An American Plague

A Tricky Killer...

Nonfiction at its finest, Jim Murphy takes us on a ride through Philadelphia 1793 and the yellow fever plague that threatened to destroy the city, then the capitol of the United States in An American Plague. I myself sometimes have a hard time getting hooked in nonfiction, but Murphy knows exactly how to write so that you are wrapped up in the story of the yellow fever to tightly that you are tricked into thinking you are reading a narrative fiction novel about a nasty disease. He uses just enough quotes from those who were alive at the time and takes you deep enough into those peoples' lives that you don't want to put the book down for a second. The Yellow Fever epidemic of 1793 is one of those instances in American history that is often left out of history books. This is one of those gross parts of history that upper elementary school students would LOVE. Just like how they think boogers and spit are cool, they will think the mysterious, yellow eyes, throwing up, being bled is way more exciting than what they read about in their textbooks. I learned so much from this book and I highly recomend you suggest it to your students who like these types of topics. Also, Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson is a great fictional companion to An American Plague.

Reading Level: Grade Level Equivalent 8.9 (could be used in middle school or upper elementary, there are just some content words that need to be pretaught which is why the reading level seems high)

Web Resources:

• Audio Book Lesson: This webpage provides the audiobook version for chapters 1 and 2 of An American Plague. Using this audiobook, students will pay attention to sights, sounds and smells and answer discussion questions. Other activities are included.
• Lesson Ideas: This page offers a variety of ideas to use with grades 3-6 in conjunction with An American Plague.

Vocabulary:  Thanks to The Reading Conqueror here are is some important vocabulary for this book:

Chapter 1- Benjamin Rush, Philadelphia, refurbished, George Washington, General Cornwallis, surrender, capitulation, revolution, Proclamation of Neutrality, “Diplomatic cold shoulder”, speculated
Chapter 2- laudanum, preeminent, malignity, Greek Humeral Theory
Chapter 3- pestilence, amiable, prestigious, William Currie, quarantine, acquaintances, fetid, exodus, camphor, melancholy, Vinegar of the four thieves
Chapter 4-5- apothecaries, legislature, paupers, almshouse,  putrefaction, insufficient, resignation, neutrality policy, consternation, Free African Society, erect, exorbitant, mobilized, shunned, peculiarly, battalion,  
Chapter 6-  pestilence, scrupulousness, malicious, conspiring, valiantly
Chapter 7- ingenuity, daunting, condemned, quinine
Chapter 8- Conviction, alleviation, rioting
Chapter 9- militia, parliament, quorum, abated, apace, emaciated
Chapter 10-end- inadvertently, squalid, privy pit, tepid, squabbles, sedulously, and pious

Activities:
Before Reading:

• Depending on what grade level this book is used in, you may need to support your students a lot especially when it comes to vocabulary. For this reason I would make a point to preteach a lot of the vocabulary before the students read. You can easily break the book up into sections or just by chapters so it is a reasonable amount of vocabulary at one time.
• Have a class or small group discussion about what students know about plagues. You may even choose to start a KWL about plagues in order to access prior knowledge.
• Another suggestion is using this book as a supplementary item for upper level students in your class or for a student who chooses to do a project or paper on the Yellow Fever.

During Reading: If using this book with the whole class, assign groups to present on each chapter or sections of your choosing. Being that some of the reading is difficult it will be very useful for a group of students to become "experts" on each section and then help the other students understand these sections. You may have the group of experts present to the whole class or have an individual from the expert group pair up with one person from each other group and discuss in small groups.

After Reading:

• Extend the understanding of this nonfiction selection by reading a book such as Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson.
• Discuss as a group or in small groups how students think they would feel if they had the Yellow Fever or if someone in their family had the Yellow Fever. Discuss what types of medicine they may be given or what types of ways they may try to be cured. Use this discussion as both a review of the material and a way to connect a historical event to ones' own life.

Across the Curriculum: This book would best be used in a Social Studies classroom that is studying American History. It provides an opportunity for students to learn about an event in American History that is often overlooked.

Murphy, J. (2003). An American plague: the true and terrifying story of the yellow fever epidemic of 1793. New York: Clarion Books.

Happy Reading (& Running) =)

Smiles to Go

It's the not knowing that counts... 

Will is a thinker who literally never stops running thoughts through his head which can be seen in the narrative. Between the first proton’s “death,” his new-found infatuation with his best friend Mi-Su, the new popularity of his other best friend BT, his annoying little sister Tabby and finally a tragedy that strikes his family, all Will can do to keep himself sane is think. He plans out every move he will make in the process learns that he’s been missing a whole lot with all this thinking and planning. Will’s epiphany towards the end of the novel gives him a whole new way to look at the world, one he never would have thought of on the first day after the death of the proton where his story begins. In Smiles to Go, Jerry Spinelli will have you laughing, and maybe even crying as you relate to the struggle of a teenage boy just trying to make sense of the toppling world around him.
  
Reading Level: Flesch-Kincaid Index 4.5 

Teachers: Here are some resources and ideas to help you teach this book...

Web Resources:

• Teacher's Guide: This guide contains discussion questions, curriculum connections and creative writing ideas. 
• 5 Ideas: This site offers 5 different activities to connect with Smiles to Go. The site suggests parents and children do them together but the activities could easily be used in a classroom setting as well. 

Vocabulary: Here are some words you may want to pre-teach to your students: protons, atoms, decay, anchovy, epitaph, nebula, touche, solipsism, ultimatum, conspicuous, fraud, fluke, shenanigans, lacerations, solipsism, impulsive

Activities:
Before Reading: Based on the title and cover art what do you think this book will be about? (This is a good activity for this book because it is really hard to predict what the story will be about and it is important for students to know that every prediction they make will not necessarily be correct)

During Reading: Make a plan of how Will should go about telling Mi-Su how he feels. Explain why your plan is different or similar to Will's plan. Why do you think your plan would be effective?

After Reading: Do you think that Will is going to change after what happened with his sister? If yes, what will his new outlook on life be? How will his actions change? If no, explain why you think so. What ways will he go back to?

Across the Curriculum: There are many ways to connect science to this novel. Will talks a lot about protons, atoms, etc. Also, check my web resources, the teacher's guide contains connections to science.


Spinelli, J. (2008). Smiles to go . New York, NY: Joanna Cotler Books.


Happy Reading (&Running) =)

The Great Gilly Hopkins

One Tough Cookie!

The Great Gilly Hopkins has been in the foster care system for almost as long as she can remember and at this point has resolved to not allow herself to be happy or love anyone who cares for her because the one time she did that, the family moved away, leaving her. Determined to drive her new bible fanatic, overweight foster mother Trotter crazy, Gilly tries all the tricks in the book: stealing, lying and scaring her foster brother W.E. Little does Gilly know, this family actually loves her. Gilly is convinced that her mother Courtney will some day come to her rescue and take her out of foster care. Gilly is smart, really smart, but the things she doesn't understand are those that are right in front of her, like love and the lack thereof. The truth is, W.E., who Gilly calls "retarded" and Mr. Randolph, who is blind, see more than Gilly in these important areas of her life. Katherine Paterson puts us in the mind of Gilly and by the end of the story we are left conflicted and full of love for the smart mouth, tough cookie that is Galadriel Hopkins.

Reading Level: Flesch-Kincaid Index 4.8

Teachers: Here are some resources and ideas to help you teach this book in class... 

Web Resources: 

•  Scholastic: This Scholastic site provides a summary, click under resources on the top right to find a discussion guide, vocabulary activity and writing prompt.
• Literature Unit: This is a link to google books where you will find the first half of a literature unit book for The Great Gilly Hopkins. Although it is not the full book, what is available is extremely helpful!

 

Vocabulary: Here are some words that may need to be pretaught: conspiratorially, departmentalization, fret, piously, justify, humility, lilt, cajoling, incompetence, delinquent, painstakingly, vigor, peculiar, fanatic, foster, obligation, next of kin, apparition, pervades, laden 

 

Activities:
Before Reading: Make a prediction. On the cover of the last two releases of The Great Gilly Hopkins, Gilly is shown in a tough pose. What kind of character do you think Gilly will be?

During Reading: Choose one of the questionable decisions Gilly makes. For example: stealing money from Mr. Randolph, stealing money from Trotter, making the card for her teacher, etc. Explain in your own words why Gilly made that decision. What could Gilly have done differently to produce the outcome she wanted?

After Reading: What did you learn from Gilly about family? Who do you think was more of a family to her? Trotter, W.E. and Mr. Randolph or Nonnie and Courtney? Why? (This would work as a writing prompt or as a classroom discussion.)


Paterson, K. (1978). The Great Gilly Hopkins . New York: Crowell.  
Newbery Honor Book

 Happy Reading (&Running) =)

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Magician's Nephew

The Beginning of a Magical World...
Did you know there's a story before The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe? Of course there is! How did Narnia begin? How did there come to be an entrance from our world to the world of Narnia? Find out in The Magician's Nephew, C.S. Lewis' prequel to the Chronicles of Narnia that you know. In this book, meet Digory and Polly and follow them through their adventures discovering other worlds started all because of  a trek to the abandoned house next door. Instead of exploring the house, they end up in Uncle Andrew's study. What has Uncle Andrew cooked up? Is this why Digory hears strange noises in the night? Who knew how much magic 2 yellow rings and 2 green rings could possess? Find out in this fantastic start to the Chronicles of Narnia.

*New Feature*

Reading Level:  Flesch-Kincaid Index 5.7
I will be adding reading level to my previous posts as well

Teachers... Here are some ideas and resources to help you to teach this novel...

Web Resources:

• Literature Study: This site contains a lot of good information. I recommend the characters, summary, spelling/vocab word and study questions sections, broken down by each chapter. There are other sections to connect across the curriculum but most of the ideas are very loosely based on the chapters, so ere on the side of caution with those links. This site also has the same type of links by chapter for the other books in the Chronicles of Narnia.
• Teaching Guide: This guide has an overview of the entire Chronicles of Narnia with many ideas for activities as well as a section for each book in the series.
• Discussion Guide: This guide provides discussion questions for reading groups that go with each of the books in the Chronicles of Narnia.

Vocabulary: Here are some words I thought may need to be pretaught: cistern, pantomime, dingy, indignant, asylum, preposterous, dotty, treachery, hansom, minion, delirium, ostentatious, sagacious, shied, cataracts, conceited, coronation, tyrants.

Activities:
Before Reading:

• If students have read (or watched) The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, explain what a prequel is and have students predict what happened before The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
• Help students learn what a good reader does, model examining the picture on the cover and make a prediction out loud to the class. Then have half the students make a prediction based on the title while the other half of the class makes a prediction based on what is written on the back of the book. Be sure to share predictions. Have students write a sentence or two about their predictions so they can compare those predictions to what really happens in the novel.

During Reading: Have students create a double entry journal. This can be created by simply folding a piece of paper into 2 sections and labeling one section: The book says and the other section: I say. Under "The book says" the student writes down a passage that they think is important, confusing, etc. Under "I say" the students write why they thought this passage was important, confusing, what they think it means, etc. Ask students to write 1-2 entries per chapter.

After Reading: The last chapter of The Magician's Nephew tells a little bit about the future of Narnia, but it does not fill in all the details between when Digory and Polly leave Narnia to when "another child" finds Narnia. Write a story to fill the gaps. We know Digory becomes a professor and that he and Polly keep in contact after he moves away, but what else happens? Write a story about Digory and Polly and what happens with them after their adventures in Narnia ended.

Lewis, C. S. (1955). The Magician's Nephew . New York: HarperCollins.

Happy Reading (&Running) =)

Educating Esmé

A Must Read for Teachers, Especially First Year or Aspiring Teachers!!!

I orginially created this blog as a class project (those of you who read my first entry, you may have figured that out). Since then I have been adding to this collection of children's novels and providing tons of ideas and resources to help teachers to use these books in the classroom. In doing so I hope I have attracted many current teachers as well as aspiring teachers, like myself (almost there, all my tests are passed (CT Foundations of Reading & Praxis 2) only student teaching to finish!!!). So, I decided it would be a good idea to include this book on my blog for all my teacher readers.

This has been the most inspiring book I have read in a LONG time.

Esmé takes the reader through her first year as a teacher the ups the downs, including the rock bottoms. Esmé was a typical first year teacher, ready to change the world, but being in a inner-city school with a principle who was a complete idiot made changing the world have a whole new meaning. This book is honest in every way and is full of amazing ideas that I hope to someday be able to use in my own classroom. I was impressed with the ability for Esmé to admit that some days she just didn't care while other days she cared too much. I think ALL teachers have something to learn from this book. It is probably one of the most important books you could read as a teacher. And since it is so important, I won't spoil anymore of it!

I'm very tempted to now type: web resources or vocabulary!

There is now an expanded version (pictured at left)... I wonder what I'm missing out on! Check it out! 

Codell, E. R. (1999). Educating Esmé: diary of a teacher's first year. Chapel Hill, N.C.: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill.

And as always,

Happy Reading (& Running) =)

Magic Tree House #40: Eve of the Emperor Penguin

Antarctica, Penguins & Magic!

My first experience with Magic Tree House books was a success! The pictures throughout Eve of the Emperor Penguin and other Magic Tree House books are very welcoming to reluctant readers and who could pass up an exciting adventure with Jack and Annie? In this Magic Tree House book, Jack and Annie are off to find the last secret to help Merlin find happiness. They find themselves in Antarctica the land of penguins, snow and adventure! Mixed up in a group of scientists and reporters, Jack and Annie must hide their identity lest they be found out to be children. They have no idea how they will tackle their mission with all these adults around, but they know they must try their hardest... pick up this book to learn a little bit more about Antarctica, penguins and the Magic Tree House saga by Mary Pope Osborne.

Teachers: Here are some resources and ideas to help you teach this book from the Magic Tree House series...


Web Resources:

• Teacher's Guide: This guide has lots off great ideas for reading activities as well as across the content area in Math, Social Studies and Science. This guide also has ideas that go along with Penguins and Antarctica: A Nonfiction Companion to Eve of the Emperor Penguin. If you scroll all the way to the bottom of the page there are print outs available as well.
• Partner Reading: This is an article by Reading Rockets about Paired/Partner Reading. It's a great strategy for students who lack fluency. Eve of the Emperor Penguin is one book suggested to use with this strategy.
• Magic Tree House: Bookmark this website on your classroom's computer to let students explore the Magic Tree House series.

Vocabulary: Here are some words you may need to preteach: alas, cavern, compassion, deserted, dignity, dread, eerie, enchanter, expedition, fiery, fragile, frantic, hovered, immense, preserve, ravine, slab, squall, streak, summit, urgent, usher

Activities:
Before Reading: Sometimes a KWL doesn't work well with a fiction selection, but being that there is a lot of nonfiction information in this book, you may choose to do a KWL about Antarctica for this book.

During Reading: Jack and Annie face some tough decisions throughout their time in Antarctica. Choose a decision they make a write an entry in your journal explaining if you would make the same decision. Explain why or why not. If you wouldn't make the same decision, explain what you would do differently.

After Reading: Finish the KWL chart. Research (as a class or in groups) to find the answers to the questions you were not able to answer by reading Eve of the Emperor Penguin.

Across the Curriculum: Click here to visit the Magic Tree House teacher's resource for Eve of the Emperor Penguin where you will find connections to Science, Math and Social Studies


Osborne, Mary Pope. Eve of the Emperor penguin . New York, NY: Random House Children's Books :, 2008. Print.

Happy Reading (&Running) =)

Because of Winn-Dixie

A dog can provide much more than companionship

Kate DiCamillo (author of the Mercy Watson series, which I love!) brings us a touching story about a girl named Opal and a dog she finds and names Winn-Dixie. Who knew a dog could bring you so much clarity and happiness? Opal knows how much a dog can do after spending only a little time with Winn-Dixie, a dog who smiles so hard he sneezes and is so scared of thunder he scurries around the trailer without purpose until the storm is over. Opal makes friends with the people in her new neighborhood and begins to appreciate her father, the minister, with help from her new dog in Because of Winn-Dixie. Anyone who has ever questioned their past, wondered about their future or loved a pet will relate to and love this story!

Teachers... here are some resources and ideas to help you to use this book in your classroom (If you buy the most recently released Scholastic version pictured above, there are discussion questions and activities in the back of the book.)

Web Resources: 

•  Class Guide: This website is a teacher's guide to teaching Because of Winn-Dixie. There are many links to facts about various aspects of the stories that can help expand the curriculum around this books such as the dangers of alcohol, facts about prison and even recipes from the book. There are also quizzes for every few chapters which will show if students are comprehending on a literal level (there are very few inferential questions).
• Interactive: This website is from Scholastic and shows an interactive map of Naomi. Each building brings up a new activity. The activities include: reader's theater, scrap book, the writing process, information about the author, stills of the movie, a maze game and more! This website would be great to bookmark on a classroom computer.

Vocabulary: Here are some words that may need to be pretaught or could be used for word study: preacher, produce, missionary, sermon, exception, orphan, installment plan, pathological, criminal, shame (as a verb), ignorant, enlist, vermin, sorrow, melancholy, myth

Activities:

Before Reading: Ask students if they have ever had a pet. This could be used as a writing prompt or in a think/pair/share format. This will help students focus on pets as pets are an important part of this story.

During Reading: 

• Before Opal brings Winn-Dixie home: What do you think Opal's dad is going to say about Winn Dixie? Will he let her keep him? Will her father like Winn-Dixie?
• After Winn-Dixie is allowed in church, at the library, in the pet store, etc. Why do you think Winn-Dixie is allowed into places where dogs are usually not allowed?

After Reading/Writing: 

• How does the relationship between Opal and her father change from the beginning of the book to the end? Give at least 3 examples of this change and what made the change occur.
• Write a list of 10 qualities that describe who you are. Use the list of things about Opal's mom to help you get started.

Check out the Because of Winn-Dixie movie (& leave a comment to let me know how it is!)

DiCamillo, Kate. Because of Winn-Dixie . Cambridge, Mass.: Candlewick Press, 2000. Print.
Newbery Honor Book

Happy Reading (&Running) =)