Madam President

This week, my book talk was on Madam President by Lane Smith.  This book is about a young girl who has just learned about the President.  With her new knowledge, she goes throughout her day imagining what it would be like if she were president.  For example, when she is eating breakfast she talks about how there are executive orders to give, and it illustrates her at the table a sing for more waffles.  

I think this is a great book to introduce the topic of the President and what his role is in our nation.  One downside to this book is it highlights more of the celebrity side of being President rather than what his actual job consists of.  Another downside is, without discussion, this book can be misleading to young children.  There is a page where it talks about the presidents cabinet.  In the cabinet is a list of the different secretaries.  For example the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Agriculture.  in this cabinet is a "Secretary of Naps," and "Secretary of Secretaries.  This is added in for fun and to grab attention, but without a discussion on what is real and what is not, this could be taken as fact.

Overall I liked the book and think it would be great as a class read to clear up any misconceptions and learn all about the president.

Sandy's Circus

I did my book talk on Sandy's Circus by Tanya Lee Stone.

It is a biography on the artist Alexander Calder who went by the nickname "Sandy."  Sandy came from artistic parents and was very artistic himself.  He did all kinds of art but making sculptures was his true passion.  What was unique about Sandy was that he didn't consider himself an artist and he didn't consider his creations to be art.  He created things because of his love of creating, not to become a famous artist.  Well, it turns out that he became known as an artist anyway.  Sandy made many pieces but this book puts a focus on a circus he made out of scrap metal.

What I liked about this book was that even though it is a biography/ non-fiction and really informational, it is still in picture book form and written at a level for young kids to understand.  When first getting it from the non-fictional biography section I automatically assumed that it would be geared towards older kids.  After reading I realized that preconception was wrong and I would definitely read it to a class as young as first graders.

I think a fun activity would be to have students try to collect things they would normally throw away and have each student make something circus themed then put them all on display.

A Pig parade Is a Terrible Idea

You might be one to think that a pig parade sounds like it would be super awesome and a lot of fun!

After reading this book, your mind will be changed.  The author of this pig points out many reasons why a pig parade would be very unsuccessful.  For example, it would be almost impossible to find enough majorette uniforms to fit all the pigs.  If you could for some strange reason, the pigs would not wear them.

I love this book because it involves both imagination and fact.  There is no misleading facts about pigs. It lets us use our imagination enough to imagine what a pig parade might be like, but then kindly reminds us of why it would never work.

The kids would really have to use their imagination to make the connections that the book makes.  The humor in the book is my favorite part.  It is sarcastic and to the point, which is the kind of humor i enjoy most.  It is just a fun book all around.

This book could be read to a class as young as kindergarten for entertainment and even as high as second or third grade to encourage critical thinking.  I might have my class pick their favorite animal that they would want to see in a parade and have them write about why it just wouldn't work.

Cook-A-Doodle-Doo

I did my book talk on Cook-A-Doodle by Janet Stevens.  This book is about a rooster who one day decides he is tired of eating the same old chicken feed.  He finds an old cook book that his grandma had left hidden in the chicken coop.  He decides to make a strawberry shortcake and he gets his help from a few of his friends Potbelly Pig, Iguana, and Turtle.  Each of his friends have a special way of helping, whether it makes the process more productive or not.  In the end something bad happens and the characters become discouraged and began to bicker.  Rooster quickly reminds them that they made the cake as a team and they will always be a good team.

This book was not on my book list but after coming across it, I enjoyed it so much that I asked if it was ok to share it.  First of all it is a great way to introduce measurement.  What I like the most is that it covers misconceptions that young students could have when learning about measurement.  For example they figure out they need a few tablespoons of one ingredient and a few teaspoons of another.  Iguana, super confident looks under the table for the tablespoon and in the tea pot for the teaspoon.  Rooster then corrects him and shows him what a tablespoon and teaspoon really are.  It really is a great book to open up a lesson on measurement.

I can really connect with this book because I love to bake.  Sometimes when baking, I become discouraged when I don't get the recipe quite right.  I wish I had Rooster there to encourage me!