Day 18 Going Bananas for Monkeys Picture Book Month #IMWAYR

 
Picture Book Month Day 18 theme: Monkeys
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Which is Round? Which is Bigger?

by Mineko Mamda

Readers compare pairs of objects and decide which one has the attribute the questions asks to be answered. This concept book is simple and fun but offers a cute twist at the end of the book. Bright, happy read. Lots of fun. 

Count the Monkeys by Mac Barnett has been one of my favorite Read Aloud books this year. Imagine a book about counting monkeys but the book itself is missing the monkeys! This book includes kids in on a joke that grownups don't see. Love it!

This week was Recycle Week for our city so I invited the Recycling Education representative out to share a storytime and tips on how to reduce, re-use, and recycle. Our kids loved it and they each received a canvas bag to take to the store in order to reduce the amount of plastic waste in our community. Here were the two books Dawn Stubblefield read to students.

Dawn Stubblefield gave an excellent presentation. She really knows kids and even when one kid tried to show off a little she expertly drew him back into the lesson. She incorporated multi-media, mnemonic devices, and showmanship to deliver an rememberable lesson.

Every student and parents who attended were each given a canvas grocery shopping bag to use in order to reduce the amount of plastic waste in our community. 

Books I Read and Blogged about this Past Week:

Click on the image caption to see the review and activities for each book. 

The Sea

Robots are Taking Over the Library

Cats and Dogs

Magical World of Books

The Zoo!

Micez

Bears 

This week, we have been exploring the meaning of being thankful. Our good friend Bear helped us understand the concept of being thankful for friends, food, and home.

Below are some nice books to use for teaching Thankfulness

I also started reading YA Fiction Guitar Notes by Mary Amato. 

It is really good so far.

Have a great reading week.

Julee

Monsters We Have Loved

Picture Book Month

visit the website

Day 25 theme: MONSTERS!

Monsters We Have Loved

My students love to hear monster stories, The stories are fun as long as they are not too scary. I prefer to use the type of monster books where the children in the stories have control over the behavior of their monsters. They can direct their monsters to shape up or even to go away forever. I have not forgotten how very real imaginary monsters can be to children. My memories are full of sleepless nights watching shadows floating around my bedroom while my grumpy sister would hiss at me to "go to sleep." 

Into the Woods and Seven Scary Monsters are two of my favorite read aloud monster bedtime tales. I make the stories interactive and it gives the kids a chance to understand that they can take control of their imaginations and overcome their fears. 

What would you do if your bunny was missing? 

You would go into "the Woods" to find him?

Read my previous post and lesson for: THE WOODS

Seven Scary Monsters by Mary Beth Lundgren

Get a sneak preview of many pages.

A young boy discovers seven scary monsters hiding in his room so he goes on the attack to be rid of them using purple felines, monster blasters, vacuums, boxes, and other clever devices. He uses a fun rhyming chant to scare the monsters away "Rick Rack Wrinkleshack, don't you dare come back!"

Seven Scary Monsters is a fun math themed story-time read aloud.

Math concept: simple subtraction

Language concepts: onomatopoeia words

Monster or Halloween themed math lesson

Materials: 

Large number 7

·       Seven scary yet goofy colorful monsters-individually cut out and affixed with Velcro or strong tape on back.

·        Two-sided sign attached to a flat paint stick

      1^st sign: “Rick! Rack! Wrinkleshack! Don’t You Dare Come Back”

·          2^nd sign: “Rick! /Rack! Wrinkleshack! Monsters, please come back!”

      Onomatopoeia words: Eeeek! Boom! Rip! Thwomp! Splat! Zap! Yow! Plop! Ouch! Wow!
     
      Pre-book talk 

     One at a time hold up and sound out the onomatopoeia words. Onomatopoeia are words that sound like the objects they name or the sounds those objects make.

      Sound and acting them out each word. Read the word "rip" and then tell students to please listen for a sound you will make. Take a piece of long paper and slowly rip it. Ask "What sound did you hear?" Rip. So the word "rip" sounds just like the action of ripping a paper." Next say "boom" and follow up by dropping a book or flat object from a height. The word boom sounds like the sound made when you drop a book or heavy object from a height. Continue with other words on list.

Do you ever worry about monsters? This time of year we see commercials for monster costumes or maybe your friends are talking about dressing up as a scary monster for Halloween. Today, I will tell you how to get rid of any monsters that might be hiding in your room. First of all, monsters are just pretend. They are not real, but people have fun scaring themselves by pretending a monster is out to get them.

Question: Are monsters real or pretend? Pretend.

Question: Do monsters live in your closet or under your bed? No. They are not real.

Instructions:

Count the number of monsters on the display board. (7) Begin story.

As story is read, pause and have a student come up and select a monster to pull off the display board.

Say seven monsters take away one monster leaves how many monsters? Count the remaining monsters.

Six monsters take away one monster leaves how many monsters? Etc.-Five, four, three, two, one, zero.

Now to the part-Monsters please come back! Zero monsters plus seven monsters equals seven monsters.

Last page. Who do you think the monsters really were? His toys.

Non-Fiction Monday: If You Lived Here: Houses of the World

If You  Lived Here: Houses of the World

Picture Book Month

Day 5 theme: Around the World
Non-Fiction Monday

Fifteen different architectural home structures from around the world are beautifully featured. The homes range from those carved into the sides of mountain caves to houses on stilts. A brief explanation is given describing the type of home, who would have lived in it and when, materials used, which country, and some fascinating facts. A vague map is included on the last  page with pin points indicating the regions where the homes are located. A more detailed map would have been a more helpful choice.

If You LIved Here was one of those books I purchased to help round out my non-fiction curriculum support collection plus kids really like to find out how different people live around the world. The first image of a "dogtrot" house brought up a memory I had of watching the Disney movie "Old Yeller" which if you have not seen, you will now need to add to your must see list. The family lived in a "dogtrot" house. I always thought their house was really cool because I had never seen one like it before. Now I am glad to better understand why early settlers built dogtrot homes. 

Compare and Contrast Activity
Students choose a dwelling from the book and draw a representation of their own home.
Students describe the differences between the two dwellings and observe how they are the similar. 
Students design a home to suit a particular environment such as a rain forest and explain which materials could be used to build it and why they chose their particular design. 


Take a peek at some of the pages of If You Lived Here

Visit author website:  Giles Laroche

Big Bugs

Picture Book Month Day 3 theme: BUGS

BIG BUGS 

by Seymour Simon

To kids, bugs will always be cool. They are magical and mysterious and sometimes kids kind of wish they could be a bug for a day. If you could be a bug, maybe you would choose to be a "BIG" bug like the insects in this informational picture book by the incomparable Seymour Simon. Each page is filled with photographs and physical descriptions of big insects. spiders, scorpions, wasps, and (yuckie) giant coach roaches. In the bottom corner of each page is an inlay graphic depicting the actual size of the real bug featured.

Seymour Seymour author's website

Insect themed Activities  

Going Bug-gy!       Scholastic's Teacher Guide "Teaching With Bugs" lesson plan unit

Child Care Lounge  crafts, songs, recipes, and finger-plays

Education Place       crafts and curriculum support activities

A great pairing with Big Bugs would be an introduction into The Diary of..." series by Doreen Cronin and illustrated by Harry Bliss. These are kid favorites, in particular with first and second graders. The story follows a fly and her daily interactions with the world. Her friends Spider and Worm, from the first two books, pop up in her story.

Diary of a Fly

by Doreen Cronin

Publisher description:

This is the diary...of a fly. A fly who, when she's not landing on your head or swimming in your soup, is trying to escape her 327 brothers and sisters who are driving her crazy! Even though she's little-just like her best friends Worm and Spider_Fly wants to be a superhero. And why not? She walks on walls, sees in all directions at once, and can already fly!

Diary of a Fly Discussion Guide  by Scholastic Teachers

Play the Web of Friends game  by Harper Collins Children's based on "The Diary Of" series

Super Fly Activities from Harper Collins Children's

Interview with Doreen Cronin and Harry Bliss

Library Decor Tip: Shelf Markers

"Miss, where are the folk-tale books? I can't find them,"

For students trying to figure out the Dewey Decimal system, trying to figure out the right location for a book can be a frustrating experience. After seeing a similar idea on Pinterest, I decided to create a set of colorful, easy to spot shelf markers to assist students in finding sections of our library. It all began after I rescued and re-purposed some old magazine holders someone had thrown in the recycling bin.

Easy to Make Shelf Markers

Materials:
cardboard magazine holders
colored craft/butcher paper or wrapping paper
scissors
pencil
contact paper or laminating film
tape-I prefer storage tape (its super strong and I use it for all my displays)
title of section boldly printed on computer paper

Step 1 Measure your paper and cut it. 

Step 2 Attach label and laminate the paper or cover with contact paper.

Step 3 Cover and secure tightly with storage tape.

Step 4 Display and enjoy!
Graphic Novel section

Biography section