Rules

Citation: Lord, C. (2006). Rules. New York, NY : Scholastic Inc.
Category: Realistic fiction, Chapter Book
Awards: Newberry Honor Medal, Schneider Family Book Award
Summary: Lord presents the story of Catherine and her journey of self discovery in realizing maybe she doesn't want a normal life.  Catherine's little brother David has autism.  He lives by rules that Catherine makes for him to help make social situation easier.  Every week her brother goes to therapy and she comes along.  She meets a boy, Jason while waiting who, although the book never explicitly says, has a type of cerebral palsy, I believe.  Catherine journeys though her summer, discovering who her true friends and finding out what really matters in life.
Classroom Use:  I would use this book in the classroom to talk about disabilities and student differences   Students should be aware that everyone is different and needs different things.  It is important for the students to understand and show compassion and consideration when they encounter others who aren't exactly like them.  This book puts things in perspective and can help show the students what really matters most in relationships.

A Nation's Hope: the Story of Boxing Ledgend Joe Louis

Citation: De La Peña, M. (2011). A nation's hope: the story of boxing ledgend joe louis. Dial books for Young Readers
Category: Non-Fiction
Summary: In this story, american boxing legend Joe Louis is set in a match against German boxer Max Schmeling.  This is set in 1938 when the US was in the midst of World War 2 and the nation was still in a state of division, despite laws of equality being established.  Blacks and whites were still segregated, but this match helped to unify the nation, even if only temporarily, in order to stand up to the metaphorical Germany, represented by their boxer Schmeling. 
Classroom Use: I would use this book to talk about the evolution of desegregation of America.  At the time our country was making progress to provide equal rights, but during this period of time, separate but "equal" was the mind set of the country.  This event helped to bridge differences and unify America, but it wasn't until our country decided to integrate that things really came together.  This book would also be good to use to talk about Hispanic authors as well.

Cinderella

Citation: Delamare, D.(1993). Cinderella. New York, NY : Simon and Schuster.
Category: Traditional Literature
Summary: Delamare shares the classic tale of Cinderella in an unidentified land of gondolas and beauty.  Cinderella's father remarries and she is now forced to deal with her evil stepmother and stepsisters.  She is forbidden to go to the ball, but her fairy godmother makes way for her to do so.  At the ball she enchants the prince.  She leaves in a rush leaving her glass slipper.  With this piece of evidence, the prince searches the land to find his true love.  He find Cinderella and they live happily ever after.
Classroom Use:  I would use this book to introduce fairy tales to students and prompt the discovery of what makes a fairy tale.  I would do a compare an contrast of other fairy tales to have the students pull out common elements such as the use of magic, being set in an unspecified location, and others.  Students will then write a class fairy tale being sure to include their defined elements of a fairy tale.

Roots and Blues

Summary:

Citation: Adoff, A.(2011). Roots and blues. New York, NY : Clarion Books.
Category: Multicultural
Classroom Use:  I would use this to teach a unit on poetry.  The book tells the tales of the hardships of slavery in a powerful way with glorious illustrations and strong stanzas.  It also shows well how the poetry can be expressive in the format you choose for your words.

Rat Attack

Citation: Lasla, C., (2000). Rat attack. New York, NY : Scholastic Inc.
Category: Non-Fiction
Summary:  Rat attack is an informational text about the life's of rats.  It discusses how rats live, how rats transmit diseases and what we can do to prevent it.  The book uses news and personal stories to help connect the information to the real world.
Classroom Use:  I would use this book to teach informational text procedures.  It is on a lower reading level, making it more accessible for all students and has things like a glossary, table of contents, and an index.  It is a good book for students to apply the information text skills

Stowaway

Citation: Hesse, K. (2000). Stowaway. New York, NY : Aladdin Paperbacks.
Category: Historical Fiction, Chapter book
Summary: This book is set on the ship of Captain James Cook - the Endeavor from 1768-1771.  The story is told from the point of view of 11 year old Nicholas Young, a young boy who is a stowaway on the ship.  He shares his journey in a diary format as they travel to New Holland and battle scurvy  form bonds, and stay strong on their journey.
Classroom Use:  I would use this book in my classroom to talk about journaling as a writing method to tell stories.  Students would discuss the pro's and cons. Students will then keep their own journal for a month, writing with the intent to tell the story of their life over that month, not just record the basic facts.

Percy Jackson and the Olymians : the Lightning Thief

Citation: Riordan, R. (2010).Percy jackson and the olymians : the lightning thief.  New York, NY: Hyperion Books
Category: Fantasy, Graphic Novel
Summary:  In this graphic novel, Percy Jackson is spun into a whirl wind of adventure as his school work comes to life.  He is faced against the gods of Mt. Olympus and now he is on a journey to find Zeus' lightning bolt, or else who knows what kind of trouble they will be in.
Classroom Use: I will use this book to start a unit on Mythology.  This is an interesting take on the typical mythological tales.  This is an interesting way to dive deeper into mythology.  After reading this, students will pick a god to investigate and share their findings and the stories about the various gods with the class.

The Firework-Maker's Daughter

Citation: Pullman, P. (1995). The firework-maker's daughter.  New York, NY : Scholastic Inc.
Category: International Literature, Chapter Book
Summary: Set in a far off land in a distant time, Lila was the daughter of a Firework-maker.  Her mother passed when she was young, so her father taught her almost all of the secrets to Firework making.  But there was still one her father wouldn't teach her, the one that made his fireworks truly special.  Lila recruits her friend Chulak and his talking white elephant Hamlet to help her discover the secret.  She thinks she has it all and sets off to get the magic sulfur but she is missing another part, the magic water to prevent her from perishing in the flames.  As she journeys forward unaware, Chulak and Hamlet work to try to find and save her.
Classroom Use: I would use this book as a jumping off point to launch an investigation of the changing women's roles in society.  Lila's father wouldn't share the secret with her because she was a girl, but he shared it quickly and easily with Chulak, a male.  We would examine the transformation of women's roles in the US and in other cultures.

The Tortoise and the Hare

Citation: Stevens, J.(1984). The tortoise and the hare. New York, NY: Holiday House
Category: Folk Literature
Summary: This traditional tale of perseverance is told though the characters the tortoise and the hare.  They decide to run a race, but the hare assumes he will win since he is faster, so he diddy daddles along and ends up losing in the end, showing that slow and steady wins the race.
Classroom Use:  I will use this book to teach what makes a fable.  Students will learn that fables are short stories that teach a moral lesson and the main characters are typically animals.  Students will then write their own fable using The Tortoise and the Hare.

Antonia Novello

Click here for the Wallwisher on Antonia Novello

Vietnam Book One: I Pledge Allegiance

Citation: Lynch, C. (2011). Vietnam book one: i pledge allegiance. New York, NY : Scholastic Press.
Category: Historical Fiction, Chapter Book
Summary:  In this story, 4 friends make a pact - if one of us gets drafted, we all get drafted.  As the Vietnam war escalates, one of their own is drafted.  All 4 boys serve in various branches of the military to serve their country and keep an eye on each other.  The book follows their journey as they grow into men in the military and touches on deep issues such as leaving your family for so long and even suicide.
Classroom Use: I would use this book to discuss the Vietnam war with my class with.  It gives insight to the various branches of the military and the differences of them.  It also give the perspective the the soldiers and all the hardships and struggles they go though while at war.  This book takes students deeper into the conflict and gives them to opportunity to develop a personal relationship with the Vietnam war and see the war as an event instead of just a series of facts from a text book.

Adelaida: a Cuban Cinderella

Citation: Monnar, A.(2008). Adelaida: a cuban cinderella. Miami, FL : Readers are Leaders U.S.A.
Category: Multicultural Literature
Summary: In this Cuban story, there are two twin sister, Adelaida and Marisol.  While they look the same on the outside, their personalities are complete opposites.  Adelaida is sweet, caring, kind and compassionate  caring for her sick mother.  Marisol is selfish, spoiled, and entitled, spending all of her families hard earned money with out a care in the world.  One night the nurse, who is secretly a witch, rewards Adelaida with riches for her kind heart and punishes Marisol for her negativity.  Adelaida stands up for her sister at the end and Marisol changes to become a more compassionate person.
Classroom Use:  I would use this book to talk about justice and start a Random Acts of Kindness outreach project in the classroom and the school.  at the end of the book, Adelaida stands up for her sister and insists that the witch not be cruel to Marisol.  Even though Marisol is in the wrong, Adelaida realizes that she still doesn't deserve to be treated with such cruelty.  It is important to teach our students that even if someone isn't the best person, we should stand up and still treat them with the respect and kindness that everyone deserves.