Reading Responses by

Clever Tortoise by Francesca Martin (Book Review)

kcheek1 — 2017-02-09 01:23:01 UTC

Clever Tortoise by Francesca Martin is a Traditional Tale Picture Book. I have chosen to do a book review. This book is about a "quarrel" between several animals that live on the banks of Africa's Lake Nyasa. This is a very humorous story about how the little animals trick the bigger animals into thinking that they are stronger than they look. In this book the larger animals consist of the Elephant and the Hippopotamus, who insist they are extremely powerful. Among the smaller animals lives the tortoise, who is very smart and devises a plan to trick the elephant and the hippo. The tortoise asks both of the larger animals to play a game of tug-a-war with him. He schedules the game for the next day, at the same time, but in different locations. The tortoise and all the other littler animals spend the whole night before the tug-of-war contest putting together a super long rope. The next day, at the scheduled spot, the elephant is given an end of the rope, not knowing that at the other side is the hippo. They both began pulling and realize that the animal at the other end of the rope has tremendous strength. The hippo and the elephant are both tricked into thinking the tortoise is hiding amazing strength. Since this is a traditional AFRICAN tale, I think this book would be great to read to children when reading traditional tales from America. This would show the differences and the similarities between traditional tales. Throughout the book are also some words translated into Kiswahili, which is the language most widely spoken in Tanzania, which is in East Africa. So, reading this book could also give students insight on a different language.

Peg + Cat: The Pizza Problem by Jennifer Oxley (Story Map)

kcheek1 — 2017-02-09 02:27:44 UTC

Peg + Cat: The Pizza Problem falls under the genre Informational Text (IT). I associated this story with that genre because of the information that the book gives about fractions. I am doing a story map for this book.

Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson (Defining Quote)

kcheek1 — 2017-02-09 03:05:39 UTC

You're probably scared, and nervous, and just about ready to pee your pants. But don't run from your fear. Embrace it! Because believe me, the best things in life are worth fighting for.

I read Roller girl by Victoria Jamieson. It is in the Caldecott Award Winner genre.

This quote stood out to me when reading. I believe if a student in my class were reading this book, this would be a great and uplifting quote for them to read, analyze, and live by.

A Ball for Daisy by Chris Raschka (Book Review)

kcheek1 — 2017-02-24 16:43:03 UTC

A Ball for Daisy is a Caldecott Award Winner. This book was very interesting to me. I have never seen a children's book that doesn't have at least a few words. I think that this gives the reader the leeway to decide whats going on in the story conversation wise. In this book it starts by the dog, who I assume is Daisy, receiving a new red ball. Her owner takes her out for a walk to the park where they meet another dog. The new dog friend accidentally pops Daisy's red ball and her owner is forced to throw it away. Daisy is extremely upset, which you can see in the pictures. The next day when Daisy and her owner go back to the park, the friend dog and his owner have a brand new blue ball for Daisy. Daisy and the other dog play with the ball together. Afterwards, Daisy takes the ball home and is shown back in her happy place. To me, this book was so adorable. I enjoyed looking at the pictures and not having to be distracted by words on the page. The illustrations are some of the cutest that I have ever seen. This would be a great book to show in a kindergarten classroom and ask the children, "what do you think is happening here?" All in all, I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to my fellow classmates.

So You Want To Be President? by Judith St. George and David Small. (Letter to my Professor)

kcheek1 — 2017-02-24 16:56:30 UTC

I am putting So You Want To Be President? by Judith St. George and David Small in the Historical Fiction genre.

Dear Professor,

Have you ever read the book So You Want To Be President? This is a great children's book. I laughed out loud at some of the things that were said, several times! In this book the narrator is talking about the good and the bad things about being President. A few examples of the hilarious context are when the author writes "The President never has to take out the trash." and then he continues with "The President doesn't have to eat yucky vegetables. As a boy, George Bush had to eat broccoli. When George Bush grew up, he became President. That was the end of broccoli!" I don't know if I'm easily amused, a child at heart, or if this is just a genuinely funny book, but it is cracking me up! I'm really glad that I read it and I would suggest it for you to read as well, if you haven't already done so!

Sincerely,
Kristy

This Is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen (Book Review)

kcheek1 — 2017-02-24 17:14:05 UTC

This Is Not My Hate by Jon Klassen falls under the genre Fantasy because things such as talking fish, or fish wearing hats don't really happen. I thought this book was really cute, just as I do most children books. This book is about a little fish who steals a hat from a bigger fish. The littler fish thinks that he will never get caught with the stolen hat. He starts swimming towards tall plants that are close together where he can hide. He runs into a crab, who says that he won't tell anyone which direction he went. Once the big fish meets the crab, the crab is scared and rats the little fish out. The big fish eventually catches up to the littler one and gets his hat back. I believe that the bigger fish also eats the littler fish but it's not 100% clear in the book. In a K-1 classroom setting, this would be a great book to read for several reasons. One reason being the simplicity of the book. It is an easy read, especially for children who are just starting to learn how. Another reason would be the lesson that can be learned here: NEVER TAKE SOMETHING THAT ISN'T YOURS. After reading this book, a teacher could discuss with the students that actions such as these have consequences. The illustrations in this book are drawn with very dark colors, which made me expect something bad was going to happen. I loved this book and I would recommend it to my fellow peers 10/10 times!

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine (Infographic)

kcheek1 — 2017-02-24 17:29:43 UTC

Ella Enchanted is in the Newberry Award Winner genre.

The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein. (Short Write)

kcheek1 — 2017-02-28 18:41:19 UTC

In The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein is placed in the Caldecott Award Winner genre. There is a lot of tension for the reader in this book. The tension comes first when Philippe decides to disguise himself as a construction worker to get to the top of the buildings. As the reader, there is tension due to wondering wether or not he will get caught. The real tension comes when Philippe steps out onto the rope. He could feel the wind swaying him. Here, as the reader, the tension comes from being worried if he is going to fall off of the rope. At the end there is tension when Philippe is arrested and taken to court. The reader may think that he is going to be in a lot of trouble. At the end of each situation, the tense feeling becomes serene.

Finding Winnie, The true story of the world's most famous bear, by Lindsay Mattick and Sophie Blackall. (Short Write)

kcheek1 — 2017-02-28 19:00:13 UTC

Finding Winnie, The true story of the world's most famous bear, by Lindsay Mattick and Sophie Blackall falls in the Historical Fiction genre. I placed this book in this genre because most of the book is about a story that was in a time period "a very long time ago, about a hundred years before you were born", which is actually during WW1. This makes it historical. Though this is a true story, I justify "fiction" in "historical fiction" because the story is being told by a mother during bed time, which is not proven to be nonfiction.

Just A Minute by Yuyi Morales (Book Review)

kcheek1 — 2017-02-28 19:10:31 UTC

Just a Minute by Yuyi Morales is in the Traditional Literature (Traditions of Mexican Culture) and Informational Text and possibly the Multicultural genre. This book is about a woman who stalls a man (a skeleton) who comes to the door to take her away on a trip. She stalls him by telling him different things that she needs to do. Secretly, she is getting things ready for a party. Through the different things that she has to do she is counting, both in English and in Spanish. I think this is a great book to read in the classroom because of the different cultures that the children could learn about while also teaching them a little Spanish or English numbers, depending on who the children are that are listening. I suggest this book be read in a multicultural unit or even during the month of October around Dia De Las Muertos or Day of the Dead that the Spanish culture celebrates.

Cinderella by Barbara McClintock (Book Recommendation)

kcheek1 — 2017-02-28 19:22:28 UTC

Cinderella, by Barbara McClintock is in the Fantasy Genre.
I highly recommend this book for anyone to read. First off, it is extremely cute. The illustrations are very classic and drawn as you would expect an old fairy tale like cinderella should be. After reading Ella Enchanted, this book helps a lot to pick out the differences between the two. The bases of the stories are the same but the details are totally different. I think I liked Cinderella more. I would recommend reading this in a classroom for fun, to show the kids different fairy tales, to introduce princesses, and also to teach children to fight for what they want. There is so much that you can use from this story. I absolutely loved it, but then again I have always loved anything and everything that has to do with Cinderella!

Flotsam by David Wiesner (Poem)

kcheek1 — 2017-02-28 19:30:51 UTC

Flotsam is placed in the Science Fiction genre since the boy in the story is looking at different living organisms from the ocean.
Below i have written a Haiku for this book. A haiku is a Japanese poem of seventeen syllables, in three lines of five, seven, and five. I wrote this Haiku while thinking about what I thought and remembered about the book most. With no words, how can you forget that?

Flotsam
There are no words used
Important Illustrations
Great books don't need words

The Boy Who Cried Wolf by Aesop (Story Map)

kcheek1 — 2017-03-06 06:07:57 UTC

This book is placed in the genre Traditional Literature.

"Don't Pinch!" by Bruce Lansky (Blog Post)

kcheek1 — 2017-03-06 06:19:58 UTC

"Don't Pinch!" by Bruce Lansky is in the Poem genre.


I HAVE 3 THINGS FOR YOU TODAY: A RANT, A LESSON, AND SOME ASSISTANCE

St. Patricks Day Is Back!
March 6, 2017
Blog by Kristy Cheek

Every year in March St. Patricks Day sneaks up on us! March 1st rolls around and we all know it's coming, but then... BAM! It's March 17th and you're being pinched all over for not wearing any green.
We've all used the excuse "I am wearing green! Its just on my underwear so I can't show you!" Been there. Done that. This year, we need to be prepared like these guys in Ireland -> http://holidaysadviser.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/St.-Pattys-Day-%E2%80%93-Cool-Places-To-Celebrate-the-Green-Holiday-3.jpg
Just kidding. That may be a little extreme for us Americans. But you get what I'm saying, right? Just BE READY.

It's really fun to see what color green everyone chooses to wear at school/work. You could wear lime green, dark green, light green, forest green, REGULAR green, etc. The list is endless. Well, not endless.. but you get what I'm saying... if not, here's a list: https://qph.ec.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-98153a4eccef6a76fc91f36cd6202fdb

Let me guess! You just looked in your closet and you have NOTHING thats green, right? No need to fear, Walmart is here! You're probably thinking "Walmart isn't going to have anything I like. What is this girl thinking?" I'm thinking it's cheap and you won't get pinched. Basically, I'm saving your life. No need to thank me, it's my pleasure. PLUS, the shirts really aren't that bad. Here, take a look for yourself:
Men: https://www.walmart.com/c/kp/st-patrick-s-day-shirts
Women: https://www.walmart.com/search/?query=women%20st.%20patricks%20day

Before we end this lovely encounter for today, take a second to read the poem below to excite you for the upcoming holiday! It's called "Don't Pinch!", written by Bruce Lansky:

When I got on the school bus,
I was in for a surprise.
My friends all stared and pointed.
There was mischief in their eyes.

A kid who sat in front of me
reached out and pinched my knee.
My friends all started laughing,
but the joke was lost on me.

And then I got a second pinch.
I felt it on my ear.
And then I felt a third and fourth.
You guessed it-on my rear.

I asked, "Why are you pinching me?
I think it's very mean!"
They said, "Today's St. Patrick's Day
and you're not wearing green."

Don't let this be you! Thanks for reading guys. Check out my blog tomorrow for 3 things: a rant, a lesson, and some assistance.

Albert Einstein: Genius Inventor by Turtle Diary (Book Recommendation)

kcheek1 — 2017-03-06 07:23:14 UTC

Albert Einstein: Genius Inventor is in the Biography genre. This book was online (the link is posted at the bottom) and was very informative. It gave tons of fact about Albert Einstein. These facts included his childhood, studies, personal life, life after college, and a brief list of his accomplishments. This book is great for kids in so many ways. For example, throughout the book some of the tougher words for children to read are attached to a link that gives the child the definition of the word. Another really useful tool for children is the quiz the optional quiz that is given at the end of the book. To pass this quiz, the student will have to read and understand every bit of information that is stated. This book was particularly short but it gave a lot of information for a young child to obtain. Two really cool aspects of this online book were that all of the kids can read it and take the quiz separately, and given a grade, if they are in a computer/media room AND it's completely free. If you couldn't tell, I really enjoyed using this book and all of the little perks that it has included. I would highly recommend using this in a classroom setting. If it were me, I would give this assignment to 2nd or 3rd graders.
https://www.turtlediary.com/biographies/scientists/albert-einstein.html (above is the link to the actual website/online book. below is just a picture to give you an idea)

My Bodyguard, written and illustrated by Janaki Sooriyarachchi. (Book Review)

kcheek1 — 2017-03-06 08:00:01 UTC

My Bodyguard by Janaki Sooriyarachchi is in the genre Realistic Fiction. This book is about a little boy who finds a dog, takes it home, and names it Yappy. He cares for the dog by feeding it, playing with it, and loving it. One day when the boy and his new dog, Yappy, are out for a walk a big black dog came up and scared the boy by barking loudly. Yappy barked and growled back until the big black dog ran away. The boy was extremely happy and proud that his new dog protected him.
This book would be a good for kindergarteners who are just being introduced reading. My bodyguard was very short and bland, but beginning readers are just getting to know the words and memorizing them. Most of them will be too focused on that to pay attention to the actual story line. The illustrations were very elaborate and bright. When I was in kindergarten we had "reading buddies". Once a week a 5th grader, who was our "reading buddy" would come to our classroom and help us read a short story out loud to them.I think that this book would be perfect for a exercise like that. It doesn't take much time to read, but still introduces a good amount and quality of words to young readers.

Shortcut by David Macaulay (1 minute Book Talk)

kcheek1 — 2017-04-01 00:10:20 UTC

This book is placed in the Post Modern Picture Book genre. http://vocaroo.com/i/s1itw8zctyF0

The Great American Dust Bowl by Don Brown. (1 minute Book Talk)

kcheek1 — 2017-04-22 14:33:39 UTC

This book is placed in the Historical Fiction genre. (HF)
http://vocaroo.com/i/s1Wy6WH6Hduj

The Dreamer by Pam Munoz Ryan (Book Review)

kcheek1 — 2017-04-26 15:02:10 UTC

This book is placed in the Bluebonnet Award Winner genre. (BAW) This book is about a boy, Neftali, who has an amazing gift but is scared to show it off due to the harsh words coming from the negative people in his life. Eventually, after conquering obstacles, Neftali overcomes the negativity and prevails in his gift as an amazing poet. When reading this book, some advice that i would give to the reader would be to try and help each child that is reading this book come up with a way to relate to Neftali in some way. Weather it be literally, or just realizing a negative aspect in their life that they can overcome just as Neftali did.

Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor (Book Review)

kcheek1 — 2017-04-26 16:43:42 UTC

This book is placed in the realistic fiction genre. (RF)
This book is about a little beagle named Shiloh. Shiloh has been repeatedly abused by his owner. After the dog runs away he finds a little boy, named Marty, who falls in love with him, but Marty's dad won't let him keep the dog because of who the real owner is. Once Shiloh goes back to his owner the abuse continues. He runs away and finds Marty once again. Marty hides him in a shed, where Shiloh is attacked by a stray. A doctor saves shiloh's life. Shiloh is eventually returned to his owner. Marty agrees to work for the owner until he can afford to buy Shiloh from him. After awhile, Marty is the rightful owner of Shiloh and is very happy about that.
When teaching this book, I think that comparing the movie to the book would be a fun activity to do with the kids. Obviously, reading the book first would be ideal.

Judy Moody by Megan McDonald (Book Review)

kcheek1 — 2017-04-26 17:01:18 UTC

This book is placed in the Realistic Fiction genre. (RF)
This book is about a young girl who is entering the third grade and is not very happy about it. After doing a collage project, Judy eventually learns to love her new classroom and the other children.
This book is a part of a series so when teaching, I think I would read my entire 2nd grade class this book, as a group project type of thing. Throughout the rest of the year I would encourage the rest of the kids to read the other books in the series.

Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan (Book Review)

kcheek1 — 2017-04-26 17:09:49 UTC

This book is placed in the Multicultural genre. (M)
This book is about a girl named Esperanza. She lives in Mexico where she lives a beautiful life. Unfortunately, her and her mother are forced to move to California. This book takes place in the time of the Great Depression. When Esperanza and her mother arrive in California, they are put into a camp for Mexican farm workers. She feels as if her life and her mother's life is very threatened so she begins to overcome the obstacles she is thrown to protect them.
This book is great for children to read to learn about the hard struggles that people faced during the Great Depression.

One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

kcheek1 — 2017-04-26 17:20:02 UTC

This book is placed in the Multicultural genre. (M)
This story is about three sisters who live together with their Father and Grandmother in New York. One summer, the girl's father sends them to stay with their mother, who they haven't; seen in 4 years, all the way in California. Over the summer, the girls overcome many different obstacles. Through these obstacles they learn about their racial background, while also learning about who their mother is.
One Crazy Summer is a great book. I would recommend this book for a fifth grade classroom. I think the 5th graders will be able to relate to the oldest sister, understand her, and feel for her on an emotional level.

Kid in Chief by Paul Maguire

kcheek1 — 2017-04-26 17:37:25 UTC

This book is in the Informational Text genre.
This book is about a boy named Bobby Barton. Bobby goes on a trip to Washington D.C. While visiting the white house, Bobby miraculously comes across a missing piece of the Constitution. The missing piece is a includes information as to how he can become President. Bobby becomes the President and is forced to take care of many difficult jobs and decisions, while also having a ton of fun!
This book has a lot of information for children to learn about the president and his duties. Kid in Chief would be a great book to read during the election time so that the kids in the class can possibly evaluate the candidates as to how well they would handle the duties that Bobby was given based on what they see and hear.

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin and John Archambault (Book Review)

kcheek1 — 2017-05-04 16:24:13 UTC

This book can be placed in the Informational Text genre. (IT)
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom is a very popular book. Most kindergarten teachers read that book to their class as some point in the year. This book helps children to learn the alphabet, and the sounds of each letter in the alphabet. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom is extremely fun to read and kids usually love it. I would reccomend reading this book to every kindergarten teacher.

The Owl and The Pussy Cat by Edward Lear

kcheek1 — 2017-05-04 16:42:20 UTC

This book falls in the Poetry genre. (P)
The Owl and the Pussy Cat is an extremely fun poem to read with children. It's a great book for children to be introduced to poetry with. Since it is a book type of poem, children can look at the pictures in the book while reading the poem. Introducing children to words such as stanza, or rhyming is very important. This book helps ease children into poetry.

Who Was Dr. Seuss? by Janet Pascal

kcheek1 — 2017-05-04 16:48:58 UTC

This book falls under the Biography genre.
This book gives tons of information about Dr. Seuss. Many kids, of all ages, love the Dr. Seuss books. They are all tons of fun and enjoyable to read. Teaching kids about the author of these books that they love is very important. Dr. Seuss is a very famous and smart author that should be taught about continuously. His story about his life and how he got to be such a famous author is told in this book.

Radiant Child written by Javaka Steptoe

kcheek1 — 2017-05-04 16:58:21 UTC

This book is placed in the Multicultural Award Winner genre.
This book was given the Coretta Scott King award for the illustrations. While this is a great story about the life of a young boy, the illustrations are what set it apart from other books. Javaka Steptoe is an amazing artist. There are so many different textures and bright colors used throughout the book. Children will love reading it and also love looking at the amazing drawings.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

kcheek1 — 2017-05-04 17:06:40 UTC

This book is placed in my Free Choice genre. (FC)
The Very Hungry Caterpillar is one of my all time favorite books. Its one of the cutest books that i have ever read. The illustrations are very well done and the text gives good information for young readers. The life cycle is a topic that is taught in about 2nd grade, so this book would be good for that age group. The life cycle of a caterpillar is obviously different then humans, or even other animals. Teaching children the differences while bring a fun book into the lesson plan can make the lesson more enjoyable.