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Re: Non-Fiction: Rules of Engagement
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From: Monica Edinger <monicaedinger_at_gmail.com>
Date: Sat, 10 Mar 2012 13:29:44 -0500
I've been following this discussion with great interest. A 4th grade teacher with a great interest in the teaching of history, I'm always on the look-out for good books to share with my students. And while I appreciate the distinction between K and L, I have to admit that when I looked through my shelves for the books that I felt spoke most to my young students, it is the K ones that stand out. I believe this is because those are what my students respond to most at their developmental stage. They enjoy collecting facts; gaining knowledge about something they care about is of greater interest than reading about someone else's journey in the process of gaining knowledge.
As for the Common Core recommendations, one easy way to achieve parity would be with picture book read alouds. Certainly, I have always read a lot of informational ones aloud to my 4th graders. That is in addition to using informational books extensively in our history studies. (And maybe now at last someone will bring the Roops' wonderful Pilgrim Voices back into print? Please? They did a wonderful job editing the main primary sources about the Mayflower passengers and illustrating them well. I've managed to track down some used, but kids still misplace them every year and my collection is might slim.)
One L book that came to mind for this younger age group that does indeed speak to them about the research and creation journey is Deborah Hopkinson's and John Hendrix's picture book *Abe Lincoln Crosses a Creek*. Author and illustrator together do a fantastic job unpacking what we know is true and what we don't in a highly entertaining, engaging, and age-appropriate way.
I agree with others who have already spoken of the elegant variety of informational picture books. Many of those I admire have already been mentioned. I appreciate the following for spare and elegant text, compelling voice, original design, fresh ways of presenting information, superb research, and engaging illustrations.
Brian Floca's *Moonshot* Vaunda Micheaux Nelson's *Bad News for Outlaws* Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan's *Ballet for Martha* Penda Diakite and Baba Wague Diakite's *I Lost My Tooth in Africa* David McLimans' *Gone Wild: An Endangered Animal Alphabet* Mohieddin Ellabbad's *The Illustrator's Notebook* Patrick McDonnell's *Me...Jane* David L. Weitzman's *Pharaoh's Boat* Hudson Talbott's *River of Dreams* Jen Bryan and Melissa Sweet's *A River of Words* Barbara Kerley and Edwin Forthingham's *What to Do About Alice?* * * Monica
Monica Edinger 600 West 111th Street Apt 2A New York NY 10025 educating alice _at_medinger on twitter My Huffington Post Blog
Received on Sat 10 Mar 2012 01:29:44 PM CST
Date: Sat, 10 Mar 2012 13:29:44 -0500
I've been following this discussion with great interest. A 4th grade teacher with a great interest in the teaching of history, I'm always on the look-out for good books to share with my students. And while I appreciate the distinction between K and L, I have to admit that when I looked through my shelves for the books that I felt spoke most to my young students, it is the K ones that stand out. I believe this is because those are what my students respond to most at their developmental stage. They enjoy collecting facts; gaining knowledge about something they care about is of greater interest than reading about someone else's journey in the process of gaining knowledge.
As for the Common Core recommendations, one easy way to achieve parity would be with picture book read alouds. Certainly, I have always read a lot of informational ones aloud to my 4th graders. That is in addition to using informational books extensively in our history studies. (And maybe now at last someone will bring the Roops' wonderful Pilgrim Voices back into print? Please? They did a wonderful job editing the main primary sources about the Mayflower passengers and illustrating them well. I've managed to track down some used, but kids still misplace them every year and my collection is might slim.)
One L book that came to mind for this younger age group that does indeed speak to them about the research and creation journey is Deborah Hopkinson's and John Hendrix's picture book *Abe Lincoln Crosses a Creek*. Author and illustrator together do a fantastic job unpacking what we know is true and what we don't in a highly entertaining, engaging, and age-appropriate way.
I agree with others who have already spoken of the elegant variety of informational picture books. Many of those I admire have already been mentioned. I appreciate the following for spare and elegant text, compelling voice, original design, fresh ways of presenting information, superb research, and engaging illustrations.
Brian Floca's *Moonshot* Vaunda Micheaux Nelson's *Bad News for Outlaws* Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan's *Ballet for Martha* Penda Diakite and Baba Wague Diakite's *I Lost My Tooth in Africa* David McLimans' *Gone Wild: An Endangered Animal Alphabet* Mohieddin Ellabbad's *The Illustrator's Notebook* Patrick McDonnell's *Me...Jane* David L. Weitzman's *Pharaoh's Boat* Hudson Talbott's *River of Dreams* Jen Bryan and Melissa Sweet's *A River of Words* Barbara Kerley and Edwin Forthingham's *What to Do About Alice?* * * Monica
Monica Edinger 600 West 111th Street Apt 2A New York NY 10025 educating alice _at_medinger on twitter My Huffington Post Blog
Received on Sat 10 Mar 2012 01:29:44 PM CST
