Top+10+Books+I+Can't+Live+Without...right+now!

 **Hope you like them too :)**

 * // Pete the Cat: //**** //Rocking in My School Shoes// by Eric Litwin **

**Summary:** Pete the Cat is rocking in his school shoes as he goes to school for the first time. He does lots of new things at school but he's never worried because it's all good
 * Reading **** Strategies to Practice: ** Activating Background Knowledge, Making Predictions, Making Connections **Writing Strategies to Practice:** Personal Narrative, Persuasive
 * Writing Prompts: **
 * Write about a time in your life when you had to do something new and how you felt - did you worry or were you relaxed like Pete?
 * What kind of shoes should Pete wear next...or where should Pete go in his shoes?
 * Write a letter to Pete to convince him what shoes to wear or where to go!


 * //Whopper Cake// by Karma **** Wilson **

**Writing Strategies to Practice:** Expository **Writing Prompts:**
 * Summary: ** Grandpa wants to surprise Grandma with an extraordinarily large chocolate cake for her birthday! Can he pull it off? And who'll clean up the mess?
 * Reading **** Strategies to Practice: ** Activating Background Knowledge, Making Connections
 * Write step-by-step directions to explain how you would decorate your whopper cake to surprise someone for his or her birthday.
 * Write a letter to explain to your parents what kind of birthday cake you would like.

** //A Book of Sleep// by Il Sung Na **

** Summary: ** All the animals go to sleep except for the watchful owl who observes the animals as they sleep through the night. ** Reading Strategies to Practice: ** Activating Background Knowledge, Making Connections, Asking Questions **Writing Strategies to Practice:** Mood, Tone, Attention Grabbers **Writing Prompts:** Use the first line from this book as a model for your own attention grabbing first line - think of something that everyone is doing...except for _. Write about what you might see if you stayed awake when everyone else goes to sleep at night.

** //Where in the Wild?// By David M. Schwartz and Yael Schy **

**Summary:** Introduces animal camouflage through poetry, photography, and informative facts. Poems with clues prompt readers to guess the identities of ten camouflaged animals, revealed in gatefolds, and fact pages present information on each species, discussing their camouflage and life cycles.

**Why I like it:** This book encourages students to look carefully and after reading it children should be encouraged to look for ways in which living things use camouflage in their own environment. This lesson will help students build an understanding of the idea that camouflage is a form of protection.

**How you can use it:** Go across the curriculum with this book! Here’s a link to ideas galore:

** __ http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/teachers_guides/9781582462073.pdf __ **


 * //The Artist who Painted a Blue Horse// by Eric Carle **

**Summary:** An artist paints the world as seen through the imaginative eyes of a child.

**Why I like it:** The text begins, "I am an artist and I paint." with each page displaying a different animal labeled with its name and color. The artist appears very pleased with his cheerful creations. The book was inspired by Franz Marc, whose work was banned during the Nazi regime. The book all but dares readers to think outside the box. It encourages young artists to use their creative powers to the fullest.


 * //If…// by Sarah Perry **

**Summary:** Illustrations present such imaginative possibilities as worms with wheels, caterpillar toothpaste, and whales in outer space.

**Why I like it:** If... has very little text, but the content and illustrations are extremely powerful. The text and illustrations demand a response, both immediate and in an imaginative "what if " type discussion. Interaction with the text is immediate.

**How I plan to use it:** I will be collaborating with Art and Technology, using this book!


 * //the wonderful happens// by Cynthia Rylant **

**Summary:** Describes some of the things that bring happiness and inspire awe, including a baby bird, fresh-baked bread, snow, clocks, the moon, and more.

**Reading Strategies to Practice:** Activating Background Knowledge, Making Connections

**Why I like it:** The pace and the tone of this book read like //Goodnight Moon//. I love how it celebrates the fact that, although there was a time when you didn't exist, you now do and you are part of the wonderfulness of our world.


 * Writing Prompts: **
 * Write one together as a whole group: a local elementary school, a teacher teaches a class, a wonderful class. Then the group brainstorms ideas for what makes such a wonderful class--listening, teamwork, partnering, etc.. Then the wonderful happened, Mrs. Klein’s class.
 * //Song for a Princess// by Rachael Martimer **

**Summary:** A sad princess is made happy again by a humble, word-loving bird.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">**Why I like it:** While I’m not always a fan of "princess" books, this one caught my eye. The descriptive language and the emphasis on "words" turned this ordinary princess story into a heartwarming tale about picking yourself back up when you’re feeling down.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">**How I will use it:** I immediately thought of a mini-lesson on adjectives. I also like the groupings of word: "shiny" words, "happy" words, "colorful" words. Your class could come up with their own name for "special" words!

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">**Summary:** Story mainly without words, with some English and Arabic. In Sydney, Australia, and in Morocco, two boys and their families have a day of shopping. Readers are invited to compare illustrations in two wordless stories that are intended to be read one from left to right and the other from right to left. <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">**Why I like it:** Although we see strikingly different lifestyles, the families are essentially the same: they care for each other, they need to belong, to be loved by their loved ones and be a part of their community. <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Write "mirror" stories about two characters who at first don’t seem to have much in common: a small child and a monster; an animal and an alien; a toy truck and a real truck; a cat and a dog. <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">//Mirror// by Jeannie Baker **
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Writing prompts: **

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">**Summary:** A parent and child spend a perfect day together, from sunrise to nightfall. <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">**Reading Strategies to Practice:** Activating Background Knowledge, Making Predictions, Making Connections <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">**Writing Strategies to Practice:** Personal Narrative <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Write about a perfect day that you have had with someone special.
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">//A Perfect Day// by Remy Charlip **
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Writing Prompts: **