Freaky Fast Frankie Joe

Freaky Fast Frankie Joe
by Lutricia Clifton
Publisher: Holiday House

Ages: 8 to 12

Themes: Family & Relationships, Divorce and Single Parent Families, Siblings, Acceptance and Belonging, Inter-generational friendships, kid entrepreneurs.

Holiday House description: Twelve-year-old Frankie Joe Huckaby can’t find anything good to say about Clearview, Illinois, where he must spend the next ten months living with a father he knows only through birthday cards, a stepmother he didn’t know existed, and four half brothers intent on making him the “freak” of the town. His mother is in jail, so he has no choice . . . or does he?


When life in Clearview becomes unbearable, Frankie Joe hatches a plan to ride his old Rover Sport bicycle 1,400 miles through the middle of the Corn Belt back to the Lone Star Trailer Park in Laredo, Texas. For that he needs money, and so he opens Frankie Joe’s Freaky Fast Delivery Service. But Frankie Joe hasn’t counted on quirky clients, unpredictable winter weather, and his equally unpredictable new family.

His deliveries win new friends for Frankie Joe, a place in the rural Illinois community, and a sense of achievement. But his planned escape is destroyed by a heartbreaking betrayal, and Frankie Joe needs all his incredible resilience and the loving support of his new family to survive the devastating loss.


My take:

I was pleasantly surprised by Freaky Fast Frankie Joe. I suppose because I had put off reading it for a long time because I simple did not like the book cover. It did not appeal to me. Boy, am I glad I decided to read it. I really enjoyed it and made connections to my own life immediately. I have always been blessed with good friendships with older people and learned early on that they are a wealth of good advice and guidance. Frankie's older friends at the Lone Star Trailer Park are unique characters themselves and have influenced Frankie Joe in the way a parent would. He has difficulty adjusting to his new life with his new family and handles his rocky transition with good grace while planning to escape back to Texas. Frankie Joe starts up a delivery service and quickly impresses many residents of Clearview with his enterprising, respectful, and hardworking behavior. Always loyal to his mom, he clings to the hope that she  is doing everything she can to get the two of them back together.

Freaky Fast Frankie Joe will appeal to kids who have a bit of entrepreneurial and adventurous spirit. It would be a good choice for a book club with its social, emotional, and moral issues for discussion.

Download the Freaky Fast Frankie Joe Educator's Guide

Check out my Bluebonnet Book Club wiki: Freaky Fast Frankie Joe page. It includes games and activities that will enrich the reading experience.

AWARDS and HONORS for Freaky Fast Frankie Joe
IRA-CBC Children's Choice Award
Texas Bluebonnet Award Master List
South Carolina Children's Book Award Master List
Nebraska Golden Sower Award, Intermediate Nominee

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? April 15, 2013

It's Monday! What are you reading? A weekly themed meme connecting many bloggers around the world and originally conceived by Sheila at Book Journeys. I first learned about at Teach Mentor Texts hosted by Jen and Kellee. Its a terrific way to post a few of the books that you have recently read and put together a list of what you are planning on reading this week.


Here are the books I read this past week:

On D.E.A.R. Day I selected to read "My Rotten Redheaded Older Brother" by Patricia Polacco.

This is an autobiographical look into the relationship between Patricia and her own redheaded brother. I enjoyed it as I do all Patricia Polacco books.

Listen to actress Melissa Gilbert read My Rotten Redheaded Older Brother

Next, I picked up Ghetto Cowboy by G. Neri. I was able to read a chapter with each class and found it to be original and very interesting. I chose this book because it is one of the 2013-2014 Texas Bluebonnet Award nominees. I discovered some fascinating facts about the Philadelphia Street Riders while doing backstory research. *Anytime I find a book I really like, I have to uncover its backstory.*  Look here on my Bluebonnet Book Club wiki. I keep my lesson resources on my wiki for quick and easy access.
This is one of my current reads. 




May B. by Caroline Starr Rose. Thank you to the very generous and King of Book Talks, @MrSchureads, for sending this survival themed novel in verse little gem to me. I loved it. Survival stories and historical fiction are my favorite genres. I am looking forward to the Twitter #SharpSchu Book Club that will take place on April 24th at 8 p.m. EST. Please  join in the chat that also includes author Sharon Creech and her book Love That Dog. Learn more about it here on Mr. Schu's blog.

Penny and Her Marble by Kevin Henkes

Penny finds a marble as blue as the sky in a neighbor's yard and after taking it home she begins to feel guilty for taking it without asking for permission. It reminded me of the Highlights magazines that usually included stories with good moral lessons. Remember those magazines? They were always in Doctor and Dentist offices.

I just finished listening to Messenger by Lois Lowry, the third installment in the Giver series. It is my favorite in the series and I now look forward to reading the final book-Son. The audio version was due so I pulled the print copy from the library shelf to finish off the last three chapters. The library was very busy when I walked in but one of the librarians had to flick the lights on and off to alert us late stayers that it was time to close. As I was wiping the tears off my cheeks (it was beautifully written) I was shocked to see the library had emptied out. That is how removed I was from the world around me. I was swept away with the story. 

Current audio book:

I am listening to Frances Hodgson Burnett's The Secret Garden. I needed a refresher because another Texas Bluebonnet Award nominee, The Humming Room by Ellen Potter,  is the retelling of The Secret Garden. Click here to view   The Humming Room on my Bluebonnet Book Club wiki. You can find books trailers, lesson plans, and more. 

Project Gutenberg: Read the Etext version of The Secret Garden (27 chapters)

These were my pre-school and kinder class reads this week. We were learning about shadows and using your imagination. Bear Shadow is a wonderful book about a bear trying to get rid of his shadow and all the kids loved it. I brought along my handy dandy crank flashlight and we made shadows. I read a poem I had written about shadows and I even found a terrific little video to share. I played the music as they walked into the library.

I love Ame Dyckman's Boy + Bot and had read it before to the kids but they always beg for it and it was the perfect book to pair with the clever Have Fun, Molly Lou Melon. In Molly's book, we learn the wonders of cloud watching and creating toys out of flowers, twigs, and cardboard boxes. I brought out my special little robot head made out of a re-purposed diaper box (thank you Maddy) and used my best robot voice to introduce Boy + Bot. They kids went wild. I just know they went home and scrounged up old boxes and made their own robots this weekend. Or at least I hope they were lucky enough to be able to do so.


So this week, I will continue to finish Ghetto Cowboy and The Secret Garden on audio. I also picked up these titles at the Neyland library.

                      


Happy reading ya'll!

Looking at Lincoln

Visit our Bluebonnet Book Club

A 2013-14 Texas Bluebonnet Award nominee

Looking at Lincoln

(Publisher summary)
Abraham Lincoln is one of the first giants of history children are introduced to, and now Maira Kalman brings him to life with her trademark style and enthusiasm. Lincoln's legacy is everywhere - there he is on your penny and five-dollar bill. And we are still the United States because Lincoln helped hold them together.

But who was he, really? The little girl in this book wants to find out. Among the many other things, she discovers our sixteenth president was a man who believed in freedom for all, had a dog named Fido, loved Mozart, apples, and his wife's vanilla cake, and kept his notes in his hat. From his boyhood in a log cabin to his famous presidency and untimely death, Kalman shares Lincoln's remarkable life with young readers in a fresh and exciting way.

Looking at Lincoln author talk
Hear how author, Maira Kalman, fell in love with Lincoln and decided to write and illustrate a children's picture book about his life.

Visit the author's web site 

How I have used this book:                                                                                                       Looking at Lincoln was a terrific book for a library read aloud in connection with President's Day. Students from ages Pre-kindergarten three year-olds-Sixth grade were intrigued by this story. Kindergartens and up remembered that Abraham Lincoln was a tall man who was once President of the United States and that he had been shot and killed. During the reading, I included tidbits of Lincoln information and after the reading, I shared informational videos with students courtesy of Biography Channel and the History Channel. These are two favorites among students for vibrant and to the point type of videos. 

    

Next, 2nd-5th graders began a two week project beginning with drawing a character portrait of Abraham Lincoln. After a bit more digging into the life of Lincoln, through use of videos and print materials, students will compose a list of meaningful words that best describe the physical and personality characteristics of Lincoln. Each student will be responsible for including new information they have discovered in the course of their research and for presenting their final projects to their peers. This non-graded project will earn each student credit for completing a Bluebonnet project towards their goal of completing five projects. Twenty books are nominated to compete for the Texas Bluebonnet Award. Texas students in grades 3-6 vote to decide which book deserves the annual Bluebonnet Award. 

President's Day Resources:

Scholastic's Everything You Need to Celebrate President's Day

Patriotic Coloring Pageswith biographical information and a great Lincoln image for creating book marks.(source:Raising Our Kids)

Abraham Lincoln Coloring Pages Very nice quality (source: Apples for the Teacher)


For you history buffs-this part is for you.

Watch the Looking for Lincoln documentary
Historian Henry Louis Gates Jr.’s quest to piece together Lincoln’s complex life takes him from Illinois to Gettysburg to Washington, D.C., and face-to-face with people who live with Lincoln every day – relic hunters, re-enactors, and others for whom the study of Lincoln is a passion. If you are a history buff like Ms. Murphy then you will want to immerse yourself in the facts, fables, and fascination that make up the man we call "The Great Emancipator".


How well do you know Lincoln? Take the quiz: Lincoln Myths and Misconceptions
It's not that easy. Ms. Murphy scored 12 out of 15. See if you can do better than me and trust your first instinct. I would have gotten 14 out of 15 if I had.

Interactive Timeline: Lincoln Over Time
Take this interactive challenge to place events and images from the life of Abraham Lincoln in chronological order.

Make and Take Activities:
Make a tiny Abe Lincoln hat at Enchanted Learning. Mr. Bones loves his Lincoln stovepipe hat.

Math based Lesson Plan: Recreating a replica of Abraham Lincoln's hat (source:Smithsonian National Museum of American History).

Literature Connections:

Abe Lincoln's Hat by Martha F. Brenner
A gently humorous examination of the life of Abe Lincoln. A slightly disorganized lawyer, he made his way relying on good will, friendliness, and – above all – honesty.

Abe Lincoln: the Boy who loved books by Kay Winters
A portrait of Abe Lincoln and how books and the power of words changed his life and ours as he walked out of the wilderness into the White House. 

Honest Abe by Edith Kunhardt
A simple and elegant retelling of the life of one of our most important presidents.

A Picture Book of Abraham Lincoln by David Adler
Clear text and engaging artwork follow Lincoln from boyhood through his presidency.

Jazz Cat, Rock 'n' Roll Dogs, and the Great Satchmo

Jazz Cats, Rock 'N' Roll Dogs, and The Great Satchmo

Picture Book Month

Day 9 theme: Music

Today, I am connecting two picture books,  Jazz Cats and Rock 'N' Roll Dogs.

by David Davis to a Texas Bluebonnet Award nominated biographical book.

Play, Louis, Play! 

The True story of a Boy and His Horn

by Muriel Harris Weinstein

Illustrated by Frank Morrison

The biographical tale of the life of Louis Armstrong, as told by his confidant and companion-his
trumpet! His horn narrates Louis' story explaning how he worked very hard to scrape up enough
money to buy his first horn, how he became fascinated with Blues and Swing music and eventually Jazz. Louis worked hard to develop his skills and slowly began to earn the respect of fellow musicians who recognized his amazing musical talent. Louis could hear a song played one time and would be able to play it back note for note. This is the beginning tale of the world's greatest trumpet musician. 

Learn a little bit more about the Louis Armstrong?

PBS Kids

Listen to the smooth sounds of the Great Satchmo
1937-1941 recordings at All Music

Visit the Louis Armstrong House Museum to see videos and listen to his music






Terrific literature connections by David Davis


Jazz Cats

From the blow of the clarinet and trumpet to the pluck of the fiddle base and beating the trash can drums, these Dixie, dancin', jazz cats know how to have fun.

Cool cats entertain the crowds with their music in the French Quarter of New Orleans.

Rock 'N' Roll Dogs
On Friday nights, the Rock 'n' Roll Memphis Blues Dogs play music for all of their doggie friends and have a howl of a time! Meet cool Buddy Collie, who strums the guitar, and Puggy Sue, the swinging teen-age star. You are welcome to dance with them, but don't step on their blue suede shoes.