Friday, September 21, 2012

FRIDAY FICTION: Shel Silversteins' Poetry - a Little Something to Tickle Your Funny Bone

and

When I taught 2nd grade, I began every morning with a poem from one of these two books. The kids grew to love his work and appreciate his humor. I really love his book, "The Giving Tree", even though there is some funny controvery over it, it is just a simple story and when too much is read into it, it can become constroversial. The tree gives and gives until he has nothing left to give, but in reality, he provides "Rest" from the old man's labor. Reminds me of something I read in a book, actually from one of the greatest books of all times! (The Bible)

This summer has been hot! Today is Autumn. Welcome Autumn. Welcome FALL. I'm glad your here, ESPECIALLY BECAUSE MY AIRCONDITIONER JUST WENT OUT. (It really did, and of course it is the weekend.) This poem just makes me smile.

There are too many kids in this tub,

There are too many elbows to scrub.

I just scrubbed a behind that I'm sure wasn't mine.

There are too many kids in this tub.

-Shel Silverstein

When I was a kid, this is how my bath time was. We all got a bath at about the same time and there was less bath that kids. I taught this poem to my kids years ago and they still remember it. I have a daughter named Cynthia and a sister named Sarah and so this next poem hits home as well.

SARAH CYNTHIA SYLVIA STOUT
WOULD NOT TAKE THE GARBAGE OUT

Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout

Would not take the garbage out!

She'd scour the pots and scrape the pans,

Candy the yams and spice the hams,

And though her daddy would scream and shout,

She simply would not take the garbage out.

And so it piled up to the ceilings:

Coffee grounds, potato peelings,

Brown bananas, rotten peas,

Chunks of sour cottage cheese.

It filled the can, it covered the floor,

It cracked the window and blocked the door

With bacon rinds and chicken bones,

Drippy ends of ice cream cones,

Prune pits, peach pits, orange peel,

Gloppy glumps of cold oatmeal,

Pizza crusts and withered greens,

Soggy beans and tangerines,

Crusts of black burned buttered toast,

Gristly bits of beefy roasts. . .

The garbage rolled on down the hall,

It raised the roof, it broke the wall. . .

Greasy napkins, cookie crumbs,

Globs of gooey bubble gum,

Cellophane from green baloney,

Rubbery blubbery macaroni,

Peanut butter, caked and dry,

Curdled milk and crusts of pie,

Moldy melons, dried-up mustard,

Eggshells mixed with lemon custard,

Cold french fried and rancid meat,

Yellow lumps of Cream of Wheat.

At last the garbage reached so high

That it finally touched the sky.

And all the neighbors moved away,

And none of her friends would come to play.

And finally Sarah Cynthia Stout said,

"OK, I'll take the garbage out!"

But then, of course, it was too late. . .

The garbage reached across the state,

From New York to the Golden Gate.

And there, in the garbage she did hate,

Poor Sarah met an awful fate,

That I cannot now relate

Because the hour is much too late.

But children, remember Sarah Stout

And always take the garbage out!

Shel Silverstein, 1974

This is definitely the way thing get in my house sometimes, I'm embarrassed to say!!!!!

All Things Shel Silverstein

08.12.2011

Just remember, when your feeling down and out, that "HUMOR is our BEST FRIEND". A big thanks to Shel Silversein for making me laugh........

Thursday, September 20, 2012

THURSDAY THEMES TO GROW ON: TECHNOLOGY

FACETIME, YUP, FACETIME. I "facetimed" my first bedtime story to my grandson tonight. He's only 2 and he loved the story, "If You Take a Mouse to School" read to him over my i-phone to his mommy's i-phone. WOW! I read it twice. That's all I can say is "WOW"! Then we kissed our phones and said "nighty, night"! It's a fast paced, crazy world we live in.

A couple of great books with a message about Technology "Overload" is "When Charlie McButton Lost Power" and "It's a Book" by Lane Smith

"Just Me and MY DADDY"

WEDNESDAY WEEK AT A GLANCE - "Learning the Library" Lesson Plan

LEARNING THE LIBRARY (ARRANGEMENT/ORGANIZATION/CALL NUMBERS)

Yesterday I played a fun game with my students to help them learn where different sections of the library are.

This is what I did.

1. Discuss "real mail" and what is written on the front of it: (name and addresses) Show them some real letters and mail that you have received.

2. Hand out envelopes you have made with the name of a book and it's library call number on the front (address), such as 811 SIL, E HEN, FIC RIO, or REF 973, ETC......... books.

3. Use books from all sections of the library in order to teach all areas, such as REFerence, SPAnish, series, FIC chapter books, Biography, Everybody books (picture books), Easy Reader books, Caldecott and Newberry winners.

4. Put a clue into the envelope, such as (It's a Poetry Book or a Caldecott winner or a map of the library with an X on the spot where it is located).

5. Have students find and pull the book and show a friend. The friend then has to trade books with the partner and each student has to re-shelf the book they end up with.
6. Have the student use his shelf stick to save the place of where he/she found the "treasure-book".
7. For a spin on it, only assign books about PIRATE things, like E SHA for "How I Became a Pirate" and REF 973 with a book mark in a page about pirate ships, non-fiction books about Pirates and a FIC chapter book from the Magic Treehouse Series about Pirates.
8. I JUST MAY DO THIS A FEW WEEKS IN A ROW IN ORDER TO HELP STUDENTS "LEARN THE LIBRARY"

The students enjoyed this game and it was fast and they learned alot. (15 minutes)

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

TUESDAY: TEACH THE BOOK "THE MYSTERIOUS TADPOLE" BY STEVEN KELLOGG

The Mysterious Tadpole by Steven Kellogg - LESSON PLAN by http://thepicturebookteachersedition.blogspot.com/2012/09/the-mysterious-tadpole-by-steven-kellogg.html

BOOK REVIEW: Uncle McAllister, he always sends Louis the best birthday presents, this year is no exception. Uncle McAllister sent, what everyone thought, was a tadpole to Louis for this years birthday. Louis named his tadpole Alphonse. Alphonse was no ordinary tadpole, he grew, and grew, and grew until he could no longer fit in Louis' apartment. Louis set out in search of help. He needed to get enough money to build Louis a pool. Louis asked the school librarian to help him, and boy did she! Wait till you see where they found the money to make Alphonse's new home!

This is such a fun book, it has been one of my favorites since my girls were babies...even as I worked on this review, both of my girls walked by, saw the book, and both said, "Oh, I love that book!"

I hope you can use the FREE classify and categorize activity I have created to go along with this book.

If you would like to make your own reading skill or strategy lesson with this book here is a list of ideas and questions that might be helpful.

Reading level: 3.2

Theme: friendship

Genre: Fiction

Reading skills and strategies:

asking questions - {possible questions before} Why is the tadpole mysterious? {possible questions during} Why does Alphonse eat cheeseburgers? Why is Alphonse growing so fast? What are they going to do with Alphonse now that he is too big for the apartment? Why was the coach so mad? What is a Loc Ness monster? {possible questions after} What kind of bird was in the egg?
author's point of view - third person point of view
author's purpose - entertain {evidence} The tadpole grew very fast. Alphonse ate cheeseburgers. Alphonse found a treasure chest in the harbor. All of these things are silly, which makes an entertaining story.
beginning, middle, end - {most important event from beginning} Louis got a tadpole from his uncle for his birthday. {most important event from middle} Alphonse grew so fast that he needed a new home. {most important event from end} Alphonse found the treasure to help pay for his new home.
cause and effect - Why did Uncle McAllister send Louis a tadpole? because it was Louis' birthday. Why did the teacher ask Louis to stop bringing Alphonse to school? because she decided that he was no ordinary tadpole. Why did Louis smuggle Alphonse into the school? because he needed Alphonse to live in the school pool. Why was to coach upset and confused? because Alphonse was in the pool. Why did Miss. Seevers drop her purse and books into the pool? because she was so shocked to see Alphonse. Why did Miss. Seevers call Uncle McAllister? because she wanted to find out more about Alphonse. Why does Miss Seevers think Alphonse is a Loc Ness monster? because Alphonse is so big and he was found in the lake Loc Ness. Why does Alphonse need to find the treasure? because they needed the money to buy the parking lot to build Alphonse a pool. Why did Uncle McAllister come to visit Louis? because it was his birthday, again. Why does Louis' parents look so nervous at the end of the book? because they are afraid of what the bird might grow into.
characterization - describe Louis, describe Alphonse, describe Miss. Seevers {looks like, feelings, thoughts, character}
classify & categorize - birthday gifts that your parents would be happy you got and birthday gifts that your parents would not be happy you got.
compare & contrast - your pet to Alphonse
connections - {possible text-to-self connections} getting a pet for a gift.
drawing conclusions & inferencing - How do you think Louis' parents are feeling when the birthday egg cracks open? {text clues} the looks on their faces look like they are worried. Also the tadpole turned out not to be a tadpole but a very big Loc Ness monster. {my conclusion} I think Louis' parents are worried that the bird is going to turn into a very big raptor.
main idea & details - {main idea} {details}
plot - the turning point or climax in the story is when Alphonse gets the treasure chest.
predict - Do you think Alphonse is a tadpole? Do you think Alphonse will get sent to the zoo? Do you think Louis will get into trouble having Alphonse in the school pool? What do you think the swimmers and coach will do when they find Alphonse in the pool? How do you think Miss. Seevers will react when she seed Alphonse? What do you think Miss. Seevers' idea is? Will Alphonse find the treasure? What do you think Uncle McAllister will send Louis this year for his birthday. What kind of bird do you think Uncle McAllister sent?
problem & solution - {problem} Alphonse is getting so big he can't fit anywhere. {solution} Louis wants to buy the parking lot next door to build Alphonse a pool.
sequencing - Uncle McAllister sends Louis a birthday gift. Louis names his tadpole Alphonse. Louis takes Alphonse to school for show and tell. Alphonse starts outgrowing all his homes. The teacher tells Louis that Alphonse can't come to school anymore. Louis takes Alphonse to the school pool. The coach and swimmers see Alphonse and run away from the pool. Louis asks Miss. Seevers to help him. She tells Louis about a treasure chest that no one has found. Alphonse goes into the harbor and finds the treasure chest. Miss. Seevers and Louis have enough money to build Alphonse his pool. All the kids love to swim with Alphonse. It is Louis' birthday again and Uncle McAllister delivers his new present...an egg.
story elements - list title, author, character's, setting, beginning, middle, end, or problem & solution.
summarize - {someone}Louis {wanted} needed to buy the parking lot next door to build Alphonse a pool {but} but they didn't have enough money {so} so he asked Miss. Seevers for help. {then}Miss. Seevers told Louis of a treasure chest that Alphonse found. {finally} They finally had enough money to build Alphonse his pool.

MONDAY: MEET THE AMAZINGLY FUNNY AND NEWBERY AWARD WINNER, JACK GANTOS

Jack Gantos’ Bio & Photos

Book Description

Release Date: September 13, 2011 | Age Level: 10 and up

Dead End in Norvelt is the winner of the 2012 Newbery Medal for the year's best contribution to children's literature and the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction!

Melding the entirely true and the wildly fictional, Dead End in Norvelt is a novel about an incredible two months for a kid named Jack Gantos, whose plans for vacation excitement are shot down when he is "grounded for life" by his feuding parents, and whose nose spews bad blood at every little shock he gets. But plenty of excitement (and shocks) are coming Jack's way once his mom loans him out to help a fiesty old neighbor with a most unusual chore—typewriting obituaries filled with stories about the people who founded his utopian town. As one obituary leads to another, Jack is launced on a strange adventure involving molten wax, Eleanor Roosevelt, twisted promises, a homemade airplane, Girl Scout cookies, a man on a trike, a dancing plague, voices from the past, Hells Angels . . . and possibly murder. Endlessly surprising, this sly, sharp-edged narrative is the author at his very best, making readers laugh out loud at the most unexpected things in a dead-funny depiction of growing up in a slightly off-kilter place where the past is present, the present is confusing, and the future is completely up in the air.

Jack Gantos has written books for people of all ages, from picture books and middle-grade fiction to novels for young adults and adults. His works include Hole in My Life, a memoir that won the Michael L. Printz and Robert F. Sibert honors; Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key, a National Book Award Finalist, and Joey Pigza Loses Control, a Newbery Honor book.
Jack was born in Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania, and grew up in the nearby town of Norvelt. He remembers playing a lot of “pass the chalk” in Mrs. Neiderheizer’s class in first grade. He was in the Bluebird reading group, which he later found out was for the slow readers. To this day he’d rather be called a Bluebird than a slow reader. His favorite game at that time was playing his clothes were on fire and rolling down a hill to save himself.
When he was seven, his family moved to Barbados. He attended British schools, where there was much emphasis on reading and writing. Students were friendly but fiercely competitive, and the teachers made learning a lot of fun. By fifth grade he had managed to learn 90 percent of what he knows to this very day.

When the family moved to south Florida, he found his new classmates uninterested in their studies, and his teachers spent most of their time disciplining students. Jack retreated to an abandoned bookmobile (three flat tires and empty of books) parked out behind the sandy ball field, and read for most of the day. His greatest wish in life is to replace trailer parks with bookmobile parks, which he thinks will eliminate most of the targets for tornadoes and educate an entire generation of great kids who now go to schools that are underfunded and substandard.

The seeds for Jack’s writing career were planted in sixth grade, when he read his sister’s diary and decided he could write better than she could. He begged his mother for a diary and began to collect anecdotes he overheard at school, mostly from standing outside the teachers’ lounge and listening to their lunchtime conversations. Later, he incorporated many of these anecdotes into stories.
In junior high he went to a school that had been converted from a former state prison. He thinks the inmates probably fled for their lives once the students showed up. Again, he spent most of his time reading on his own.
In high school he decided to become a writer. But he would have to wait another three years, until he went to college, before he could actually meet other writers and study with teachers who thought writing amounted to more than just cribbing book reports and composing sympathy notes.

Jack in fourth grade

While in college, he and an illustrator friend, Nicole Rubel, began working on picture books. After a series of well-deserved rejections, they published their first book, Rotten Ralph, in 1976. It was a success and the beginning of Jack’s career as a professional writer. This surprised a great many people who thought he was going to specialize in rehabilitating old bookmobiles into housing for retired librarians.

Jack continued to write children’s books and began to teach courses in children’s book writing and children’s literature. He developed the master’s degree program in children’s book writing at Emerson College and the Vermont College M.F.A. program for children’s book writers. He now devotes his time to writing books and educational speaking.
His publications can take a reader from “cradle to grave”—from picture books and middle-grade fiction to novels for young adults and adults.
Mr. Gantos is known nationally for his educational creative writing and literature presentations to students and teachers. He is a frequent conference speaker, university lecturer, and in-service provider.

Interviews, articles, and other online resources

Interviews with Jack Gantos (2007 and 2011) at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast, A Blog About Books. 2007: http://blaine.org/sevenimpossiblethings/?p=937 2011: http://blaine.org/sevenimpossiblethings/?p=2165

“Jack Gantos: Author Program In-depth Interview.” TeachingBooks.net (August 14, 2001).
“Jack Gantos: On Domestic Craziness and Big-Hearted Kids.” An interview with Gail P. Gregg, The ALAN Review, volume 28, number 2 (Winter 2001).
“Jack Gantos on Journaling.” A video interview, TeachingBooks.net, 2001.
“Jack Gantos at the National Book Festival.” Library of Congress, 2005.
“Meet the Author: A Video Interview with Jack Gantos.” ReadingRockets.org (undated).
“The Next Level: Using Journals to Write Great Short Stories” by Jack Gantos. Book Links, volume 7, number 5 (May 1998).
“Q&A with Jack Gantos.” skateboardmom.com, 2001.
“Writing What I Know & Finding Joey Pigza” by Jack Gantos. Scholastic.com (undated).

Sunday, September 16, 2012

More PINTEREST for Librarians and "BOOK Lovers"

A Great Elmer the Elephant activity!

Making a book page wreath!

thenester.com

Make-a-Giant-Book1.jpg (600×770)

rachelmoani.com

"Owl be ............."

knuffle bunny craft! So cute!

2 repins

shenanigansinsecond.blogspot.com

Go to my pinterest page "for the librarian" and more at

http://pinterest.com/lbsmoot50/for-the-librarian/

"For the Librarian" Pinterest Pics

Here goes......

The book fairy!

Wordle.

1st grade/Kindergarten: owl book page craft; make a B for eyes, 2 O's,2 D's 5 beginning to A's, and a large rectangle for the body. Would totally do this if I still taught elementary school

Love this Idea!

Mo is my Hero!

"Tooth chomping" book corners to use as book marks! Adorable!!!!

Oh so cute Knufflebunny.

Dewey Alphabet - I can do this!

highsmith.com

My Favorite Book (with stars)!

A great Hero Board!

activity to go with Elmer.. so cute!

activity to go with Elmer.. so cute!

tunstalltimes.blogspot.com

how to make a book page wreath

thenester.com

Make-a-Giant-Book1.jpg (600×770)

2 repins

rachelmoani.com

Choosing "Just Right Books"

A list of favorite books for girls -- listed by age

make-it-do.com

FREE Owl Birthday and Word Wall A-B-C Printable PDF | BookaDay

wiseowlfactory.com

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 7 - "The Third Wheel" - Preorder Your Copy Today!!!!

As an adult teacher, parent or librarian, if you haven't had a chance to "put your nose" into one of these hilarious and semi-real to life comic books, you ought to. I read a couple to my 12 year old son and really got quite a kick out of them. I found myself laughing pretty hard at the pictures and rereading parts to my older daughter and husband. There are a whole series of these and they fly off the shelves at the library. You can now pre-order a copy of the following book - due out on November 13th. (Sometimes it's worth letting your child read some of these comic books if they are interested, just to get them reading at all.)

Quantity:

The Third Wheel (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 7)

See larger image

Jeff Kinney (Author)

30 Ways to Share a Book Using the Story

Using the Story:
1. Organize a panel to debate it.
2. Dramatize an incident from it.
3. Tell about it over the school PA system.
4. Condense it to 15, 50, or 100 words.
5. Write about it to a friend.
6. Make a map of where it takes place.
7. Make a story map of its main events.
8. Create a crossword puzzle, using its setting and plot.
9. Create a scroll or hand rolled movie to illustrate it.
10. Tell why it would or wouldn't make a great movie.
11. Tell its funniest incident.
12. Make a poster about it.
13. Pick 5 -10 adjectives that describe it.
Tell why you chose them.
14. Describe an incident from it as though you were an on
the screen TV reporter.
15. Make a model of something in it; a house, a log cabin, a rocket.
16. Draw objects from it and make them into a mobile.
17. Draw a significant scene on construction paper to cut to the
size of a coat hanger; attach it to the hanger; then suspend from the
hanger a report about the scene.
18. Choose an idea or scene from it as the subject of a collage.
Use old magazine pictures.
19. Make up a limerick or haiku about it.
20. Put an important item from it into a shoe box.
Give clues so your class can guess
what the item is.
21. Illustrate it with objects found at home or handmade, or with
photographs you've taken of people, places and events.
22. Draw a picture depicting the main idea.
23. Create a mural about it.
24. Make a time-line of it's events.
25. Create a new ending for it.
26. Compare it to the TV or movie version.
27. Make up a lost or found ad for something in it.
28. Make a peep-box (diorama) of an important scene or event.
29. Rewrite one of its incidents for a younger reader.
30. Use sketches or photographs to recreate on of its action sequences.

Library DECOR and MORE

If wishes were fishes, we'd all live in the sea,

But I sure wish this stature sat in our library!

Patriotic Display

Adhere children's book jackets to a canvas with spray mount and then apply a few coats of mod podge gloss on top. Adorable art work for play room or kid's bedroom.

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