Reflection

Final Class Reflection

From taking this course, I have realized just how beneficial children's literature can be to the elementary classroom. One important concept in the elementary reading classroom is to allow choice in reading selection. I now feel better prepared to suggest the multitude of choices that are currently available for children from graphic novels, informational picture books, poetry to children's novels. During my practicum this semester, my students had time to visit the school library on a day that the librarian was sick. I was excited because I felt prepared to be able to suggest books based upon talking about their interests. From being introduced to the dozens of texts in this class, I feel better prepared to integrate these into science, math, social studies and more. One of the favorite parts of this course has been the investigation into banned books. I enjoyed reading these controversial children's books and looking at both sides of the argument. I also was glad we were able to read Year of Impossible Goodbyes and So Far From the Bamboo Grove to understand how the same story can have two completely different sides. I am excited to bring these novels into my future classroom to give my students a first hand look two sides of the same story. Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this class this semester and look forward to using everything I have gained in this class to better suit the learning of my future students.

The Story Goes On

The Story Goes On

by Aileen Fisher
illustrated by Mique Moriuchi

Between the Moriuchi's wonderful illustrations and Fisher's beautifully written story, this children's picture book is excellent. The story is written as a poem and describes the cycle of life starting with a little seed. It continues on as the sprouted seed is devoured by a bug and works it's way up the food chain. Ultimately this book has a happy ending as the seed works all the way through the cycle and is deposited back into the ground to be made into a new beautiful flower all over again. The words of this book are creative as many of the sentences rhyme with the next. The words are thoughtfully placed on the page which keeps the young readers searching for the fun story. The illustrations appear as a collage with the bright and colorful objects. They ultimately add so much to the story and are sure to keep the readers engaged. I enjoyed reading this simple story and I know that young children will too.

Intended Age 4-7

Bugs: Poems about Creeping Things

Bugs: Poems about Creeping Things

by David L. Harrison

illustrated by Rob Shepperson

Harrison does a great job of writing forty fun poems about bugs and collecting them into this fun compact children's book. There is also a large variety of poetry in this book as well with the styles of poems including some unique two person poems. The humor and playfulness shows in the poems like one of my favorite poems in this collection:

spider

In spider talk,
"I'm glad ta meeture!"

means

"I plans ta

catch and

eature

for a tasty

little treature!"

Don't go near
the nasty

creature!

Many of Harrison's poems carry these fun rhyming words that will entertain students throughout the book. The illustrations included are simple, black and white, and modern. I think the often times in collections of poems the illustrators do not include very much details because they are not necessarily needed. In most of these poems the great descriptions tell the readers so much already that the pictures are just used to add some extra fun. Overall I think boys and girls will enjoy reading all about bugs in this exciting collection of poetry.

Intended Age 4-8

A Pizza the Size of the Sun

A Pizza the Size of the Sun

by Jack Prelutsky

illustrations by James Stevenson

A Pizza the Size of the Sun is a magnificent collection of poetry written for all ages of children. The best part about this wonderful collection by Jack Prelutsky is the amount of variety that are found in the book. The poems take on all different formats, lengths, and layouts including one poem called "I Was Walking in a Circle" which has the poem written in a unique way around a circle. He also includes a multitude of different topics and ideas for the poems from opossums, to sailing, to moopies. Readers will defiantly enjoy reading this book because the wide variety of poems always keeps the reader's interests. This book would be a great tool to have in the classroom too when students get stuck on something to write they can easily be intrigued by some of the poems included to begin writing about a similar topic, or similar type of poem. This book got the name from the fun poem at the beginning of the book about making a giant pizza. My favorite poem of this whole book comes as the last one included in the collection which is titled "If." The whole poem poses unique questions about random thoughts or plays on words. The illustrations included in this book are simple, yet add more detail to each poem. Without the illustrations I think some of the young readers would get lost in this book because they may be intimidated by the length of the book. Overall this is a wonderful collection of poetry and a must have in the classroom.

Intended Age 5+

My Feet Are Laughing

My Feet Are Laughing

by Lissette Norman
illustrated by Frank Morrison

This fun children's book of poetry tells about a girl living in Harlem named Sadie. The collect is a collection of sixteen unique poems that tell the story of Sadie celebrating her family and the city around her. Some of the poems describe a specific person in Sadie's live with others tell about special events, memories, and places. One unique thing that Lissette Norman did with her book is start the book of with a simple introductory poem about Sadie, and end with the same exact poem. I think readers will enjoy hearing this story because each poem is different from the next so the readers are always surprised. The illustrations in the book are very contemporary and playful. Each poem has a picture to go alone with it which helps set the mood and feeling of the poem. Norman and Morrison did a great job with this book of poetry that young readers are sure to enjoy.

Intended Age 4-8

Love That Dog

Love That Dog

by Sharon Creech

Love That Dog is a very fun and unique children's novel because it is written from the perspective of a young student named Jack who is writing poetry for a class. While the whole book is written poems it is actually a novel as the reader begins to grow with Jack as he grows with the help of his teacher, dog, and poetry. I enjoyed the beginning because it started out with:

"September 13

I don't want to

because boys

don't write poetry"

Creech includes this interesting start to her novel which grabs the reader's attention. The novel continues on from the perspective of young Jack as he tries to figure out what poetry exactly is. He questions whether it is categorized by the format or wording or even the vagueness. As a future teacher I found this whole book very interesting because we see the side of what one student is thinking. While a teacher may assign students to simply write a poem, this novel reminds us that students may have many other things on their mind about poetry in general. I also liked the format of this book because it follows Jack throughout the whole year as he continues to grow and enjoy poetry as he finds his inspiration in Mr. Walter Dean Myers. This lapse in time is unusual for novel because it takes place over a long period of time, but the book still reads very quickly. While reading the book I was very curious about what poem Jack wrote that was inspired by Mr. Walter Dean Myers so I was very surprised and excited when it was included as the last line of the novel. I was also glad that the in the back of the novel Creech included some of the poems that were discussed throughout the book because it was nice to see what exactly Jack was reading. I am torn about whether I wish Creech should have said from the front that the poems were there in the back so the readers could refer to them as they came up in the book. On one hand this would tell the readers more about why Jack was writing poems or was confused, but it may also give the readers too much. I have never really enjoyed reading poetry or books of poetry in my life, but then again I have never seen them complied into a novel like this wonderful book was. Overall I really loved reading this book and I would think many others of all ages would too.

Intended Age 8-12

Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready for Kindergarten

Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready for Kindergarten

by Joseph Slate

illustrated by Ashley Wolff

This children's book is one in a series about a kindergarten teacher named Miss Bindergarten. This book goes through telling the story about the first day of school in phrases that are alphabetical order. This fun and humorous text is written with playful rhymes all the way throughout. I think that young readers will really enjoy this text because the first day of school is either something they probably remember, something they are nervous about or even something they are looking forward too. This series of children's books is great because they follow other important moments that young kids would be able to relate to. The illustrations in this books are colorful and fun with large easy to read text. Overall this is a fun book that kids are sure to enjoy.

Intended Age 3-6