Here we are again and it's time for THE SUNDAY EVENING POST. I've decided to thank some of my followers by posting favourites that they have used in their classrooms. All three of these women are elementary teachers and have an amazing love of books and children. They all put 110% into their jobs and show great care for their students. So, thank you Chris, Heather and Adrienne for all your hard work with the little ones and happy reading for many years to come.

Caps for Sale
by Esphyr Slobodkina

This book was recommended by my sister-in-law Chris. She has just recently retired from teaching but enjoyed many years as a kindergarten teacher. This is what she had to say about Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina,

"This is a tale about a peddler who encounters some monkeys on his journey from village to village. When the monkeys steal the caps the peddler must rely on his wits to get them back. The simple story, repetition of words and entertaining actions makes this story easy to retell with drama. Children love to be monkeys and mimic the peddler's actions."

Thank you Chis, can't wait to read this myself. Can I be the monkey?

Little Cloud by Eric Carle

 Little Cloud by Eric Carle is recommended by my dear friend Heather. As a mother and teacher specializing in literacy she has a wealth of knowledge to pass on. This is what Heather shared for Little Cloud,

"I have done a reader's theatre and art presentation with this book with my Primaries a number of times. They love it and many of his other books."

Other books by Eric Carle include The Very Hungry Caterpillar, The Mixed-Up Chameleon and 10 Little Rubber Ducks.

Thanks for the suggestion Heather. Classic authors always have a place in the classroom.

 The Paper Bag Princess
by Robert Munsch

The final book this evening is recommended by my old friend Adrienne. She spent many years as an Early Childhood Educator before becoming an elementary teacher with a passion for books. Here are her thoughts on The Paper Bg Princess by Robert Munsch,

"He [Robert Munsch] has a special way of captivating his readers. Most of his books have an element of silliness and repetition. The silliness doesn't show up as much in this book. The story is about a young princess named Elizabeth. Her castle is destroyed by a fierce dragon who also carries off her prince. Courage in hand, she sets out to rescue her prince. The story takes a typical theme of a prince saving the day and changes it to the princess as the heroine. It shows how brave girls can be and lets young girls know they do not need to depend on a boy to save them."

Interesting how a strong independent women chose a book with a strong independent protagonist. Thanks Adrienne!

This week THE SUNDAY EVENING POST brings you books that have interesting design features. As adults we may overlook the importance of text choice, colour, page layout and artwork but to a child these features are very important and add depth to the story. In fact, the pictures may be so important that words do not appear on the page or a picture may give more information that the text. A pictures is worth a thousand words (so I am going to let the books speak for themselves).....WOW pictures books are big reads for little minds!

This book just ate my dog!
by Richard Byrne

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edi_vLqs2RM

This is Not My Hay
By Jon Klassen
 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIIjf9zxQmI

Wave
by Suzy Lee

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTyTwOdpFPY

The SUNDAY EVENING POST is a day late! We had another winter storm yesterday and our internet connection was down. Technology is great, but when it doesn't work our modern lives tend to come to a stand still. Books will always work, no WiFi required!

This week's post is a little different than previous weeks. I work at a French school and as part of La Semaine de Promotoin de l'Éducation en Français, we had a Book-Nic or Pique-Nique aux Livres. So, I decided to post all the books that were read during our Book-Nic (they are all in French).

Each teacher choose 2 or 3 books to read and all the children in the school were in the gym for the activity. Each teacher had a pic-nic blanket and a group of children from various grades. We read our book to the children and then they moved to the next teacher to enjoy another story. The children liked hearing stories from teachers other than their own and some books required active participation, allowing the children to burn off some energy. The groups may not have heard the same book from each teacher or even visited all eight teachers. This fostered impromptu literature discussions among the children after the event. On their own the students shared which stories they had heard, what they had learned from a story or what they liked best about the Book-Nic.

I am shown here reading Coincé by Oliver Jeffers, who is quickly becoming a favourite author.

The following is a complete list of books read by the teachers at my school. If you have a Pique-nique aux livers I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Pat le chat - j'adoremes souliers blancs by Eric Litwin

Pat le chat - j'adore aller à l'école by Eric Litwin

L'arbre bric-à-brac by Nick Bland and Stephen Michael King

Bande de canailles by Karen Beaumont and David Catrow

Un petit lapin brun by Marion Dane Bauer

Sortez de mon livre by Nick Bland

Mmm...des biscuits! by Robert Munch

Petit éléphant est malin by Jullian Harke

A l'extrême by Ian Rohr (French translation by Suzanne Marcotte)

Le language des animaux by Lisa Thompson (French translation by Suzanne Marcotte)

Je suis Louna est je suis un artiste by Bertrand Gauthier

Coincé by Oliver Jeffers

The SUNDAY EVENING POST turns poetic this week as I explore poetry as a venue for children's literature. As a child and young adult I was never very good at (traditional) poetry and just didn't get it. However, there are so many different forms of poetry now that I tend to enjoy it a little more. I now see poems in songs, books, social media and even dance. I have a cousin who has made connections with troubled youth through poetry by texting on cell phones and even shared some of his work at Carnegie Hall in New York City.

The Spoken Word Revolution:
slam, hip hop & the poetry
of a new generation.
Mark Eleveld (editor)

Speaking of youth and poetry, The Spoken Word Revolution: slam, hip hop & the poetry of a new generation is excellent to get youth to enjoy and appreciate poetry. This particular edition includes a CD that will allow listeners and readers to enjoy a wide variety of poetry. Styles range from traditional recitations to electrifying slam performances with some readings having wonderful musical accompaniments. All this adds to the raw text of a poem and brings the words to life. Isn't poetry supposed to be performed? Let's enjoy it that way!

Alligator Pie by Dennie Lee

Alligator Pie is the title of a poem and this anthology of children's poetry. The book includes lots of silliness with wacky illustrations by Frank Newfeld. Children will enjoy poems with titles like, On Tuesdays I Polish My Uncle, The Sitter and the Butter and the Better Batter Fritter and Willaby Wallaby Woo. There is a nice mix of short and long poems with some that make sense and others that are purely gibberish. So, serve up some alligator pie and let me know if it tickles your tastes buds!

Where the Sidewalk Ends by
Shel Silverstein

Published in the same year as Alligator Pie (1974), Where the Sidewalk Ends is another collection of children's poetry. In a 2007 online poll the National Education Association named the book as one of its "Teachers' Top 100 books for children." Accompanied by pencil drawings by Silverstein, the poems explore common childhood concerns as well as including poems purely for fun. The author feels that adults need to jump into the imaginative joyful world of children every once in a while to escape the doom and gloom of adulthood. So, go find out where the sidewalk ends....and grab a child to come along if you like!

THE SUNDAY EVENING POST is all about authors this week. I have decided to focus on 3 authors instead of three books of the same theme. My children and students tend to find an author they like and read "everything" by that author. Perhaps they are conducting mini author studies and really getting to know the design, writing style and artwork of a particular author (and accompanying illustrator).

Mo Willems

From the antics of Elephant and Piggy to letting a pigeon drive a bus, Mo Willems is a creative artist who can capture the attention of an audience from ages 1-100! My children and I first discovered Mo Willems when my mother bought Knuffle Bunny for my boys because there was an Oma and an Opa in the story (we use these terms for their grandparents). We had no idea that we were being introduced to an award winning author. Then, when my son was in grade one, he did an author study on Mo Willems and we all became very familiar with his many quirky characters.

http://www.mowillems.com

Oliver Jeffers

My children were given How to Catch a Star as a gift and we jumped into the world of Oliver Jeffers. We learned how to catch a star, return a penguin to the South Pole, train a moose and eat books. However, our favourite Oliver Jeffers books are all about the Hueys. These silly little creatures live a simple life but learn big lessons. I like that he illustrates his own books and I think some of the text is his actual handwriting. He also has a different childhood picture on the jacket covers for the 'about the author' section. These are other ways to gain insight into a very talented writer and artist

http://www.oliverjeffers.com

Dr. Seuss

Everyone knows Dr. Seuss but I couldn't do an "author study" on children's books without including the zany Dr. Seuss. Timeless treasures that have been read for years and will continue to entertain young and old for generations to come. His stories can teach a child to read with a silly cat in a crazy hat and then make us question our ethics about the environment with beautiful truffula. Take the time to re-discover Dr. Seuss, you'll have a good laugh (and maybe question how he came up with his rhyming vocabulary?).

http://www.seussville.com

With this week's edition of THE SUNDAY EVENING POST I have decided to jump ahead a few years and introduce a few young adult novels that deal with social justice. It is simply a coincidence that all 3 books take place in Southern Asia and focus heavily on the rise of the Taliban regime and the impact on the area.

The Breadwinner
by Deborah Ellis

Written by Canadian author, Deborah Ellis, this book tells the story of a young Afghan girl who had to disguise herself as a boy in order to get food for her family. Ellis, travelled to refugee camps in 1997 where she started gathering interview data that would eventually turn into this award winning book. This children's novel would be appropriate for grade 5 students but cold also be used for struggling high school readers. The issues raised in the book would initiate lively literature discussions at home and at school. This book is the first in a trilogy, so if your young reader enjoys this book, look for Parvana's Journey and Mud City as well.

I Am Malala
by Malala Yousafzai

The subtitle for this book reads: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban. I think this subtitle is quite graphic and grabs the attention of the readers. Many western youth may have trouble understanding the value and desire for education because in Canada it is a right that is taken for granted. Some children would love not to HAVE to go to school. In Pakistan, education is not a right for girl's and, in Malala's case her desire to learn and go to school led to her being shot by the Taliban, hospitalized and eventually leading a global movement to promote education for girls. She has won several awards for her work and is the youngest person ever nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

http://www.malala.org

The Kite Runner
by Khaled Hosseini

This is my favourite book....ever! It is the only book that has made me cry but then had me laughing on the next page. It is an emotional journey that deals with many issues ranging from family relations, aggression, guilt, violence and friendship. Although I read this book as an adult, I have a friend who used it in her grade 12 English classes to help her students explore these social issues. I am told that the discussions were heated and controversial. Isn't that what we want in our youth so they will eventually stand up for injustices in their own communities?

THE SUNDAY EVENING POST comes to you while there is a winter storm raging outside. Is there anything better to do on a stormy Sunday than curl up with a good book......or even a magazine. This week's theme is magazines for children. Recent research has suggested that the most popular reading material for both boys and girls is magazines.

Highlights

Next year will mark the 70th anniversary of the first printing of Highlights! Longevity has merit in the quality of a publication of this type. I remember getting Highlights as a child and the excitement of receiving mail was enormous. That excitement continued when I was finally able to open the pages and dive into the reading, games and activities found inside. Let's hope that the printing will continue for anther 70 years and not be lost in the digital world.

http://www.highlightskids.com

Chirp/ChickaDEE/Owl

The Owl Kids series has magazines for children from ages 3-13 and will meet the needs of many families and classrooms. Like all children, my boys get excited when mail arrives but they also look forward to "graduating" to the next level of magazine. These colourful magazines are filled with puzzles, stories, experiments, crafts and animal facts to entertain kids though reading and to foster a love of lifelong reading.

http://www.owlkids.com/magazines/

OKAPI

This French magazine was recommended to me by a classmate in my Literature for Children and Youth class which I am taking as part of my Master of Education degree. It is aimed at children ages 10-15 and like most youth magazines is colourful, fun and educational.

Ce magazine français m'a été recommandé par un camarade de ma de Littérature pour les Enfants et les Jeunes de classse qui, j'en ai tenant dans le cadre de ma maîtrise en éducation. Elle set destinée à des enfants âges 10-15 et comme la plupart des magazines pour les jeunes est colorée, amusante et pédagogique.

http://www.okapi.fr