Tanner students have been learning about book awards and voted on the Mock Caldecott Award. They looked at the art work in many books and choose the one they thought had unique pictures that helped to tell the story. The winner is Bright Star by Yuyi Morales.
Lala's Words: A Story of Planting Kindness by Gracey Zhang
This book celebrates the unassuming power of kind words and is the perfect book to share during the month of February. Every day, no matter how hot, Lala carries a pot of water around the corner to a patch of dirt and concrete, waters the tiny weeds, and whispers words of encouragement. When mom no longer allows her to go, she whispers words of love out her window with magical results. You will experience what happens when when kind and compassionate words are spoken.
Hello, Star by Stephanie V.W. Lucianovic and Vashti Harrison
What an inspiring story about a love of science and the importance of empathy. The young girl learns that a bright light in the sky is coming from a dying star and promises to keep it company until the light goes out. As the years pass, the girl learns everything she can about planets, space, and the universe until she realizes she needs to do something more. Her love of science propels her to become an astronaut. That small act of compassion flourished into a life full of meaning and wonder.
If you want to use this book with your class, check out the teaching tips.
There's nothing like the real thing, but sometimes a field trip is simply out of the question (like going to the moon). Although there are lots of types of videos on YouTube, searching for a 360° video can give you the ability to explore a new place in every direction. It goes beyond a "regular" video and gives the feel of being behind the camera.
To locate a virtual field trip type in your search term then use the filters and click on 360°
One of my favorite days...the book awards are announced. I always love it when our library already has some of the award winning books.
We are very fortunate to receive books donated by the Joyce and Les Abel Foundation. We are grateful for the gifts and the positive messages that they send our students.
The students have been learning about book awards and will be voting to choose a Mock Caldecott winner for Tanner Elementary. Three awards they have learned about are the Caldecott, the Geisel, and the Coretta Scott King. The Caldecott Award is awarded to the book with the best pictures. Students have been exploring books using various mediums to create pictures in the books. They have seen stitching made with yarn, crayon, pencil, watercolor, and ink. After experiencing many new books they will vote for their favorite. The ALA Youth Media Awards will be announced on Monday, January 24.
A poetic narrative, with thoughtful illustrations depicting a young boy trying to find the right words to start a story. It reminds me of when I have a task that I deem hard or not fun and have trouble beginning. I know our students have those same experiences. The sequence of events in this book will feel familiar to writers and especially reassuring to new, young ones as they watch how finding ideas takes time and focus. The little boy shows perseverance as he goes through the writing process and is a great book to share with your young writers.
Virtual manipulatives are great to use with a whole class (like with an interactive whiteboard) or 1:1 with student devices. Check out these manipulatives from Didax.
Kindergarten learned how to code using the Kodable app. They showed perseverance as they worked through coding Mr Fuzz through the maze.
