Karen Kaufman Orloff wrote I Wanna Iguana, which quickly became one of my favorite texts to use with my students to teach voice in persuasive letter writing. She's out with a new book, I Wanna New Room, which can be added to my growing list of touchstone texts for a persuasive unit. If you're familiar… Continue reading A Persuasive Touchstone Text
Category: mentor texts
Bilingual Christmas Story + A Giveaway
I've been looking for a good story about Christmas to share for quite a few weeks. Most of the books I've received were either too religious for use in public school classrooms or didn't seem like they'd inspire students. But then, I received a review copy of Xavier Garza's Charro Claus and the Tejas Kid… Continue reading Bilingual Christmas Story + A Giveaway
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Needs vs. Wants + 2 Book Giveaways
Every morning I receive an e-mail from Zulily.com, which entices me with products for my baby, who is supposed to arrive early next month. Zulily always has fantastic merchandise (e.g., clothes, toys, accessories) at a discount price daily. I want to buy nearly everything I see. However, I realize that I don't need most of… Continue reading Needs vs. Wants + 2 Book Giveaways
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Chanukah Poems + A Book Giveaway
As a practicing Jew, I'm a little perplexed about the popularity of Chanukah. Chanukah is a minor holiday. It doesn't have the same religious significance as Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Passover, and Shavuot. Yet, Chanukah gets more attention than the other ones since it falls around Christmastime each year. I've been searching for holiday-related… Continue reading Chanukah Poems + A Book Giveaway
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A Story About Adoption + A Book Giveaway
Sweet Moon Baby: An Adoption Tale, which is written by Karen Henry Clark and illustrated by Patrice Barton, was released last month. When I received my review copy, from Knopf Delacorte Dell Young Readers Group, I began reading it and felt tears well-up in my eyes. The lump in my throat stayed throughout the entire… Continue reading A Story About Adoption + A Book Giveaway
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Ugly Fish + Giveaway: Bullying Series
We've all dealt with people who subscribe to the philosophy of "what's mine is mine and what's yours is mine." In fact, most of us have taught those children at least once (Let's be real, MANY TIMES!) in our teaching careers. Additionally, we've all worked with students who taunt others just to get a rise… Continue reading Ugly Fish + Giveaway: Bullying Series
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Goal + Giveaway: Bullying Series
Games bring people together. Soccer is no different. Goal, which is written by Mina Javaherbin and illustrated by A.G. Ford, is a story about a group of South African boys who come together to enjoy a pick-up game of soccer despite a group of bullies who try to steal their brand-new, federation-size soccer ball. Readers… Continue reading Goal + Giveaway: Bullying Series
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Boss Baby + Giveaways: Bullying Series
This post is the first of four posts I'll be writing this month about bullying-related literature you can use with your students. Click here to learn more about this special series on bullying. Be sure to check out the giveaway Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division is doing this week for readers of this blog… Continue reading Boss Baby + Giveaways: Bullying Series
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A Poetry Book for Boys
Bob Raczka and Peter H. Reynolds' new book, Guyku: A Year of Haiku for Boys, was released earlier this month. Guyku is a book of seasonal haiku poems written with a young male audience in mind. The nature-related poems by Raczka are enhanced with classic Reynolds illustrations. The writing and the illustrations are extremely appealing… Continue reading A Poetry Book for Boys
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Beyond Meow and Woof
Stanley's Little Sister is the newest book in the Stanley series. (Check out the giveaway Kids Can Press is doing for readers of this blog post. Details follow at the bottom of this post.) It's written by Linda Bailey and illustrated by Bill Slavin for children in pre-school through second grade. While the characters in… Continue reading Beyond Meow and Woof
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Highlights from the Week
I have been in a lot of different writing workshops lately. Just this week I've been in 13 writing workshops and have met with 13 different teachers in either reflective practice meetings or planning meetings. Therefore, I have SO MUCH I want to record. Which leads me to my current dilemma: what do I not… Continue reading Highlights from the Week
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Worst Case Scenario Blog Tour + Book Giveaway
This post is part of two-week long The WORST-CASE SCENARIO Survival Handbook: Gross Junior Edition Blog Tour, which is co-authored by David Borgenicht, Nathaniel Marunas, and Robin Epstein; illustrated by Chuck Gonzales. We're hosting a giveaway for The WORST-CASE SCENARIO Survival Handbook: Gross Junior Edition. To win a copy of leave a comment about this… Continue reading Worst Case Scenario Blog Tour + Book Giveaway
