Jack is Back
When I was a child my father used to read Jack and the Beanstalk to me and I'll never forget the chilling way he said those "Fee, fi, fo, fums...." It both scared me and delighted me all at the same time. This week I read Steven Kellogg's version to the first graders and I'm happy to say I both scared and delighted them! The illustrations in this version are fantastic. As I read I took a peek at the faces before me and eyes were wide and mouths were open. There's nothing like a classic fairy tale to make you understand the power of a good story. And I think my dad would be proud of my "Fee, fi, fo, fums."
Also in the Library this week...
Kindergarten--Fidgeting is something kindergarteners are very good at and yet I don't think they really understood the meaning of the word until they heard Erica Silverman's charming story of a duck and a goose and their "freeze-in-place" content. Don't Fidget A Feather has all the characteristics of a great story....humor, drama, repetition, and a great ending. And even a moral--friendship is the greatest prize of all.
First Grade--see opening post
Second Grade--There's just something fun about Janet Stevens' book The Great Fuzz Frenzy. Those little prairie dogs, that fuzzy tennis ball, their wild desire to get some of that fuzz....and yet the story also shows how teamwork and friendship make the day.
Third Grade--Saving Sweetness by Diane Stanley is such fun to read aloud. The story is both funny and touching and dialect of the sherriff who narrates the tale adds so much to the experience. Little Sweetness is an orphan who decided to "hit the road" and the sherriff is sent to save her, only she ends up saving him. This is a great book to teach irony as often the words and the pictures tell a different story. Next week, we'll read the sequel, Raising Sweetness.
Fouth Grade--Continuing with our tall tales unit, we read the classic story of Paul Bunyan and students picked out all the hallmarks of a tall tale in this story. For the next several weeks we will read other tall tales and then students will write their own illustrated tall tale that will be posted on our research blog or wiki.
Fifth and Sixth Grade--To get those spring break minds warmed up again, we played Library Jeopardy this week.
Also in the Library this week...
Kindergarten--Fidgeting is something kindergarteners are very good at and yet I don't think they really understood the meaning of the word until they heard Erica Silverman's charming story of a duck and a goose and their "freeze-in-place" content. Don't Fidget A Feather has all the characteristics of a great story....humor, drama, repetition, and a great ending. And even a moral--friendship is the greatest prize of all.
First Grade--see opening post
Second Grade--There's just something fun about Janet Stevens' book The Great Fuzz Frenzy. Those little prairie dogs, that fuzzy tennis ball, their wild desire to get some of that fuzz....and yet the story also shows how teamwork and friendship make the day.
Third Grade--Saving Sweetness by Diane Stanley is such fun to read aloud. The story is both funny and touching and dialect of the sherriff who narrates the tale adds so much to the experience. Little Sweetness is an orphan who decided to "hit the road" and the sherriff is sent to save her, only she ends up saving him. This is a great book to teach irony as often the words and the pictures tell a different story. Next week, we'll read the sequel, Raising Sweetness.
Fouth Grade--Continuing with our tall tales unit, we read the classic story of Paul Bunyan and students picked out all the hallmarks of a tall tale in this story. For the next several weeks we will read other tall tales and then students will write their own illustrated tall tale that will be posted on our research blog or wiki.
Fifth and Sixth Grade--To get those spring break minds warmed up again, we played Library Jeopardy this week.
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