International Literature - Emma and the Blue Genie

Emma and the Blue Genie

Written by Cornelia Funke

Translated by Oliver Latsch

Illustrated by Kerstin Meyer

Published by Random House New York

Copyright 2014

90 pages

A/R Grade Level: 4.8

Emma and the Blue Genie is an international fairy tale.  Emma and her dog, Tristan, find a bottle in the ocean one night and release a genie, Karim.  Karim has lost his ability to grant wishes.  Karim's nose ring was stolen by the evil genie, Sahim and therefore, Karim's powers are lost.  Emma and Tristan fly with Karim back to his master's palace to help him get his nose ring back.  They embark on a wonderful adventure and eventually defeat the evil genie, retrieve the lost nose ring, and Karim regains his powers and banishes the evil genie forever. 

This book offers an excellent alternative to the traditional storyline found in most books about genies and wishes.  It could be used as part of an English language arts unit for reading and comprehension.  It has rich vocabulary with many unfamiliar words that could easily be explained to students before the reading of the book.  This book would be an excellent way to introduce students to varying versions of similar stories by reading it along with the more well-known Aladdin book and comparing and contrasting the stories.  By introducing unfamiliar vocabulary, a teacher would be able to assist students in researching these new words, defining these words, and discussing the setting of the book.  Sparking interest in reading is a challenge for teachers much of time and this book would be easy to use to accomplish this task.  

Diverse Perspectives - Ghost Girl

Ghost Girl

Ghost Girl

 Written by Delia Ray

Cover Illustrated by R. Gregory Christie

Published by Houghton Mifflin

Clarion Books

Copyright 2003

216 pages

Genre: Diverse Perspectives
A/R Grade Level: 5.4

Ghost Girl is a tale of fiction that has been written with many specific real events woven through the storyline.  This book is set in the Blue Ridge Mountains during Herbert Hoover's presidency.  This time frame was also while the Great Depression was taking place.  The characters in the story have a dialect that is unique to this geographic area and are mostly unaware of how things in the outside world are becoming bleaker during President Hoover's time in office simply because they are so poor already.  The book portrays the people of the Blue Ridge Mountains as hard-working and self sufficient people who sometimes suffer in silence while carrying on with their daily lives.  

The main character April wants to attend the new school that is coming but her mother is not going to allow it until her maternal grandmother steps in and intervenes.  The story shares April's experiences from age 11 through her teenage years.  Many important events take place for April throughout the book.  She has a difficult relationship with her mother, forms a special bond with her teacher, has a distant but loving relationship with her father and although she doesn't have many friends at school she finds true friendship in an unlikely place by the end of the book.  

The author does an excellent job of bringing real events into a fictional story in an entertaining way.  This book could be used alongside a social studies unit about the time of the Great Depression and/or Herbert Hoover's time as President of the United States to increase interest from students in the subject matter.  It would be very easy to use this book as a way to get students engaged in learning about history and how historical events do, in fact, affect ordinary people just like them.

I would also like to note that the cover illustration is excellent and I feel that it would spark interest in readers considering choosing this book.  It is an accurate depiction of how the girl in the story is described and why she has the nickname, "Ghost Girl".  

3rd Grade Practicum

Last week I began my student practicum assignment in a 3rd grade classroom.  This semester is going to be challenging but so much fun!  I can already see that this age group is hungry to learn and eager to try new things.  I look forward to learning so much from my cooperating teacher and I will share some of my projects and lessons here on my blog with all of you.

Looks like 3rd grade is gonna be the place to be for the next few weeks and I couldn't be happier to embrace this experience.  I am sure I will learn so much from the students!

Talk later,

Shannon

Picture Book - I'm Gonna Like Me

I'm Gonna Like Me

I'm Gonna Like Me

(Letting Off A Little Self-Esteem)

Written by Jamie Lee Curtis

Illustrated by Laura Cornell

Copyright 2002

Harper Collins Publishers

Joanna Cotler Books

32 pages

Genre: Picture Book

A/R Grade Level: 3.0

I'm Gonna Like Me is a fun book about children who express a fondness for themselves even though they are not always successful at everything they do.  The book explores successes and failures encountered in a typical child's life and expresses liking yourself no matter what happens during the day.  The illustrations strongly support the storyline and add rich context for each situation mentioned in the text.  Throughout the book, boys and girls are depicted in various settings at home, school, and play where things turn out well and sometimes, not so well.  The children continue to repeat, "I'm gonna like me!" as their experiences are revealed.  

This book would be an excellent starting point for a character trait lesson about self-esteem as suggested by the subtitle.  This book could also be used during the first few days of school to ease concerns about the new school year, making friends, and finding a way to fit into the student's new circumstances.  I would extend learning with this book by performing a book walk before it is read aloud to review the illustrations and make predictions about some of the things that may happen in the story.  The illustrations contain several words and labels that assist in making the story even more fun for children.  The students will enjoy taking time to soak up the beautiful illustrations and finding out what this extra text adds to the overall story.  After reading the book aloud, a discussion and time of sharing could be facilitated to encourage students to share their thoughts about overcoming disappointments and celebrating victories.