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Olive's Ocean
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From: Becky Stephens <bbstephens>
Date: Wed, 4 Feb 2004 22:45:01 -0500
Sheila and All,
I haven't read Olive's Ocean aloud but one of my admittedly sophisticated readers (female) in 4th grade read and loved it. So it can be used with mature 4th graders and certainly with thoughtful 5th grade readers. Right now The Tale of Despereaux is quite a hit with my 5th grade lunch bunch as a read aloud. Students are laughing out loud and a couple have invited their parents to sit in.
Becky Stephens Library Media Specialist Hearn Elementary Frankfort, KY
Adjunct faculty University of Kentucky LIS 510 Children's Literature
-----Original Message---- From: Sheila A Welch [mailto:sheilawelch at juno.com]
Sent: Wednesday, February 04, 2004 9:44 PM
To: Subscribers of ccbc-net
Subject: [ccbc-net] Olive's Ocean
Hello,
I agree with all the positive comments about Olive's Ocean that have been expressed so far. I loved it too and hoped it'd win the Newbery. ( But then, I haven't yet read The Tale of Despereaux.) I've been an admirer of Henkes's quiet, sensitive novels for some time and am thrilled that he's gotten this recognition. Every time I read one of his stories, I feel a connection with the characters that seems quite personal. The girl in Protecting Marie was so much like our daughter when she was that age. I thought I had a clever, original idea when I put water and food coloring in old bottles and set them on my windowsill -- only to find the grandmother in Olive's Ocean using baby food jars in the same manner.
I do wonder how middle grade children react to his books. Anyone have any experience with this book or his others with 4th --6th graders? A friend's 13-year-old daughter read Olive's Ocean and loved it, so maybe his work is best suited for the older end of middle-grade. Did someone already mention the short chapters? The whole novel is quite sparely written, and the length of the chapters seemed in keeping with that style.
Ruth's observations about this book being best read to oneself made sense to me. Of course, those "salty" words might create a problem in some schools, but the intimacy would also be lost in a group setting. Some books are private worlds that readers need to visit without the intrusion of their real environment. But it'd be interesting to hear from any teachers who've read it out loud to their classes.
There's a wonderful interview with Henkes in a recent Booklist.
Sheila Welch
On Tue, 3 Feb 2004 12:54:23 00 druthgo at sonic.net (Ruth I Gordon) writes:
Received on Wed 04 Feb 2004 09:45:01 PM CST
Date: Wed, 4 Feb 2004 22:45:01 -0500
Sheila and All,
I haven't read Olive's Ocean aloud but one of my admittedly sophisticated readers (female) in 4th grade read and loved it. So it can be used with mature 4th graders and certainly with thoughtful 5th grade readers. Right now The Tale of Despereaux is quite a hit with my 5th grade lunch bunch as a read aloud. Students are laughing out loud and a couple have invited their parents to sit in.
Becky Stephens Library Media Specialist Hearn Elementary Frankfort, KY
Adjunct faculty University of Kentucky LIS 510 Children's Literature
-----Original Message---- From: Sheila A Welch [mailto:sheilawelch at juno.com]
Sent: Wednesday, February 04, 2004 9:44 PM
To: Subscribers of ccbc-net
Subject: [ccbc-net] Olive's Ocean
Hello,
I agree with all the positive comments about Olive's Ocean that have been expressed so far. I loved it too and hoped it'd win the Newbery. ( But then, I haven't yet read The Tale of Despereaux.) I've been an admirer of Henkes's quiet, sensitive novels for some time and am thrilled that he's gotten this recognition. Every time I read one of his stories, I feel a connection with the characters that seems quite personal. The girl in Protecting Marie was so much like our daughter when she was that age. I thought I had a clever, original idea when I put water and food coloring in old bottles and set them on my windowsill -- only to find the grandmother in Olive's Ocean using baby food jars in the same manner.
I do wonder how middle grade children react to his books. Anyone have any experience with this book or his others with 4th --6th graders? A friend's 13-year-old daughter read Olive's Ocean and loved it, so maybe his work is best suited for the older end of middle-grade. Did someone already mention the short chapters? The whole novel is quite sparely written, and the length of the chapters seemed in keeping with that style.
Ruth's observations about this book being best read to oneself made sense to me. Of course, those "salty" words might create a problem in some schools, but the intimacy would also be lost in a group setting. Some books are private worlds that readers need to visit without the intrusion of their real environment. But it'd be interesting to hear from any teachers who've read it out loud to their classes.
There's a wonderful interview with Henkes in a recent Booklist.
Sheila Welch
On Tue, 3 Feb 2004 12:54:23 00 druthgo at sonic.net (Ruth I Gordon) writes:
Received on Wed 04 Feb 2004 09:45:01 PM CST
