The Grouchy Lady Bug- Concept Book

Anyone who has read an Eric Carle book knows what wonderful books they are. They always seem to have beautiful pictures and great messages to get across to children. A lot of his books are interactive stories that keep the readers engaged. The Grouchy Ladybug not only taught a lesson on sharing and being kind to others, but it also incorporated the concept of time. The grouchy ladybug flew along and came upon a new animal to challenge each hour. The story starts at 6 o'clock in the morning and ends at 6 o'clock at night. Each page also shows a picture of the sun's location at all of the hours. At the end of the story, the grouchy ladybug comes across a whale. She reaches different parts of the whale in fifteen minute increments. The only problem I had with this was that it seems to give the students a false sense of time. I would not think that it would take a ladybug fifteen minutes to fly from a whale's head to it's fin. And it certainly wouldn't take a ladybug 45 minutes to fly the length of a whale. I would not use this to teach time because I would be afraid it would confuse my students. They would either think ladybugs move as fast as snails or they would think that fifteen minutes is equivalent to about how long five minutes actually takes. It has a great moral lesson and is an extremely cute book, but doesn't do as wonderful of a job with the reality of time.

Frog Goes to Dinner- Wordless Book

Frog Goes to Dinner is a wordless storybook. When I first saw that we had to read a book of this type, I thought that I was going to find it boring and confusing. I didn't think it was possible to write a decent story without using any words. This book proved me wrong. It has such great illustrations that readers of any age would have no problem following along. A story of this nature gives the reader a plot to follow, but allows them to make up any dialouge to go along with it. You can tell how the characters are feeling by the expression on their faces, but what exactly they are saying is left up to the imagination. I think that this book would be great for any child that cannot yet read. It would show how well they can interpret the pictures. They are very entertaining, so the children should enjoy them.

The Principal's New Clothes- Traditional Literature

The Principal's New Clothes is a story that every child should get to experience. It is based off of the well-known fable, The Emperor's New Clothes. The Principal's New Clothes is about a principal who was always very well dressed. He had so many suits that he would sometimes change in the middle of the day to wear a new one. One day, two "tailors" come and offer to make him a special magical suit. They claim that it will only be able to be seen by those who are smart and good at their jobs. He decides to get it so that he will be able to see which of the students in his school are smart and which of the teachers are good at their jobs. The principal sends people to check on the suit while it is being made to see how it looks. Unfortunately, everyone who checks is not able to see it. They begin to worry that they are not smart or good at their jobs, so they lie to principal when he asks how it looks. They tell him it looks great and they hurry away. Soon, the principal goes to check for himself. Much to his horror, he is not able to see his new suits. He does not want anyone to think that he himself is not smart or good at his job so he decides to proudly wear one of these "suits" to the assembly the next day. Everyone tells the principal how good the suit looks, only none of them are able to see it. It is not until one of the kindergartners shouts that the principal is in his underwear that everyone realizes that they have been tricked and that the suit is not real. This story is very fun and easy for all students to relate to because it is in a school setting. It shows them the importance of not worrying what others think of you because it can backfire. It is a quick read and would be great for any elementary age group.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets- Book to Movie Comparison

After reading every Harry Potter book, it is safe to say that there is not one that I did not enjoy. J.K. Rawling does a great job of coming up with new events in each story to write about. She has such a vivid imagination that she finds a way to make the stories almost seem life-like. Harry, Ron, and Hermione seem like regular kids that the reader can relate to. They go through much of the same problems that we do, only they also have supernatural ones added on as well. Harry Potter becomes a hero to us as we are reading the books because of all of his heroic acts. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is one of my favorite Harry Potter books. I enjoy it more than the first because it spends less time explaining the background of Harry Potter because the reader already knows it. Therefore, there is more action in this book. Of course, Harry and Ron start the year off in the same manner that they spent much of the last one- in trouble. They don't make it through the barrier to get to the Hogwarts Express, so they take the Weasley family's flying car. They end up crashing it upon their arrival. The year continues to pose problems for them. Students start becoming petrified and rumors start to fly around that The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Harry, Ron, and Hermione go on a quest to find out why this is happening and why their teachers will not discuss with them what The Chamber of Secrets is. The book is long, but can be read within a day. It is so suspenseful that I was not able to put it down until I was finished. I would not suggest starting any Harry Potter book if you do not have an entire day that will be interruption-free because you are not going to be able to pry your eyes away from the page.

Letters From Wolfie- Rebecca Caudill nominee 2008

Letters From Wolfie has quickly become one of my favorite books that I have ever read. I was a bit leery about reading it at the beginning because I knew it was based on events that happened during the Vietnam War. Not being a big fan of history, I was afraid that I would find this boring and a slow read. I could not have been more wrong. Mark is the main character in the story. His brother, Danny, leaves to go to war and Mark is left feeling inadequate in his family. Everyone is so proud of Danny for serving his country that Mark rarely gets attention. He finds out the the army is looking for German shepherd scout dogs to send over to Vietnam to help the soldiers. This would be his chance to be a hero just like his brother, so Mark decides to go for it and signs up his part German shepherd dog, Wolfie. He instantly regrets his decision as Wolfie departs. Wolfie has always been his best friend and they were inseparable. Being away from him is the hardest thing Mark has ever endured. He begins to send letters to Wolfie's trainer, in hopes that he will find out how things are going. The two write back and forth throughout Wolfie's adventure at war. Mark begins to grow more nervous as the war seems to be getting more dangerous. He hears warnings about how many dogs are dying and begins to fear more and more for Wolfie's safety. It would be wise to invest in a box of Kleenex and to have it handy when reading this book. It shows how brave one young little boy had to be to help his country in their time of need. You won't be able to put the book down as you wonder how Wolfie will ever make it through this awful journey.

It's Like This, Cat- Newbery Winner 1964

It's Like This, Cat is the heart-warming story of a boy named Dave's adventure through adolescence and how he begins to understand more about life with his best friend, Cat, by his side. Dave gets Cat from his "crazy cat-woman" friend, Kate. He goes to visit her after Cat followed her home and falls in love with the handsome tomcat. Dave takes Cat home and they become best pals. The only person who tries to get between them is Dave's father. Dave does not get along with his father. Everything that his father expects of him, Dave is not. This causes much tension in their home. Inevitably, when Dave brings Cat home, his father is not pleased. The arguments continue throughout the book as Dave gets into trouble with the law, meets a girl, and tries to help a friend. Even when Dave feels he has nobody to turn to, Cat is always there to comfort him. As Dave gets to experience more parts of life and compares his family to others less fortunate, he begins to realize that things could always be a lot worse. The more he focuses on this, the more he sees that his father is not as horrible of a person as he always thought. This story does a great job of depicting the struggles between teenagers and their parents as they are growing up. It would be perfect for any teen to read. They may even realize that their parents are just trying to do their best to protect them and help them grow into disciplined individuals.

If You Give A Mouse A Cookie- Literature Based Lesson Plan Book

If You Give A Mouse A Cookie is a well-known favorite for young readers. There are endless activities that teachers can choose from that relate to the story. Its repetitive writing is very fun for any child and the items are ridiculous for a mouse to inquire about. I have always enjoyed the book because of its humor. The mouse keeps the boy running around all day because he is never pleased. The illustrations are what really makes this story wonderful. They show the boy's depleting energy as the day goes on and he grows exhausted from servicing the mouse. If You Give A Mouse A Cookie has a great message for children. Besides teaching them about cause and effect, it also teaches them about how it is important to be grateful for what you have. The mouse is not happy with just having a cookie, so he continues to ask for more and more. Children can see how hard it is on others when they do not appreciate what they are given. This story is a good way to show them that they should take the time to realize how fortunate they are to have what they do.