Christina Stokes ELD 307 Dr. Casey September 20, 2013 Childrens Literature Collection 1. What is Love?

Authors: Agnes and Salem de Bezenac Illustrator: Agnes de Bezenac 2012 What is Love? is about showing love in different ways. The focus is on a girl who is not sure what love is and she thinks about what her family does to show her love. Love comes in all shapes and forms, but the ultimate love is having a loving family. The book promotes family relationships and selflessness. It is a great book to use around Valentines Day, since this holiday is all about love. The illustrations in the book can help guide young children within the story. The book can be used for a Pre-K or a kindergarten class. In a Pre-K class, the teacher can introduce the book to the students asking them what love is to get them to think about the topic. The teacher can create an art project by giving them a pre-made heart to decorate and to give to someone they love. For a kindergarten class, the teacher can use the illustrations to ask questions on how each family member in the story express their love. The assessment can help the teacher to determine if the students comprehend the story. There are many ways to use the text to help students understand the topic which can relate to their own lives. 2. Yes We Can! Author: Scholastic 2008 Yes We Can is based on President Barack Obamas victory speech in 2008. It is a simple book with a quote from his speech on each page and photographs of Obama with different children. The text is a great way to introduce a topic that is not usually taught to young children. The book contains actual photos of the president with children he meets during his campaign. The book can be used for any grade level. For Pre-K, the illustrations can be used to show the children what the president will do for them. For other grades, the text can be used to start conversations about the presidents role in our country. This topic leads into history which is important for children to learn in their education. The book can be used in the classroom during the time of elections, since this will become major news. It is just an easy way for children to understand Obamas speech. 3. George Washington Carver: The Peanut Wizard Author: Laura Driscoll Illustrator: Jill Weber 2003 The book is about a scientist named George Washington Carver who grew up in a time of slavery. As a child, he found an interest in nature to learn about different types of plants. However, since he was African American he had to overcome hardships to be successful. He

worked hard to learn everything about plants. Finally, he became famous through his accomplishments as a scientist. George Carver made a huge impact in the world with his inventions. The book can be used in so many ways for children to understand other topics such as math, science, and even history. The text can be used as a critical literacy book about slavery and how a person overcame obstacles to reach a goal. There are a lot of key details in the text for students to comprehend the information. The book contains questions that can apply to the childs life about nature and what they observe in their environments. The book can also be used for history that includes factual information about a person and historical events. Teachers can give the students the opportunity to learn a famous figure in African-American history. The book contains photographs of historical figures supported with the text for children to remember. There is a science experiment the teacher can use to create a hands-on project for the students to understand the role of a scientist. The book has a recipe for students which includes measurements such as cups and tablespoons. Teachers can use the book for any purpose to develop childrens literacy skills and to connect the story to other important topics. 4. Hello Ocean Author: Pam Munoz Ryan Illustrator: Mark Astrella 2003 Hello Ocean is about a young girl spending the day at the beach. The narrator describes her experience at the beach through the senses of sight, smell, tasting, feeling, and hearing. The illustrations successfully depict what the narrator loves to do at the beach. The story is told using a rhyming text which can help children to find patterns within the text. The teacher can choose certain words from the text that shows a rhyme pattern. The teacher can also choose unknown words from the text to build vocabulary. The book contains Spanish translations on each page next to the sentence in English. If teachers have ESL students in their classroom, they can use the book to comprehend the English language. The story is useful for any grade level and it is a great way for ESL students to make connections from their native language and apply it to the target language to become a successful reader. 5. Sloppy Joe Author: Dave Keane Illustrator: Denise Brunkus 2009 Sloppy Joe is a humorous story about a boy who is always messy and can never find his belongings at home. He decides to make a change and becomes Neat Joe. Joes family does not take notice of the change because they become sick. He begins to feel unappreciated, but his parents let him know that he his special either way. The book contains colorful and detailed illustrations that the students can use to understand the story. It can be used for kindergarten and first grade. The teacher can use the pictures to focus on specific details about Joe. The book can also be used to show students that everyone is different and you do not have to change yourself to be accepted. 6. The Beautiful Bee Book Author: Sue Unstead Illustrator: Gill Tomblin 2006

The Beautiful Bee Book is an informational text about the world of bees. The book includes the life cycle, development, and interesting facts about bees. There are fun features in the book such as turning a wheel to see the stages of the life cycle or lifting a flap to explore a bee hive. The book is a great way to motivate children to learn about an insect. The book can be used for any grade level that can help improve emergent literacy skills. There are detailed illustrations that can be used for a kindergarten class to focus on the characteristics of a bee. For a third grade class, the text provides a glossary and interesting facts that the teacher can use to assess students comprehension skills. There are many ways teachers can use the text to contribute to a childs literacy skills. 7. The Kissing Hand Author: Audrey Penn Illustrators: Ruth E. Harper and Nancy M. Leak 1993 The Kissing Hand is about a raccoon named Chester Raccoon who does not want to go to school in the forest. He is comforted by his mother Mrs. Raccoon who eases his fear by telling him a family secret. She tells him about the Kissing Hand to remind him that she will always be there with him. He also gives his mother a Kissing Hand to remind his mother that he loves her with all his heart. At the end, he is not afraid anymore and finally goes to school. The book is a great way to ease childrens anxiety of going to school. The story can be used on the first day of school for a kindergarten class because students enter into an unfamiliar place. The children need to understand that their parents or guardian will not always be with them. The text can be used to connect the illustrations and focus on specific details in the story. The teacher can ask questions about the main character and about the major events in the story. The teacher can connect the story to a real-life event and ask the students a time they were afraid and how their parents or guardian comforted them. The book includes stickers of a heart with the books title The Kissing Hand that the teachers can give to students. This can build a relationship between the teacher and the students which is important to establish in the classroom. 8. The Sun and the places where it shines Author: Thea Kinyon 2008 The book is an informational text about the solar system. The book explains the importance of the Sun and why we need it to survive, how the solar system was formed, and the characteristics of our eight planets. The book can be used to introduce the solar system to children. Since there is a lot of information in the book about the planets, it is appropriate for second and third graders. The illustrations depict the composition and the weather for each planet. Teachers can use the book to assess their students comprehension skills. The teachers can ask questions about why the Sun is important in our solar system. The book also has a glossary that the students can use to locate unknown words. The text can be used as a reference book for science projects or to study for a test. 9. Daniel Keep Dreaming Author: Paige L. Martin Illustrators: Angie Williams and Paige L. Martin 2011

The story is about a young intelligent boy name Daniel Chase who lives in Atlanta, Georgia. He loves to draw, paint, and write stories. Daniels dream is to become an artist and he works hard to win several art competitions. However, his father does not support his dream and wants him to become a lawyer, doctor, or a scientist. He pushes Daniel to participate in a science fair at school. Daniels mother and grandmother do not agree with his father and encourages him to keep painting. In school, one of his teachers gives Daniel the opportunity to paint a mural in school. Daniel decides to be dishonest about participating in the science fair, so he can paint the mural. Daniels parents finally see his masterpiece. At first, Daniels father is upset, but he realizes that his son is talented and supports his true dream. The text provides an interesting storyline about a young boy who wants to follow his dreams. Teachers can use this book for a third grade class. The text provides key details about Daniel and the problem he is facing with his father. Teachers can use the text to help students describe the characters in the story and why each character express different emotions. The teachers can ask questions about the main conflict and how the conflict was resolved. The story can motivate students to achieve their goals and to follow their dreams. 10. One Hundred Shoes Author: Charles Ghigna Illustrator: Bob Staake 2002 One Hundred Shoes is about a centipede that has one hundred feet. Since the centipede has small feet, he has a difficult time searching for shoes. The centipede thinks about different sets for a pair of shoes that can add up to one hundred. For a centipede, it is such a hassle to keep shoes, so the centipede decides to walk barefoot. The story illustrates an important math concept through a rhythmic text which can benefit childrens literacy skills. The book can be used for a kindergarten and first grade class. The teacher can use the text to focus on the rhyming scheme. The students can learn to recognize rhyming words found in the text. The math concept demonstrates concepts of pairs and multiple sets. The rhyming scheme can help reinforce this concept to young children to grasp an important math skill. Conclusion: The books that I have found for a childrens literature collection will benefit students emergent literacy skills. Each book contains different topics that can help students to recognize various genres. Some books have more than one topic which can benefit a childs learning. The illustrations are useful to help students to gain an understanding of a topic. There are books with more words that can challenge gifted students. The books can be used for many purposes and for any grade level that teachers feel would fit their students academic needs.