"The Giver"

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Book Title:

The Giver

Author:

Lois Lowry

Type of Book:

Novel

Age Level:

11-15

My Star Rating:

****

Summary

• “The Giver” is a story about a perfect utopia, where everything is decided for you, for the best, and nothing goes beyond the life that is chosen for you. Thinking outside the box is discouraged and identity is taken away, for all, except one.

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My Thoughts

• I really enjoyed this book. I was quickly engulfed in an ocean of questions. From the first page of the book, Lowry had my attention. I loved the eerie tones and specific word choices, I thought the constant mystery was so exciting, and I never seemed to find myself bored, I was hooked. I was constantly surprised with how many misconceptions I was making, in my trying to figure out the book. Although, quite confused and always questioning, I just grew to love this book. One part in particular was in chapter 14, when Jonas asked the Giver how he had known to advise not to shoot down the plane, because the pilot was just lost. The Giver responded, “I didn’t. I used my wisdom, from the memories. I knew that there had been times in the past –terrible times –when people had destroyed others in haste, in fear, and had brought about their own destruction.” I thought this quote was extraordinary! Lowry got me hooked, and messed with my emotions throughout the entire book; I went from being outraged to understanding, disgusted to curious, light-hearted to heavy-hearted, and then, finally ending the book in irritation and confusion. I laughed, I cried, and I felt genuinely pissed off at the “decide for yourself” ending, but all in all, I loved this book!

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How to Use in the Classroom

• This book would be a great book to bring in to discuss topics such as, a utopia, communism, free will, memories, ancestry, the holocaust…etc. Huge topics for conversation, as well as, great leading discussions on a bigger overall unit. I would use this book to bring up the hard issues. I would love to see how kids interpret the releasing and the idea of no free will. I would love to see the illustrations inspired by a book like this. I think this book would be a great, quality piece of literature to bring into the classroom to discuss, use critical thinking skills and to dissect. I know it is controversial, but if my district allows it, I would love to incorporate "The Giver" into my classroom, and see what kinds of literary conversations bloom.  

More Resources 

• For more information about Lois Lowry, click here. 

• For more information about the book, click here.

"The Dear One"

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Book Title:

The Dear One

Author:

Jacqueline Woodson

Type of Book:

Novel

Age Level:

8-12

My Star Rating:

****

Summary

• “The Dear One” is a story about Afeni, a young girl who struggles with feeling unloved since her grandmother passed away, four years prior. Afeni tries to make sense of her world, but at the young age of 12, she can’t seem to do so, that is, until 15-year-old, pregnant Rebecca comes into her life; a time when her paradigms change.

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My Thoughts

• I thought this book was good, very controversial, but then again, I love controversy. I thought the raw emotion Woodson exposes in this book was phenomenal. She has such an incredible fluency in childish thought and reasoning, I felt as if I was actually there, observing all the interactions between Afeni and Rebecca. I felt just as present as the characters were, as if I was a fly on the wall. I also loved how I could relate myself to this book through my own childhood thoughts and encounters. There is a beautiful moment between Afeni and her mother, where Afeni declares she wants to go live with her dad because she thinks that her mom doesn’t lover her. Afeni’s mom, Catherine, responds by saying that although she doesn’t say, “I love you” everyday to Afeni, that it doesn’t mean she doesn’t love her everyday.  It just means that she expresses love in a different way, such as providing for Afeni, and taking care of her. This type of love is so familiar to me, and once, as a child, I went through the same fears of being unloved by my mother, and just like in this book, my mother explained that she loves best through her actions. After hearing that, I was able to see incredible amounts of love, more love than I had ever imagined, my mom loves me best through helping me through life. I connected very well with Afeni in that moment.

• I also loved the truth and fears that Afeni and Caesar shared. My favorite example of this was seen in chapter 15, when the two friends were discussing their fears of lying in bed naked with a boy. I remember growing up, with these same fears, and the same thoughts about intimacy. I loved how special that moment in the book was for me. Again, Woodson has an outstanding way of bringing my life out, through her characters, a feat not easily accomplished. I am so happy with this book and the sentimental moments it offered me, while reading.

How to Use in the Classroom

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• For more mature grades, this novel could be used to discuss the very controversial subjects it includes, such as, teenage pregnancy, alcoholism, homosexuality, divorce, abortion, rich VS poor, and the racial divide of whites and blacks. All of these topics are seen throughout this book, and although some are more controversial than others, all of them are seen in our culture today. These issues are real, kids will come across them and kids will have questions. As teachers, we have to decide if we want to bring them up for discussion in our classrooms, and how we wish to handle them. Although controversial subjects are often discouraged from school districts, I believe it is very important to prepare students for reality, and this would be a great book to do start with!

• I also think that posing the question, “How can we show love” is a great way to bring awareness to the varied appearances of love. For kids like Afeni, and myself, sometimes love is not so apparent, but, as a class, making a list or chart on the different ways love can be shown, will help to build community, as well as, explain how, as a class, we can show love to each other. Perhaps this could include an activity or a service project appropriate for Valentines Day (Assigning a Valentine to each student, so that each student spends time showing a friend love, and feeling loved by a friend, through an encouraging note, or helping hand. This will also work towards building community).

 More Resources

• For more information about Jacqueline Woodson, click here.
• For more information about "The Dear One", click here.

"Love You Forever"

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Book Title:

Love You Forever

Author:

Robert Munsch

Illustrator:

Sheila McGraw

Type of Book:

Picture Book

Age Level:

4-8

My Star Rating:

****

Summary

• This book shows the truest love, the love of a mother, and how it remains over the years. The mother spends every night singing a lullaby to her son, regardless of his age, until one day when she is too old to do so.

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My Thoughts

• I love this book. I love using this book in the classroom, because I made up a melody to the lullaby the mother sings to her son, and I invite the class to sing it with me, while rocking back and forth. Singing and reading together really helps to start the day off in community and in trust. I also love, inviting the kids into the story, so they feel personally apart of the group reading process.

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How to Use in the Classroom

• I would bring this book into the classroom to show how song and performance can be incorporated into reading and how using your creativity can bring excitement into everyday tasks. We as a class, could make up our own songs, or, find a new book to create our own tune for as we read. This could also help ignite the imaginations and creative patterns of the students in my classroom, while also helping those who struggle with reading, to find alternate ways of connecting with literature.

More Resources

• For more information about Robert Munsch, click here.
• For more information about Sheila McGraw, click here.

"The Giving Tree"

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Book Title:

The Giving Tree

Author/Illustrator:

Shel Silverstein

Type of Book:

Picture Book

Age Level:

4-8

My Star Rating:

*****

Summary

• Everyday the boy came to visit the tree, swing on her branches and slide down her trunk, but as the boy grew older; he began to want different things. He would visit less often, and would take more and more from the giving tree, until one day, the tree had nothing left to give.

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My Thoughts

• I absolutely love this book, and the unconditional love it shows. “The Giving Tree” just melts me heart every time I read it, and it is impossible for me to read this story and feel emotionless. Silverstein captures my heart in his simple illustrations, and in his meaningful text. As a reader, I look for books that will shift my understanding, and leave me feeling impacted, and that is exactly what Silverstein does in “The Giving Tree”. With his cartoon-style illustrations, and black and white story, I feel myself personally going on the journey of the remarkable friendship seen between the boy and his tree.

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How to Use in the Classroom

• I imagine bringing this book into my classroom during story time. I would have all my students gather around, and I would introduce this book with a mysterious tone in my voice. I would set up the book first, as one of my favorite books, a book that is so special to me, and one that makes my heart feel warm inside. I would ask the kids if they have ever read a book like that, and I would let them share a few of their own favorite books. Then, I would bring out my copy of “The Giving Tree”, and ask if any of them have read this story before, for those who have, I would ask them to see if they learn anything new, and for those who haven’t, I would tell them to see if they can figure out why I love this book so much. Then we would read it together, I would prompt for predictions, and I would comment on the themes/illustrations. At the end of the book, we would discuss who liked it, and why they liked it, and then, we would talk about what makes us like a certain book, and what makes us dislike a certain book, and this conversation could turn into a mini lesson on writing, as well as, a mini lesson on figuring out which types of books we should look for personally, based on what we like/dislike.

More Resources 

• For more information about Shel Silverstein, click here.
• For more information about "The Giving Tree", click here.

"Spork"

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Book Title:

Spork

Author:

Kyo Maclear

Illustrator:

Isabelle Arsenault

Type of Book:

Picture Book

Age Level:

4-8

My Star Rating:

**

Summary

• A spork is a combination of a spoon and a fork, but this spork never gets picked for eating. The spork begins to feel that no one will ever want him, because he is not a spoon, and he is not a fork, but this all changes when he finds his perfect match.

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My Thoughts

• This book has a pretty good message, and it is a cute story, but I was not much of a fan. I didn’t like the rendered mixed-media assembled-digital art; I found it to be a bit boring and plain. I also thought that the overall story line was just bizarre. Using a “Spork” to reinforce the message that eventually everyone will find his or her place in the world was just not a good fit for me. Although a cute story, this is not one of my favorites.

How to Use in the Classroom

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• Even though I was not much of a fan, this book could be a great tool in helping bring awareness to the class for those who feel as if they don’t fit in, since this book is all about finding your place of peace in the world, it could help teach a mini lesson about inclusion and working together. It could be a great way to have the classroom brainstorm ideas on how to make everyone feel included and special. This book has a great message, and this message should be introduced into classrooms, to help build community and set the right tone for how you want your students to interact.

More Resources

• For more information about the author, click here.
• For more information about the illustrator, click here.

"Giraffes Can’t Dance"

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Book Title:

Giraffes Can’t Dance

Author:

Giles Andreae

Illustrator:

Guy Parker-Rees

Type of Book:

Picture Book

Age Level:

4-8

My Star Rating:

****

Summary

• Gerald, the Giraffe, cannot dance, and his feelings get hurt as all the other animals that dance beautifully, make fun of him. He leaves the jungle dance party, and discovers a different type of music that is perfect, just for him.

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My Thoughts

• What a fantastic book! I love this because it brings the arts back into the classroom, while teaching a valuable lesson. For some people, things may come harder than for others, but that doesn’t mean that someone is doomed, and that we should just accept their failure. It just means another approach may be needed, and isn’t that what we, as future teachers, are learning everyday…differentiation. In this book, Gerald could not dance as well as the other animals, but all he really needed was someone to take the time to help him find his own music, and then he soared. He out-danced all of his friends, and he finally thought of himself as a dancer. This book just proves that we as teachers need to pay attention to the different struggles of our students, and try to find individualized our instruction for them, so that we can help them learn to soar.

How to Use in the Classroom

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• I would love to use this in my classroom to teach the different styles of music, and the different styles of dance that are mentioned. I would love to get the kids up and moving, especially when they need to get all their jitters out. –I love to bring performance into the classroom, whenever possible, and this book mixes literacy and performance, which I absolutely adore. I could also see myself using this book to show the kids that if they are struggling with something, that maybe they just need to try a different way, that giving up is not the answer. 

More Resources

• For more information about Giles Andreae, click here.
• For more information about Guy Parker-Rees, click here.

"Chrysanthemum"

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Book Title:

Chrysanthemum

Author/Illustrator:

Kevin Henkes

Type of Book:

Picture Book

Age Level:

4-8

My Star Rating:

****

Summary

• Chrysanthemum grew up with the notion that she was absolutely perfect, until she entered school that is. At school the kids picked on her and poked fun of her name, a name that she once loved and adored, had become the target of her pain.

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My Thoughts

• When I first heard this book, it was being read aloud to me in my 5^th semester of college. I know it sounds funny to have someone read aloud to you at the age of 20, but I am so glad it happened. I had never heard of this book before, but I instantly fell in love with it. I love the great message that trickles through the story, the message of loving who you are, regardless of what others think about you. I think this is such an important message to start introducing to children at a young age. School can be hard, and peers can be ruthless, so I think introducing this book and message at an early age is vitally important.

• I also love the use of watercolor paints and black pen, as they are used for full-color art. Henkes does a great job with the changing layouts of each page, I think the book is so inviting and visually fun to look at. Not to mention, how incredible the text is, he perfects the way of making a children’s book into a great learning tool, with large vocabulary words, and great themes of acceptance. I LOVE this book.

How to Use in the Classroom

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• “Chrysanthemum” is a great book to use when teaching new vocabulary; in fact, I think this book could provide a hefty list of vocabulary terms just by itself. With words such as, Chrysanthemum, scarcely, wilted, dreadful, fascinating, winsome, Parcheesi, envious, begrudging, discontented, jaundiced, scrawny, humorous, Delphinium, beamed, Marigold, Carnation and Lily of the Valley, this book offers a lot of possibilities. For one thing, a spelling list could be developed from this book, while also cross-curricularly; this book could be helpful in science, and the planting of flowers.  Again, this book could be used in teaching the message of loving yourself for who you are, and not for what others think about you, and it could also be a useful tool to bring out when you feel like your class is having trouble respecting their peers. This book has many possibilities, and that is why I love it so much! 

More Resources  

• For more information about Kevin Henkes, click here.
• For more information about how to use Chrysanthemum in the classroom, click here.