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Smile
by Raina Telgemeier
AR 2.6
Genre: Realistic Fiction/Graphic Novel
One night after a Girl Scout meeting, Raina trips and falls down resulting in a serious injury to her two front teeth. It's an accident that changes everything as she learns to deal with bullies, overcome adversity, and persist through the ordeals of multiple dental surgeries and procedures to bring back her smile. The story is based on the author's life and has many valuable lessons to share.
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14 Cows for America
by Carmen Agra Deedy/illustrated by Thomas Gonzalez
AR 4.1
Genre: Nonfiction/327.676 - International Relations
When America was attacked on September 11, 2001, there was an outpouring of support from other countries. Those of us who were old enough (not my elementary students, who weren't even born yet!) can remember headlines like Le Monde's "We Are All Americans" declaring that support to the world. Many of us may not have heard the story of a small village in Kenya that signified their support by donating their most cherished possessions in honor of America. This is the story of how the village learned of the tragedy many months later. Kimeli Naiyomah was living in New York City on September 11, 2001, and returned to his village the following spring. When he asked the elders if he could offer his only cow - a symbol of life - they give their blessing. His gift inspired others in the village to do the same. The story ends with this powerful sentiment: "There is no nation so powerful it cannot be wounded, nor a people so small they cannot offer mighty comfort."
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Bridges! Amazing Structures to Design, Build & Test
by Carol A. Johmann and Elizabeth J. Rieth
illustrations by Michael Kline
Genre: Nonfiction/624.2 - Civil Engineering
Blending science, history, and hands-on activities, this book teaches you all about bridge-building basics. You will not only learn about the different types of bridges, but also the many different professionals involved in designing and constructing them. For each chapter, there are projects and suggestions for students to make decisions about materials, costs, and design of bridges. The last chapter is a list of bridges by state representing the different styles of bridges. I would pair this with a Google Earth search for a virtual tour of bridges, and of course hands-on bridge building activities!
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Discovering New Planets
by Mae Jemison and Dana Meachun Rau
A.R. 5.5
Genre: Nonfiction/523.2 - Astronomy
Ever since Mike Brown (Huntsville native and Grissom High School graduate, by the way) discovered a dwarf planet that led the scientific community to demote Pluto as one of the 9 planets in our solar system, I have found the space research more interesting. It truly is the last frontier! Learn about how planets are made, discovered, and explored by reading this book. Then, be thankful that we live in a community so close to Huntsville, Alabama where you can explore your interest deeper at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center, meet local scientists working on these issues, and carve out a career for yourself some day.
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The 100 Year Starship
by Mae Jemison and Dana Meachun Rau
A.R. 5.6
Genre: Nonfiction/629.45 - Astronautics
Did you know that NASA and DARPA are working on a plan for interplanetary space travel? That's the space beyond our solar system! Of course, this isn't necessarily new as you will find by reading the book. NASA has been researching this since the 1970s. In that time, they've cut the travel time from 70,000 years to about 40,000 years. Dr. Jemison, co-author of this book, is leading the 100-Year project to figure out how to address all the challenges of interplanetary space travel, including how to get there, how to survive once there, and why this all matters.
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D-Day
Days that Changed the World Series
by Colin Hynson
A.R. 8.3
Genre: Nonfiction/940.54 - Military History of World War II
The soldiers' courage on that day overwhelms me every time I read about it. This book introduces the D-Day landing by providing the events that led up to the invasions at Normandy, Omaha, Utah, Gold, Juno, and Sword beaches. Then, it follows the soldiers liberation of France, Belgium, and Holland on their way to defeating Germany in battles on their own soil. It's an information packed text that is sure to make you understand why the men and women who fought and supported that war through efforts at home are rightly known as The Greatest Generation.
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Noah's Ark
by Jerry Pinkney
A.R. 3.3
Genre: Nonfiction/222 - Historical books of Old Testament
Caldecott Honor Book
This picture book adaptation of the flood story from the Bible portrays the ark construction, the migration of the animals to the ark, the 40 days of falling rains, and the final receding of the waters beautifully. The larger format helps to convey the epic nature of this story. I read the dedication, "to the caretakers of all things, big and small" as a call to us all to be stewards of the land and life around us.
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The One and Only Ivan
by Katherine Applegate
A.R. 4.0
Genre: Fantasy
Newbery Award
This is the story of the real-life Ivan, an ape held as the main attraction in the Big Top Mall and Video Arcade. He spends his time watching TV and talking to his friends, Stella, an elderly elephant, and Bob, the stray dog. He has human friends, too, and will need to find a way to communicate with them to keep his promise to Stella. The events in the story are not real, but the emotions they create definitely are. You will cheer for Ivan, think a little deeper about your own humanity, and never forget this book.
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Nursery Rhyme Comics
by Charles Duffy
A.R. 3.8
Genre: Nonfiction/398.8 Nursery Rhymes
Collaborating with 50 famous cartoonists, Duffy has compiled a collection of nursery rhymes in comic form. Today, students know fewer nursery rhymes than they have in the past. This collection will help introduce them to the classics in a unique way. There are some tough vocabulary words in some of these nursery rhymes and the comic illustrations give young readers visual cues to help them understand. We have access to several comic strip and animation apps that students can use to create their own comic versions of nursery rhymes once inspired by this collection.
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The Milk Makers
by Gail Gibbons
A.R. 3.0
Genre: Nonfiction/637 - Farming
This book begins with the cows grazing in the field and ends with a family sitting at a table enjoying their carton of milk from the grocery store. In between, the reader learns about all the things the cow and the farmer does to bring that milk to the market. The informative, engaging writing is accompanied by beautiful drawings with labels and diagrams to help explain all the complicated processes.
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Old Liberty Bell
by Frances Rogers and Alice Beard
Genre: Nonfiction/974.8 - American History
This book was published in 1942 making it a good candidate for weeding except that it is so interesting. It tells the story of the liberty bell from its commission by the Assembly of the Province of Pennsylvania in 1752 through its participating in the 150th anniversary of Independence Day in 1926 (which was less than 20 years prior to the publication of this book!). You'll learn how it got the famous crack, how it was saved during the Revolutionary War, and how it was used throughout our history to ring for freedom and liberty.
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Jim Thorpe's Bright Path
by Joseph Bruchac, illustrated by S.D. Nelson
A.R. 5.5
Genre: Biography
Jim Thorpe was a Native American born in 1887. He had to overcome many personal hardships, including the loss of both parents and his twin brother before he finished high school. He remained devoted to hard work and developing his athletic potential eventually winning gold medals in pentathlon and decathlon at the summer Olympic games and playing professional baseball and football. In 1999, Congress passed a resolution honoring him as the athlete of the century. I'm guessing many of my students still have never heard of him. These shorter biographies for the upper grade level readers don't get as much attention as they should. I need to do a better job promoting them so that students can learn from the triumphs and trials of ordinary people that became famous.
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Elvis Presley
by Adele Q. Brown
A.R. 6.8
Genre: Biography
I dare say, all of my students have heard of Elvis. This is a thorough biography of Elvis's early life through his death. It's a great text for teaching nonfiction reading skills too, with plenty of captions, timelines, insets, and headings/subheadings to organize the information. A child of the 70s, I knew most of the facts here except for one disturbing new one for me - Elvis received his only failing grade in music class. It really makes you think, as a teacher, about how to authentically assess what your students know and can do in a given subject.
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The Elements (A True Book series)
by Matt Mullins
A.R. 6.0
Genre: Nonfiction/546 - Chemistry
Like all the books in the True Book series, this text begins with a true or false question to frame your reading. Did you know that chemistry developed out of attempts to find a way to make gold from less expensive matter and to find a potion that could extend life? The elements are the building blocks for all matter, which is the focus of chemistry. Eye-catching pictures, diagrams, and captions draw your attention to key facts while the text is organized in concise sections to aid comprehension. You'll learn all the famous scientists in chemistry, including Boyle, Brand, Mendeleev, Ramsey, Rutherford, and Newton and how their contributions led to the creation of the periodic table we know today. Read this book to learn all about how the periodic table is used to organize elements and how scientists are still discovering new elements today.
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