Archive for the 'Books Boys Would Like' Category

The Three Little Fish and the Big Bad Shark by Ken Geist and The Three Little Rigs by David Gordon

Schema: sharks, The Three Little Pigs and the Big Bad Wolf
Compare and Contrast: Use a graphic organizer such as the Venn diagram,
http://www.eduplace.com/graphicorganizer,  to compare and contrast with The Three Little Pigs.
Compare and contrast with The Three Little Rigs.
Reader’s Theater: This story would work well with the reader’s theater format.  Students could ad lib after reading [...]

Hansel and Diesel by David Gordon

Schema: diesel trucks, Hansel and Gretel
Compare and Contrast: Use a graphic organizer such as the Venn Diagram,  http://www.eduplace.com/graphicorganizer, to compare with the fairytale, Hansel and Gretel,  by James Marshall.
Personification:  The truck rigs are given personalities and speak as human characters.
Reader’s Theater: This story would lend itself well to a reader’s theater presentation.  Students could ad [...]

Precious and the Boo Hag by Patricia McKissack

Schema: stories that teach a lesson, folktale, stranger danger
The story is written as a modern day folktale featuring the Boo Hag from the Gullah culture of South Carolina.  The Boo Hag is a legendary spirit or shape-shifter that wants to live in another person’s body, or it is also described as  riding a person [...]

Nubs The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle

Schema: Marines, miracles
Author’s purpose: The author is sharing his journey with Nubs because it is a miracle that he was able to get the dog from there back to his home in San Diego.
Because Nubs did not give up on finding Major Dennis, the effect is that Major Dennis did not give up on him.
Characterization: [...]

Here Comes Darrell by Leda Schubert

Schema: people you know that are always helping others
Sequencing: the book goes through each season
Setting: Vermont
Characterization: Make a graphic organizer to show Darrell’s characteristics.
With Tommy he takes the time to let him play like he is driving his truck
With The Barretts he gives the firewood to them even though they can not pay him now.
He [...]

Can’t Catch Me by John Hassett

Schema: ice from the fridge, icebergs
Text-to-text Connections: Gingerbread Man stories, stories where characters are being chased
Compare and Contrast: the animals that want to eat or cool off with the ice cube to characters in other versions of the Gingerbread Man.  Compare the whale with the fox in the original story.
Sequencing: Sequence from the last animal [...]

Always in Trouble by Corinne Demas

Schema: following rules
Text-to-text connections: Pinkerton Behave by Steven Kellogg, Chewy Louie by Howie Schneider
Text-to-self connections: ask students to share the bad behavior of their dogs or pets
Sequencing and Organizational Strategy: The book follows the days of the week as Toby either behaves or misbehaves.
Cause and Effect: Because Toby misbehaves, the effect is his owners send [...]

Turk and Runt by Lisa Wheeler

Schema: runt, Wilbur in Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White
Drawing Conclusions: When we draw a conclusion we should be able to go back and find evidence in the text to support it.  When Turk concludes that Runt has been right about being chosen to be a dinner is a great place to talk about drawing [...]

Mummy Math: An Adventure in Geometry by Cindy Neuschwander

Schema: mummies, geometry, Egypt
Cause and Effect: Because the kids get locked inside of the pyramid, the effect is that they have to find the clues in order to get out.
Compare and Contrast: the different shapes and number of faces on each one
Sequencing: Make a map that sequences the trail to the Pharaoh.

Duel! Burr and Hamilton’s Deadly War of Words by Dennis Brindell Fradin

Schema: a battle, western movies with gun fights
Text-to-Self Connections:
Compare and Contrast: Hamilton: born in the Caribbean
Burr: born in the U.S.
Both lived in Elizabeth, New Jersey, raised by people who were not their parents, active fighters in the American Revolution, served as aides to General George Washington, jealous and envious of one another, both fake friendly [...]