about Scotty and his accident to help others become aware and understanding and with challenges "anything is possible!"

Genre: Non-fiction, Special Needs/Disabilities

Grade Level: K-6
Theme: Understanding Differences/Disabilities

Synopsis:

This book is about Jennifer's son Scotty who was in an accident when he was two and a half years old and lost his right arm.  This book shows the challenges he faces everyday and how he is ready and willing to face each challenge as if their is nothing wrong!  Sometimes he gets frustrated but he knows anything is possible and you just have to work through it because there is ALWAYS a way!

Pre Reading Activity:

Activity:

Have each student write how people are different from each other and share with the class.

Post Reading Activity:

Activity:
After reading the story, have students write in their journals about how they can help someone like Scotty and have them share with the class.

Reflection:

I think this is a great book to use for any level because it helps students to see that anything is possible and there is always a way.  This would be a good book to help students realize that there are some challenges that we face everyday and some people's challenges are greater than others.  It will be a good book to use to explain disabilities to students and let them see that these children are just like us but sometimes they need a little extra help!

Barack Obama 44th President of the United States

Author/Illustrator:  Jill C. Wheeler

About the Author:

Jill C. Wheeler is a published author of children's books. She has wrote many other biographies about other authors including George Bush, Dr. Suess, Judy Blume, and R.L. Stine.

Genre: Social Studies

Grade Level: 3-6
Theme: Presidents of the United States

Synopsis:

This book is about Barack Obama and his life before he was president.  It talks about his family and schooling as well as his entrance into politics and his campaigns before becoming president.  It also discusses the 2008 election campaign and his way into presidency.

Pre Reading Activity:

Activity:

Have the class try and come up with all 44 presidents of the United States (they do not have to be in order) and write them on the board so the class can see how many they have, who they have and who they are missing.

Post Reading Activity:

Activity:

After reading the story, have students write letters to send to the president with any questions they may have for him! Even though they might not get a respond, you can also have them set up a topic to debate upon during class time.

Reflection:

I think this is a great book to use because it has a lot of helpful information in the back of the book about the line of succession, the different branches of government, the benefits of being a president, the qualifications of running for president, information on the electoral college, term of office, a complete list of the presidents as well as the party they are from, when they took and left office, how many terms they served and their vice president.  This is very helpful information when teaching students about the presidents of the United States in a social studies lesson.  There is also a section that has the mailing address and email address to contact the president!

Your Skin and Mine

Author/Illustrator: Paul Showers/Kathleen Kuchera

About the Author:
http://www.amazon.com/Paul-Showers/e/B000AP5F3M/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0
Paul Showers wrote twenty books for the Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science series, including favorites such as What Happens to a Hamburger? and Where Does the Garbage Go? Mr. Showers worked on the Detroit Free Press, the New York Herald Tribune, and for thirty years, the Sunday New York Times.

Genre: Non-fiction
Grade Level: K-2
Theme: Understanding differences/Health

Synopsis:
This story is about different children and their skin. It talks about how some children have different colored skin and how their skin is different. It talks about hair follicles, fingerprints, hair, sweat, epidermis/dermis, cuts, sunburns, melanin and keeping clean.

Pre Reading Activity:

Activity:

Have the class look at different Crayola color selections, see what color their skin actually is and have them write it down.

Post Reading Activity:

Activity:

After reading the story, have the students draw and write ways they can protect their skin. Have the younger students (K/1) tell you what they drew so you can write it down for them.

Reflection:

I think this is a good book to use in a younger classroom because it shows students how to take care of their skin, what happens when you get cuts and bruises, and why it is important to make sure you take care of your skin.

Book Fiesta

Author/Illustrator:  Pat Mora/Rafael Lopez

About the Author:

http://www.patmora.com/
Pat is a popular national speaker at conferences, campuses, libraries and schools.  She is a former teacher, university administrator, museum director, and consultant. She has three children, who are now all adults. She is married to anthropology professor Vern Scarborough and currently lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico. 

Genre: Non-Fiction
Grade Level: K-2
Theme: Exploring different cultures/celebrations

Synopsis:
This is a story celebrating Children's Day/Book Day.  This shows that children are special and books are special and it is important for children to read books!  The books shows that children do not need a special place to read books because books can and should be read anywhere!

Pre Reading Activity:

Activity:

Have the class write about what their favorite book is and why it is their favorite.

Post Reading Activity:

Activity:

After reading the story, have the students create posters celebrating Children's/Book Day and have students brainstorm ways they could celebrate this special day in their school.

Reflection:

I think this is a very special book. It discusses celebrating children and books they like to read on April 30.  It is important to get children interested in other cultures and read about them and one way to do that is to incorporate different celebrations in your own classrooms.

Family Pictures Cuadros de Familia

Author/Illustrator:  Carmen Lomas Garza

About the Author:

http://www.askart.com/AskART/artists/biography.aspx?searchtype=BIO&artist=101344

Carmen Lomas Garza was born in Kingsville, Texas. At 13, she made a commitment to pursue a career in art and taught herself elements of drawing. Her works of art depict childhood memories of family and friends in a wide range of activities from making tamales to dancing to Tejano music.

Garza has a bachelor’s degree in science from Texas A&I University (currently Texas A&M University, Kingsville) where she studied art education and studio art. 

Genre: Non-Fiction, Foreign Language
Grade Level: K-2
Theme: Family Traditions

Synopsis:

This is the story of Carmen Lomas Garza's childhood and different things that she remembers. Some of these include celebrating birthdays, making tamales, finding a hammerhead shark on the beach, picking cactus, going to a fair in Mexico, and talking to her sister about her dreams of becoming an artist. This story is told through pictures that show daily activities in the life of a traditional Hispanic community through the perspective of a child.

Pre Reading Activity:

Activity:

Have the class draw a picture of their family.

Post Reading Activity:

Activity:

After reading the story, have the students write about some special things they do with their family and draw a picture of something they like to do with their families.

Reflection:

I think this is a cute book!  It talks about different things that families do together and shows how families are different.  I think the Spanish and English versions in the book are very beneficial because as teachers we can teach children different words in different languages.

My House Mi Casa

 

Author/Illustrator:  Rebecca Emberley

About the Author:

http://www.amazon.com/Rebecca-Emberley/e/B001H6W1N0

Rebecca Emberley is the author and illustrator of numerous books for children, including a bestselling bi-lingual series. She comes from a family of artists, including her father Ed Emberley, her brother Michael Emberley, and sister in law Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick, who are all children's book illustrators. Her daughter Adrian Emberley and her husband Peter Black, are both singer-songwriters and sometimes they work on projects together. Because of this, Rebecca is constantly very busy. When she is not creating books for children, she does some graphic design, travels, and looks for opportunities to work with her family. She now lives in Maine with her husband, but will soon be traveling for a while, to look for new and exciting ideas.

Genre: Non-Fiction, Foreign Langauge
Grade Level: K-2
Theme: Building vocabulary through a different language

Synopsis:
This is a bilingual story about different things you can find in someones house. It uses English and Spanish to describe different people in their family, different toys in the rooms, different items that are connected with certain rooms and other places people can live.

Pre Reading Activity:

Activity:

Have the class draw a picture of their house and describe it to the class.

Post Reading Activity:

Activity:

After reading the story, have the students draw a picture of any room inside their house and write different items they have in the room. Have them also write down the name of the item in Spanish with your help to learn new ways to say these different items.

Reflection:

I think this is a very good book to use in a younger classroom because it allows a student to learn words in Spanish and be able to remember them.  It also helps students to talk about what type of building they live in and be able to describe different things using different ways to say them.