Nonfiction Monday

Nonfiction Monday is hosted today by A Teaching Life.

My selection is "Animals in Fall: preparing for winter" by Martha E. H. Rustad with illustrations by Amanda Enright.

 

Fall has finally arrived and here is a book for young readers that explores how animals use this season to prepare for winter.  Five short, easy-to-read chapters: Animals In Fall, Some Animals Go South,  Some Animals Sleep, Some Animals Change, and Ready for Winter lead youngsters through the basics of migration, hibernation and camouflage.  The text is completed with four sections titled: activity, glossary, learn more and index.

Enright's easy, cartoon-style art is a comfortable fit with the simple text.

Poetry Friday

 

Poetry Friday is hosted today  by NoWater River.

My selection is "Wonderful words : poems about reading, writing,speaking, and listening" selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins and illustrated by Karen Barbour.

 

I couldn't resist sharing this fun collection of poems that encourage creativity and invite readers to discover the power and fun of words.  Hopkins' selected verses are by some of our best known poets and  touch on a variety of topics both broad and specific: from finding your own creativity and embracing the joy of reading to works entitled "Metaphor" and "The Period." 

Barbour's boldly colored illustrations are a delight to the eye.

Teachers will find multiple uses for this book as both an introduction to and inspiration for writing.

Writers Wednesday

IGNORE THIS POST -- If you are writing a secret journal to be read only by yourself.

However, if you want to see your work enjoyed and shared by an audience of eager readers, you might find some worthwhile thoughts in the following:

"The Stephen King Guide to Marketing" posted by Jason Kong at Jane Friedman's Blog.

Nonfiction Monday

Nonfiction Monday is hosted today by Wrapped in Foil.

My selection is "Amazing animals :the remarkable things that creatures do" written by Margriet Ruurs and illustrated by W. Allan Hancock.

Ruurs introduces young readers to a variety of creatures ranging from the ostrich (which can run at speeds of 44 miles per hour) to the black ant (capable of lifting ten to twenty times its own weight) as she offers brief discussions of their most remarkable qualities.  Size, strength, speed, diet, and how they care for their young are some of the interesting details provided in thumbnail descriptions that offer the curious reader glimpses into the unusual or bizarre side of animal life --

• The heart of a blue whale weights almost as much as a small car. 
• A slug has three noses.
• The sturgeon can live over one hundred years. 
• The giant Pacific octopus can grow to a length of thirty feet.  
• An earthworm has no eyes, no nose, no ears, and no lungs, but it has five hearts.

Hancock's paintings offer a realistic look at his subjects rather than sensationalizing the creatures he portrays which compliments Ruurs' straight forward narrative.

Nonfiction Monday

Nonfiction Monday Roundup is hosted today by Books Together.

For Nonfiction Monday - - "Space, stars, and the beginning of time : what the Hubble telescope saw" by Elaine Scott.

Scott acquaints readers with the remarkable science and glorious images provided by the Hubble .  She leads  readers through a brief history of the telescope, explains the work of the Hubble and describes the present discoveries and future potential offered by the Hubble as it completes its mission. 

The text is informative and illustrated with breath-taking images from deep space provided by the Hubble's cameras.

Poetry Friday

Poetry Friday is hosted today  by Write. Sketch. Repeat.

My selection is "There's no place like school : classroom poems" selected by Jack Prelutsky  with illustrations by Jane Manning.

 

 

From the rush to the morning school bus, through show and tell and the lunchroom to the closing bell -- it's back to school with eighteen poems by some of the craft's most well known names including Lee Bennett Hopkins and Jack Prelutsky. 

Short, light-hearted and fun, the verses delve into some of the familiar experiences and asks age old questions such as why the teacher only seems to call on me when I don't know the answer.