2018-2019 Award Winners in Children's Literature
Thank you for stopping by She Reads Books today. I am so thrilled you decided to stop by! One of my favorite quotes is from Neil Gaiman and it reads, "A book is a dream that you hold in your hands." It sends a message to every reader and person reminding them that it is okay to get lost in wonderful stories and it is okay to pick up a book every now and then to read. Today I will be sharing my review on a few of the recent award winner books in children's literature and how I would use the books in my future classroom.
Book Review: Dreamers is a beautiful and artistic story of the author’s and her mom’s journey to the United States. However, it also may be a little complex for some readers. The author also discusses the importance of books and the struggle of moving to the United States as an immigrant. She not only uses words to help tell her story but her illustrations also help her tell her story. I loved the end of the book where she included extra information. For example, she included her full detailed story, books that inspired her, and how she made this book. I would recommend this book to any teacher and parent to read to their students and children because it is a courageous story of an immigrant’s life to the United States, but it also shows how the characters have hope, trust, and determination to get through their tough times.
Lesson Idea: In my future classroom, I would love to use this book as a read-aloud to discuss the following with my students: immigration, the importance of books, and the importance of reading to help them grow in their learning. One lesson idea I have for this book is to use it to make connections to text, self, and the world.
Below I have attached the author's website, Twitter, and a link to a read-aloud of the story in case you wanted to check out the author or the story itself!
Website: http://www.yuyimorales.com/2.htm
Twitter: https://twitter.com/yuyimorales
Read-Aloud: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5-qRTOVRws
I hope that you enjoyed my book reviews and lesson ideas. I hope you consider adding all five books to your classroom library if you have not already!
Happy Reading,
Ashley
Book #1: Dreamers by Yuyi Morales Award: 2019 Pura Belpré Award
Book Review: Dreamers is a beautiful and artistic story of the author’s and her mom’s journey to the United States. However, it also may be a little complex for some readers. The author also discusses the importance of books and the struggle of moving to the United States as an immigrant. She not only uses words to help tell her story but her illustrations also help her tell her story. I loved the end of the book where she included extra information. For example, she included her full detailed story, books that inspired her, and how she made this book. I would recommend this book to any teacher and parent to read to their students and children because it is a courageous story of an immigrant’s life to the United States, but it also shows how the characters have hope, trust, and determination to get through their tough times.
Lesson Idea: In my future classroom, I would love to use this book as a read-aloud to discuss the following with my students: immigration, the importance of books, and the importance of reading to help them grow in their learning. One lesson idea I have for this book is to use it to make connections to text, self, and the world.
Below I have attached the author's website, Twitter, and a link to a read-aloud of the story in case you wanted to check out the author or the story itself!
Website: http://www.yuyimorales.com/2.htm
Twitter: https://twitter.com/yuyimorales
Read-Aloud: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5-qRTOVRws
Book #2: Hello Lighthouse by Sophie Blackwell Award: 2019 Caldecott Medal Winner
Book Review: Hello Lighthouse is
a little complex read for some children but nonetheless a great read! The
illustrator of this story incorporates beautiful illustrations that truly
captures the story. It shows and tells the life of a lighthouse keeper and his
or her family during the many seasons. It’s a lovely book for readers of all
ages and the author even includes factual information about lighthouses at the
end of the story. I would recommend this book to any teacher and parent to read
to their students and children because it teaches them about lighthouses, it
uses imagery, and it tells a unique story to keep them engaged.
Lesson Idea: In my future classroom, I would like to use this book
as a read-aloud. One lesson idea I have for this book is to use it to teach how
to answer questions using a text and illustrations. I also would like to use
the book to help teach or reinforce character traits, setting, compare and
contrast, and point of view. Another lesson idea I have for this book is to use
it to teach imagery.
Below I have attached the author's website, Twitter, and a link
to a read-aloud of the story in case you wanted to check out the author
or the story itself!
Website: http://www.sophieblackall.com/
Read-Aloud: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlJ4wRuqsZw
Book #3: Merci Suárez Changes Gears by Meg Medina Award: 2019 Newberry Award Winner
Book Review: Merci Suárez Changes Gears is
a fourth or fifth grade to middle level reading level chapter book. The story
is about a girl in the sixth grade who is at a new school in Florida for the
school year. However, she is set apart from the other students because her
brother and her are on a scholarship at the school and they are Cuban Americans. The
story goes on to depict her struggles in her new school and at home, but also
how her family supports and helps one another. I would recommend this book to
teachers to have in their classroom library but also to use as a class
read-aloud and discussion.
Lesson Idea: In my future classroom, I would like to use this book
as a class read-aloud and for discussion prompts. For example, I would love to
have the class read it aloud and discuss the themes that are present in the
book. One lesson idea I have for this book is to use it to discuss themes, characters,
plot, character traits, and how to use text to answer questions.
Below I have attached the author's website and Twitter in case you wanted to check out the author of the story!
Website: https://megmedina.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Meg_Medina
Book #4: Quit Calling Me a Monster by Jory John Award: 2018-2019 SC Book Award Winner
Book Review: Quit Calling Me a Monster is
a cute, humorous, and short read for children. Even though the book are the
things that were just mentioned, it will also help create great discussions
inside the classroom. The story is about Floyd Peterson, a monster, who becomes
sad and upset when the creatures around him call him a monster. When everyone
around him calls him a monster, he throws the following question back at them:
“It’s not like I ever call you names do I?” Toward the end of the book, he does
admit that he is a monster, but he also wants everyone to call him by his real
name and not what he looks like or is perceived to be. He wants everyone around
him to see him for who he is on the inside and not who he is on the outside. I
recommend this book to any teacher and parent to read to their students and
children because it genuinely is a cute story, but it also makes children think
about how they treat others and how they would like to be treated by others.
Lesson Idea: In my future classroom, I would like to use this book
as a read-aloud during the first week of school. I would use it go along with
my classroom’s rules and procedures about showing respect for those around you
and name calling. One lesson idea I have for this book is to read it to the
class and lead a discussion about it with my students. The discussion will then
lead to the students acting out different scenarios in groups to the class
while the other groups explain in their writing journals why each scenario
shows respect or does not show respect.
Below I have attached the author's website, Twitter, and a link
to a read-aloud of the story in case you wanted to check out the author
or the story itself!
Website: http://www.joryjohn.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/IamJoryJohn
Book #5: Wolf in the Snow by Matthew Cordell Award: 2018 Caldecott Award Winner
Book Review: Wolf in the Snow
has no dialogue and it only has a few words like “howl,” “whine,” and “huff” on
a few of the pages to build sympathy for the characters. The story is told
through the illustrations on the pages. It is about a young girl and wolf pup
who each get lost in a snowstorm. Eventually they cross paths and immediately
the young girl reaches out for the wolf pup when she hears his pack howling in
the distance. The readers can tell by the illustrations that the young girl is
afraid of the older wolves but she bravely pushes on so the pup can be reunited
with his family. After the young girl returns the wolf pup, she ventures on to
try and find her home, but she collapses in the snow. The wolves then appear,
and they howl to let the girl’s family know where she is. The story is then
ended with the young girl safe in her home and the wolf pup with his family
too. I recommend this book to any teacher and parent to read to their students
and children because it shows the readers the courage and kindness the young
girl has and then the kindness the wolves give in return. The story shows and
tells many things to the readers by its illustrations and I am not sure the
story would have been as impactful if dialogue was incorporated into it.
Lesson Idea: In my future classroom, I would like to use this book as a read-aloud of
the few words but also pause on each illustration so the students can
understand the story. One lesson idea I have for this story is to use it to
teach inferences, prediction, and character traits. The illustrations in this
story will be an important part in teaching the above concepts.
Below I have attached the author's website, Twitter, and a link
to a read-aloud of the story in case you wanted to check out the author
or the story itself!
Website: http://matthewcordell.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/cordellmatthew
Read-Aloud: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVRW_CrBnQQ
I hope that you enjoyed my book reviews and lesson ideas. I hope you consider adding all five books to your classroom library if you have not already!
Happy Reading,
Ashley
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