Book Talk #5: Do Like a Duck Does

For this book talk I found a great book that I pulled from my nephews bookshelf. I tried to think of a summary in my own words but found that nothing I thought of sounded as great as this summary that I found on the book off of Google Books:

"Story hour alert! Here's a book with a clever premise, a bouncy text, and sunny, funny pictures. . . . Supremely satisfying." -- BOOKLIST (starred review)
Mama Duck has a good hunch that the big brown creature waddling behind her babies is no duck! As the foxy impostor sneaks closer and closer to Mama Duck's trailing brood, little ones will delight in shouting out his identity. Infectious rhythms and fresh, expressive watercolors liven up the pursuit, which ends when Mama Duck confronts the villain, beak to snout, and beats him at his own game."

This describes perfectly the fun and humor that this book has to offer. I loved this book and think it awesome for the children in the primary grades. I found a cute site that has informational facts that are young learner freindly in order to create activites around for the classroom. It gives facts about ducks that can be applied to a science lesson. http://www.kiddyhouse.com/Farm/ducks.html

Or the book can just be simply read during story time! The kids would love it!

Book Talk #4: Just A Gum Wrapper

Just a Gum Wrapper

For our fourth book talk I chose to read "Just a Gum Wrapper". This book was written by Mercer Mayer. It is a Little Critter's favorite. The reason I love this book so much is because it teaches a very valuable lesson to children: protect the environment. It is a great science book for young readers.

Summary: One day in class the children learn that it is Earth Day. In honor of earth day the teacher holds a contest for the children. The goal of the contest is to see which student can do the most things in one week that help keep the earth green. The class keeps a chart up in their room and checks off what they did for that week. For example, the main character, recycles, buys cleaning products without harmful chemicals, uses less water, less light, etc. At the end of the week he wins a first place badge for the competition and the class has a party in honor of earth day.

I think this book is great for children in the lower grades because it teaches them in a simple way, how the environment can be protected and how it affects our future.

Book Talk #3: Ten Wriggly, Wiggly Caterpillars

For this book talk, I chose to read another book for the primary grades i would love to teach. This book could definitley be applied to a kindergarten classroom. The book is called Ten Wriggly, Wiggly Caterpillars and it basically teaches young readers the counting numbers 1-10. It's sa cute book because it goes through and starts off showing ten caterpillars and then each page one caterpillar has left the group and it counts down until there were no more caterpillars but instead ten beautiful butterflies come out. It is a great book to read to little ones because it can help them learn their numbers 1-10 and also teach them how to count backwards. It also shows how many each number stands for. It really just is a cute fun book and I would think the little ones would really enjoy it in kindergarten.

Here is a great link for activities that help children:  Model, describe, and illustrate meanings of addition and subtraction for whole numbers less than ten.

http://www.uen.org/Lessonplan/preview.cgi?LPid=21397

 

Book Talk #2: Dandelions Stars in the Grass

For my book talk today I read Dandelions: Stars in the Grass. This is a great educational book for children. It could be incorporated into a science lesson. The book explains how a dandelion grows and how its petals fall off to form 'fluffy tufts of white". It then tells how these buds are blown off by the wind and carried to the places where new dandelions will grow. It shows the different insects that feed on the dandelions as well.

I love this book because it is written in rhyme. Children can become very interested in this book because of the musical tone it has. For example, the books starts off by saying "In spring, dandelions bloom like gold stars in the grass growing taller and taller as the warm days pass." This really can capture the attention of the young readers in the primary grades. It also teaches them a great science lesson. The kids could even take a trip outside to pick their own dandelions to study. I would definitley reccomend this book to be used in the classroom.

Here is a great link for activities that could be used with this book!

http://www.thinkplaytoday.com/dandelions-stars-grass-lesson-plan/