aug/sept 2014 w w w.librar yspark s .com • Vol. 12, No. 1
Engaging Activities to Reach Every Reader
Treasure Hunt Admit it! We’re all intrigued by the notion of treasure hunting. Page 8
NEW! Get more ideas and activities. Follow us on Twitter @LibrarySparksMg From Pirate Treasure Hunt
NEW! Gaining Steam • Page 20 Meet the Author: Dav Pilkey • Page 30
NEW! Tech tips • Page 52
LibrarySparks Aug/Sept 2014 Volume 12, Number 1 ISSN 1544-9092 Publisher • Matt Mulder Editor • Lisa Bintrim CONTRIBUTING EDITOR • Pat Miller Art Director • Heidi Green Design • Jane Munden Brown Special thanks to Rob Reid, University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire; Carol Surges, McKinley Elementary School, Wauwatosa, WI Copyright ©2014 by Demco, Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. The purchase of this magazine entitles the individual librarian or teacher to reproduce copies for use in the library or classroom. The reproduction of any part for an entire school system or for commercial use is strictly prohibited. No form of this work may be reproduced or transmitted or recorded without written permission from the publisher. Permission for reprints should be directed to LibrarySparks Magazine, 4810 Forest Run Road, Madison, WI 53704. LibrarySparks Magazine is published nine times a year in January, February, March, April, May/June, August/September, October, November, and December. Subscription rate $59.95 per year for nine issues Website www.librarysparks.com Customer Service 800.933.2089 7:00 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. CDT Issues missing or damaged in the mail must be claimed in writing by the end of the month after the date of publication. A replacement copy will be mailed at no charge. Direct requests to Customer Service. Postmaster Please send change of address notice to: LibrarySparks Magazine P.O. Box 293091 Kettering, OH 45429 All manuscripts accepted for publication are copyrighted by the publisher and become the property of the publisher. LibrarySparks publishes practical, ready-to-use articles for the elementary and children’s librarian. Views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the publisher. Dewey, DDC, and Dewey Decimal Classification are registered trademarks of OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Incorporated. SEND US YOUR IDEAS! Do you have a helpful hint to share? We’d love to hear it! Send your ideas to: LibrarySparks Attn: Submissions 4810 Forest Run Road Madison, WI 53704 E-mail: librarysparks@demco.com Be sure to include your name, school or library name, city, state, home mailing address, home phone, and e-mail address.
Aug/Sept 2014
New Year. New Look. New Ideas. We’ve made some changes over our summer vacation. You may have already noticed a big one: Thanks to designer Jane Munden Brown, we’ve redesigned LibrarySparks for a more modern, fun look. The redesign has the added benefit of giving us more space for the ideas and activities that you love.
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We’ve also added new writers and new columns. Amy Koester (The Show Me Librarian) shares creative ways to engage students in science, technology, engineering, artistic creation, and math in her column, Gaining STEAM. Shonda Brisco (Newkirk, OK, Public Schools) joins us with monthly Tech Tips on the best websites, apps, and tools. And longtime LS and UpstartBooks writer Toni Buzzeo launches a new column, Core Focus, on putting the Common Core State Standards into action in the library. We’ll be introducing more new writers and content in the coming months—stay tuned! Of course, we still have the expert writers and informative, ready-to-use content that you expect, including Storytime, the monthly activity calendar, Library Lessons, and so much more. Finally, I’m thrilled to join this esteemed group as the new LS editor, and I’m looking forward to an exciting year. Let me know what you think about our changes—or what changes you’d like us to make—at librarysparks@ demco.com. And be sure to follow us on Twitter (@LibrarySparksMg). Lisa Bintrim Editor
About the Cover Pirate Treasure Hunt! by Jan Peck. Pelican Publishing, 2008. A variation on the familiar “Going on a Bear Hunt” rhyme, this amusingly illustrated picture book takes kids on a daring adventure across a squishy lagoon, through a jungle, into a snake pit, and over a cliff to claim a tantalizing treasure chest filled with … books! Treasure, indeed!
Cover image from Pirate Treasure Hunt! by Jan Peck, illustrated by Adrian Tans. Text ©2008 by Jan Peck, illustrations ©2008 by Adrian Tans. Used by permission of the publisher, Pelican Publishing Company, Inc., www.pelicanpub.com.
The questions we ask should guide students Every book is a
to use information from
treasure just waiting
the text, not just rely on
to be discovered.
p.2
p.16
prior knowledge.
p.20
“I think kids respond to the humor and the kid-power themes.” – Dav Pilkey
p.30 2 / So Many Books A Sense of Place by Megan Schliesman | K–5
4 / Freebies, Doodads, & Helpful Hints by Patti Sinclair | K–5+
6 / Tips from the Trenches
As we journey, we discover the wealth of possibility within.
28 / September Activity Calendar
p.44
48 / Technology
by Patti Sinclair | K–2, 3–5
Finding Treasures in Maps by Boni Hamilton | K–5
30 / Meet the Author
52 / Tech tips
Dav Pilkey by Nick Glass of TeachingBooks.net | PK–6
by Boni Hamilton | 4–6
by Pat Miller and Mandy Watson | PK–6
33 / CORE Focus
16 / Strengthen Your Core
Putting Common Core Into Action by Toni Buzzeo | K–5
Hunting for Treasures in the Text by Beth Anne Burke | 1–5
36 / fiction/nonfiction
20 / GAINING STEAM
More than a Birdbrain by Pat Miller | K–5
Adventures in Mapping by Amy Koester | PK–6
41 / Library Lessons
24 / keep ’em reading
Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library by Lynne Farrell Stover | 2–5
Discovering Treasure in the Library by Judith Snyder | K–5
44 / character ed
54 / storytime Round, Round, Get Around, I Get Around by Rob Reid | PK–2
Web Resources Bibliography Booklists for this month’s articles
Webliography Live links to the websites listed in this month’s issue
The Quest: Making a Difference by Judy Bradbury | K–5
Look for this icon throughout the magazine to find out more about this issue’s online resources at www.librarysparks.com.
Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 1
by | Megan Schliesman
SO MANY BOOKS A Sense of Place Grades K-5
When my daughter was younger, our family geocached often, so I know from experience there are different ways to think about the hunt. She’s goal oriented, so finding the object in question was the point for her. For me, however, the place in which we found ourselves was usually far more alluring than whatever hidden item we might find there. Geocaching—searching for real or virtual treasures based on GPS coordinates published online—was a great way to see spots that locals appreciated, often for their beauty or historical significance, occasionally for their whimsy. The real treasure was usually right before our eyes and in the fact that we were experiencing it together. In a similar manner, those of us who are avid readers know that every book is a potential treasure just waiting to be discovered. That makes this issue’s theme of “treasure hunt” an embarrassment of riches when it comes to literature for children. But I can’t stop thinking about the ideas of place and togetherness—the things I appreciate most about geocaching.
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And I can’t stop thinking about books that excel at conveying those ideas. I’d never been to a swamp until recently, but reading Kathi Appelt’s novel The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp gave me a sense of the heat, the humidity, the density, and the mystery in that distinct environment, where nature, if left alone, will establish its dominance and rule. But humans are a real threat in Appelt’s story. Its cast of singular characters include would-be developer Sonny Boy Beaucoup and his partner in crime, Jaeger Stich, World Gator Wrestling Champion, who want to build a theme park, overruling nature in the swamp. Twelve-year-old Chap Brayburn is trying to save his family’s livelihood and the swamp itself. Raccoon brothers and swamp scouts Bingo and J’miah are on the job, though, ready to wake the Yeti-like creature known as the Sugar Man. And then there’s the Farrow gang, wild hogs who are a comical yet destructive force as they tear across the land in search of the cane that
grows in the swamp. Appelt’s much more serious novel The Underneath was similarly successful at giving readers an understanding of its bayou setting. In The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp, humor and good sense triumph among the characters, who are an important part of the setting in a novel with a deeply rooted sense of place. It’s a long way from the lushness of southern swampland to Brooklyn, but it’s a simple leap from one book to the next in the world of children’s literature. In The Desperate Adventures of Zeno and Alya, author Jane Kelley
SO MANY BOOKS
offers a bird’s-eye view of Brooklyn as she tells the tale of Zeno, a selfcentered African gray parrot who escapes the apartment where he’s been living since his owner died, and Alya, a girl with leukemia living on the top floor of a Brooklyn brownstone. Zeno is hungry for his favorite treat— banana-nut muffins. Without knowing it, he’s hungry for something else, too—friendship. And Alya? She could use a little magic, or at least a little hope. After their initial encounter, Zeno takes off and tries to survive in the wilds of the city, only to then find his way back to familiar lights and trees and buildings, and one particular girl, after an alarming incident leaves him lost in the suburbs of Long Island. It’s a long way from Saskatchewan to Toronto, too, but it’s a move that the young narrator of Laurel Croza’s picture book From There to Here has made, and she contrasts her life in the two places: “There. We lived on a road. A graveled and oiled road, carved into the middle of the bush. Here. We live on a street. An asphalted and sidewalked street, paved into the middle of the city. A street with a name. Birch Street. I don’t see any birch trees. They must be hiding in the backyards behind the fences.” Croza’s observant, heartfelt narrative is spare, yet gives a sense of both the expansiveness of the landscape and comfort of community “there” and the foreignness of concrete and buildings and no stars and closed curtains in neighbors’ homes “here.” But by story’s end, the girl has found what she needs to make “here” feel more like “there”: a friend. Alison Lester dazzles with detail about place in the picture book Sophie Scott Goes South. Young Sophie is accompanying her father, captain of an icebreaker ship delivering people and supplies to Mawson Research
Station on Antarctica. Her account of everyday life onboard includes diagrams of the ship, sailor-specific vocabulary, named drawings of the entire crew, and a chronicle of her surroundings and activities. Multiple photos, drawings, and paintings of icebergs, including a cross-section of an iceberg formation, and seals, penguins, and other Antarctic wildlife, as well as Sophie’s story of using a rope to find her way in a blizzard, depict highlights of her time in Antarctica. The sense of place in this story is not expansive, but it’s true to Sophie’s experience and a child’s perspective on what she finds most interesting.
Words set the scene in these works of historical fiction and other books. But in Aaron Becker’s wordless picture book Journey, the illustrations are everything … almost. Becker’s story is about the journey a girl takes when she draws a door on her wall in red crayon and steps through. Over and over, she achieves breathless escapes from one extraordinary place into the next with the help of that crayon. The lushly colored, dramatic illustrations showcase a wide variety of settings, from domed cities to turreted castles and more. The visual sense of place is beautifully realized. But it is up to readers to provide the imagination that makes the book succeed.
Writers of historical fiction have a double challenge: capturing both time and place in a way that feels—and hopefully is—authentic. Kirkpatrick Hill’s winsome novel Bo at Ballard Creek (winner of the 2014 Scott O’Dell Award) is set in an Alaska mining town of the 1920s, where fiveyear-old Bo is being raised by the two men who took her in after her mother, a “good-time girl,” gave her up as a baby. Humor, adventure, and lots of love abound in a book that gives a sense of the strong community required for survival and the challenges of living in such a remote place. Deborah Hopkinson’s The Great Trouble brings the teeming, scheming streets of 1854 London to life in an engaging medical mystery that has young Eel, a fictional character, helping Dr. John Snow, a real person, in his efforts to prove cholera is spread by infected water, not bad air. And in the verse novel Caminar, debut author Skila Brown juxtaposes the beauty of the Guatemalan landscape and goodness of many of the country’s people with the brutality of war as young Carlos flees into the mountains after his village is burned by soldiers.
The same is true of books in general. It’s what the reader brings to the story that makes meaning, and that meaning—the treasure to be found between the covers—may differ from one reader or listener to the next. Whether pondered in isolation or experienced as read-alouds or other shared book experiences, these and other books offer children a means for expanding their personal geographies.
Megan Schliesman is a librarian at the Cooperative Children’s Book Center of the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. She can be reached at schliesman@ education.wisc.edu.
Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 3
by | Patti Sinclair
For online article resources, visit www.librarysparks.com
FREEBIES, DOODADS, & HELPFUL HINTS Grades K-5+
guide is available at http://tinyurl.com/lblzsbe. Project Passenger Pigeon, http:// passengerpigeon.org, is an international effort that aims to familiarize as many people as possible with the history of the passenger pigeon and its unfortunate extinction.
Books for Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15– October 15) Remembering Passenger Pigeons (September 1) September 1 marks the 100th anniversary of the death of the last known passenger pigeon, in the Cincinnati Zoo. Although nonfiction children’s books about these extinct birds are out of print, older readers may enjoy One Came Home by Amy Timberlake, a story set in Wisconsin in 1871 that involves a massive pigeon nesting there and the hunting of these once ubiquitous birds. A discussion 4 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month in your classroom or library with awardwinning books about important Latino figures, such as Pablo Neruda, Tito Puente, and Cesar Chavez, by noted author and scholar Monica Brown. Enter a drawing to receive a collection of three of her most recent picture books: Pablo Neruda: Poet of the People (Henry Holt), Tito Puente, Mambo King (Rayo/HarperCollins), and Waiting for the Biblioburro (Random House). Five lucky winners will receive all three books. To enter, send an e-mail to MonicaBrownGiveaway@
gmail.com with your name, shipping address, and e-mail address. E-mail entries must be received by midnight (PST) on August 22, 2014. Winners will be selected in a random drawing and notified via e-mail. One entry per person, please; prizes will only be shipped to U.S. addresses. Your e-mail address will not be saved or sold. Download free curriculum guides for all of Monica Brown’s books at her website: www.monicabrown.net.
FREEBIES, DOODADS, & HELPFUL HINTS
Talk Like a Pirate Day (September 19)
3. Reproduce the Library Treasure Hunt sheet at www.librarysparks.com. At each location in the library, you will place a laminated picture of a well-known children’s book character. (If you think some students will not recognize the character, just add the character’s name to the picture.)
Reproduce and distribute the Talk Like a Pirate Crossword Puzzle at www.librarysparks.com.
Celebrating Shel (September 25) Poet Shel Silverstein was born on September 25, 1930. You will find creative resources for library or classroom activities at his website: www.shelsilverstein.com/learning. Check out the lessons and activities, poetry event kits, and drawing booklets.
Calling All Nerds! Nerd Camp and Nerd Camp 2.0 by Elissa Brent Weissman are great reads for your super-smart kids in grades 3–6. Boys will especially relate to Gabe, who’s a bit of an outsider at school, but finds “his people” at the Summer Center for Gifted Enrichment (aka Nerd Camp). Enter to win both books for your library or classroom. Five lucky winners will receive Nerd Camp (paperback) and Nerd Camp 2.0 (hardcover). To enter, send an e-mail to NerdCampGiveaway@gmail.com with your name, shipping address, and e-mail address. Entries must be received by midnight (PST) on August 29, 2014. Winners will be selected in a random drawing and notified via e-mail. One entry per person, please; prizes will only be shipped to U.S. addresses. Your e-mail address will not be saved or sold. Download free ancillary materials for the books at www.NerdCampPride.com.
Ever Seen a Bald Fairy? Ali and her classmates are raising flocks of fairies to make their wishes
4. Pass out the Library Treasure Hunt questions to students, and have them fill in the answers and the names of the children’s book characters at each location.
come true. But growing a flock is harder than it sounds: they only eat human hair, and the rules for dealing with them keep changing! Readers in grades 4–6 will love Mary G. Thompson’s funny new novel, Evil Fairies Love Hair. Publisher Clarion Books/HMH is giving away a hardcover copy of the book to five winners. To enter, send an e-mail to EvilFairiesGiveaway@gmail.com with your name, shipping address, and e-mail address. E-mail entries must be received by midnight (PST) on September 5, 2014. Winners will be selected in a random drawing and notified via e-mail. One entry per person, please; prizes will only be shipped to U.S. addresses. Your e-mail address will not be saved or sold. Download a free activity kit for the book at www.marygthompson.com.
5. As children complete the treasure hunt, they bring it back to you, and you send them to the treasure chest to select a treasure.
Back-to-School Bulletin Board Post the heading “Mirror Mirror on the Wall, Look Who’s Back to Learn It All!” above a mirror to welcome kids back to school.
Library Treasure Hunt 1. Decorate a box for your treasure chest, and fill it with Styrofoam peanuts or other filler. 2. Add “treasures” of your choice— special bookmarks or stickers, paperback books, comic books, pencil toppers, or a wrapped food treat. Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 5
From The What Should I Read Next? Collection Weeding Made Easy Can you name six benefits of weeding your collection? You’ll find them listed in CREW: A Weeding Manual for Modern Libraries, developed by the Texas State Library and revised in 2012 to include e-books. The book (108 pages) is free to download at www.tsl.texas. gov/ld/pubs/crew/index.html. This manual provides a handy acronym, MUSTIE, for the criteria used to decide whether a book should be weeded: M = Misleading or factually inaccurate U = Ugly
Grades PK-5
S = Superseded (by new edition or better book on the subject) T = Trivial (of ephemeral interest at some point in the past) I = Irrelevant to the needs and interests in your community E = Elsewhere obtained Forms, rationale, and detailed explanations are provided. There is even a PowerPoint presentation of the CREW Method that you can use for librarian staff development or self-instruction.
It’s satisfying when a student returns to you after reading a recommended book and wants another. If you don’t have the time or expertise to suggest the perfect title, bookmark these sites and teach students to use them. What Should I Read Next? http://whatshouldireadnext.com Students type in the title of a book they like, and the site provides comparable titles. Clicking on any of the info/buy buttons leads to Amazon.com, where students can be taught to scroll down to read summaries and reviews. I entered Al Capone Does My Shirts. The program suggested 30 titles, including Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians and Surviving the Applewhites. The Book Seer http://bookseer.com Students are greeted by a Charles Dickens look-alike and a prompt to enter a title and author. Students can click through to Amazon.com for more information on any of the recommended titles. For Al Capone Does My Shirts, there were ten recommendations, including others in the Al Capone series, Becoming Naomi Leon, and Totally Joe. Two drawbacks: students must know the author and title of the book they want to match, and not all the recommendations are a good match: One of the “matches” for my search was Teaching Reading and Writing: The Developmental Approach.
Starry Storytime
Mackin Book Talk! www.mackinbooktalk.com
Introduce myths in a library lesson with ageappropriate activities:
This site is more limited in suggestions, but it is the best of the bunch. Students first choose a state book award program. Not all fifty states are represented, but students can click on any state of interest in the list. Students can then select a book from the list to get a summary of the book, rate the book once they’ve read it, and find related books for their next read.
• Capture the students’ attention by using a projector to display the free constellations app GoSkyWatch. Be sure to locate Ursa Major (Big Bear) and Ursa Minor (Little Bear). • Read the book Little Bear, You’re a Star! by Jean Marzollo, which shares the Greek myth about how Big Bear (Ursa Major) and Little Bear (Ursa Minor) got placed in the sky. • Display and discuss a chart that explains the characteristics of a myth. Not long after I used this lesson in my library, many students begged me to show their families the GoSkyWatch app at our campus open house. It was a huge hit for all ages!
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TIPS FROM THE TRENCHES
Quirky Inventions Many grade levels include a unit about inventors and inventions. A creative way to introduce inventions is to first show the YouTube video called “Kid President: How to Be an Inventor!” A site mentioned in the video called Quirky (www.quirky.com/invent) is a great follow-up to the video. On this site, you can view current invention ideas that adults and kids have submitted. After viewing, generate a discussion with your students about whether they believe the invention plans were well thought out and whether they would make any changes. Then have your students vote for their favorites. Your students may become inspired to add their own invention ideas to Quirky.
Icebreaker Activity You may be asked to participate in a beginning of the year faculty in-service function. One thing you can contribute is a get-acquainted activity. You will need small plastic bags containing five M&Ms, each a different color. (My local dollar store sold small zipped bags for pills, fifty for $1.00.) Then ask the group to think about the following questions: 1. What is one thing you are looking forward to this year? 2. What is one surefire book you will read to your students and why? 3. What’s one thing you enjoy for lunch at school? 4. What tip would you share with a teacher new to our school? 5. What is a positive classroom incident that remains in your memory?
View Videos without the Ads There are many great educational videos on YouTube. However, educators are often leery to show these videos to their students for fear of what ads or commercials might pop up. One way to avoid this is to use ViewPure (www.viewpure.com). By entering the video’s URL in ViewPure, you can view the video without all the ads, commercials, pop-ups, or comments.
Each person takes out one M&M and finds someone who has the same color but is not on the same teaching team. Restate the first question, and allow 30 seconds for each partner to answer. After one minute, when both have answered, everyone takes out another M&M, finds a different partner, and shares their answers to question two. A bell or other attention getter is helpful for indicating time to switch. In less than fifteen minutes, people will enjoy interesting mini-conversations with five others, move around the room, and be set up to enjoy the day.
Library Book Display Crew With the school year in full swing, I found myself struggling to find time to create my monthly library book displays. Two sweet student volunteers noticed my dilemma and planned, gathered, and set up a themed book display that made me beam with pride. Friends, relatives, and staff members who learned about the display came to view it and checked out its featured books. This student-created display caused such excitement in our library that I now have a waiting list of students who want to form their own book display crews. As members of a book crew, your student volunteers get to display not only their favorite books, but also their unique talents and creativity. It’s a great library advocacy tool, too!
Just for You: Cheap, Guaranteed Help Fiverr.com is a website where folks offer services for $5.00 and up. It’s full of talented folks who are rated by clients and offer money-back guarantees. You’ll be amazed at the talent offered, and browsing is addictive. Here are a few tasks someone will do for $5: translate English into Chinese; record dialogue as Jack Sparrow or Batman; knit you fingerless gloves in two colors; create a cool cartoon of you; stamp your name on a guitar pick; or sing Happy Birthday to you on a ukulele.
Pat Miller, MEd, LMS, is a career school librarian who now devotes her time to writing and school visits. Library Brain is her latest from UpstartBooks, along with The Library Monkeys and multiple library lesson books. Her children’s books include Substitute Groundhog, Squirrel’s New Year’s Resolution (both from Albert Whitman), We’re Going on a Book Hunt (UpstartBooks), and The Hole Story of the Doughnut (2015, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt). Contact her at www.patmillerbooks.com. Mandy Watson, MLS, is an elementary school librarian in Texas who integrates fun into library lessons, centers, and storytelling. She was awarded Outstanding New Librarian of the Year her first year by the Texas Library Association’s New Members Roundtable. Visit her blog at http://imallbooked.blogspot.com. Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 7
by | Diane Findlay
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS
TREASUR Grades PK-6
I
n our fantasies, we’re all intrigued by the notion of treasure hunting. Admit it! Haven’t you longingly imagined yourself the lucky discoverer of something of great value? We may dream of untold wealth in the form of sunken pirate gold and of the adventures we’d have being the clever ones to find it, when others had failed. We may covet a particular, elusive item—a valuable antique or work of art, a priceless first-edition book or baseball card, a rare coin. We may yearn to find a meaningful but “worthless” (to others) memento of our 8 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
past, for its sentimental value. We may seek less tangible treasures, like true love, fame, or even a smile from an unhappy friend. What “treasures” do you fantasize about? What objects or ideas move you to actively pursue them? How far would you go—how much trouble or danger would you risk—to secure them? Our motive in searching for treasure—whatever that means to you—may be to possess the sought item and the value it brings us. Still, much of the thrill is in the search. This time of year, which includes International Geocaching Day on August 16, is the perfect time to explore and define the notion of “treasure,” and to search for it across the curriculum, as either the clues or the treasure itself serves to review subject content. These publisher’s series involve treasure-hunt themes: • The 39 Clues, by various authors. Scholastic. 4–7. • Ignite: Treasure Hunters, by various authors. Raintree. 4–7.
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS
RE HUNT
Treasure-Hunt Resources 1. All for Me and None for All, by Helen Lester. Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2012. P–2. Greedy Gruntly’s friends are dismayed when he joins a treasure hunt in the park, determined to keep the treasure for himself. But Gruntly is too impatient to pay attention to the clues and almost gets left out. His fellow treasure hunters help him learn about sharing. 2. The Art Treasure Hunt: I Spy with My Little Eye, by Doris Kutschbach.
Prestel, 2012. 2–5. Kutschbach features twenty-one well-known paintings that entice kids to closely examine works of art—a different kind of treasure—by looking for specific images. 3. The Box That Watch Found (The Boxcar Children), by Gertrude Chandler Warner. Albert Whitman & Company, 2007. 2–5. In this series title, the kids’ dog happens on a geocache, setting off a series of events in which the gang learns about geocaching and solves a double mystery. Slick, engaging, and informative.
4. Can You See What I See? Treasure Ship (Picture Puzzles to Search and Solve), by Walter Wick. Cartwheel Books, 2010. All ages. This title in the popular series employs digital photography, zooming out from an intriguing gold coin to a beach showing a postcard of the gift shop in which a model treasure ship is displayed. Search for more than 200 hidden objects. Use this book to sharpen observation skills and entice reluctant readers. 5. Codes and Ciphers (Spy Files), by Adrian Gilbert. Firefly Books, 2009. Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 9
3–6. The busy, heavily illustrated design of this overview uses visual appeal to grab and hold interest. Twopage spreads introduce subjects like code breaking, Morse codes, visual codes, secret writing, and more, with interesting coverage of the history of encryption technology. 6. George’s Cosmic Treasure Hunt, by Lucy Hawking and Stephen Hawking. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2009. 4–7. In this second story about George and Annie, the friends follow a series of clues, apparently sent by an alien, across the universe to avert a threat to blow up Earth. But Cosmos, the supercomputer that enables their interstellar adventures, is on the blink. Can Annie’s computergenius cousin coax Cosmos to function? Who’s threatening our planet? And will George and Annie solve the clues in time to save it? Scattered throughout the story are essays by notable scientists who shed factual light on the fictional action. Perhaps a stretch for the average reader, but science enthusiasts will love it. 7. How I Became a Pirate, by Melinda Long. Harcourt, 2003. K–3. Young Jeremy experiences pirate life firsthand, complete with cursing, bad manners, and no baths, when a rowdy pirate crew recruits him to help bury stolen treasure. Who’d have thought
he’d miss being tucked into bed? A rollicking good time, matey! 8. The Hunt for Hidden Treasure: A Mystery About Rocks (Summer Camp Science Mysteries), by Lynda Beauregard. Graphic Universe, 2012. 2–4. This graphic novel follows a group of summer campers who find a treasure map and try to follow it to the promised treasure. The search is complicated by geologic changes to the area, but camp staffer Loraine’s scientific knowledge helps the kids adjust and, ultimately, find a time capsule that was hidden in the 1980s. A mysteriously sullen camper and an earthquake liven up the plot. 9. Island of Thieves, by Josh Lacey. HMH Books for Young Readers, 2012. 5–8. Tom is apprehensive when he’s left in New York City with an uncle he barely knows while his parents take a vacation. But the week is full of surprises! Uncle Harvey, an irresponsible man prone to shady dealings, plans to leave Tom on his own in the city, while he heads for Peru to search for ancient, hidden treasure. Tom bribes his way along, and what sounds like a lark quickly turns into a deadly race to find the treasure and stay alive as a Peruvian gangster pursues them. High suspense will keep readers riveted through a sometimes unbelievable story. 10. It’s a Treasure Hunt! Geocaching & Letterboxing, by CQ Products. G&R Publishing, 2007. 4+. Surprisingly, nonfiction introductions to these forms of treasure hunting, written for kids, are scarce. This spiralbound book describes their history and gives detailed instructions for each. A section titled “Geocaching Games” suggests variations on basic geocaching, using GPS to locate hidden “treasures,” including people! 11. Keepers: Treasure-Hunt Poems, by John Frank. Roaring Brook Press, 2008.
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1–6. This beautifully designed and illustrated little book features thirty short poems that celebrate different kinds of treasures found at the beach, in the attic, at the flea market, and more. Out of print, but widely available in libraries and online markets. 12. The Lost Treasure of the Golden Sun (The Phantom Hunters), by Carol J. Amato. Stargazer, 2005. 4–6. Anny Bradford, her twin sister, Scout, and their friend Eric visit Arizona’s Navajo Nation to help the school there plan a science fair. But they’re caught up in a dangerous mystery involving arson, an illegal search for legendary treasure, and a ghost warrior whom only Anny can see. An interesting story with a satisfying conclusion, offering a glimpse of traditional Navajo beliefs. 13. The Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Treasure Hunt (Judy Moody & Stink), by Megan McDonald. Candlewick Press, 2011. 1–3. While vacationing on Ocracoke Island, Judy and Stink participate in a treasure-hunt contest that sends them on an adventure of cracking codes, finding clues, and solving puzzles. Can they complete the task and claim the treasure before their fellow treasure hunters? 14. Max & Ruby’s Treasure Hunt, by Rosemary Wells. Viking Juvenile, 2012. K–2. When the picnic Max and Ruby have planned for their friends is rained out, Grandma comes to the rescue with an indoor treasure hunt, using clues based on nursery rhymes. 15. Measuring on a Treasure Hunt (Math in Our World), by Jennifer Marrewa. Weekly Reader Early Learning, 2008. 1–3. Mrs. Perez leads her class through a series of indoor and outdoor treasure hunts, using clues that require students to use different items, like their feet or paintbrushes, to measure distances. Clever, versatile, and easily replicated.
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS
16. Muppet Treasure Island, directed by Brian Henson. Buena Vista Home Entertainment, 2005 (DVD Anniversary Edition). Despite its age, this wacky Muppet version of the Robert Louis Stevenson classic story is still charming. Available in libraries and through Walmart or iTunes. 17. The Pirate Girl’s Treasure: An Origami Adventure, by Peyton Leung. Kids Can Press, 2012. K–3. A young girl sets out searching for treasure, hidden for her by her pirate grandfather. She travels over mountains, through valleys and caves, and across a stormy, shark-infested sea to reach the island shown on her map and claim the treasure. What’s intriguing here is that origami figures, created successively from a single sheet of paper, help tell the story. 18. Pirate Pink and Treasures of the Reef, by Jan Day. Pelican, 2003. K–3. Plucky Pirate Pink and her trusty companion, Juan, board a foundered pirate ship in search of treasure. They find it on the reef below the ship, but are surprised by evil Captain Snagg, returning to reclaim his ship and plunder. With help from a hungry shark, the children escape Snagg and return to their village, bringing bounty for everyone. In a bonus ending, Pirate Pink and her mother head to sea on a giant turtle to enjoy beautiful natural treasures under the waves.
Your Own Adventure series title, “you” and your sister arrive to spend the summer with your aunt on San Juan Island, where you decide to search for sunken treasure from a ship captained by your great-great uncle. Will you find the treasure? Will you keep it? Will you even survive the attempt? It’s up to you, as you work through alternate story progressions.
antique pen, the Red Blazer Girls snap into action to solve a series of clues that lead to both the discovery and rightful inheritance of a fortune and the solution to a mystery that involves several of their friends. Crisp dialog, complex plots, engaging characters, plenty of humor, and just enough danger and suspense make this series popular.
21. Pirates Past Noon (Magic Tree House), by Mary Pope Osborne. Random House Books for Young Readers, 1994. 1–4. Annie and Jack travel back 300 years to a Caribbean island frequented by pirates. They are captured and must follow a treasure map to help Cap’n Bones find part of Captain Kidd’s buried treasure and win their safety. 22. The Puzzling World of Winston Breen, by Eric Berlin. Puffin Reprints, 2009. 4–7. When avid puzzler Winston finds a mysterious set of puzzle clues in a box he bought for his sister’s birthday, the siblings are pulled into a suspenseful, dangerous search for a valuable ring, hidden by a wealthy businessman. But who can they trust? The exciting story is punctuated with interesting word, letter, and number puzzles for readers to solve as they go. Puzzles can be downloaded as paper-and-pen worksheets from www.winstonbreen.com.
19. Pirate Treasure Hunt! by Jan Peck. Pelican, 2008. P–2. A variation on the familiar “Going on a Bear Hunt” rhyme, this amusingly illustrated picture book takes kids on a daring adventure across a squishy lagoon, through a jungle, into a snake pit, and over a cliff to claim a tantalizing treasure chest filled with … books! Treasure, indeed!
23. Russell and the Lost Treasure, by Rob Scotton. HarperCollins, 2006. P–3. Russell the sheep’s search for the lost treasure of Frogsbottom leads him to discover a buried chest. He’s disappointed to find in it only old, useless stuff but changes his mind when an old camera provides a wealth of entertainment for him and his friends. A delightful reminder that “treasure” may take unexpected forms.
20. Pirate Treasure of the Onyx Dragon (Choose Your Own Adventure), by Alison Gilligan. Chooseco, 2011. 3–6. In this Choose
24. The Secret Cellar (The Red Blazer Girls), by Michael D. Beil. Yearling, 2013. 4–7. When Sophie St. Pierre finds a secret message hidden in an
25. The Seven Treasure Hunts (Trophy Chapter Books), by Betsy Byars. HarperCollins (Reading Rainbow Books), 1992. 2–4. Best friends Jackson and Goat amuse themselves by hiding treasures for each other and searching them out with maps and clues, but their games are plagued with missteps and interference by Goat’s older sister, Rachel. 26. Sunken Treasure, by Gail Gibbons. HarperCollins, 1990. 1–4. This older title still provides an inviting, informative introduction to historical searches for underwater treasure. It examines, in detail, the sinking, search for, finding, recovery, and processing of the Spanish treasure ship Atocha, sunk in 1622, and then summarizes similar information about four other sunken ships. A look at the history of diving rounds out a useful title. Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 11
27. Treasure (Goose and Bear Stories), by Suzanne Bloom. Boyds Mills Press, 2012. P–2. When Bear marks an X on a piece of paper, excitable Goose assumes they’re off on a treasure hunt. After the two spy, dig, and dive to no avail, Bear dispels Goose’s disappointment by claiming Goose as his treasure and proceeding with the game of tic-tac-toe he had in mind at the start. Silly and sweet. 28. Treasure Hunters (Treasure Hunters), by James Patterson and Chris Grabenstein. Little, Brown and Company, 2013. 3–6. This amply illustrated story is told in the voice of Bick Kidd, one of four siblings, raised traveling the world on a ship by their treasure-hunting parents. When their mother disappears in Cyprus and their father in a raging storm, the Kidds are left to carry on the family business and try to complete their father’s mysterious mission, which may be an attempt to rescue their mother. Well-drawn characters, lots of humor, and nonstop suspense make this an appealing and popular series opener. 29. Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson. Candlewick Press, 2009. 5+. The classic tale of young Jim Hawkins and his adventure searching for
pirate gold, full of suspense, betrayal, mutiny, and murder, is a challenging but compelling coming-of-age read. Assign it to strong readers, or read it aloud—what an adventure! There are many study guides available. At http:// tinyurl.com/n4t2tgl, you’ll find links to several written for grades 4–6. 30. True-Life Treasure Hunts (Step–Into-Reading), by Judy Donnelly. Random House Books for Young Readers, 2003. 2–5. Despite a distracting tendency to use sentence fragments in the text, this nicely illustrated reader captures the imagination. It introduces the infamous pirate Blackbeard, describes two twentieth-century treasure hunts, and ends with an enticing look at some fabled treasures waiting to be found.
Treasure Hunting on the Web • Clued in Kids, http://cluedinkids. com, is a commercial site that sells packaged treasure hunts, usable in homes or classrooms, designed to teach kids academic content and social skills while fighting obesity through active movement. • Fun4theBrain has an online treasurehunt game that helps early readers practice reading tools and earn clues toward finding a treasure chest, at www.fun4thebrain.com/ English/treasurehunt.html. • Geocachingkids.com, www. geocachingkids.com, introduces kids and families to this high-tech form of treasure hunting. • Lost Treasure Online, official website of Lost Treasure magazine, has an interesting page with stories about lost treasures in every state. See www.losttreasure.com/statetreasures. • National Geographic’s Education section offers an online game, in
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Available at www.librarysparks.com.
which players use a gradiometer to find valuable items on the ocean floor, at http://tinyurl.com/8eg4cc3.
Treasure-Hunt Activities Read-aloud Stories Enjoy these stories aloud: Treasure, All for Me and None for All, How I Became a Pirate, Pirate Pink and Treasures of the Reef, and Max & Ruby’s Treasure Hunt. Treasure Island is a wonderful read-aloud for middle or upper elementary grades.
Discussion What is treasure? Books like Pirate Treasure Hunt suggest traditional ideas about treasure, while The Pirate Girl’s Treasure is less materialistic. Pirate Pink features both material treasures to keep and natural treasures to observe and enjoy. Discuss what constitutes “treasure,” using the following prompts:
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS
treasures. Challenge older students to write and illustrate longer sequels about the wonders mother and daughter discover.
• What do you picture when you hear the word “treasure”? • Is treasure always cash, gold, silver, or jewels? What else can be treasure?
Visual Arts
• Introduce the axiom “One man’s treasure is another man’s trash.” What does it mean? • Does treasure always mean material things? Could an action or an idea be a treasure? Give examples.
treasure chest”), or make your own from a good-sized cardboard box with a lid.
• Ask for examples of things some might discount, while others prize.
Clever Clues. Treasure-hunt clues are often puzzles to solve. They may be riddles or written in a code or cipher. Max & Ruby’s Treasure Hunt uses familiar nursery rhymes to form clues. There are several sophisticated and intriguing codes used in The Secret Cellar. Plan a school treasure hunt to encourage students to practice writing or solving riddles, and encoding or decoding encrypted clues. Crypto Club’s Treasure Hunt Clue Generator, at http://cryptoclub.org/teachers/clue_ generator.php, may be useful.
• What special kind of treasure would you most like to find? Where and how would you look for it?
Language Arts Treasure Hunt Book Reviews. Have middle or upper elementary students read one of the fiction titles from the bibliography. They will complete the Treasure Hunt Book Review Form at www.librarysparks.com as a review. Display the reviewed books, each with its student reviews, to encourage students to read other titles. Treasure-Hunt Poems. Share selections from Keepers: TreasureHunt Poems, and place the book at a learning center. Invite students to review the book and think of natural or everyday objects they would consider treasures. They will write, illustrate, and sign original poems about one or more of these items, and leave them at the center. Collect and display their work, or create a classroom anthology of “Keeper” poems. Treasure, Indeed! Read Pirate Treasure Hunt! Provide a treasure chest. Invite students to bring favorite book “treasures” to introduce and temporarily add to the chest to share. Books can come from home, the classroom collection, or the library. Amazon carries a plastic treasure chest (search Amazon.com for “toy
Language Arts Concept Hunts. Plan treasure hunts using clues that reinforce concepts you’re working on in class. For example, your clues might review prepositions by directing students to search “above,” “behind,” “underneath,” or “between” classroom items. Or send students searching for locations described by similes or metaphors, like this: “To find the next clue, look for something that ‘swallows trash like a pig’ (wastebasket) or ‘proudly salutes the Land of the Free’ (American flag).”
Language Arts/Visual Arts Sequels. Read Pirate Pink and Treasures of the Reef. Define a sequel and lead a discussion about the adventures Pirate Pink and her mother might have exploring the treasures on the reef after this story ends. Have them draw and caption pictures of the pair discovering natural marine
Origami Treasure. Read The Pirate Girl’s Treasure. Work with an art teacher to create the origami as you share the story; then lead students through the series of figures to create their own pirate shirts. For a fun extension, demonstrate creating an origami treasure chest. See variations at http:// tinyurl.com/m8t7l4y and http://tinyurl. com/lsu9dbc. Art Treasure Hunt. Set The Art Treasure Hunt at a learning center. Invite students to work through it, finding items and answering questions in the text. Add several books, or bookmark websites that feature famous paintings, along with pencils and copies of the Art Treasure Hunt form at www.librarysparks.com. Students will choose paintings that interest them and write prompts for other students to follow, patterned after the book. They will leave the completed forms inserted in the book, marking the pages with their chosen paintings, or next to the computer. Use the opportunity to introduce and explore the artists and styles featured in the book.
Language Arts/Physical Education Pirate Treasure Hunt! This book is a variation on the familiar “Going on a Bear Hunt” movement activity. Use it to lead early elementary students through a series of movements and sounds leading to the treasure and then back to the ship.
Foreign Language Caza del Tesoro. Plan a treasure hunt using clues written in your target language. Plan a “treasure” that relates to the appropriate culture, like Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 13
postcards showing scenic views of places that speak the target language or treats from that culture’s cuisine. Once you’ve tried your hunt with student teams, have those teams plan similar hunts for each other, crafting clues in the target language, of course.
Science Treasure and Geology. Use The Hunt for Hidden Treasure to anchor a lesson on how rocks and the surface of Earth change over time, touching on erosion, glaciers, weathering, earthquakes, and more. Cosmic Treasure Hunt. As extra credit, invite interested students to read George’s Cosmic Treasure Hunt and present oral book reports. Two or more readers might work together to describe both the science fiction story and the factual information in the essays on astronomy and physics. Their reports should include a plot summary, an explanation or demonstration of the scientific concepts in at least one essay, a biography of co-author Stephen
Hawking, and their critical opinions. Have them identify the “treasure” sought in this hunt, as explained in the book.
Geography Unfound Treasures. Check out websites like www.britainexplorer.com/ top-ten-lost-treasures.html or http:// tinyurl.com/c25yyzq for information on legendary treasures waiting to be found. Have students locate and mark the supposed sites of these treasures on a world map.
geocaching section of It’s a Treasure Hunt: Geocaching & Letterboxing. Check www.geocaching.com for easy, accessible caches near you, and plan a high-tech treasure-hunt outing. If there’s nothing appropriate nearby, create and hide a cache of your own, and enter it on the website for your class and others to find, or prepare and hide a cache as a class project. Compass Hunt. After introducing use of a compass, plan a hunt that requires students to follow directions
Map Hunts. Plan a treasure hunt using a map of your classroom, school, or school yard to direct the search. Hide clues and mark the starting point and path of your hunt with Xs or numbers on the map. Students must read the map accurately to find the treasure. Add a library skills component by using clues to send students to specific items or sections in the library.
from point to point based on distance
Technology/Geography
Have students choose one of the
Geocache! Read or assign The Box That Watch Found and the
following ways of hiding clues, or
and exact direction on a compass.
Technology Encrypted Clues. To secure hidden treasure from “the wrong people,” or to add challenge to a treasure hunt, clues are sometimes encrypted— written in codes or ciphers. Treasure hunters must know or find the key to the code in order to discover the treasure. Introduce Codes and Ciphers.
suggest a method not on the list:
To translate this coded message, visit www.makeandtakes.com/3-secret-codes-to-try-with-your-kids.
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• Invisible messages • Caesar shift ciphers • Morse code • Book ciphers • Scytales • Alberti cipher disks Students will research the method and demonstrate its use. Note: Not all of these are covered in the book. These websites are useful: • www.wikihow.com/Create-SecretCodes-and-Ciphers • www.nsa.gov/kids/home.shtml
Math Number Hunt. Form teams of four or five early elementary students. Recruit older student or adult helpers, so each team has an older leader. Provide clues that require students to find numbers prominently displayed around the school. For example, “Next Thursday is what date on the calendar?” or “What year does the cornerstone by the door tell us this school was built?” Include simple counting, like “How many tables are there in the cafeteria?” The last clue will lead teams back to the classroom (“What’s the number of our classroom?”). Give teams their clues (in different order, so they won’t follow the same path) and a time limit. When time is up, the team that correctly answered the most questions gets to pass out small treats for everyone. Measuring on a Treasure Hunt. Practice measuring skills by replicating the hunts in the book Measuring on a Treasure Hunt or by having groups of students create similar treasure-hunt clues for classmates to try. Pirate Treasure Hunt. Read or assign Pirates Past Noon. Then visit The Magic Tree House website for a treasure-hunt lesson plan (http://tinyurl.com/kkwlrgk). Finding the clues depends on solving fun math problems.
Music/Drama Treasure Island: The Musical. Along with the Muppet Treasure Island video listed in the bibliography, there are several musical theater adaptations of the Stevenson classic, written for performance by grades 3–7. These come out of England and may be available for purchase of materials and performance rights only. Check out these websites: • www.bbc.co.uk/learning/schoolradio/ subjects/music/treasure
Diane Findlay has worked with children’s and young adult literature for more than twenty years and was director of the Waukee (Iowa) Public Library for six years. She is the author of the Exploring Children’s Literature series and Digging Into Dewey from UpstartBooks, and has written for LibrarySparks since its beginning in 2003. Contact Diane at wordsmith418@q.com.
• www.starshine.co.uk/treasure-island • www.kingsburycreations.com/ treasureisland/treasureisland.htm
History Historical Hunters. Challenge students to identify and learn about successful treasure hunters from history. Use True-Life Treasure Hunts or Sunken Treasure to introduce real-life treasure hunters, or refer students to this Wikipedia entry for ideas: http:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treasure_hunting. Students will make posters to share what they learned, including the treasure hunter’s name, biographical sketch, summary of discoveries, value of discoveries (if possible), and an illustration. For older students, Treasure Hunters offers an introduction to the fascinating Captain William Kidd in a fictional context.
Technology/Economics/ Civics Treasure Hunting as Big Business. Refer interested students to the CNN article at http://tinyurl.com/ltdrj87. Invite them to write opinion essays addressing issues of ethics in treasure hunting, answering these questions: • Can treasure hunting be done without damage to the public interest? • Is treasure hunting worth the necessary financial investment?
Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 15
by | Beth Anne Burke
Strengthen Your Core Hunting for Treasures in the Text
Grades 1-5
Digging into a text for the treasures it holds—textual evidence—is one of the key elements that distinguish Common Core State Standards. Indeed, this is the crux of Anchor Standard 1, which, along with Standard 10 (reading complex texts), is one of the two main pillars of the standards. Standard 1 has two parts: (1) read closely to determine what the text says, and (2) cite specific textual evidence to support conclusions drawn from the text. Because this is an Anchor Standard, it is applied at every grade level, from K–12 in varying degrees.
CCSS Anchor Standard 1: Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.
Kindergarten With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in the text.
First Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
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Second Ask and answer such questions as who?, what?, where?, when?, why?, and how? to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.
Third Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for answers.
Fourth Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
Fifth Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
STRENGTHEN YOUR CORE
CCSS Anchor Standard 1 increases in difficulty from kindergarten to fifth grade. It follows the Gradual Release of Responsibility model (Pearson and Gallagher 1983). In kindergarten the teacher prompts, guides, and offers support to ensure that students can ask and answer questions about the big ideas in a text. By second grade, there are specific questions that students are expected to answer. Gradually, students must use details from what they read to prove their answers, so that by fifth grade, students should be able to find explicitly stated information that supports their answers as well as draw inferences from their readings and use exact quotes from the text to support their answers. While we have always expected students to include details from what they read in their responses, the Common Core is taking us back to the idea of basing all answers directly on what is read. The idea is based on New Criticism, a school of thought that believes that meaning should be derived from the text, not necessarily from background knowledge (Shanahan 2012). Background knowledge, however, highly influences how students think about a text and definitely affects their inferences. A reader uses prior knowledge to answer a question or to make a claim about a text. Students with limited experiences tend to struggle in school, while those with a wide variety of experiences apply their understandings to the world around them and to what they read. We get students to focus on the text by asking text-dependent questions, such as the following. Key Ideas & Details • What is the author’s message? Find details in the story to prove that. • Which sentences in the story show the setting?
Craft & Structure • Which words and phrases in the text help the reader understand what [specific vocabulary word] means? • How does the author feel about [the topic]? What words and phrases did s/he use to show that? Integration of Knowledge & Ideas • What text features did the author include? Explain your answer using specific details from the text. • Compare the book with the movie version. Use specific details from the text and from the movie in your comparison. The questions we ask should guide students to use information from the text, not just rely on prior knowledge. For example, consider the question: Why are dogs good pets? To answer this question, a reader may find facts and information in the article read. The reader may also “wing it,” pulling ideas from personal experiences with dogs. While it used to be acceptable to rely on background knowledge to answer the question, now students must back up their inferences and claims with specific textual evidence. A better question may be, What reasons did the
author give for why dogs are good pets? What words or phrases from the article prove that?
Close Reading: A Hunt for Text Evidence Citing specific parts of a text, especially data or information, strengthens writing immensely. Looking for textual evidence guarantees that readers have to read closely—revisiting the text to search for just the right piece of information to support a claim. Text evidence may be paraphrased or directly quoted in order to support inferences, claims, or opinions. Both of these methods, direct quotes or paraphrasing, have to be explicitly taught. Because this expectation is new for many of our students, we have to teach them how to seek out evidence from the text as well as how to incorporate this evidence into a well-reasoned response. Ask a text-dependent question to guide students in digging closely into the text. Use the following routine when teaching students to find and cite text evidence. Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 17
What Is a Think-Aloud? A think-aloud is when teachers or students verbalize what they are thinking. Through thinking aloud, you can make the reading process more concrete by demonstrating what strategies are used to comprehend questions and form answers.
1. Unlock the Question. Using a think-aloud, model how to unlock a question to know exactly what information is needed in order to answer it. Underline key words and discuss what the question means.
• Read with a pencil: Photocopy a small portion of a text so students may read it with a pencil, underlining or circling key words or phrases, or jotting notes in the margins. (AASL Standard 1.1.4)
2. Model. Show how you would use text evidence to prove your answer. Use a think-aloud to make your thinking about which text evidence to select visible to students. (AASL Standard 1.2.1)
• Make a game out of finding and using text evidence: Tell students that they are treasure hunters seeking gems of information in the text. Students can look for big ideas that the author is trying to share. These ideas can often be found in the first and/or last sentences of paragraphs. Numbers are also often significant text evidence because they are concrete. See the Treasure Hunting for Text Evidence Game at www.librarysparks.com. (AASL Standard 3.1.2)
3. Partners Practice. Have students practice answering a text-dependent question by finding text evidence with a partner. (AASL Standard 1.4.2) 4. Write It. After students have mastered finding and citing text evidence orally, have them use the text evidence in their writing. (AASL Standard 3.1.3)
Paraphrasing Sample Original Quote The moment where you doubt you can fly, you cease for ever being able to do it. –J. M. Barrie, Peter Pan Paraphrased Text As soon as you stop believing in yourself, you will fail.
Library Lens: Hunt for the “Treasures” in a Text • Touch the text: Ask students textdependent questions and have them physically touch the place in the text where they find the answer. (AASL Standard 1.1.4)
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Perfecting the Paraphrase Paraphrasing is the art of restating an author’s ideas and message in your own words. Technology has made it too easy to plagiarize by cutting and pasting; we need to explicitly teach students to restate what the author is saying in several different ways. This will not only improve the quality of writing but also help with reading comprehension.
Library Lens: Paraphrasing Power! Paraphrasing Quote Cards: Have students practice paraphrasing quotes from children’s literature. Give students a quote from a familiar children’s book. Have them work with a partner to restate the big idea of the quote in a new and fresh way. See the Treasured Quotes cards
at www.librarysparks.com. (AASL Standard 1.3.1) For an additional lesson in paraphrasing, see “Inquiry & Research, Common Core Style” in the December 2013 issue of LibrarySparks.
You Can Quote Me on That To quote or not to quote … that is the question. Infusing direct quotes into writing is a way to incorporate text evidence and make writing stronger. Why use a direct quote instead of paraphrasing a section? A student may choose to use a quote instead of paraphrasing when the original wording is extremely powerful or to demonstrate how an expert agrees or supports the student’s opinion. Quotation marks show when a response is using an author’s original words, including memorable unique phrases that come directly from the text. This blends quite easily with AASL Standard 1.3.2: Follow ethical and legal guidelines to gather and use information. One word of caution: many times students quote everything. This does
STRENGTHEN YOUR CORE
not help the student demonstrate understanding. Encourage students to select quotes sparingly—one powerful sentence or meaningful phrase is better than several sentences or an entire paragraph.
References What Is Close Reading? by Tim Shanahan. ShanahanOnLIteracy.com, June 18, 2012. “The Instruction of Reading Comprehension” by P. David Pearson and M. Gallagher. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 8 (1983): 317–344. Common Core State Standards: www.corestandards.org
Quotation Sentence Starters Teach students to begin by using sentence starters like these to introduce quotes (available as a reproducible at www.librarysparks. com). These can help students focus their thinking on the question and what information they are including. While we don’t want students’ writing to become formulaic, teaching students cues like those on the following list can help them structure their writing. Here are some examples:
AASL Learning Standards & Common Core State Standards Crosswalk: www.ala. org/aasl/standards-guidelines/crosswalk
Beth Anne Burke lives outside Annapolis, Maryland, with her two sons, her husband, and her dog. She recently renewed her National Board Certification in Literacy and is celebrating her twenty-fifth year as an educator. Currently a reading teacher, Beth is an expert presenter in Common Core State Standards and other topics in literacy. She is very active in the local affiliate of the International Reading Association. Contact Beth at baburke@aacrc.net or follow her blog at http://baburke.edublogs.org/.
• The author stated, • On page ___, it said … • According to the author, • In the text, it said … • The author wrote …
How Do You Punctuate Quotes?
• An example on page ___ is ___
• Use a quotation sentence starter.
• On page ___ the author said ___
• Begin the quote with a capital letter.
• According to TITLE,
• End the quote with punctuation.
Library Lens
• Add quotation marks around the words that are said and the punctuation.
• Model using sentence starters: Use a think-aloud to show students how to begin with a sentence starter and add a specific quote from the text. (AASL Standard 1.3.3)
As Aesop stated, “No act of kindness is ever wasted.”
• Practice punctuating quotes: Use the How Do You Punctuate Quotes? resource sheet (www.librarysparks. com) to guide students as they practice punctuating direct quotes from texts. (AASL Standard 1.3.3) Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 19
by | Amy Koester
GAINING STEAM ADVENTURES IN MAPPING
Grades PK-6
Most treasure hunts have one major thing in common: maps. Without a map to gives clues about a treasure’s location, the chances of stumbling upon a cache are small. A map makes finding a desired spot easier—and a good map is a tremendous tool. Students will engage with science, technology, engineering, artistic creation, and math (STEAM) as they explore how different types of maps and mapping systems work, what types of information maps can convey, and how maps are created. The library is an excellent place to explore STEAM concepts. Engaging children in informal STEAM learning is all about building interest in how real-world things work, and the library is full of excellent resources to facilitate these types of explorations.
Spot that coincides with a themed lesson allows children to observe and interact with topical books and artifacts, even if they are unable to attend a program or lesson.
Science Spot
Short Activities
Designate a space in the library to create a changeable Science Spot. Your Science Spot can be a display case, a table, or a countertop, as long as it is easily visible to children who visit the library. Having a Science
Short activities encourage children to engage with a STEAM topic through a combination of different hands-on opportunities. Short activities are excellent for school libraries in which lessons may need to be brief, and
20 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
Create a Science Spot on the topic of maps using the premise “You Are Here.” Gather a variety of maps that describe the area surrounding the library. These maps can include road maps, topographical maps, architectural drawings of the building housing the library, and maps of the library’s layout. Use pushpins, stickers, or sticky notes to designate where the library is located on each of the different maps. This Science Spot enables children to see that the location of one place—the library— can be shown in a variety of different ways.
they allow public libraries to combine several small activities into selfdirected stations at a single program on the theme.
Create Maps of the Library (Grades PK–6) Let children exercise their spatial and artistic skills as they create maps of the library. Read Henry’s Map by David Elliot or Curious George: Lost and Found by Erica Zappy to younger children, or show spreads from Maps by Aleksandra Mizielińska and Daniel Mizieliński to older children. Talk about how the maps in these books help
GAINING STEAM
describe a place; then have children discuss what they want their maps to convey about the library. Is the map meant to help locate the areas where different books are shelved? Show emergency exits and safety equipment? Discuss how mapmakers choose a purpose for their maps, and then hand out paper and writing utensils so the children can create their own maps.
Discuss Latitude and Longitude (Grades 2–6) Use a globe to point out and talk about lines of latitude and longitude. Key terms to discuss include “equator,” “prime meridian,” and “hemisphere.” Identify lines of latitude and longitude on a flat world map. Pose a question about why latitude and longitude might help in mapping the world, and allow children to discuss their thoughts. Identify the latitude and longitude for the town in which the library is located.
(nationalatlas.gov), a government website where users can create maps using data collected by the United States Geological Survey (USGS). Demonstrate for children the different types of data that can be mapped using the National Atlas’s tools. Over 100 possible map layers include information about major crops, average precipitation, locations of earthquakes, and butterfly distribution. Give children the opportunity to create their own state maps using National Atlas.
Geocaching, Latitude, and Longitude in National Parks (Grades 3–6) Booktalk or share a chapter from Hide & Seek by Katy Grant to introduce the activity of geocaching in nature. Use library atlases to identify national parks like Yellowstone, Arches, and Great Smoky Mountains. Talk about geocaching, including the tools involved and the goal of locating “treasure” left by other geocachers. Many national parks are home to geocaches, making them excellent locations for geocachers to visit. Identify the latitude and longitude of national parks in the atlases.
Classroom/Program Activities
Explore National Atlas (Grades 3–6) Use any of the books in the Let’s Get Mapping! series by Melanie Waldron to introduce the different types of information that can be shown on maps. Then explore National Atlas
Activities designed for use in classrooms or programs are generally longer and more in-depth than the short activities. They are great options for school librarians who partner with an individual classroom on a theme unit; librarians can prepare and facilitate these activities with individual classes, or they can instruct teachers to lead the activities themselves. When the librarian and teacher lead these activities together, one can provide instructions while the other offers individual assistance to students. These activities are
also excellent stand-alone program options for public libraries.
Scavenger Hunt (Grades 2–6) Visit Wonderopolis and read together the article titled, “What Is a Scavenger Hunt?” (http://wonderopolis.org/ wonder/what-is-a-scavenger-hunt/). After reading the main article, explore the sample scavenger hunt lists in the “Try It Out” sidebar on the site. Start a discussion about what types of items would make a scavenger hunt easy, and what would make a scavenger hunt difficult. Pose the question, “Do you think a scavenger hunt should be all easy, all difficult, or a mixture of both?” Allow children to discuss their thoughts. Hand out lined paper and writing utensils, and have children form groups to create their own scavenger hunt lists with ten items to find. If time and space allow, encourage children to make scavenger hunts for the library or classroom, and then spend some time going on the scavenger hunt in groups.
QR Code Treasure Hunt (Grades 3–6) Booktalk or read an excerpt from The Expeditioners and the Treasure of Drowned Man’s Canyon by S.S. Taylor to build excitement about a quest for treasure. Prior to this classroom/ program activity, the librarian should create a QR code treasure hunt. QR Treasure Hunt Generator (www. classtools.net/QR) is a free online resource to make creating a QR code hunt simple; the librarian can create
Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 21
and input questions and answers that lead to the locations of the QR codes in the library or school. Children will require a device with a QR code reader to participate; there should be one device for each group of children going on the hunt. The treasure hunt will begin with the librarian giving a clue to the location of the first QR code. When children locate that QR code, they will be able to scan the code to access a clue to the second location. This process continues, with each location providing a clue to the subsequent location, until the “treasure” is located at the final location.
Picture Book Fiction
find their locations. Have children create trilateration coordinates by using a compass and a map with a distance scale (see Trilateration Activity Map resource at www.librarysparks.com
Henry’s Map by David Elliot. PK–2. Henry the pig likes everything to be orderly; his mantra is “A place for everything and everything in its place.” When he looks out the window and sees the farm isn’t as organized as he would like, he decides to make a map of all the animals and the places where they live. The entire farm gets caught up in the excitement of creating the map, and in the end Henry feels very satisfied that everyone and everything on the farm is where it is supposed to be. Curious George: Lost and Found by Erica Zappy. PK–3. When George and the man in the yellow hat visit a friend’s farm in the country, George is told not to wander off. George just wants to feed the ducks—and he is so engrossed in feeding them that he doesn’t realize when his raft drifts away from the shore. When he gets off the raft, George is lost. Instead of worrying, however, George tries to remember the landmarks he saw while on the raft. He uses those landmarks to make a map that leads him back to the farm, safe and sound.
Chapter Book Fiction
Trilateration and How a GPS Receiver Works (Grades 4–6) Introduce the main concepts about how GPS and GPS receivers work by sharing excerpts from GPS: Global Positioning System by Jeanne Sturm. Using a chalkboard and chalk or a whiteboard and marker along with the trilateration activity discussed on the How Stuff Works webpage for GPS receivers (http://electronics. howstuffworks.com/gadgets/travel/gps. htm), demonstrate how GPS receivers 22 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
for a ready-to-use map). Children choose a location on their maps, then describe that location’s distance from three other set spots on the map. After creating their coordinates, children can swap maps to locate one another’s chosen locations.
Reading Connections Reading connections include both fiction and nonfiction titles that can be shared, either as read-alouds or as booktalks.
Hide & Seek by Katy Grant. 4–6. Chase is an avid Arizona biker, hiker, and geocacher. While on his first solo geocaching adventure, Chase notices a strange message in the geocache's log: "HELP WE NE." Intrigued, Chase returns several days in a row, and he learns that the message for help has come from two young boys. Although Chase enjoys spending time out in nature with these two youngsters, he starts to worry that they might be in some sort of trouble. Can Chase help his new friends while also keeping himself safe in the Arizona desert? The Expeditioners and the Treasure of Drowned Man’s Canyon by S.S. Taylor.
GAINING STEAM
3–6. Ever since Kit, Zander, and M.K. West's father died while on an exploration, the three children have
had to fend for themselves. But when a mysterious man gives Kit a package from their father, the children learn that they may not know the full story of their father's expeditions or his mysterious death. Codes, maps, and help from a few interesting characters lead the West children to Arizona in search of the legendary Drowned Man's Canyon and its gold. The siblings also hope they'll discover why their father left them a secret quest to follow. Throughout their journey they encounter danger and adventure quite unlike anything they were expecting.
interest to the manageable text. GPS: Global Positioning System by Jeanne Sturm. 4–6. This nonfiction title offers a quick yet detailed introduction to the global positioning system. Readers learn how GPS works, including how GPS satellites function, how they are monitored, and how they communicate with receivers. The title explores the range of uses for GPS, from creating specific maps and getting directions in vehicles, to workplace functions for surveyors and firefighters, to recreational uses in sports, hiking, and geocaching. Maps by Aleksandra Mizielińska and Daniel Mizieliński. 2–6. This full-size atlas takes a unique approach to mapping the countries and continents of the world. In addition to depicting national borders, waterways, and major cities, each map also includes nontraditional atlas illustrations. Maps of continents show marine creatures that live in the surrounding waters. Country maps include illustrations of iconic buildings and major landmarks alongside depictions of culinary delicacies, national pastimes, common first names, and indigenous flora and fauna. Each map in this atlas begs to
be carefully perused for both its beauty and its information.
Amy Koester is a children’s librarian with the St. Charles CityCounty Library District in Missouri. She has presented at conferences nationwide on the topic of STEAM programs and services for children, and she regularly blogs about program plans and ideas for the ALSC Blog and as the Show Me Librarian. Visit her website at http:// showmelibrarian.blogspot.com.
Nonfiction Let’s Get Mapping! series by Melanie Waldron. 3–6. This six-title series gives young readers a solid introduction to many aspects of mapping, from identifying different types of maps to reading and creating maps. Individual volumes break cartography into smaller topics, allowing readers to explore ways to map different types of information effectively. The included illustrations and maps, many of which will be new to young readers, add an element of visual Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 23
by | Judith Snyder
KEEP ’EM READING
Discovering Treasure in the Library
Grades K-5
Every book is a treasure waiting to be discovered. Tempt your students into new worlds where a wealth of words, ideas, and stories can provide riches that last a lifetime. A book’s hidden treasure is what brings a child back to the book again and again. Reasons for these personal connections vary, but when the story embeds a universal theme, it creates a powerful bond between the story and the child. It opens the door into unknown cultures and new experiences. The hunt for library treasures evolves from finding books on the shelves to finding the themes within the books. Let the treasure hunt begin.
Book Pirates (Grades K–1) At the beginning of the year, primary students need to learn simple but important skills in navigating the library and choosing books. Turning these skills into a treasure hunt makes it fun and helps students remember procedures. 24 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
Choose an array of books to display for read aloud. Explain that you searched through many books to find these treasures. What makes them treasures? That depends on the reader. Model your personal considerations when choosing books. Explain how the cover and pictures give hints to a book's hidden treasure, but that to find the pearls of wisdom, the book must be read. Ask questions about the pictures, and talk about the emotions the pictures evoke. Engage the class in choosing one of the books to read aloud and, when finished, discuss what individuals treasure about the story.
Tried and True Treasures (Grades 1–3)
Choosing a book also requires special treasure-hunting techniques. Demonstrate any practices you want students to follow, such as how to use a shelf marker to identify where the treasured book belongs on the shelf. Let students practice in pairs finding their own treasures and checking them out. As students leave the library, demonstrate how to hug their treasures as they carry the books to the classroom.
Distribute two wordless picture books to groups of three students. (See suggestions in the bibliography, available online at www.librarysparks. com.) Ask groups to read both books and choose the most treasured of the two. Dig a little deeper to identify the “golden message” the author/illustrator wants the reader to understand at the end.
Treasured books are read over and over until they are memorized or fall apart. Show an example of a wellloved book. Ask each student to introduce a favorite book as if it were an old friend. For a visual, students can bring their favorite books from home, find them in the library, or create their own book jackets.
Wordless Treasures (Grade 3)
Copy the doubloons handout (at www.librarysparks.com) on yellow
KEEP ’EM READING
paper, and give each group one of the gold doubloons. Each group writes the book’s “golden message” on the coin and tapes the coin to the book cover. Display these books for primary students to use as guides in selecting books.
Treasure Maps (Grades 3 & 4) Book characters search for their own "treasures" during the course of a story. Identifying and mapping a character’s struggles will help students understand the structure of the story and begin recognizing theme.
Themes are life messages common to all humanity. Let students work in groups of three to create a picture book’s treasure map. After reading a picture book together, the group decides what “treasure” the character is searching for by identifying either the author’s message or what the character learned at the end. Write this on the treasure chest (reproducible available at www.librarysparks.com). Then the group identifies at least three steps (or difficulties) the character had in the journey to discover the treasure. Give each group a large piece of butcher paper for creating a treasure map. Draw a map that includes three stops along the way toward the
end of the story. Illustrate and label the stops (the character’s attempts and failures at solving the problem). Add a legend if desired. Glue the treasure chest on the map at the end. Decorate the map with drawings about the story. Using the treasure maps as visuals, groups retell the stories to the class. Classroom teachers might want to follow up this activity by asking students to create a treasure map for their own stories and then use the map as a guide when writing the stories.
Activity #1 Folklore has been around for thousands of years because it contains treasure—a little pearl of wisdom that is innately human. Try starting with a few Aesop fables in which the story moral is the theme.
All morals are themes, but themes may not always be morals.
Treasure Troves: Understanding Theme (Grades 4 & 5) Folklore and picture books provide a good laboratory for older students to deepen their knowledge of theme. Skills can be modeled and practiced in short time frames, since stories are succinct in plot and character development. Common Core standards require that fourth and fifth graders identify the theme of a story using text details. By systematically identifying character actions, thoughts, and conversations, the reader reveals the theme and creates a valuable “text to self” connection. When themes are not explicitly stated, they can be difficult for intermediate students to discern. By providing scaffolding activities and letting students work with peers, theme identification becomes more inherent.
Suggested Fables Title
Theme
The Tortoise and the Hare
Slow and steady wins the race.
The Ant and the Grasshopper
Prepare today for the wants of tomorrow.
The Wind and the Sun
Persuasion works better than force.
The Lion and the Mouse
No act of kindness, however small, is ever wasted. Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 25
Folktale Examples Title
Theme
The Three Little Pigs
When you do a job, do your best work.
Goldilocks and the Three Bears
Show respect for the property of others.
Jack and the Beanstalk
Small and clever can conquer big and strong.
• Has the main character learned an important life lesson? • If the main character hasn’t learned anything, what does the reader learn from the character’s actions? From this discussion, students will identify the theme and share findings with the class. Activity #3
Distribute a different fable to each
Activity #2
student group. After reading,
Expand the treasure hunt to find themes in well-known folktales. These longer stories contain themes that are usually not explicitly stated.
discuss how the characters’ actions support the moral. Then make the moral personal by asking the group to compose a contemporary story that conveys the same moral. This can be written or shared orally. Find examples of these fables at www.aesopfables.com.
Student groups can discuss the following questions to help identify the theme: • At the end of the story, what has the main character learned about how to behave?
A character’s thoughts and actions evoke the story's theme, but there is also an emotional subtext brought to the story by each reader that connects the story to the heart and helps children recognize that their experiences and feelings are shared by others. This insight, plus the identification of the theme, aid in understanding personal emotions and give readers courage to face future challenges. Author Kathleen Pelley
Books by Kathleen Pelley Picture Book The Giant King
Summary Rabbie, a gifted carver, encounters a village under siege by a giant. When Rabbie convinces the villagers to treat the giant like a king, the king becomes jealous. The giant proves his nobility by offering to sacrifice himself for the village.
Universal Themes • Treat others with respect. • Recognize the potential in others.
Raj the Bookstore Tiger
Raj, a brave tomcat, slinks away into the shadows when Snowflake tells him he’s not the tiger he thinks he is. With the help of Raj’s owner, Felicity, and William Blake’s poem, Raj rediscovers his inner tiger.
• Be true to yourself.
The Sandal Artist
Roberto, an artist, seeks wealth by painting only beautiful things. But when he walks in the sandals of a great but humble man, Roberto recognizes the beauty in all creation.
• Everything and everyone has value.
Inventor McGregor
Magnus Maximus
26 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
Hector McGregor loves to invent, but when he must work in the city, his imagination stops. He discovers that creative diversions at home get ideas flowing again. Magnus is so busy measuring that he forgets life’s little pleasures, until he breaks his glasses and a young boy takes him by the hand to wade in the cold ocean waves.
• Seek beauty and you will find it all around. • Be true to yourself. • Conforming is a deterrent to creativity. • Work is important but should be balanced with appreciation of friends, nature, and art.
KEEP ’EM READING
Activity #4 Select a book from the suggested list (available at www.librarysparks.com), or choose your own to read to the class. Discuss the story using the questions from Activity #2. Let small groups of students decide the theme(s) found in the book and compare with other groups. Provide additional guided practice by distributing different picture books to each small group to read together, identify the theme(s), and record findings in a class T-chart.
combines these two treasures in a rich blend of creative elements.
Find readings at www.kathleenpelley. com.
Theme integration is much more sophisticated and subtle in today's literature than in folklore. To introduce students to themes found in picture books, view several videos by Pelley in which she reads a picture book and briefly speaks about the embedded universal themes. She has a beautiful way with words, yet keeps it simple enough for children to understand.
Extend this lesson by asking students to identify a favorite childhood book. Using the Treasure Troves form (available at www.librarysparks.com), have students write about what connected them to the book. Let students share in small groups. Ask them to compare the themes they identified and reflect on why books may affect people differently.
Consistent practice with this complex concept multiplies student awareness of theme. So let students dig into a piece of literature to find the themes that will take them to rich new worlds. Happy treasure hunting.
Judith Snyder is a seasoned teacher/ librarian in Colorado, as well as a professional storyteller and freelance writer. Judith is the author of the Jump-Start Your Library series, three books featuring hands-on library lessons from UpstartBooks (2008), and a picture book, What Do You See? (2009), from Odyssey Books.
Other Suggested Picture Books Picture Book
Summary
Universal Themes
Sophie’s Squash by Pat Zietlow Miller
Sophie names her squash Bernice, and they play all summer. When Bernice begins to rot, Sophie makes her a bed in the earth. In the spring, Bernice grows into two new squashes for Sophie to love.
• Everything is worthy of love.
Time Out for Monsters by Jean Reidy
What’s a time-out corner without monsters? The boy in the story decorates his corner with imaginative creatures and wonderful treats.
• A healthy imagination can be good company.
Goldy Luck and the Three Pandas by Natasha Yim
This Chinese American version of Goldilocks includes Goldy learning from and acting on her mistakes. She discovers her luck changes when she takes responsibility for her actions.
• Empathy for others
• Things we love can revisit us in surprising ways.
• Realizing how actions can affect others • Learning from mistakes
Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 27
SUNDAY
Put Something In
Draw a crazy picture, Write a nutty poem, Sing a mumblegumble song, Whistle through your comb. Do a loony-goony dance ‘Cross the kitchen floor, Put something silly in the world That ain’t been there before. ~ Shel Silverstein
7 Holiday
National Grandparents Day Share Amy’s Three Best Things by Philippa Pearce about a girl’s first overnight with her grandmother.
Month/Week/Day/Word Celebration
1
MONDAY
Labor Day The last known passenger pigeon, called Martha, died 100 years ago today at the Cincinnati Zoo.
8
Full Moon
The Northern Pacific Railroad was completed this day in 1883. Celebrate with Brian Floca’s Locomotive, the 2014 Caldecott winner.
2
TUESDAY
Just for fun. Visit http://tinyurl. com/loq9oaq for 30 back-toschool jokes. Post some in your library or classroom.
9 On this day in 1776, the Continental Congress officially named the new nation the United States.
Birthday Celebration
SEPTEMBER 2014
14 Francis Scott Key wrote the “Star-Spangled Banner” in 1814. Beginning readers can read Francis Scott Key’s Star-Spangled Banner by Monica Kulling.
21
15 National Hispanic Heritage Month For interactive timelines, scavenger hunts, and other activities about Hispanic Americans, visit http://tinyurl. com/yct3xpa.
22 Autumn Begins Hobbit Day
International Day of Peace
“Sorry! I don’t want any adventures, thank you. Not Today.”
16 H.A. Rey’s Birthday Celebrate with Curious George and the Birthday Surprise by H.A. Rey and Margaret Rey.
23 Banned Books Week Visit ALA’s website at http://tinyurl.com/k4lxtux for information on celebrating in libraries.
Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
28
29
Why did the new boy steal a chair from the classroom? Because the teacher told him to take a seat.
Visit Storytime Katie at http:// tinyurl.com/kr6wd37 for fall book, flannelboard, and craft ideas.
30 Go graphic with The Graveyard Book Graphic Novel, Volumes 1 and 2 by Neil Gaiman, adapted by P. Craig Russell.
National Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15–October 15) | 28 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
SEPTEMBER 2014
3
WEDNESDAY
Work with your public library to promote Library Card Sign-up Month. Visit www.ala.org for more information.
10 It’s a classic: Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson.
17 Constitution Day Visit http://constitutioncenter.org/ billofrightsgame for an interactive Bill of Rights game.
24 Rosh Hashanah begins at sunset. Wish Happy New Year to your Jewish students.
4
THURSDAY
“Today was a difficult day. Tomorrow will be better.” Mr. Slinger in Lily’s Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes
11 Patriot Day Visit http://tinyurl.com/msu5kkf for a variety of peacemaking games and activities
18 Word of the Month Scallywag: a rascal or mischievous person
25 Shel Silverstein’s Birthday Challenge students to respond to this month’s poem, “Put Something In.”
5
FRIDAY
Paul Fleischman’s Birthday Have pairs of students take turns reading Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices.
12 Did you know? In 1940, four French teens discovered the 17,000-year-old drawings now known as the Lascaux Cave Paintings.
19 Talk Like a Pirate Day! Make pirate hats. Visit http://tinyurl.com/m8r9lmv for a pattern and directions.
26 Johnny Appleseed’s Birthday Coming to theaters: The Boxtrolls, based on Alan Snow’s fantasy adventure novel Here Be Monsters.
6
SATURDAY
Celebrate National Piano Month with the King of Ragtime, Scott Joplin. Visit http://tinyurl.com/kukevdc to listen and learn more.
13 Roald Dahl’s Birthday Visit http://tinyurl.com/lsu9n8l for a lesson plan and activities for Dahl’s The BFG.
20 Coming to theaters: The Maze Runner, based on the teen trilogy by James Dashner.
27 In 1940, black leaders protested discrimination in US armed forces. Learn more in Tanya Lee Stone’s Courage Has No Color: The True Story of the Triple Nickles.
| Library Card Sign-up Month | National Piano Month | Children’s Good Manners Month ™ Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 29
MEet
Nick Glass of TeachingBooks.net interviewed Dav Pilkey on February 28, 2014.
the
author
w e v i r i nte Photo by Kar yn Car
Grades PK-6
er p e nt
Dav pilkey Share a little bit about what you were like growing up. DP: I was a bit of a misfit as a kid. I had ADHD, dyslexia, and behavior issues that usually resulted in my spending a great deal of time out in the hallway.
How did your family respond to you being a “misfit?” DP: My parents wanted me to fit in, of course (so did I), but they were very supportive of me even when I didn’t. I always felt like I had a safe place to come home to, where I was encouraged and loved. It was the total opposite of school. Did you doodle? DP: Yes. Especially when I was alone in the hallway at school. That’s where I taught myself to draw and make comic books. Do you still doodle and make nonbook art? DP: Yes. I am also very interested in music, especially songs from the 1920s and 1930s. So when I’m not working on a book, I can usually be found plinking away at my ukulele. How do you use your childhood as inspiration for humor in your stories? DP: My childhood antics are the inspiration behind the two class-clown “stars” of the Captain Underpants series: George and Harold. Back then, I was usually sitting in the hallway because I’d been disrupting the class, trying to entertain everyone and make my friends laugh, just like George and Harold. What led to the inspiration of Captain Underpants? Why “underpants”? DP: When I was in second grade, a teacher said “underpants” in class one day, and the whole room erupted with laughter. I realized it was comedy gold for the under-ten crowd—my classmates—so I appropriated it. I began drawing Captain Underpants shortly thereafter.
30 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
MEET THE AUTHOR
Why do you suppose The Adventures of Captain Underpants and its sequels are so popular?
Captain Underpants is often credited with encouraging boys to read. How do you feel about that?
DP: I think kids respond to the humor and the kid-power themes.
DP: I don’t think the books are gender specific. I hope that I have created a series that will give any reader a positive experience with reading, which unfortunately I didn’t have as a child.
George and Harold narrate your books. Do you sometimes feel that you are them, and vice versa? DP: Definitely. George and Harold are more confident versions of me when I was a kid. I think their friendship is what inspires that confidence. How would you describe their personalities, antics, and/or motivations? DP: George and Harold are not really driven by anything too complex. They’re just two fun-loving kids who are stuck in a boring school with mean teachers. I think their antics are just a survival technique, really. Captain Underpants and the Tyrannical Retaliation of the Turbo Toilet 2000 is out (August 2014). Anything you’d like to share about this specific adventure? DP: It’s exciting for me, because the Turbo Toilet 2000 is my favorite villain in the series. He’s a giant, hulking thug—and he’s very fun to draw. I’d been wanting to bring him back for a long time, and this book gave me a chance to do that—twice. Captain Underpants is often on banned/challenged book lists. How do you feel about that? DP: The reason the books are banned often mystifies me. It’s usually something like “offensive language” (the series actually contains NO profanity) or being “unsuited to age group” (the only thing that might be too advanced is the vocabulary, which is actually much higher than what is typical for seven- to ten-year-olds).
The Paperboy (a Caldecott Honor) is quite different than Captain Underpants. What would you like to share about the inspiration and motivation to write and illustrate this book? DP: The book is based on my own experience as a paperboy. I loved the feeling of independence that came when I rode my bike around our neighborhood on chilly weekend mornings while the rest of the world was asleep. We are excited to see that your Ricky Ricotta series is being reissued with all new full-color artwork by Dan Santat. Can you tell us something about where you got the idea for that series?
DP: The series was inspired by my childhood love for robots. I was always trying to build one (which usually involved me duct-taping golf clubs and cassette players to a vacuum cleaner). Meeting a kid in Canada who was a big fan of the series inspired the new editions. He’d been waiting in line for an autograph, and he refused to leave until I promised him that I would write
made me “ He look him in the
eye and PROMISE to write more.
“
Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 31
MEET THE AUTHOR
more Ricky Ricotta books. I tried to be vague, but he wouldn’t accept it. He made me look him in the eye and PROMISE to write more. So I did. What is a typical workday like for Dav Pilkey? DP: It’s usually ten to twelve hours of sitting (either drawing at a table or writing on a computer). Mentally, it’s very challenging and stimulating. Physically, it’s not so good for me. I try to break up each day with some activity that gets me moving.
DP: I tell them about my challenges with ADHD and dyslexia, and how those things can sometimes be positive because they help you to see the world differently. I love to show them pictures of remarkable people (Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison, Whoopi Goldberg, John Lennon, Muhammad Ali, Andy Warhol, etc.), who became successful despite having challenges like I did.
What do you do when you get stuck while writing or illustrating a book? DP: I try to get out of my studio and take a walk or kayak. Just getting out in nature and clearing my head seems to “unstick” me. What do you like to tell teachers and librarians? DP: Thank you. What do you like to tell students?
Reading Past the Page
This In-depth Written Interview is created by TeachingBooks.net for educational purposes and may be copied and distributed solely for these purposes for no charge as long as the copyright information remains on all copies. For more information about Dav Pilkey and his books, go to http:// teachingbooks.net/. Questions regarding this program should be directed to info@teachingbooks.net. Copyright © 2014 TeachingBooks.net LLC. All rights reserved. TeachingBooks.net merges literacy with technology to deepen the reading experience for everyone who enjoys children’s and young adult books. This easy-to-use database includes lesson plans, QR code flyers, video book trailers, and original movies and audio recordings with exceptional authors and illustrators. For more information, contact Nick Glass, Founder & Executive Director, at nick@TeachingBooks.net.
Visit Dav Pilkey’s website (www.pilkey.com) for book trailers, games, coloring sheets, and more.
Watch a video trailer in which the author describes the inspiration for Captain Underpants and the Revolting Revenge of the Radioactive Robo-Boxers: http://tinyurl.com/k4e56cv Share these reading PSAs from Dav Pilkey with your students: • Reading Makes Cats Jealous: http://tinyurl.com/mf8zjvb • Reading Gives You Superpowers: http://tinyurl.com/kmc3wbo Experience Reading 2.0 with the Captain Underpants App: www.scholastic.com/apps/captainunderpants Get a silly name with Professor Poopypants’ Name Change-o-Chart 2000: http://tinyurl.com/nm43xp Play a Captain Underpants trivia game: http://tinyurl.com/n3grlog 32 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
by | Toni Buzzeo
core focus Putting Common Core Into Action This monthly column by author and school librarian Toni Buzzeo presents three high-profile children’s books for each of three grade bands (K–1, 2–3, 4–5), along with activities to use in the library that target specific Common Core Reading, Writing, and Speaking and Listening Standards. Lexile level and text complexity are taken into consideration in selecting the titles. In addition, all questions are written in language appropriate to the developmental level of the child in each grade band.
Grades K–1 Me . . . Jane, by Patrick McDonnell. Little, Brown, 2011. 2012 Caldecott Honor 2012 Charlotte Zolotow Award Lexile: 740 Adult-directed Reading Informational Text Standard 2 RI.K.2 With prompting and support, identify the main topic and retell key details of a text. RI.1.2 Identify the main topic and retell key details of a text.
Speaking and Listening Standard 2 SL.K.2 Confirm understanding of a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media by asking and answering questions about key details and requesting clarification if something is not understood. SL.1.2 Ask and answer questions about key details in a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media. Read Me . . . Jane aloud to students, taking time to discuss both text and illustrations. Ask students to respond orally to the following questions: • The main topic of a book is what the book is about. What is the main topic of Me . . . Jane? How do you know? Where did you hear or see it in the text and illustrations?
Grades K-5
key details in the book are usually details about the person the book is about. These details tell us the kind of person we are reading about through his or her actions. What kind of person was Jane Goodall as a child? How do you know? Which details in the text tell you? • What questions do you have about Jane Goodall that were not answered in the main text of the book? Does the “About Jane Goodall” author’s note answer your questions?
• Which text and illustrations give you these important details?
Reading Informational Text Standard 7 RI.K.7 With prompting and support, describe the relationship between illustrations and the text in which they appear (e.g., what person, place, thing, or idea in the text an illustration depicts).
• A biography is the story of a person’s life. In a biography, the
RI.1.7 Use the illustrations and details in a text to describe its key ideas.
• Which important details from the story do you remember?
Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 33
After reading Me . . . Jane aloud to students, take time to discuss the illustrations. On each spread, notice which words in the text authorillustrator Patrick McDonnell chose to illustrate. Note that some of the illustrations are not watercolors but engravings and that the last spread of the book is illustrated with a photograph of Jane and one of her chimpanzees. Ask students: • Which type of illustration would you choose (watercolors, engravings, or photographs) if you were writing this book, and why? • Which illustrations show each of the important details in the story?
After reading both the text of Balloons Over Broadway and the Author’s Note, navigate to the interview of author-illustrator Melissa Sweet at Delightful Children’s Books (http:// tinyurl.com/c5tezbs) and read it aloud. Ask students:
Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy’s Parade, by Melissa Sweet. Houghton Mifflin, 2011. 2012 Sibert Medal 2012 Orbis Pictus Award Lexile: 1000 Adult-directed Reading Informational Text Standard 9 RI.2.9 Compare and contrast the most important points presented by two texts on the same topic. RI.3.9 Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in two texts on the same topic. 34 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
categories for sorting the many facts they have listed. (Note: Color coding is one easy way to sort facts into categories.) Prepare a class book or slide presentation about Tony Sarg and his balloons.
• What are the most important points presented about Tony Sarg’s personality in Balloons Over Broadway? • Does the online interview tell us any information about Tony Sarg’s personality that we didn’t learn from the book? What text gives you this information? • What important details about Tony Sarg and his life and work are presented in one of the two texts but not in the other? What is the source for each important detail? (Note: you may want to create a Venn diagram for the answers to this question.) Writing Standard 8 W.2.8 Recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question.
Grades 2–3
With grade 3, ask students to suggest
W.3.8 Recall information from experiences or gather information from print and digital sources; take brief notes on sources and sort evidence into provided categories. After reading Balloons Over Broadway (as well as the interview with authorillustrator Melissa Sweet at Delightful Children’s Books, if time allows), read the article about Tony Sarg titled “Balloon Pop!” by Cynthia R. Fagen, published in the New York Post and available online at http://nypost. com/2011/11/20/balloon-pop. Ask students to identify information they learned from these sources. List each fact on chart paper or type and project them on an electronic whiteboard.
Grades 4–5 The Day-Glo Brothers: The True Story of Bob and Joe Switzer’s Bright Ideas and Brand-New Colors, by Chris Barton. Charlesbridge, 2009. 2010 Sibert Honor Book 2011–2012 Children’s Crown Award Lexile: 990 Begin your lesson by introducing day-glo colors. One interesting way to do this is to provide a set of regular markers on one easel and a set of day-glo markers on another. Invite students, in two teams, to draw a small picture or write a short phrase with one or the other set of markers. When students are reseated, ask them to notice and discuss what’s different about the day-glo colors. Following your discussion, introduce them to the true story of Bob and Joe Switzer, and read The Day-Glo Brothers aloud.
core focus
Reading Informational Text Standard 3 RI.4.3 Explain events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text, including what happened and why, based on specific information in the text. RI.5.3 Explain the relationships or interactions between two or more individuals, events, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text based on specific information in the text. Speaking and Listening Standard 1 SL.4.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-onone, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 4 topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly. c. Pose and respond to specific questions to clarify or follow up on information, and make comments that contribute to the discussion and link to the remarks of others. SL.5.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-onone, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 5 topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly. c. Pose and respond to specific questions by making comments that contribute to the discussion and elaborate on the remarks of others. Grade 4: Ask students to pay particular attention to the science behind day-glo colors as you read. After your reading, discuss the details of the book. Require students to cite specific information in the text that helps them to answer these questions: • How did Joe’s problem-solving streak contribute to the brothers’ success? • Why was Joe experimenting with fluorescence in the basement with Bob?
• What was the role of trial and error in the brothers’ work? • What role did the brothers’ day-glo colors play in World War II? • How are day-glo colors used today? Grade 5: Ask students to pay particular attention to the relationship or interactions between the two brothers, the events of their lives, and their ideas presented in the text. After your reading, discuss the details of the book. Require students to cite specific details from the text as they respond to questions, quoting whenever possible. Ask them: • How were the two brothers, Bob and Joe, different? • What did each brother dream of growing up to do? • In what way did their differences contribute to the development of their great idea? • How did Joe’s being a magician contribute to the development of day-glo colors?
Read the author’s note aloud. Ask students to respond, in writing, to the following questions: • How did Chris Barton learn about the Switzer brothers? • What sources did he rely on?
• How did Bob’s accident and recovery play a part in the development of day-glo colors?
• Which sources do you think Barton found most helpful in discussing the scientific concepts and why? (Grade 4)
Writing Standard 9 W.4.9 Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
• Which sources do you think Barton found most helpful in discussing the relationship between the two brothers and why? (Grade 5)
b. Apply grade 4 Reading standards to informational texts (e.g., “Explain how an author uses reasons and evidence to support particular points in a text”). W.5.9 Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research. b. Apply grade 5 Reading standards to informational texts (e.g., “Explain how an author uses reasons and evidence to support particular points in a text, identifying which reasons and evidence support which point[s]”).
Toni Buzzeo, MA, MLIS, is both an author and a career school librarian. Her credits include the 2013 Caldecott Honor book One Cool Friend, among twenty picture books, which also include But I Read It on the Internet! (Upstart, 2013) and My Bibi Always Remembers (Hyperion, 2014). She has also authored many professional books and articles. Visit www.tonibuzzeo.com or e-mail tonibuzzeo@tonibuzzeo.com. Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 35
by | Pat Miller
Fiction Nonfiction MORE THAN A BIRDbRAIN Grades K-5
Birds may be at home in the air, but a unit on feathered creatures is no lightweight matter. Because birds are so prevalent, children bring prior knowledge and curiosity about them to such a study. Birds are often readily observable on the school grounds or near children’s homes. They have inspired poets, storytellers, naturalists, and authors of hundreds of books. Birds of a feather flock together, and so do some fun and instructional books about these denizens of the sky.
Specific Birds Get your ducks in a row by introducing the unit with books about numerous species of birds. For primary grades, share Can You Find These Birds? by Carmen Bredeson and Lindsey Cousins and About Birds/Sobre los pájaros, a bilingual book with fullpage colored plates and brief but key facts, by Cathryn Sill. For older readers, share some of the Q&As from Everything Bird: What Kids Really Want to Know About Birds by Cherie Winner. National Geographic’s Bird Guide of North America: The Best Birding Book 36 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
for Kids from National Geographic’s Bird Experts by Jonathan Alderfer is filled with arresting photographs and facts about 100 species of birds. After booktalking, nest these books and others in a display with your other bird books to pique interest and encourage browsing. Penguin books are sure to be popular, and they are the birds many young children know most about. Be sure to include lesser-known birds in your unit. Most children have seen sparrows and pigeons. But what do they really know about them? Supply the facts with books like Sparrows by Christine Webster or Let’s Look at Pigeons by Janet Piehl. If you are looking for a book from a unique viewpoint, share the bird’s-eye view in Architecture According to Pigeons, a personalized tour of twenty-four world-famous structures by pigeon guide Speck Lee Tailfeather. Display your individual bird books with covers out. Then relate a fact from each book and ask students which bird fits the bill. Which birds are camouflaged by standout colors
like yellow and red because it makes them look like flowers in the trees? That would be the stunning Macaws (by Cecilia Pinto McCarthy), hiding in plain view. Which bird is so heavy (weighs as much as a bulldog) that it must constantly flap its wings in flight or it will plunge from the sky? Great Bustard: The World’s Heaviest Flying Bird by Kirsten Hall will tell more about this remarkable bird. On the other hand, or wing, full-grown Flamingos (also by Cecilia Pinto McCarthy) weigh only as much as a newborn baby. Share the pictures of this graceful bird and its backward-bending dancer legs. Pair it with the Caldecott Honor book Flora and the Flamingo by Molly Idle. By lifting the sequential flaps, one can watch a scowling flamingo relent and teach a pink-suited little girl to dance. After the Deepwater Horizon oildrilling rig exploded on April 20, 2010, more than 665 birds were rescued and cleaned of oil. Roscoe and the Pelican Rescue by Lynn Rowe Reed is written as a firsthand account of a middle grader looking forward to a family vacation in coastal Louisiana. Their plans shift when they discover
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three oil-covered pelicans on the beach. They become involved with the local wildlife rehabilitation group. This picture book shows damaged pelicans being warmed and fed so they will be strong enough for cleaning. The family’s gentle hands shampoo and rinse the three pelicans. The birds are dried with warm air, tagged, and released back into the Gulf. After the family releases their birds, they leap into the water to enjoy their last day of vacation.
April Pulley Sayre’s Honk, Honk, Goose! Canada Geese Start a Family is filled with onomatopoeias that bring the birds to life. The cut-paper illustrations and spare text show the geese’s life cycle from choosing a mate through caring for the young as a devoted couple. One illustration shows an exhausted mother goose asleep with her S-shaped neck and head resting on the ground and six chicks tucked under her wings. Her vigilant mate stands guard while they sleep. Honk, hee-honk, honk! Fictional titles to include in your bird unit will introduce some surprisingly strong-willed birdbrains. Jerry Pinkney has added gorgeous illustrations to the stories of The Little Red Hen and The Ugly Duckling. Have students compare and contrast these two victims of circumstance and their responses. Roger Duvoisin’s Petunia is a take-charge kind of goose, eager to help and undeterred by failure. This classic from 1950 is still in print—don’t let your chicks fly the coop without
knowing it. Petunia’s feathered kindred spirit is Mo Willems’s determined star of Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! A repeat rendition is always welcome. Diane Massie’s The Baby Beebee Bird, like human infants, is awake and vocal in the night. Children will love parroting its repetitious cry, “Beebeebobbibobbi.” Steven Kellogg’s wacky illustrations show the stress on the diurnal animals in the zoo as they fail to quiet the baby beebee bird (have children repeat the monotonous refrain on each page). When the chick finally beds down as the sun comes up, the sleep-deprived lion whispers his plan and it spreads from ear to ear. Throughout the day, the animals trumpet and roar and squawk the refrain that kept them awake. “Beebeebobbibobbi!” The baby is forced to stay awake until the moon rises, when “not an ear or a tail or a whisker moved.” All are fast asleep—even the tiny bird tucked inside a leaf in the linden tree. In Duck & Goose by Tad Hills, the two fowl friends are free as birds and happy as larks, their hearts light as a feather. That is, until they discover a huge spotted egg. Duck claims it because “I saw it first.” Goose quickly puts his webbed foot on the egg and claims ownership. Thus begins a big flap and fuss and fight until both stubborn birds are perched atop the egg for days, planning how they are going to teach the hatchling various goose and duck ways. Their conversations will have your students quacked up, especially when a bluebird comes by and asks to play, thus revealing their remarkable egg as a soccer ball. Pair this story with the Backyard Wildlife Blastoff! Readers Ducks by Derek Zobel and Geese by Megan Borgert-Spaniol. Have students note which facts in the two brief nonfiction titles are mirrored in the fiction, for example, that ducks have webbed feet.
Bird Parts Webbed feet are just one interesting part of a bird’s body. The very eggs they hatch from make for a fascinating study. Compare different bird eggs with each other and with the eggs of other animals. Pair some excellent nonfiction on the topic to compare how different authors present the facts. For primary grades, compare the facts and illustrations of Jennifer Ward’s What Will Hatch? with those in Amazing Eggs by Fran Hodgkins. The latter is a We Both Read book that features dual reading levels on each spread. Older students can compare and contrast the beautiful eggs and lyrical facts of Dianna Aston and Sylvia Long’s An Egg Is Quiet with Shelley Gill’s The Egg. Long stunningly illustrates more than sixty types of eggs, including tubular dogfish eggs, neon orange salmon eggs, and gooey frog eggs. Facts are brief and lend to comparisons. Gill’s book includes the same dogfish, salmon, and frog eggs, but includes more facts, like how a female salmon digs a nest from underwater gravel before laying her eggs. Add a third title to deepen the comparisons. Guess What Is Growing Inside This Egg by Mia Posada features facts about the varied eggs of penguins, alligators, ducklings, sea turtles, spiders, and octopuses. Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 37
Besides flight, birds are most noted for their songs. Betsy Franco doesn’t count her chickens before they hatch, but she does count birds by their song notes in Birdsongs. Through onomatopoeias for the songs, Franco counts the songs down from ten. She begins the day with a red-capped woodpecker who “raps a tap dance with his beak” to find breakfast bugs in a hole-pocked pine tree. “Tat tat tat” is repeated ten times, in different size fonts, around the bird. Nine gentle coos accompany six mourning doves on a telephone wire. As evening darkens, the hummingbird “sucks one last treat from the trumpetshaped honeysuckle … She makes 1 tiny sound in her high voice” (tzik). The sun sets, throwing the landscape into silhouette, and the yard quiets … until the mockingbird copies the songs of the previous ten birds!
Bird songs can soothe and enchant, or they can irritate and aggravate. But all of them are means of communication among birds. Bird Talk: What Birds Are Saying and Why by Lita Judge explains how birds like robins and goldfinches sing different songs to impress a mate with how healthy and talented they are. Sage grouse boom and pop as they strut with plumped feathers. They are saying, “Look at me!” Whether marking their territory, shopping for a mate, greeting one another, or calling for their mamas, 38 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
birds have species-specific ways to communicate that will fascinate your readers. Even an Ostrich Needs a Nest: Where Birds Begin by Irene Kelly explores the fascinating variety of avian nests. Birds make use of plant materials found in their habitats, or mud, or even rocks. Pointy murre eggs are well shaped for the murres’ bare, cliff-top nests—they can’t roll off. Bald eagles collect up to two tons of sticks and layer them into sturdy nests that they reuse annually. Their nests are strong enough to hold the weight of a man. The flyleaves of this book show a variety of manmade items that have been found woven into bird nests as well. All birds have feathers—and they are the only animals that do. Feathers can be as unique as a bird’s call, from the wispy gorgeousness of the peacock to the no-nonsense drabness of the American bittern. In Feathers: Not Just for Flying by Melissa Stewart, ten birds and their feathers are explored, revealing ten purposes for feathers. Feathers are used to warm like a blanket, cushion like a pillow, shade like an umbrella, protect like sunscreen, and more. Each use is shown with a specific bird and its feathers. This is a great book to use when students are explaining how an author uses facts and evidence to support the points of the text.
Binoculars, Paint, and Pen Throughout history, people have been called odd ducks, mother hens, stool pigeons, good eggs, dumb clucks, and medical and scientific quacks. And some of them have been crazy about birds. Birds have inspired naturalists, composers, and artists. One artist who was a real eagle-eye was Frenchman John
James Audubon (who later became an American citizen). Though he tried to maintain a store to support his wife and sons, “he was made for adventure, and America in 1804 was the place to find it.” Audubon: Painter of Birds in the Wild Frontier by Jennifer Armstrong relates those adventures, beginning with Audubon caught on horseback during an earthquake that shook the forest. (It was so strong that it made the Mississippi River run backward.) Fortunately, Audubon kept written journals as well as folios and sketchbooks. Several middle grade books are based on information from his journals, his paintings and sketches, and secondary sources.
Students can create a chart to compare three of those titles. Audubon: Painter of Birds in the Wild Frontier is the most extensive narrative, telling key events from Audubon’s childhood through his later years, always centered on birds and wildlife. Jacqueline Davies’s The Boy who Drew Birds: A Story of John James Audubon covers a single year, 1804. That was the year Audubon, still a teen, figured out a way to prove that birds didn’t winter under water, transform into other birds, fly to the moon, or take part in any of the other outlandish theories people held to explain birds’ winter disappearance. Into the Woods: John James Audubon Lives His Dream by Robert Burleigh is
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told in brief couplets paired with related quotations from Audubon’s journals. Students can compare the books to see if any of the same events show up in two or more of the books. Have students choose an event in one book and see if and how it is related in another. Which of Audubon’s qualities are apparent in all three books? How do the author notes and resource lists compare? All three books are illustrated by award-winning artists who can paint in the style of Audubon. How are their illustrative approaches similar and different? Audubon’s passion and artistry would inspire a young boy in Jamestown, New York. For the Birds: The Life of Roger Tory Peterson by Peggy Thomas begins with Roger unhappy in school—he’d rather be out in the woods. That is, until his new teacher, Miss Hornbeck, formed a Junior Audubon Club. Its field trips and ten-cent monthly bird leaflets set Roger on his life course. When Miss Hornbeck gave each student a box of watercolors and a color print of a bird, Roger astonished everyone with the expert way he re-created the bluebird of Louis Agassiz Fuertes.
Peterson went on to photograph and sketch thousands of birds across the United States and Europe. His first Peterson Guide, published during the Depression, set a new standard for identifying and preserving bird species. There are many similarities between Peterson (1908–1996) and Audubon (1785–1851), despite the time and technologies that separated them. For the Birds is worth sharing for the well-told biography and for the incredible, photographic mixed-media illustrations. Be sure to have some of the Peterson bird guides on hand for students to look through. Both Audubon and Peterson kept detailed journals of their sightings and avian adventures. Other birding journals are available to share with students. One is The Robin Makes a Laughing Sound: A Birder’s Journal by Sallie Wolf. Just as Audubon influenced Peterson as a child, Peterson influenced Wolf when she was twelve years old. “My seventhgrade teacher taught our class to identify birds using Roger Tory Peterson’s A Field Guide to the Birds of Eastern and Central North America,” writes Wolf in her opening note. That was the year she began birdwatching and taking nature notes. This book is a copy of her brief birder’s journal, containing sketches, bird lists, observations, and dated notes, all arranged by season. Sophie Webb, like Audubon and Peterson, began drawing birds as a child. She currently participates on research ships that have taken her looking for seabirds in the Arctic, at the tip of South America, and in the Antarctic. In Looking for Seabirds: Journal from an Alaskan Voyage, Webb chronicles her month as a seabird observer along the Aleutian Islands in Alaska. The detailed text, recorded almost daily, is interspersed with watercolor and gouache illustrations
and graphite sketches. Birds and animals aren’t the only subjects of her drawings. Her tiny bunk, with sliding curtains and drawers below, was her refuge. Her neoprene survival suit resembles a red rubber gingerbread woman, with room inside for bottled water, snacks, and her shoes.
After sharing these biographies and journals, students may be inspired to sketch or annotate their own observations. Annette LeBlanc Cate’s Look Up! Bird-Watching in Your Own Backyard is a humor-filled guide for observing birds. What do you look for? How can you tell birds apart? The guide is written in a comic format, with birds sharing humorous conversations in margins and sidebars. The author’s conversational tone and down-to-earth tips reveal birdwatching as an interesting hobby for beginners. “I’m not an expert birdwatcher,” begins author-illustrator Annette LeBlanc Cate. “Not a single pair of my binoculars even works properly! I just really love birds.” Facts are the basis of a lot of the humor, as when a scarlet tanager comments, “Ha! Lots of us ducks keep our super-manly look WAY longer than you guys—from fall through spring, practically!” Behind his feathered back, a female rolls her eyes. Her thought bubble reads, “Oh, yes, eight months of ‘Mr. Flashy’.” This book is addictive; no matter where you open its fiftyfour detailed pages, the different fonts, illustrations, text boxes, and comic strips draw you in. Even the Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 39
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index is illustrated with wise-cracking birdbrains. One bird notes, “I always thought it was ‘morning dove.’ Now I feel sad!”
and Michael J. Rosen (Cuckoo’s Haiku). In Yolen’s book, “Wood/Peck” is a staccato poem in two columns, meant to be read by two alternating voices. “Wakeup” is Spinelli’s tribute to this noisy bird, ending with “I think there’s some rooster in woodpecker’s soul.” Rosen paints a woodpecker picture in just ten words: “woodpecker knocksknocks … / riddled with the same question / trees yawn, answering.” To enrich their poems, all three poets include facts about each bird: Rosen on the page with each haiku, Yolen and Spinelli at their books’ end.
who heard them as children. “The Disobedient Pelican Daughter” (Australia), “The Troll and the Scarf Made of Crows” (Norway), “The Beautiful Quail” (Sri Lanka), “The Bird Who Sang Like a Warthog” (Matabeleland, Zimbabwe), and “The Swan-Scholar’s Great Secret” (China) retain the beauty and culture of their native cultures. Children will be absorbed by the stories of these winged troublemakers, and their imaginations will have a bird’s eye view of other ways of life. These stories would be well told in conjunction with a large world map or in tandem with cultural celebrations.
Bird’s-Eye View
Kill two birds with one stone when you enrich your booktalks with fiction and nonfiction. These titles might even give you goosebumps or have you singing like a canary. Set up displays of your bird books, bring in a parakeet, display bird guides, and allow your avian collection to fly the coop. Like Miss Hornbeck, you may be the one to inspire your readers’ imaginations to take flight as they become bird watchers, journalers, or artists. If so, they are lucky ducks to have a librarian like you. For now, not another peep—it’s time to read some great books about birds!
Artists and naturalists aren’t the only ones inspired by birds. Poets and storytellers have spilled a lot of ink thanks to the inspiration of their finefeathered friends. Locate and gather poetry books that include poems about birds. Ask students to choose a poem they would like to read aloud to a partner. Have partners compare and contrast the poems they each chose, looking at imagery, word choice, subject matter, and feelings elicited. Compare how different poets write about the same bird. The woodpecker is the subject of poems by Jane Yolen (Fine Feathered Friends), Eileen Spinelli (Feathers: Poems About Birds),
Pat Miller, MEd, LMS, was a school librarian for twenty-two years. Her newest project for Upstart is Library Brain, a recipe box of engaging lessons, activities, and organizational tips. She is also a children’s author and professional storyteller who makes school visits with her books, including We’re Going on a Book Hunt (UpstartBooks), Substitute Groundhog, and Squirrel’s New Year’s Resolution (both Albert Whitman). Visit www.patmillerbooks. com or e-mail Pat at gpatmiller@ patmillerbooks.com.
40 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
For Between Heaven and Earth: Bird Tales from Around the World, Leo and Diane Dillon created illustrations with colored pencil and watercolor that resemble stained glass. They add glowing jewel tones to five stories, told firsthand by members of the International Folklore Workshop,
by | Lynne Farrell Stover
LIBRARY LESSONS Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library Grades 2-6 Book Synopsis: Twelve years ago, the public library in Alexandriaville, Ohio, was demolished. Due to this tragedy, hometown entrepreneur Luigi Lemoncello, who has made a substantial fortune creating wildly popular games and puzzles, decides to right this wrong and rebuild the library. With flair and secrecy, he creates an elaborate plan to celebrate the opening of a state-of-the-art facility. Prior to opening the doors to the public, twelve 12-year-olds are selected to participate in a library lock-in. The students are given a challenge: the one who manages to solve a series of puzzles and escape from the library will win the fabulous prize of becoming the spokesperson in Mr. Lemoncello’s commercials. Those accepting the challenge must solve literary-based clues in the form of secret codes, interesting rebuses, and cryptic puzzles. Creative problem solving, cooperative teamwork, and trustworthy behavior win the day as Kyle Keeley and his team solve the challenge posed by the wacky but wonderful Mr. Lemoncello.
Note: Students do not have to be familiar with the featured title to participate in these activities.
Lesson I Reference Tools Vocabulary Challenge Introduction: Over the course of a school day, students are faced with many questions they might not know the answer to. Just like the young contestants in Mr. Lemoncello’s challenge, successful students do not necessarily know the answer to every question they are asked, but they do know where to find the information to answer these questions. This lesson will encourage students to be more aware of the reference tools available to them. Grade Level: 3–6 Time Allocation: 15–20 minutes Objective: • The student will participate in an interactive classroom activity.
• The student will gain knowledge of specific tools used for research. Materials: • Reference Tools Vocabulary Challenge visual (www.librarysparks.com) • Reference Tools Vocabulary Challenge activity cards, run off on cardstock and cut in strips (www.librarysparks.com) • Examples of various reference tools for student exploration (optional) Procedure: 1. Prepare the materials prior to class. The Vocabulary Challenge activity cards work best if the words and definitions are run off on different colored paper. 2. Introduce the lesson by telling the students that they will be participating in an activity that Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 41
involves reference tools. Define reference tools as “resources that provide access to specific and reliable information.” 3. Ask the students to point out the reference tools they see throughout the library.
architects to incorporate the Dewey Decimal system as an integral part of the new library’s design. Students, too, will be challenged to complete this activity, which features problem solving as part of a review of the Dewey Decimal system.
4. Display the visual and read the contents to the students.
Grade Level: 3–6
5. Distribute the Vocabulary Challenge activity cards, giving words to half the students and definitions to the other half. Inform the students that each hint on the cards is unique to a matching pair.
Objectives:
6. Instruct the students to get out of their seats and find the match to their cards. If the vocabulary words and definitions have been run off in different colors, tell students to start by finding someone with a different colored card. They should indicate success by completing some action, such as holding the cards over their heads or sitting on the floor.
Materials:
Time Allocation: 20–25 minutes
7. Check for understanding by having the students read their words and definitions to the class.
Lesson II Mr. Lemoncello’s Dewey Decimal System Category Challenge Introduction: The wealthy Mr. Lemoncello is a big fan of libraries and books. Thus he challenged his
• The student will categorize words in groups. • The student will review the Dewey Decimal classification system.
• Dewey Decimal System visual (www.librarysparks.com) • Category Challenge activity sheet (www.librarysparks.com) • Writing tools Procedure: 1. Prepare the materials prior to class. 2. Introduce the lesson by telling the students that they will be working on a challenge not unlike one that Mr. Lemoncello could have created for the students who were trying to figure out how to escape from his amazing library. They are to put on their thinking caps, because those who figure out the answers could easily be selected next time Mr. Lemoncello conducts one of his exciting competitions.
3. Display the Dewey Decimal System visual and quickly review its contents with the students. This visual, or a similar Dewey Decimal System chart, should be available throughout the activity for student reference. 4. Distribute the Category Challenge activity sheets and writing tools. Review the directions with the students. They may work independently or in pairs. 5. Check for understanding. Answers: Part I 1. Atlas, Asia 2. Lexicon, Athena 3. Helen Keller, Cinderella 4. Manuscript, Spanish 5. Thesaurus, Triceratops 6. Glossary, Abominable Snowman 7. Research, Draw 8. Appendix, Haiku 9. Journal, Horse Shoe. 10. Tome, Airplane. Part II A. 6, B. 9, C. 2, D. 3, E. 4, F. 5, G. 10, H. 7, I. 8, J. 1.
Lesson III Dewey Decimal Spinner Introduction: The cover of Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library shows a student in the process of using a huge Dewey Decimal system spinner. Why not let the students do some “spinning” of their own? Grade Level: 2–5 Time Allocation: 15–25 minutes Objectives: • The student will create and use a tool to help with selecting a nonfiction book title. • The student will record the selected book’s title and author. Materials: • Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library by Chris Grabenstein • Dewey Decimal Spinner (www.librarysparks.com) • Dewey Decimal System visual (www.librarysparks.com)
For online article resources, visit www.librarysparks.com
42 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
LIBRARY LESSONS
• Paper clips and pencils • Index cards • Flashlight • Nonfiction book from library’s collection • Shelf markers, such as Demco Sturdy Colored Shelf Markers (20/ Pkg; Item #WS12803220) Procedure: 1. Prepare and collect the materials prior to class. Duplicate enough activity sheets for each student or student group. 2. Introduce the lesson by showing the students the large spinner on the cover of Mr. Lemoncello’s Library. Explain that they will be using a similar, but much smaller, spinner in this lesson. 3. Display the Dewey Decimal System visual. Review the ten categories by reading through the contents. As the various categories are reviewed, use the flashlight as a pointer to draw the students’ attention to the location of each of the subjects in the library. 4. Hold up a nonfiction book, showing the spine to the students. Review where they can find the book’s title, author, and call number. 5. Distribute the activity sheets, paper clips, pencils, shelf markers, and index cards. (Recycled paper strips may also be used.) 6. Inform the students that they will be using the spinner to direct them to sections of the library that contain the books for the Dewey Decimal system number that the paper clip lands on. 7. Demonstrate how the spinner works; then go to the section of the library that contains the Dewey Decimal system number selected by the spinner. Look at the book
titles, choose one, and remove it from the shelf, inserting a shelf marker in its place. Then write down the book’s title, author, and call number on the index card. Return the book to the shelf.
• From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, by E.L. Konigsburg. Atheneum, 1967.
8. Instruct the students to follow your example. They are to spin, go to the correct location, record the information, return to their seats, and repeat. Note: this lesson may be extended or shortened, depending on the time available.
• The Name of This Book Is Secret, by Pseudonymous Bosch. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2007.
9. Encourage the students to share with the class the titles of some of the interesting books they have discovered. 10. Suggest to the students that they may want to check out one of the nonfiction titles they discovered during the lesson.
Extension Activities Creative Problem Solving: Mr. Lemoncello designed the new library in fictitious Alexandriaville, Ohio. With his $500 million budget, he could afford to include magnificent architecture, amazing technology, and a fantastic materials collection. Challenge the students to design a library of their dreams. They should consider research rooms, recreational options, and quiet reading areas.
• The Mysterious Benedict Society, by Trenton Lee Stewart. Little, Brown & Co., 2007.
• The Westing Game, by Ellen Raskin. E.P. Dutton, 1978. Web Resources: Chris Grabenstein’s excellent website contains a wealth of information and includes discussion questions, book activities, and a vocabulary study: www. chrisgrabenstein.com/kids/escape-frommr-lemoncellos-library.php
Lynne Farrell Stover has been an educator for more than forty years, serving as an elementary classroom teacher, a gifted-education specialist, and a middle school librarian. She is currently a teacher consultant at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. She is the author of the Magical Library Lessons series and From Snicket to Shakespeare from UpstartBooks.
Reading: Students who enjoyed the puzzles and over-the-top characters in Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library may also find these books entertaining: • Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, by Roald Dahl. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1964. • Chasing Vermeer, by Blue Balliett. Scholastic, 2004. • Floors, by Patrick Carman. Scholastic, 2011.
Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 43
by | Judy Bradbury
Character Ed The Quest: Making a Difference Grades K-2, 3-5
Whether exploring around the block or across the globe, a quest broadens our sense of the world while boosting resourcefulness and sharpening our sense of self. As we journey, we discover not only the richness, diversity, and dimensions of our physical surroundings, but also the wealth of possibility within. Geocaching, a real-world game of treasure hunting, has caught fire internationally among millions of children and adults. Geocaching has one key request: You may take something from the cache, but please replace it with something of equal or greater value. When leaving something behind is as integral a part of completing a quest as finding treasure, we experience the deeply satisfying rebound of giving and awaken the stirrings of philanthropy. 44 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
Lesson Links: Connecting Character Education to Common Core Standards and Content Area Curriculum • Seek to understand other perspectives and cultures through reading and listening. • Use technology and digital media strategically and capably. • Respond to varying demands of audience, task, purpose, and discipline. • Listen attentively and read purposefully to gain general knowledge and disciplinespecific expertise. • Actively engage in group reading activities with purpose and understanding.
• Participate in shared research and writing projects. • Gather information from reliable sources to answer questions. • Share knowledge through writing and speaking. • Cite specific evidence when offering oral or written interpretation. • Become proficient in map skills through research, study, and application. • Vicariously inhabit worlds and engage in experiences different from one’s own as a result of reading literature representative of a variety of periods, cultures, and worldviews.
CHARACTER ED
Lesson 1: Any Day, Any Time Adventure “There’s an adventure happening all the time all around you.” —Official geocaching website (http://www.geocaching.com/) Grade Level: 1–3 Time Allocation: 20–30+ minutes Introduction: The Travel Game by John Grandits, illustrated by R.W. Alley (Clarion Books, 2009), is based on the author’s memory of his childhood in my hometown of Buffalo, New York. The book centers on a young boy and his aunt who play a travel game and learn about the world. Brimming with factual information in both the text and the art, The Travel Game is an entertaining fantasy, sparking an interest in virtual globetrotting. Materials: • A copy of The Travel Game • A globe (an ideal prop for this lesson; display prominently to arouse curiosity prior to the read-aloud)
• How I Learned Geography, by Uri Shulevitz. Farrar Straus Giroux, 2008. Procedure: 1. Place the globe in clear view of listeners. Show the cover of The Travel Game. Read the title. Ask children what details they notice. Draw attention to where the boy is, what he is doing, and the letters of the word “travel” (illustrated with landmarks and travel sites). Ask, Do you think this story is factual or imaginary. Why? Let’s read to find out! 2. Read aloud the first page of the book. On the wall map, locate New York following the author’s directions. Ask children if they know how to locate 857 Broadway, Buffalo, New York (e.g., using a GPS device or a computer mapping site). Ask if they think this story detail is factual or imaginary (factual). Locate the address using an Internet mapping site. Continue reading the story aloud. 3. After completing pages 12–13, locate India, Egypt, and Brazil on the globe or map. Trace the Amazon River.
• Wall map of the world
4. Read through page 17. Locate Hong Kong on the globe or map.
• Internet access
5. Read to the end of the story.
• Atlas
6. Ask children which parts of the story were factual and which were imaginary. Make a chart on paper or the whiteboard.
• Slips of paper listing destinations, folded and placed in a box wrapped with a colorful road map (see www.librarysparks.com for suggested destinations) • Chart paper or whiteboard • Writing materials • If You Lived Here: Houses of the World, by Giles Laroche. Houghton Mifflin, 2011. • Maps, by Aleksandra Mizielińska and Daniel Mizieliński. Big Picture Press, 2013. • Walk This World, by Jenny Broom, illustrated by Lotta Nieminen. Big Picture Press, 2013.
7. Read aloud the author’s note. 8. Add to the list facts about Aberdeen, the boat city of Hong Kong. 9. Ask, How did Tad learn so much? (He asked plenty of questions.)
11. Students develop a set of five questions they would like to answer about their destination. Refer to the types of questions Tad asked in The Travel Game as models. Consult the books listed in Materials, library resources, and computers to find answers to the questions. 12. Write Away! Have students prepare one-page fact sheets about their destinations. Direct students to • Be specific, use descriptive details, and write in complete sentences. • Include a photo or drawing of a landmark or other identifier of the site. • Suggest one or two items they might offer travelers to aid in their journey to and exploration of the destination. Explain briefly why they chose those items. • Select a gift of something useful to bring to someone who lives in the place they researched and explain why they selected that gift. 13. Place pins on the wall map to identify the destinations that students “traveled” to. Display the fact sheets. Design a colorful banner depicting destination landmarks similar to the cover of The Travel Game.
Extension Activity Follow up by reading together the other books listed as resources for this lesson. Guess the places highlighted in the interactive Walk This World by searching for clues such as flags, landmarks, and common words on each page. Share the author’s note at
10. Independently or in teams, students will “travel” to a specific location. Students choose a slip of paper identifying a destination. They then locate the destinations on the globe, wall map, atlas, in Maps by Aleksandra Mizielińska and Daniel Mizieliński, and/or on an Internet map. Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 45
the end of the touching memoir How I Learned Geography. Enjoy “City Riddles” by J. Patrick Lewis (see Poetry Pause).
• Mapping Penny’s World, by Loreen Leedy. Holt, 2000.
most helpful? The funniest? Was your
You will also need:
to suggest improvements to the
• A large bin or colorful oversized box for collecting canned goods, books, toys, shoes, coats or gently used clothing, or other designated items to be donated to a local charity or food bank. • Templates of maps of the library, classroom, cafeteria, playground, locker room, or other common areas of the building (see examples in the books listed here).
Lesson 2: A Gift for You, A Gift for Me “When we give cheerfully and accept gratefully, everyone is blessed.” —Maya Angelou Grade Level: 1–3 Time Allocation: 30+ minutes Introduction: Over two million geocaches are said to be hidden around the world, with more than six million people joining in the fun and adventure of embarking on quests of varying difficulty. In this lesson, students will be introduced to map features, learn map skills, develop their own maps, and utilize map skills to hide and discover geocaches that will benefit those in need in their local community. Materials: The following books detail how to read, follow, and make maps, and effectively demonstrate why maps are useful and important tools: • Me on the Map, by Joan Sweeney, illustrated by Annette Cable. Crown, 1996. • Follow That Map! A First Book of Mapping Skills, by Scot Ritchie. Kids Can Press, 2009. 46 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
Procedure: 1. Choose a local charity to benefit from a schoolwide or classroom collection; identify items to be collected.
map easy to follow? Why? If you were map you followed, what would they be? If you were to remake the map you designed, what would you do differently? Explain. 9. Donate the items to charity. 10. Celebrate the donation with a party. Draw and cut out Map Party! legend symbols (see www. librarysparks.com for a ready-to-use reproducible). Attach the symbols to colorful toothpicks and place on top of cupcakes. Play map games. Read aloud Mattland, other books from the list in Materials, or poetry suggestions (see Poetry Pause).
2. Read aloud one or more books from the list. 3. Divide students into teams. Have each team collect items for a cache to be donated to charity. 4. Give each group a template of a map of a specific area. Teams will complete their maps with specific details. Next, in the area they have mapped, teams will hide a cache of items they have collected to be donated to the designated charity. Students will devise a route to the hidden cache, identifying specific checkpoints from the starting point to the end point. See “Create Your Own Map” on page 30 of Follow That Map! A First Book of Mapping Skills for easyto-follow steps for making a map.
Epic Adventures Introduce the youngest of primary listeners to mapping by reading aloud Miles to Go by Jamie Harper (Candlewick, 2010). As a group, map Miles’s journey on a large sheet of paper or the whiteboard, using details
5. Teams will prepare checkpoint notes of encouragement, riddles, and/or helpful clues.
from the story. Designate his route
6. Teams trade and follow their classmates’ maps.
students with one of the following
7. Collect cached items in a central location to donate to charity.
by Homer:
8. Ask, What was fun about the quest? Why? Which checkpoint clues were
with brightly colored dashes. Set off on a classic quest with older adaptations of the epic The Odyssey • The Odyssey, retold by Gillian Cross, illustrated by Neil Packer. Candlewick Press, 2012.
CHARACTER ED
• The Odyssey: A Graphic Novel, by Gareth Hinds. Candlewick Press, 2010. • The Children’s Homer: The Adventures of Odysseus and the Tale of Troy, by Padraic Colum, illustrated by Willy Pogany. Macmillan, 1918; Aladdin, 2004. As you explore the poem’s themes, map Odysseus’s travels. Chronicle and discuss his treasures—both concrete and abstract.
More, More More! • Mattland by Hazel Hutchins and Gail Herbert, illustrated by Dušan Petričić (Annick Press, 2008), is a fresh friendship tale for primary grades centering on a boy new to a neighborhood who maps and creates a community from found materials with the help of first one, then many, new friends. This winning read-aloud offers myriad tie-ins to curriculum and solid character education themes. • Middle graders will dive into Maps and Geography, a snappy interactive trivia book by Jeopardy! champion and New York Times bestselling author Ken Jennings, illustrated by Mike Lowery (Little Simon, 2014). Did you know mapmakers use “trap streets” to catch copycats? Or that the Amazon River, at 4,225 miles long, once ran backwards? This hip book, filled with facts, quizzes, and extra-credit activities, guides readers on an entertaining tour of maps and geography.
Poetry Pause Pack a powerful ELA punch with a poetry pause. In under a minute you can scaffold learning, increase rigor, and develop a love of language. Read aloud a poem related to the day’s lessons as kids line up, sit down, or
transition from one activity to another. This month’s geo-picks: • A World of Wonders: Geographic Travels in Verse and Rhyme, by J. Patrick Lewis, illustrated by Alison Jay. Dial, 2002. See especially “Places and Names: A Traveler’s Guide,” “City Riddles,” “New Names, Old Places,” and “Walk Lightly.” • My America: A Poetry Atlas of the United States, selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins, illustrated by Stephen Alcorn. Simon & Schuster, 2000. By reading books that explain and apply mapping skills, children increase their awareness and interest in exploring our world. As we journey off the page and beyond our front door, we are encouraged to examine our personal and collective gifts and consider ways we can make a difference around the block and across the world through thoughtful and meaningful giving.
Judy Bradbury (www.judybradbury. com) is a literacy specialist, author, and national professional development consultant. She has written children’s books and professional resources for teachers and librarians, including The Read-Aloud Scaffold: Best Books to Enhance Content Area Curriculum (Libraries Unlimited/ABC-CLIO). Contact Judy at judyreads@bluefrog.com.
Read about one school’s memorable geocaching project at http://tinyurl. com/kgtfchf. National Geographic has published Common Core English Language Arts and Geography Connections, an alignment of Common Core ELA and National Geography Standards. To download, visit http://tinyurl.com/ mxscxr3. Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 47
by | Boni Hamilton
Technology Finding Treasures in Maps Grades K-5 The phrase “treasure map” conjures excitement for many children, who imagine pirates’ booty and tales of the high seas. But maps themselves can be treasure troves of information, imagination, and inspiration. Libraries are the natural repositories for maps. Take a fresh look at your library shelves to identify maps that your students may not know about. Aside from atlases and globes, what else is available? Do your holdings include books devoted to maps or an image collection with maps? What nonfiction and fiction works include maps? Do your children’s magazines illustrate articles with maps, or do your newspapers print maps for reference? Think of your quest as a library scavenger hunt! There are probably more maps in your collection than you realized. With the wealth of map materials available to librarians, developing map lessons makes sense. Teaching students to read, understand, and create maps addresses Common Core 48 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
State Standards for reading nonfiction visual materials, as well as the National Geography Standard of using maps to understand and communicate information. One lesson approach is to build awareness of library resources and how to use them. When librarians coteach with other teachers in the building on map units, though, the use of maps extends beyond the library walls to everyday living. The following lessons can reveal the information, imagination, and inspiration hidden in maps.
Information The primary purpose of maps is to convey information. Elementary students probably have awareness of maps, but they may lack specific knowledge about the standard conventions in mapmaking that encode information. What students are developmentally ready to learn about maps varies by age and experience. Maps are abstract representations, and young students
lack abstract thinking. However, some children may have used maps with their families or may be familiar with the concept of Global Positioning Systems (GPS) in cars.
Understanding Map Perspectives (Grades K–1) Maps are often produced as a bird’seye view, which may be difficult for young children to grasp. For this reason, introductory map experiences should be three-dimensional (3-D) representations. An architect may be willing to share a 3-D model of a building, which would allow students to look at, and even try to sketch, buildings from multiple perspectives. Making a map of the playground or library from boxes and paper structures can also help students recognize shapes from different angles. Parents’ Choice offers downloadable instructions, templates for buildings, and a map for creating a 3-D town (www.parents-choice.org/ article.cfm?art_id=254).
technology
and thematic maps that can be downloaded. The New York Times Interactive Immigrantion Explorer (http://tinyurl.com/klvdde8) and Mapping America (http:// projects.nytimes.com/census/2010/ explorer?hp) can support instruction in understanding how communities change. Example from Classroom Architect (http://classroom.4teachers.org), a free web tool that lets teachers (and their students) arrange icons of typical school furniture in classrooms.
To transition to a bird’s-eye view, use online maps, such as Google Maps, that allow you to toggle between a street view and a map view. When children see their school on an online map, they may recognize playground structures or parked cars. Google Earth’s 3D Google Maps (http:// itouchmap.com/?r=googleearth) has similar features.
Building Map Skills (Grades 2–4) Beginning in grade 2, students learn the conventions of mapmaking, such as legends and symbols. To build students’ awareness of map conventions, give them opportunities to make their own maps. It’s often easiest to start with mapping familiar places like the classroom or cafeteria and gradually expand the choices to states, nations, and continents. Several online tools can make it easier for children to produce pleasing maps. • Classroom Architect (http:// classroom.4teachers.org) is a free web tool that lets teachers (and their students) arrange icons of typical school furniture in classrooms. Classroom teachers may be willing to collaborate with librarians on a mapping unit in which students use math skills to measure the classroom and then apply spatial skills to design pleasing classroom arrangements.
• MapMaker 1-Page Maps (http:// tinyurl.com/kv5p96s), part of the National Geographic website, offers printable, one-page, black-andwhite maps of states and many countries. Each map is configurable: students can toggle on and off map elements such as city names and waterways, use drawing tools, and drag and drop predesigned markers. Maps are downloadable as PDF, image, or XML files. • Super Map Maker (http:// mrnussbaum.com/mapmaker2) provides blank black-and-white outline maps of continents, the US states, and a few individual countries. Students fill in everything, so these can be highly individualized to show crops, animals, state symbols, landforms, or any other geographic features that students are studying. The site has drawing tools and a few predesigned symbols that can appear in a legend. Maps can be saved and printed.
Imagination Some children prefer books that include maps because the maps help them visualize as they read. Tap into their imaginations to create maps for books for which none exists.
Nonfiction Maps (Grades 3–5) Autobiographies, travelogues, historical accounts, and personal experiences often name real places. Help children imagine the places people write about by mapping the journeys. For instance, a third-grade teacher reading aloud a historical fiction book, Letters from Rifka by Karen Hesse, realized that her students would get a more complete picture of Rifka’s emigration from Russia to the United States if they mapped each location as they read. For a nonfiction mapping project, use the National Geographic MapMaker maps when individuals or small groups are making the map. For a whole class map, consider using MapMaker Interactive (http://tinyurl. com/7wf849d), which can also be saved in a re-editable file.
Thematic Maps (Grades 4–5) As part of social studies, students learn about historical events and community themes that can be depicted on maps. Using maps reinforces the information visually. National Geographic (http://tinyurl. com/n36axsm) provides historical Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 49
Fictional Maps (Grades K–5) Maps can also ignite imagination when they illustrate fictional places. Introduce the idea with books that contain maps already. For instance, The Once Upon a Time Map Book, written by B.G. Hennessy and illustrated by Peter Joyce, contains six maps of the fictional locations described in the stories of Alice in Wonderland, the Wizard of Oz, Peter Pan, Aladdin, Snow White, and Jack and the Beanstalk. Can students use their ideas to create imaginative maps for such fairy tales as The Three Pigs or Little Red Riding Hood? Encourage students to add maps to stories they are writing or reading. They can draw their maps by hand or use a drawing software program.
My Map Book by Sara Fanelli approaches maps differently. In addition to traditional maps of the neighborhood and bedroom, the author has created colorful childlike maps of “my heart,” “my dog,” and “my tummy.” Fanelli’s maps may spark ideas of other topics to map. Although students can hand draw their maps, consider using drawing software such as Paint, which is part of Windows, or Tux Paint (www.tuxpaint.org), or even using the shapes, colors, lines, and text in a slideshow software such as MS PowerPoint to make nontraditional maps.
50 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
Geocaching (gē-ō-cash-ing) Geocaching is a global sport where geocache owners publish online the latitude and longitude coordinates of places where they’ve hidden real or virtual caches.
Inspiration When students understand how to read maps, they are ready to use maps as tools for other tasks. As an introduction to maps as tools, encourage children to brainstorm careers in which maps are essential. Think about maps for surveying, search and rescue, navigation (e.g., ships, planes, hot-air balloons), sports (e.g., hiking, fishing, cross-country racing), tracking (weather, animals, ocean currents), construction planning, and research. The following are ways that elementary students can use maps and mapping equipment as tools for fun and research.
Mapping in Sports Geocaching (Grades 3–5) When students have mastered latitude and longitude, they have the skills to use a GPS device for geocaching. Geocaching (gē-ōcash-ing) is a global sport where geocache owners publish online the
latitude and longitude coordinates of places where they’ve hidden real or virtual caches. Hunters query www. geocaching.com or other online caching sites for information about caches hidden near them and use GPS units to navigate to the sites. Finders do not remove geocaches, but rather sign cache logbooks and return the containers to their hiding places for other seekers to find. More than two million geocaches have been published online. This oneminute video explains the basics of geocaching: www.geocaching.com/ guide. A ten-minute Introduction to Geocaching video (www.youtube.com/ watch?v=nqCvcwTK37w) explains the sport in greater detail and shows a hidden cache. Librarians can set up geocaching simulations on school property, as one librarian in McKinney, Texas, shows in the Geocaching Class—Learning Geocaching in School video (www.youtube.com/ watch?v=8jVS_vDLHec). For librarians
technology
new to geocaching, an introductory geocache hide-and-seek activity, with instructions and handouts, is available online at http://sciencespot.net/Pages/ classgpslsn.html. The activity could be the culmination of a map skills unit or be integrated into a physical education unit on lifelong, lowimpact sports.
Orienteering (Grades 4–5) Orienteering requires students to use a compass and map to travel from one point to another. A lifetime sport like geocaching, orienteering can be introduced at the upper elementary level. However, this sport always requires someone to plan, create materials, and set up a course before the event can take place. Orienteering courses can be simple or complex. Lesson plans for playground-based orienteering activities are available. Ohio State provides links for educational orienteering and geocaching activities as part of the Beyond Penguins and Polar Bears thematic unit (http://tinyurl. com/ccq968u). Of special interest are the links to the Teaching Mapping and Orienteering to Young Children document, with a progression of elementary school lesson ideas and The Amazing Race, which is part of the PE Central website’s collection of lesson plans for grades 3–5.
Mapping in Science Global Citizen Science Projects (Grades 2–5) Citizen science projects enable children and adults to participate in data collection for scientific research (See “Natural Science Research: Involving Students in Citizen Science” in the LibrarySparks April 2014 issue). Increasingly, scientists are using GPS technology to pin data to specific locations, and citizen scientists report the latitude and longitude coordinates as part of their data. The National Geographic FieldScope (http://tinyurl.com/7pnn2qc) overlays data from science projects on a mapping platform to make visual representations of trends such as biodiversity. National Geographic promotes citizen science projects that use GPS technology, such as Project BudBurst (www.budburst.org) and FrogWatch USA (www.aza.org/ frogwatch). The Lost Ladybug Project (www.lostladybug.org/index.php) also requires volunteers to use GPS technology to report their finds.
School-Based Citizen Science Sometimes schools set up their own citizen science projects in conjunction with universities and
local community members. Students at Waterville Elementary School in Waterville, Washington, collaborated with farmers and research scientists to learn more about horned lizards. As part of their collaboration, third graders learned to plot farmers’ reports of where lizards were spotted on a grid map and then with GPS. This authentic use of GPS devices and mapping experiences are described in an Edutopia article and video (www. edutopia.org/naturemapping). Not all schools can develop nature mapping projects, but these examples may inspire a citizen science idea. Maps and mapping technology hold treasures of information, imagination, and inspiration that students may miss without a gem of a librarian to lead the way.
Boni Hamilton, EdD, has teaching experience at every level from preschool through college. Her book IT’s Elementary! Integrating Technology in the Primary Grades (ISTE, 2007) advocates for collaboration among librarians, classroom teachers, and technologists. Contact her at bonihamilton@gmail.com or visit her wiki at www.easyintegration. wikispaces.com. Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 51
TeCH tips
Resizing Photos
Grades 4-6
Photos from digital cameras or scanners are often large files. When several pictures are placed on a slideshow, document, or webpage, the finished product may load slowly or even fail to load at all. One solution is to resize the photos. Resizing is not the same as dragging the corners of a picture to make it appear smaller on the screen. Resizing requires changing the properties of a picture to reduce the file size. Two free picture resizing tools make it easy to change the properties of picture files. These online sites have certain common characteristics: • No registration is required. • Pictures can be cropped and rotated. • Pictures can be previewed, restored to original, and re-edited before saving. • Resized pictures can be saved to the computer. • Photos are removed from the site 20–60 minutes after completion. PicResize (www.picresize.com) not only resizes your pictures, but also provides special-effects tools to enhance pictures. Multiple picture files can be resized as a group, but batch resizing does not support cropping or special effects. An additional feature is the ability to capture, crop, and resize images from websites, which does not violate copyright law when images are used for educational purposes. Webresizer (www.webresizer.com) remembers the custom settings you use for a picture and will automatically apply those settings to the next image. Webresizer has fewer special tools than PicResize, but that makes it excellent for elementary students, because they can concentrate on simply cropping, resizing, and adding borders.
52 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
International Geocaching Day (August 16) Geocaching is an outdoor adventure sport in which participants, armed with GPS devices and the coordinates of a hidden cache, search for objects hidden somewhere on Earth. Hidden cache locations are published at the geocaching site (www.geocaching.com). As described in the Technology column on page 48, geocaching has been used by teachers and librarians in schools to promote map skills, encourage teamwork, and engage students in outdoor activities. The Geocaching Blog (http://blog.geocaching. com/2011/08/geocaching-finds-its-way-to-the-classroom) lists several school-based projects using geocaches. Additional ideas for geocaching with students can be found at The Science Spot (http://sciencespot. net/Pages/classgpslsn.html) and in the Discovery Educator Network presentation by Conni Mulligan, titled Curricular Connections to Geocaching (http:// www.slideshare.net/ConniM/curricular-connections-togeocaching). Free sample lessons can be found in the Educaching Teacher’s Manual (www.educaching.com/ educaching_manual.html).
Geocaching “Cousins” • Earthcaching (www.earthcache.org), sponsored by the Geological Society of America, sends participants on the hunt for “virtual” caches that provide Earth science information about specific locations, which might be equated to educational treasures. Under “Getting Started,” educators can download an Educator’s Manual, which gives stepby-step lessons for using Earthcaches, including information on how to use Earthcaching when you can’t leave the school grounds or lack equipment. • Letterboxing (www.atlasquest.com) does not require GPS systems because participants follow clues to find hidden letterboxes. Letterbox finds are recorded with rubber stamps. Registration is available but not required. Letterboxing could be a fun way to orient students to the library. Create several caches that can be hidden in various sections of the library. In each cache should be a rubber stamp (or stickers) and a task related to that library area. Print clues for each cache on small cards, such as business cards. Each team initially receives clues for one cache. Teams must find the cache, complete the task, stamp their cards, and re-hide the cache before returning to obtain clues for a second letterbox.
TECH TIPS
Updating Your Digital Toolbox
Fun with Maps and Map Tools Students can use the Free Map Tools website (www. freemaptools.com) to explore maps in fun ways. For instance, they can find the distance between two points, tunnel through the earth, or find a radius around a point on the map. Many more tools are available as well. These map tools could be integrated into math and social studies lessons. P&P World Map (http://english.freemap.jp) is a Japanese site with two options: a free downloadable file of 1,000 maps or a limited collection of free printable maps that can be edited online with text, lines, and colors. If you’re teaching with maps, this may be a rich resource. A latitude and longitude tool will convert any street address to its coordinates at the Converting Addresses site (http://stevemorse.org/jcal/latlon.php). While the site claims to also convert the addresses to altitude, it may require changes to your browser to work successfully. This tool could be useful for a lesson in which students find latitudes of three widely separated locations, such as their school address, the White House (1600 Pennsylvania Ave, Washington, DC), and the Empire State Building (350 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10118). Pinpoint the locations on an online map (e.g., Mapquest, www.mapquest.com, or Google Maps, www.google.com/maps/preview) or globe, and make inferences about what latitude and longitude mean.
Powerful Pairings for CCSS In Powerful Pairings: Read-Alouds for Working with the Common Core (http://www.teachersfirst.com/exclusives/ moreless/librarian/pairings_start.cfm), TeachersFirst has annotated a sampler of six read-alouds that pair literature and informational text for each elementary grade-level band (lower, middle, and upper). Each book pair meets a key section of the Common Core ELA standards: Key Ideas and Details, Craft and Structure, and Integration of Knowledge and Ideas.
Want to know more about how to integrate the latest digital tools, like Prezi, Vocaroo, and Today’s Meet Back Channel, into your classroom? Teacher Training Videos (http://www.teachertrainingvideos.com) by Russell Stannard, an award-winning teacher and technology trainer, offers sets of four to five short (2–5 minutes) screencast videos per tool that teach teachers how to use popular online tools. Sets cover an introduction to the tool, a step-by-step example of basic features, ideas for classroom use, and information about advanced options. Librarians and teachers can use the tools for instructional and personal use; however, check for COPPA compliance before introducing them to children under thirteen.
Editing PDF Files Educators can be frustrated when they are given hard copies or PDF files of information they’d like to tweak for their own purposes. For instance, test scores in hard copy cannot be sorted on different data points, as they could if they were in an active spreadsheet. Even scanning such material will render it as a picture file, rather than a spreadsheet that could be manipulated. Or educators may download a handout that would be perfect for instruction if certain material could be added or revised. Most downloadables are PDF files and not editable unless you have bought an Adobe Acrobat license. With a handy online tool, though, educators now can convert scanned and PDF files into editable documents and spreadsheets. Online OCR Service (www.onlineocr.net/default.aspx) is a free service that converts PDF files and scanned materials to Word, Excel, or rich text format output. The online software recognizes forty-six languages. The output files look exactly like the original files, even when the originals include complex formatting, such as tables, bullets, and colored backgrounds. The output files are editable so that you can adapt the originals for your own needs and add information, such as a citation of the original file’s source.
Boni Hamilton, EdD, has teaching experience at every level from preschool through college. Her book IT’s Elementary! Integrating Technology in the Primary Grades (ISTE, 2007) advocates for collaboration among librarians, classroom teachers, and technologists. Contact her at bonihamilton@gmail.com or visit her wiki at www.easyintegration.wikispaces.com. Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 53
by | Rob Reid
STORYTIME
Round, Round, Get Around, I Get Around
Grades PK-2
Stories and activities about cars and trucks and trains and bikes and motorcycles and planes and boats are popular with many children. Here’s a lively and cacophonous story program lesson plan for those kids on the go.
Opening Picture Book The Rain Train, by Elena de Roo. Candlewick, 2011. The narrator notices that it’s raining outside with “A pitterpat-pat, a pitter-pat-pat, A pitterypittery-pittery-pat.” The rain train pulls into the station with more sound effects: “Tisssssshhhhhhhhhhhh” and “Ca-shish, ca-shish.” The train leaves the city with a “Shackety-shack” and races through the countryside, making more noises. Finally, everyone on board falls asleep with a “Ssshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.” Storytelling Tips: This is a fun book to open the program, despite its quiet, bedtime ending. Pause after each sound effect so the children in the audience can repeat it. This will let them know that the entire program is full of engagement and they can contribute. In addition to the sound effects listed above, this book contains other fun noises like “A ratter-tat-tat,” “Ping-itta-pang,” “Whooshety-wish,” and more. 54 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
Picture Book And the Cars Go…, by William Bee. Candlewick, 2013. A policeman starts his patrol on his motorcycle, and the vehicle goes “Vrooom vroom vroom!” The policeman discovers a huge traffic jam. He passes by a family car that goes “brrrmm brrrmm brrrmm,” a Rolls-Royce that goes “whisper whisper whisper,” a school bus that goes “chug chug, chuggety chug,” a race car that goes “pop pop pop, bang bang, hisssss,” an ice cream truck that goes “ding ding ding, ding ding-a-ling,” a beach buggy that goes “bumble bumble bumble,” and a street sweeper that goes “whoosh whoosh whoosh.” The policeman finally sees what’s causing the hold-up: “Farmer Jake’s prize sheep have escaped from their field! And they go, Baaa! Baaa! Baaa! Baaa! Baaa! Baaa!” When the sheep are returned to their field, the vehicles move along, each making their respective noises once more. Storytelling Tips: Read this book in the same style as The Rain Train, pausing after each sound effect for the children to repeat. There is a picture of a pet dog in the family car and, indeed, the last sound effect in the book is “Woof woof woof…
WOOF!” Since that sound effect hadn’t appeared in the book before, do a double take and look at your audience with a puzzled face, as if saying, “Where did that dog come from?”
Movement Activity “My Old Car” by Rob Reid (Sung to the tune of “This Old Man”) My old car’s not so good, (Sit on floor and mime driving.)
It doesn’t sound like a cool car should. (Move body with up-and-down and side-toside motions.)
It goes, “Chugga-chugga, Clunk-clunk!” (Continue the above motions.)
All around the town. My old car just makes me frown! (Frown and cross arms.)
Spoken: Let’s take it to the auto shop. (Stand.)
Let’s lift the hood. (Lift arms up high.)
I see the problem. (Peer forward.)
Let’s take this out, (Mime taking an engine part out and putting a new one in.)
And put a new one in. Tighten it up. (Mime using a wrench.)
Close the hood. (Lift arms high again and then down.)
We’re all set! (Swipe hands as if brushing off dirt.)
My old car, sounds real good, (Sit and mime driving.)
It sounds like a cool car should. It goes, “Vroom-vroom! Vroom-vroom!” (Cup hand to ear as if listening to the engine. Smile and nod.)
All around the town.
STORYTIME
My old car makes me jump up and down! (Stand up and jump with outstretched arms.)
Picture Book Big Rig, by Jamie A. Swenson. Hyperion, 2014. A large, eighteenwheeled semitruck named Frankie introduces himself to us with a loud horn that goes “URRRRNNNTURRRRNNNT!” Frankie hauls cargo on the highway, with windshield wipers that go “SCHWAAT, SCHWAAT, SCHWAAT” and brakes that go “EEEEERRRRRRRRRR … DAA-DAADAA-DA-DA.” On the trip, we see signs for the “Sunny Side Water Park” and the “Rocket Drive In.” When Frankie pops a tire, he has to pull over and let a service truck save the day. He finally makes it to his destination, “Dinosaur Land,” with his cargo: a life-size replica of a T-Rex. Storytelling Tips: When you make the “URRRRNNNT-URRRRNNNT” sound, pull an imaginary semitruck horn cord with your hand. In addition to letting the kids repeat the sound effects after you read them in the book, slow down and show them some of Frankie’s fun cargo near the beginning of the story. We see crates full of “froggy swim fins,” snorkels, large ice cream cones, and dinosaur souvenirs.
the normal positions found on vertical traffic lights. Below the green circle, switch the other colors as they come up in this rhyme. There’s a crazy traffic light On a corner in our town, It has the normal colors, You know yellow means slow down. (Point to the yellow circle.)
And green means go (Point to the green circle.)
And red means stop. (Point to the red color.)
It’s all the other colors That’ll make your mouth drop. When you see a pink light (Place pink circle on traffic light.)
It means hop like a bunny.
But when they switched it on After spending all that dough, It flashed those crazy colors That the kids all know. When you see a pink light (Place pink circle on traffic light.)
It means hop like a bunny. (Instruct the children to hop in place.)
When the light is purple (Switch the pink circle with the purple circle.)
Make a face that’s funny. (Instruct the children to make a “funny face.”)
When the light turns orange (Switch the purple circle with the orange circle.)
You should bark like a dog. (Instruct the children to bark.)
When the brown light shines
(Instruct the children to hop in place.)
(Switch the orange circle with the brown circle.)
When the light is purple
You can oink like a hog.
(Switch the pink circle with the purple circle.)
(Instruct the children to oink.)
Make a face that’s funny.
When the white light’s bright
(Instruct the children to make a “funny face.”)
(Switch the brown circle with the white circle.)
When the light turns orange
You should give a loud roar.
(Switch the purple circle with the orange circle.)
(Instruct the children to roar.)
You should bark like a dog.
(Switch the white circle with the blue circle.)
(Instruct the children to bark.)
Fall asleep and snore.
When the brown light shines
(Instruct the children to close their eyes
(Switch the orange circle with the brown circle.)
and snore.)
When the light turns blue
You can oink like a hog. (Instruct the children to oink.)
When the white light’s bright (Switch the brown circle with the white circle.)
You should give a loud roar. (Instruct the children to roar.)
When the light turns blue (Switch the white circle with the blue circle.)
Fall asleep and snore.
Movement Activity
(Instruct the children to close their eyes and snore.)
“The Crazy Traffic Light” by Rob Reid
One day the workers came To fix that crazy light. They tried to make it like All the other traffic lights. They spent a lot of money Tearing out its guts. They tried to guarantee Traffic wouldn’t go nuts. They put in brand new wires, They worked all day and night. They thought when they were finished That they changed that traffic light.
(This activity first appeared in my book Family Storytime and is reprinted here by kind permission of ALA Editions.) Make a felt traffic light using a dark rectangle long enough to hold four felt circles. Make the following felt circles (one each color): red, yellow, green, pink, purple, orange, brown, white, and blue. Put the red, yellow, and green circles in
Closing Picture Book 20 Big Trucks in the Middle of the Street, by Mark Lee and Kurt Cyrus. Candlewick, 2013. An ice cream truck breaks down in the middle of a city block. A mail truck pulls up behind, and now there are two stuck trucks. Aug/Sept 2014 • LibrarySparks • 55
STORYTIME
A variety of trucks pull up behind, all coming to a complete stop. These include a truck carrying hay, a pickup truck, a crane truck, two moving vans, four delivery trucks, trucks carrying pigs and sand, a cement truck, a gasoline truck, a tow truck, a truck carrying tar, a bread truck, a meat truck, and a garbage truck. The police are stymied on how to unravel the mess. A small, astute, bike-riding child (who can be seen in every illustration) solves the problem. Storytelling Tips: Before reading the book, make a comment about how the drivers in this story needed a good traffic light (and not a crazy traffic light) to help them out. At the end of the book, the text states that one by one, all of the trucks go away, “except for one that’s here to stay.” Before turning the page, ask the audience members if they remember that first truck. It’s the ice cream truck. This is a good time to serve an edible treat to the story program attendees before sending them off to their next destinations.
Consider Using These Back-Up Picture Books Construction Kitties, by Judy Sue Goodwin Sturges and Shari Halpern. Holt, 2013. Yes, this is a book featuring kittens in hard hats driving construction vehicles. The kitties drive bulldozers, excavators, cranes, backhoes, and dump trucks. They also take a lunch break and eat sardines and drink milk. At the end of the day, we see they’ve been building a new playground. Everyone Can Learn to Ride a Bicycle, by Chris Raschka. Schwartz & Wade, 2013. A little girl learns how to ride a bike with the help of her father. They first choose the right bike for her.
56 • LibrarySparks • Aug/Sept 2014
She next observes how others ride their bikes. She learns that “training wheels are helpful. They keep you from tipping over.” Once the training wheels are off, it’s a little scary, but finding the right surface helps. The girl takes a few tumbles but doesn’t give up. She tries it “again, and again, again, and again, again, and again, and again.” Honk Honk! Beep Beep!, by Daniel Kirk. Hyperion, 2010. In the middle of the night, toy characters get up in a child’s bedroom and drive a truck. They are joined by a variety of other toys, including a construction crew, sheep, and a monkey. They make it to the top of a mountain (the windowsill) to see the sunrise. Train Man, by Andrea Zimmerman and David Clemesha. Holt, 2012. A boy and his little brother are playing with their toy trains. In their imagination, the trains become life-size. The boy shouts, “ALL ABOARD,” and they travel through the countryside. When they return to their room, the boy decides that one day, he’ll teach his little brother to say, “ALL ABOARD!”
Where Do Diggers Sleep at Night?, by Brianna Caplan Sayres and Christian Slade. Random House, 2012. Anthropomorphic vehicle-parents help their little vehicle-children go to bed. The characters include diggers, dump trucks, monster trucks, fire engines, snowplows, car transporters, tow trucks, cranes, and tractors. There are even garbage trucks that “sniff their loads and say, ‘Pee-yew—time for a bath.’”
Rob Reid wishes that every kid—and parents, too!—was as excited about reading and libraries as he is. Visit Rob at www.rapnrob.com.
Your Time to Shine
Elevate drop-in storytimes to a comprehensive early literacy program! Imagine taking SMALL STEPS to change the reading outlook in your community! The Very Ready Reading Program for kids ages birth–5 is research based and helps you empower parents with simple actions to reinforce learning at home. • Give your passion wings without adding to your workload • Teach caregivers 7 ways to share sounds, words, songs and more • Achieve BIG RESULTS — increase reading readiness START NOW View videos and sample materials at upstartpromotions.com, Search: Very Ready
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Sneak Peek
O c tob e r 2014
Visit www.librarysparks.com for reproducible visuals, patterns, and activities from many of our magazine articles, including: • Curriculum Connections: Art Treasure Hunt and Treasure Hunt Book Review forms • Character Education: Any Day, Any Time Adventure and Map Party activities • Freebies: Talk Like a Pirate Crossword and Library Treasure Hunt • Keep ‘Em Reading: Wordless Treasures, Treasure Maps, and Treasure Troves: Understanding Theme • Library Lessons: Reference Tools and Dewey Decimal System games and visuals • Gaining STEAM: Trilateration Activity Map • Strengthen Your Core: Treasure Hunt for Text Evidence game, Treasure Quotes cards, and Quotation visuals
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Reluctant readers can have even the most skilled librarians at their wit’s end. What do you do when a child can’t or won’t read? Our authors tackle this challenge with strategies for reaching reluctant readers with high-interest books and activities, diverse or unconventional formats, and skillful interactions. Gaining STEAM suggests pulling students in with science and engineering. Strengthen Your Core gets at the roots of reluctance to help students meet state standards, while Keep ‘Em Reading explores alternative texts. Reach every reader—even the most reluctant ones—with dozens of engaging ideas and activities.
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