The Junkyard Wonders-Picture Book #22

Author: Patricia Polacco
Title: The Junkyard Wonders
Illustrator: Patricia Polacco
Readability Score: Grade 2
Theme: being content with yourself and your abilities and working with others
Genre: Non-Fiction
Sub genre: Diversity
Primary and secondary characters: The primary character is the narrator, who is telling the story and the secondary characters are the students in the classroom such as (Mrs. Peterson, Thom, Gibbie, etc.), her parents, Jody.
Awards: N/A
Publishing Company: Philomel Books
Date of Publication: 2010
ISBN: 978-0-399-25078-1
Summary: This book is about a young girl who begs her father to stay with him and her Gramma for the school year instead of going back to California with her mother. She really wants to start the school year fresh and meet new friends. She wants to be a part of new classes where nobody knows who she really is. She used to be in all the "dumb" classes at her old school. When she starts her first day she is shocked to see that everyone seems to be rude. She is placed in room 206, which is considered to be the "special class." She notices that everyone in the class is different and unique, but she immediately meets a boy next to her named Thom, who is rather tall for his age. As weeks go on she learns that everyone in this class is different from one another. One boy has Tourettes, there is a non-verbal girl, and Thom has a disease that makes him grow faster than his body can keep up with. The teacher calls their class "The Junkyard" because they are made up of different qualities, yet contain wonderful aspects about them. One day after a bully hurts the main character's feelings when he says that she is just a "retard" Jody has her back and stands up for her. Mrs. Peterson decides to take the class on a field trip to the junkyard because she said that they can find many wonders there out of what others consider to be junk. The class breaks up into groups to find the thing that stands out to them the most and her group chooses an old model airplane. As time passes, Jody becomes very sick and he passes away. The class mourns his loss and wants to remember him by finishing up the airplane and flying it to the moon! They finish it together and accomplish their goal for him. This book is based on a true story which is dedicated to Mrs. Peterson.

This book was so great in that it contained so many elements. The topic of bullying is an issue that stands out. Students with disabilities or students in general need to learn that just because another student is different that it doesn't call for judgement. Acceptance is the key and that's what this book really focuses on in Mrs. Peterson's class. Students can take their own field trip, search for things around the classroom, or even for things at home that stand out to them as a treasure. They can work in groups to find its significance or make it operate better. The concept of working together to defy differences is what they can overcome in this lesson. They can also spend some class time during the week working with special education students on projects, reading, or math.

Freedom Ship-Picture Book # 18

Author: Doreen Rappaport
Title: Freedom Ship
Illustrator: Curtis James
Readability Score: 3.5
Theme: overcoming slavery to freedom
Genre: Non-Fiction
Sub genre: Informational
Primary and secondary characters:
Awards: N/A
Publishing Company: Hyperion Books For Children
Date of Publication: 2006
ISBN: 078680645-1
Summary: This story is being told in a narrative point of view. It can be observed by the text and illustrations that the primary characters are slaves. The narrator talks about how his great-great grandfather Samuel and his father were born into slavery during the civil war. Sam's dad was working in South Carolina when the North and South were at war. The date was set at May 13, 1862 when the great-great grandfather was just a young boy. From the ship where they are working on, they spot Union warships. If only they could get to them, they would be free. In the middle of the night, Sam is woken up by his mother, who tells him to be quiet. They have to be quiet or else if they are caught they could be whipped or thrown in jail. They eventually meet up with others who are planning on escaping on a boat. They are hoping to find freedom and they feel even more relieved when they finally met the men, which consists of Sam's dad. They are all together at the end when they say that they are free.

This book tells of an eyewitness account of escaping slavery to reach freedom. Students can see how slaves went through many trials to reach freedom, even though it was not always guaranteed for them and for their families. They can discuss what things mean in the book as far as symbolism and what the white flag means in the text. They can also make up their own symbols to use if they were in that situation or point out ones within the text.

The Butterfly-Picture Book # 16

Author: Patricia Polacco
Title: The Butterfly
Illustrator: Patricia Polacco
Readability Score: 4.1
Theme: compassion during a time of war
Genre: Non-Fiction
Sub genre: History
Primary and secondary characters: Monique and Sevrine are the primary characters and their parents, the Nazis, and Monsieur Marks are the secondary characters
Awards: N/A
Publishing Company: Philomel Books
Date of Publication: 2000
ISBN: 0-3999-23170-6
Summary: This book is about how the Nazis have taken over a small town French village. A young girl named Monique is the main character. One night she encounters a ghost that she finds sitting on the edge of her bed. She describes her as dark with having very sad eyes. Monique said that she felt a sense of fear for her. However, it turns out not to be a ghost after all, but a young girl named Sevrine. This girl has been hiding from the Nazis in Monique's basement, since the war was occurring. During this war the children were unsure if their education was even promised for the next day. The young children had to live in fear of the "tall boots" that took over their village, which represented the Nazi soldiers. Many nights passed before Monique saw her friend Sevrine. Meanwhile, her village was being bombarded with Nazis who were capturing and beating other people who were not like them. Monique discovered that Sevrine and her family, as well as others, had been living in the basement of their home in hiding since they were Jews. One day as Monique was picking flowers for her mother, she spotted a beautiful butterfly. She was amazed at its fluttering from flower to flower until several Nazi soldiers approached her and took the butterfly in their fist, killing it. She was horrified as she remembers how they treated her friend Monsieur Marks, who was beaten by them. Monique begins to bring Sevrine things from the outside world to show her, as she is still in hiding from the world. She brings her a butterfly and it represents Sevrine's freedom which she used to have and it also gives her hope for a future freedom. One night as they are playing, their neighbor spots them. They are fearful of being reported so it is no longer safe for them to stay there. They begin to escape to a safer location where the Nazis will not find them. A few weeks later Monique and her mother were planting in the garden when all of the sudden butterflies began to land on the flowers. People began to gather around and watch the beauty and Monique said it was a sign that Sevrine was safe with her family.

I would use this book in the classroom to talk about history and the time period that this occurred in with the Nazis. Students can compare and contrast the differences and what they had in common with this time period. They can also talk about the friendships and relationships that were made throughout the story and discuss what they would have done in Monique's situation.

Will Rogers-Picture Book # 19

Author: Debbie Dadey
Title: Will Rogers: Larger Than Life
Illustrator: Scott Goto
Readability Score: Grade 1
Theme: the accomplishments of a legend in an exaggerated form
Genre: Fiction
Sub genre: Biography/History
Primary and secondary characters: Will Rogers is the primary character
Awards: N/A
Publishing Company: Walker and Company
Date of Publication: 1999
ISBN:0-8027-8681-2
Summary: This book is obviously written in an exaggeration form as it talks about Will Rogers life. He was three years old when he began to take an interest in roping. He had many trials and ups and downs in his hobby. He often got into trouble for wanting to rope just about everything and everyone. The book takes us through his life, his education, and his working with a bull. He also took an interest in flying airplanes. He even took on the challenge of roping the earth in half, which is how the equator supposedly got its name.

This book is about the history of the famous William Penn Adair Rogers in an exaggerated form. At the end of the book, it actually has the truth to his life and his accomplishments. Students can do a compare and contrast to the actual facts and compare them to their exaggeration. There were many comparisons and metaphors used in the text to describe his actions and him. They could use those forms to talk about it and compare them as a class. This book can also be used to talk about the history of his life in a biographical form.

Mama, Where Are You From?-Picture Book # 17

Author: Marie Brady
Title: Mama, Where Are You From?
Illustrator: Chris K. Soentpiet
Readability Score: Pre-K-Grade 2
Theme: learning about the history of your family and how much society has changed
Genre: Fiction
Sub genre: Biography
Primary and secondary characters: The mother and her daughter are the primary characters
Awards: N/A
Publishing Company: Scholastic
Date of Publication: 2001
ISBN: 0-439-29144-5
Summary: This book is about a young girl who asks her mother where she is from. The mother begins to tell her how she grew up and what she did on a day to day basis. On Mondays she would wash clothes in the wringer dryer and hang them on the clothesline to dry. She also said she was from different types of beans that she cooked for an hour for her family. She talked about the different people that she would buy fish, ice, and ice cream from as well. The message that I received from this book was that things were very different during the time of when the mother was a young girl. She wants to tell her daughter how things were and about the things that who made her who she is today.

I like this book because it contains a lot of history in how things were "back in the day." Things such as hanging your laundry out to dry instead of using a dryer are what the reader should be aware of. Students can do a compare and contrast on the lifestyles of the two time periods and share them. It also shows how the mother was proud of where she came from, and students should feel the same way about their heritage or cultures as well.

A Wrinkle in Time-Chapter Book # 5

Author: Madeleine L'Engle
Title: A Wrinkle in Time
Illustrator: N/A
Readability score: 5.8
Genre: Fiction
Sub genre: Fantasy
Theme: family is worth fighting for
Primary and secondary characters: The primary character is Meg Murrary and the secondary characters are Charles, their father, Calvin, Mrs. Whatsit
Awards: Newbery Medal 1963
Publishing company: Random House Publishing Group
Date of publication: 1962
ISBN number: 9780440800545
Summary: This book is about a young girl named Meg Murray. She is having a hard time in her life as she is constantly teased about her appearance and also about her brother. People think that he is dumb, but they are just mean. Meg anxiously awaits for her father to return home, but he has been missing for a while. He is a physicist who experiments with 5th dimensions in time traveling. He went missing after he was experimenting. On a night that it was storming, it was setting the stage for foreshadowing. Meg's family was visited by a woman named Mrs. Whatsit. She was very smart and she wanted to take an adventure through space to find Meg's father. She wanted to take Meg, her brother, Charles, and their friend, Calvin. They would have to time travel and experience an evil force that was keeping their father a prisoner on a strange planet. This planet was considered to deal with conformity and personal freedom. This group takes an adventure to save their father and also save Charles as well. Meg is the one that saves Charles with her act of loving him. They are all reunited at the end of the book and all love one another.

This book represents an adventure that many students can create on their on. They can collaborate in groups on what they would do during their time travels. They can also decide their plans of action on what they would do to save Mr. Murray. On this planet of conformity they would need to decide if they would change it to personal freedom to make it better for others or if they would keep it the same. They can compare and contrast.

The Giver-Chapter Book # 6

Author: Lois Lowry
Title: The Giver
Illustrator: N/A
Readability score: 5.9
Genre: Fiction
Sub genre: Fantasy
Theme: knowledge is power
Primary and secondary characters: Jonas and the Giver are the primary characters and the secondary characters are Jona's parents, Lily, Asher, Gabriel
Awards: Newbery
Publishing company: Laurel Leaf
Date of publication: 1993
ISBN number: 9780440237686
Summary: Jonas is the protagonist of this story as he approaches an important event in his life. He tells us of how the community is living at the time of the story. He also talks about the community and its ways. His family discuss their feelings everyday and talk about why they feel they way that they do. In this particular community, every December, the children move up to the next age group. Jona's parents also talk to him about how the Committee of Elders will choose a career for him. This particular group runs the community and makes the decisions. It is determined that his best choice would be the Nurturer because he is good at taking care of the children. This community is run by the government and it closely resembles a police state or a dictatorship. Their every move is controlled by the Elders and they can't remember what it was like before this time. By the end of the book, Jonas has decided to break many rules by escaping his position as the Nurturer. He takes Gabriel and they decide to head for a better life. Many people search for him, but they search less and less the farther and farther they disappear.

This book is an adventure as it takes the reader on a journey to see how other people live in a fantasy world. They can see how things would be with a government that controls everything. Students can talk in groups on what they would do in this situation and what positions they would be the best in.