Reach Out and Touch the Page

Lois Ehlert is one of the best illustrators out there, in my very humble opinion. Her medium is collage and she infuses natural elements, as well as found objects, into her art. Her pictures are so detailed and textured, that you can't help but touch the page thinking you will feel the birds' feathers, the butterflies' wings or the dogs' fur.

Many of her books that she has worked on have science connections, so I have used a lot of them in my lessons. The books that she also authors are mostly written on a primary level, so they are perfect for kinders and first graders.

Isaac is a science kid, so I try to bring home books that match his interests. He also has a quirky sense of humor, so I also look for books that will make him laugh. Ehlert has two books out this year that fit the bill.

Ten Little Caterpillars is written by Bill Martin (Brown Bear, Brown Bear) and his collaboration with Ehlert on this book is reminiscent of his work with Eric Carle. It is a life cycle book, but the added details in the labeling and the illustrations make it stand out.

My favorite of her new books, though, and the one that got Isaac laughing, is Rrralph. Remember all of those bad "talking dog" puns that made you groan? They are all here in this story. They still make you groan, but you giggle, too. The dog in the story, with his tab top nose and zipper mouth is adorable.

Fall is a perfect time to enjoy Ehlert's books. Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf and Leaf Man are two you should check out, especially once all of the color is gone from the trees.

Rocks In Her Head

I came across a really cool book that I just loved and I shared it with Isaac and a lit group I am participating in. It is a concept book, but a very unique one. As I told a teacher the other day, not all picture books are created equal and this one definitely has an edge.

If Rocks Could Sing by Leslie McGuirk uses rocks that the author collected over a ten year period of time to illustrate the letters of the alphabet and the object or concept that the author chose to have them represent. All of the rocks were found along the shore, mostly near the author's home in Florida. The rocks and other, mostly natural, elements are photographed in creative vignettes. Some letters are connected to something concrete (B is for Bird), while others have a more abstract relationship to their concept (J is for Joy represented by large and small fish shaped rocks).

The book is visually stunning, but what I found even more intriguing was the author's dedication to the project. Spending over a decade of your life slowly building toward a goal, the last bit of it waiting to happen upon the perfect rock for that last letter (I think it was "k") is commitment that few people can relate to.

And did I mention all of the rocks were found on the beach? Makes me want to go to Florida and escape the cold.

Here We Go . . .

We had a conference with Isaac's teacher last week. He is doing well, progressing with his reading and catching on quick in math. But he likes to talk. So much so that there are days he is not finishing his class work because he is talking too much. Who would have thought our son would be a talker?

He is sitting right now, actually, finished with his breakfast, trying to get his homework done before school. He didn't do it last night because he had so much class work to finish. The talking doesn't bother me as much as the not finishing. He can talk all he wants as long as he has done what he needs to do.

In the conference we went over his DRA and DIBELS scores. These are the assessments that our county uses for reading. I am a teacher, though I do not administer these assessments, and I don't even really understand them. But his teacher says he is a certain level, so I will be bringing books home to read with him to give him extra support in building his independent reading skills.

I probably won't be writing about those books this month, though. They are not the most fascinating reading. I do have a list of many others that I want to share, so hopefully I will have enough to get me through the National Blog Posting Month challenge.

Check back each day . . . I promise to try to have a new post for you.

Do I Dare?

I am considering participating in the National Blog Posting Month Challenge. It requires daily posts throughout the month of November.

That is a lot of books. Not sure I am up to it. But I might give it a try. There are lots of good books out there to write about.

Check back in November to see if I make it through.

Read Kiddo, Read

A friend posted the link to this article on Facebook earlier this week.

How to Get Your Kid to Be a Fanatic Reader by James Patterson

He makes a point that is close to my heart -- parents are kids' first reading role models and they need to be actively involved in their kids reading lives, including helping their children find books that they love. He makes other really good points, as well, about how to find books kids will love, mentioning numerous resources.

He plugs his own reading site, ReadKiddoRead.com, which is a pretty good resource. It has books lists on multiple reading and age levels, lesson plans on the Educators page (though some of the links are bad), interviews with children's authors, and tips for raising readers.

Getting kids to read is a hot topic. As an educator, it's nice to know there are advocates out there for spreading the responsibility beyond the school walls. Not that schools are off the hook, and I am trying to meet the standards that Patterson sets in my library and as a parent.