Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday: Fourteen favourites of 2014 (Part 2)

Posted on December 31, 2014 by carriegelson

I am thrilled to share my favourite fourteen nonfiction titles of 2014!

I love books. As in absolutely adore, frequently gush over, make piles, make lists, always reading kind of #booklove devotion. If you had asked me to talk favourites a few years ago, a nonfiction title would have made it on the list here and there. I have always appreciated the power of the nonfiction read aloud but . . . it wasn’t until I began participating in the nonfiction picture book challenges organized by Alyson Beecher (from Kid Lit Frenzy) that I have become absolutely smitten with nonfiction titles.

I have been busily tweeting about this as of late . . .

With each nonfiction picture book I read, I am more convinced of the importance of the nonfiction read aloud #nfpb2014 #nfforkids

— Carrie Gelson (@CarrieGelson) December 23, 2014

@alybee930 Always get excited buying new books but must admit, I get most excited about nonfiction as know it means years of learning ahead

— Carrie Gelson (@CarrieGelson) December 21, 2014

@Loveofxena @alybee930 Exactly – and helps to develop background knowledge, a sense of wonder, connections to other learning Rich reading

— Carrie Gelson (@CarrieGelson) December 24, 2014

I am thrilled to renew my commitment to nonfiction reading by participating in the #nfpb2015 challenge! The more nonfiction I read, the more I learn and the more my students ultimately benefit.

More about my favourites of 2014. If these titles are not on your already read and loved or must read radar, consider adding them to the list!

Ivan: The Remarkable True Story of the Shopping Mall Gorilla written by Katherine Applegate and illustrated by G. Brian Karas

The Right Word: Roget and his Thesaurus written by Jen Bryant and illustrated by Melissa Sweet

Gravity by Jason Chin

Tiny Creatures: The World of Microbes written by Nicola Davies and illustrated by Emily Sutton

Weeds Find a Way written by Cindy Jenson-Elliott and illustrated by Carolyn Fisher

Shackleton’s Journey by William Grill

Eye to Eye: How Animals See The World by Steve Jenkins

Creature Features: 25 Animals Explain Why They Look the Way They Do by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page

Born in the Wild: Baby Mammals and their Parents by Lita Judge

A Boy and A Jaguar written by Alan Rabinowitz and illustrated by Cátia Chien

Neighborhood Sharks: Hunting with the Great Whites of California’s Farallon Islands by Katherine Roy

Winter Bees and Other Poems of the Cold by Joyce Sidman and Rick Allen

Star Stuff: Carl Sagan and the Mysteries of the Cosmos by Stephanie Roth Sisson

Feathers Not Just for Flying written by Melissa Stewart and illustrated by Sarah S. Brannen

I have included picture books here but must also note that Chasing Cheetahs: The Race to Save Africa’s Fastest Cats written by Sy Montgomery with photographs by Nic Bishop was an absolute favourite of the year.

I am also pleased to report that I more than met my goal of reading 65 nonfiction picture books this year. Grand total: 144 titles! 🙂

What are your favourites of the year?

Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday: Nonfiction “on the go” in our room

Posted on December 17, 2014 by carriegelson

There are many ways you might know that nonfiction titles are important and well utilized in our classroom.

First of all, there are the visual clues. Some are organized by me – like our new book shelf full of titles on display that I have recently read or book talked. We add books here frequently and then switch them out and make room for more. Some live here for a while because they are very popular and students want to be able to find them easily. Some live here for just a little while – they are added when a reference comes up in a discussion for those students who want to read more. Centipedes came out when I read about a centipede in a silly poem and we talked about how many legs a centipede actually has and whether or not it was an insect. We talked about the word gnaw in word work and someone talked about how beavers and rats gnaw on things. I put a book about beavers on display. Fantastic Feet was a book by Melissa Stewart that I bought for the classroom recently. Lots of kids read it and started talking about animal feet and then animal tracks. We added books on these topics.

You can see how this shelf is well used!

We have a shelf like this for fiction titles too. 🙂

We also display book titles we have read with key words used so we can refer to them later. I keep a list of words on a sticky note on the inside cover as we read. These are great for those few minutes of waiting for announcements or when lining people up. For example,

“Think back to the book Salmon Creek, who remembers what an estuary is. Tell the person beside you and then we’ll take answers.”

Some proof of our nonfiction love is highlighted by the students who find connections in the titles they are reading and want to share. This child thought that the African landscape in the book Giraffes was similar to the dry land in San Diego when Kate Sessions (from the book The Tree Lady) arrived in this seaside town and was shocked by the lack of trees.

These boys were very excited to find blue footed boobies in two different nonfiction titles.

But you would also know that we are a class who loves nonfiction titles because we have so many nonfiction read alouds “on the go”. Walk into our room throughout the day and you might find us engaged with a nonfiction text. Currently we are reading pages from . . .

Math Appeal: Mind Stretching Riddles by Greg Tang Illustrated by Harry Briggs

My students love to try and solve a few of these riddles right after recess as we are waiting for students to get to the carpet. It’s great motivation to be on time!

If you aren’t familiar with Tang’s books, check out a sample page on his website.

$Math Appeal Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday: Nonfiction "on the go" in our room There's a Book for That$

Another math title we have on the go is Lifetime: The Amazing Numbers in Animals’ Lives written by Lola Schaefer and illustrated by Christopher Silas Neal

I read a page at a time and we try and come up with all of the questions we would need to ask to figure out how the statement was made. Lots of gathering of information via question asking. For example, we just learned that a kangaroo has 50 joeys in her lifetime. We came up with these questions:

How many joeys does she have at one time? Single birth? Twins? More?
How long do kangaroos live?
How old is a kangaroo when she can have babies?
How many babies does one kangaroo have in a year?

The detailed information in the back of the book gives us all of the answers and then we figure out the math!

Time to Sleep by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page

We read this book every Thursday between Word Work and Reading Workshop. I read about the animal featured on the page and then ask the children to predict or infer to answer questions about the creature we are talking about. There is additional information about each animal in the back of the text. For example, we just read about how the flamingo stands on one leg to conserve energy. After we talked about how this is vastly different from the way we sleep, I then asked the children what they think flamingoes eat, where in the world we might find them and how tall they think they are. After they discussed their ideas with their turn and talk partners, I read the information in the back of the book. Listening for specific information is practiced as I share additional details.

Eye to Eye: How Animals See The World by Steve Jenkins

This is our current nonfiction read aloud that we are reading in depth. We are talking lots, learning lots of new vocabulary and writing some quick summaries of our learning. Our favourite thing? Getting out our rulers and figuring out the actual size of each creature depicted on the page! In the back there is information about the size of each animal talked about. We love predicting and comparing.

“Who thinks a garden snail is smaller than 10 cm or larger than 10 cm? Get ready to mark its length on your ruler . . . Here is its length: ______”

Nonfiction read alouds are never rushed in our classroom. They are springboards for further learning and discussion. When a book is finished, it has become part of our shared knowledge and who we are as learners.

Thanks to Alyson from Kid Lit Frenzy for the inspiration to read and share more nonfiction picture books in 2014. Follow the link to Alyson’s blog to read about more nonfiction books you need to read!

My goal is to read 65 nonfiction picture books for 2014. Progress: 132/65 complete! More than double my original goal!

Gift Books 2014 – twenty picture books to give this season

Posted on December 6, 2014 by carriegelson

What a year in picture books! There are so many amazing titles to choose from. I have certainly not read every book out there. But I have read a lot and there are some that have stood out. Here is my list of twenty. Twenty books I think are absolutely worth owning and therefore, worth gifting. Fantastic titles in both fiction and nonfiction. My criteria? Is it a book that can be shared multiple times? Does it inspire creativity, thinking, inspiration? Does it make the readers think differently? Does it celebrate something important? Is it a book that brings joy? Or does it simply make you laugh? A lot.

With those questions in mind, here is my list:

Listed alphabetically by author.

Ivan: The Remarkable True Story of the Shopping Mall Gorilla written by Katherine Applegate and illustrated by G. Brian Karas

This title is almost too special for words. After I read this book to my class, they wrote Ivan letters. Read more here. A book to inspire talk about how we treat animals and how we treat each other. Ivan’s story is a must read.

Quest by Aaron Becker

Experience the imaginative journey that Becker captures on the page. The reader is pulled through each illustration, all the while attempting to absorb every tiny detail. So wonderful that this is a picture book (wonderfully wordless) so that it can be experienced again and again.

Some Bugs written by Angela Diterlizzi and illustrated by Brendan Wenzel

The text is delightful and the illustrations, divine! You will want to shrink down to insect size and crawl about this insect world.

The Farmer and the Clown by Marla Frazee

This title surprised me with its tenderness, the sweet, the kind. All the more amazing of course, because it is wordless.

The Cat, the Dog, Little Red, the Exploding Eggs, the Wolf, and Grandma written by Diane Fox and illustrated by Christyan Fox

Funny, funny, funny – kind of like having a backseat driver “helping” tell a story. Annoying for the narrator. Amusing for the readers.

Any Questions? by Marie-Louise Gay

Enter Marie-Louise Gay‘s imagination, learn about her story conjuring process and hear a wonderful story . . . My class was completely spellbound by this book. More here.

Julia’s House for Lost Creatures by Ben Hatke

Unique creatures and clever problem solving finesse. Speaks to loneliness and getting along with others with everyone pulling their weight.

Flora and the Penguin by Molly Idle

Wordless. Playful and interactive with lots of flaps and expressions to study. Go ice dancing with Flora and her charming little friend.

Creature Features: 25 Animals Explain Why They Look the Way They Do by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page

Why do certain creatures have these specific features? They will tell you in this gorgeous nonfiction title.

A Perfectly Messed up Story by Patrick McDonnell

Lots of humour. A conversation starter. A book to read together and then to refer to often. Life is full of messes. How are we going to face them?

Sparky! written by Jenny Offill and illustrated by Chris Appelhans

This book is so absolutely charming. And wonderfully slow – yes, like a sloth. It is about our desires and vulnerabilities. The last page will totally get you. This book needs to sit on your family’s bookshelf.

The Girl and the Bicycle by Mark Pett

This book will speak to your heart. Wordless perfection.

A Boy and A Jaguar written by Alan Rabinowitz and illustrated by Cátia Chien

Based on a true story. Gorgeous. Special. It’s a must own and must share. A story of a boy who finds his voice and shares it in the best of ways.

The Adventures of Beekle, The Unimaginary Friend by Dan Santat

A little “imaginary friend” goes in search of his person. What could be better? A book about connection and “meant to be”.

Don’t Play with Your Food by Bob Shea

We need to laugh lots with those we love. Little people will delight in this story. Big people will adore reading it aloud.

Three Bears in a Boat by David Soman

A wonderful story about siblings, mistakes, owning up and doing what’s right. I challenge you to find a favourite illustration. Just stunning.

Feathers Not Just for Flying written by Melissa Stewart and illustrated by Sarah S. Brannen

This book needs an audience! Guessers to be specific. What else could feathers be used for besides flight? Feels like you could pluck some of these feathers right off of the page. Share the book and then come back to it often as you notice birds in your neighbourhood.

Hana Hashimoto, Sixth Violin written by Chieri Uegaki with illustrations by Qin Leng

A story of determination, perseverance and creativity. Absolutely about courage and dreaming. Connections to family. A treasure.

The Pigeon Needs a Bath by Mo Willems

This pigeon is channeling all children who resist, resist, resist the bath and then, absolutely refuse to get out. Have kids? You will relate!

What do you do with an idea? written by Kobi Yamada and illustrated by Mac Besom

I previously described this title as a celebration of imagination and a Must Have/Must Own/Must Share title. I’m still going with that. Tempted?

Books are gifts to treasure! This season give books!

Celebration: The Ups

Posted on December 6, 2014 by carriegelson

It’s December weeks before the holiday break. Lots of people are sick. Stress levels, excitement levels, anxiety levels all peaking. Not everything is smooth sailing. There are ups and there are downs and not a lot of in the middle sailing along.

So “the ups” feel a little more precious.

This is what I celebrate this week. Those moments that I wanted to tangibly capture in my arms and whirl about. The quick instances and the longer, in it, “grooves” that we managed.

All that was good and kept me smiling at the end of every day.

Because, really, I so love what I do.

I celebrate the moments of buddy reading with the K class. This happens Wednesday afternoon but those little Ks light up every time they see my class in the hall. This week I just stood in awe and watched the singing, the story telling, the chanting, the guessing and all of the literacy connections happening.

I celebrate that during our Turn and Talk discussions (all about predictions and wonders) for our new nonfiction title: Eye to Eye: How Animals See The World by Steve Jenkins one child whispered to me:

“Ms. Gelson we’ve only read half a page and already we know so much!”

I was impressed that my students could come up with so many details on how different animals rely on vision to go about their daily lives.

I celebrate that math looks like this: engaged, confident, excited.

I celebrate that one little reader who used to be up and wandering last year in Reading Workshop is now firmly planted in his favourite spot at the carpet and reading his way through the Henry and Mudge series. Hurrah when a reader finds the fit!

I celebrate Monster Art. Students took their monster characters and “shrunk” them and then “built them a house.” I especially celebrate the fact that my students pick up a felt (or crayon or pastel) and just draw. The risk taking of no pencils first is a wonderful thing!

This one worked right side up or upside down. I celebrate unique perspective!

I celebrate munching on cheese strings and mandarin oranges while writing “commitment notes” to join a Junior Book Club we are forming.

And always, I celebrate all of the moments of book love that infuses everything we do:

The engagement while reading favourite authors

The little one who “sneaked” our poetry title to read on her own “I didn’t read ahead. I just read the favourite parts so far.” Joyce Sidman has us entranced on a regular basis!

The growing confidence we share in Reading Workshop book talking favourite picture books to each other. It’s a process. We’re getting there. But it all begins with the exciting flash of the favourite illustration.

The devotion to favourite authors embedded in this book review. (Look midway down the page)

I celebrate all of these moments. I especially celebrate that if I now tried to make a list of the “downs” of the week, it just really doesn’t matter. Mostly, I’ve already forgotten. Because, really, wow, look at what we’ve got going on!

Thank you so many times to Ruth Ayres and the #celebratelu community! Being part of a community that regularly shares gratitude and celebrations truly transforms my weeks. Read all of the celebrations by following the links shared here.

Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday: A focus on Steve Jenkins titles

Posted on October 29, 2014 by carriegelson

Steve Jenkins is royalty in the nonfiction picture book world as far as I am concerned. A leader, an inspiration, a sure thing. Does anyone own a Steve Jenkins title that they don’t adore? Every time I hear of a new Jenkins book being released, I can instantly convince myself that it must be a part of our class collection. And then I use it often for many different reasons. So much of our science learning begins with a Steve Jenkins’ book!

The latest book soon making its way into my room is this one: Eye to Eye: How Animals See The World by Steve Jenkins (published April 2014)

I just reread this title again and am so excited to share it with my students. Each page offers a close up illustration of a particular eye and details about how it works and the book also begins and ends with additional information. As always, there are more facts about the animals featured in the book, but this title also includes:

a summary of “the first eyes” – how some animals developed sight and how vision evolved
information about the four kinds of eyes: an eyespot, pinhole eyes, compound eyes and the camera eye
a summary of the evolution of the eye with labelled diagrams and examples
a comprehensive glossary that contains terms like retina, receptor cells and ultraviolet light

I learned so many things and know it is a perfect book to read to my students as we discuss topics like light and vision related to an upcoming workshop at Science World.

How will I share this book? I plan to read it and keep a list of ongoing wonders/questions – we will make s wonder board with these questions and do some research and experiments to develop our understanding around concepts covered in this book. Who knows where our questions will lead us?

I started thinking about the myriad of ways that titles by Steve Jenkins (or Jenkins and Page) can be used in the classroom. The list is long. I have included some of my favourite Jenkins’ titles here and an idea about how to use them as part of a nonfiction read aloud experience that might extend over more than one class and into follow up activities.

Time to Sleep by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page (published March 2011)

Learn all about how different animals sleep. Lots of additional information about each animal in the back pages of the book.

An idea: This book is a fantastic title to use when developing certain oral language skills: listening critically, making a relevant comment, building on what has been said and comparing and contrasting. Each page features a picture of an animal and a sentence or two about its sleep habits. Have the children comment in a turn and talk and then share out routine about how this is connected to or vastly different from human habits.

For example, the text says:

Snug in its underground burrow, the hairy armadillo snoozes for more than twenty hours a day.

Students might share: “Humans sleep above ground not underground.” “Humans don’t need as much sleep as armadillos. Kids sleep about 9-11 hours a night.” or “We don’t sleep in burrows but we snuggle under blankets to keep warm/snug.”

The Beetle Book by Steve Jenkins (published April 2012)

Detailed information about all of the different (and sometimes absolutely creepy) kinds of beautiful beetles that exist in the world.

An idea: Of course, this book screams art to me. But, after learning about beetle parts (abdomen, thorax, mandibles, flight wings, etc) art needs to be somewhat scientific art. Have the students sketch and colour (choose your medium) real or imagined beetles and label the parts. Perhaps some future coleopterists (people who study beetles) will be inspired.

Bones by Steve Jenkins (published August 2010)

True to size or scaled down images of bones and how they work in various bodies. Incredible.

An idea: This book inspires more labelled diagrams to me. Have students sketch the skeletal system of a particular animal. A detailed labelled diagram (beyond just name) which explains how particular bones work to help the animal hunt, hide, move in its everyday life could be completed. Take this further and compare bone sizes to human bones. The human femur is _______ times as big (or cm longer than) the femur of the _________. Any kind of math could be practiced: ratios, length comparisons, fractions, etc.

How to Clean a Hippopotamus: A Look at Unusual Animal Partnerships by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page (published May 2010)

Learn about the unique symbiotic relationships between specific creatures. I once read this book over the course of almost a year – a little each week and students were completely mesmerized by what they were learning.

An idea: This book was fantastic to practice summary writing using new vocabulary. An example: after reading about how the seagull eats worms (a parasite) from the ocean sunfish, I would ask students to explain the symbiotic relationship making sure to use specific words: parasites, ocean, surface, fin. After we did a few of these summaries together, students loved writing about the relationship between each pair of animals and illustrating it with a picture or two.

My goal is to read 65 nonfiction picture books for 2014. Progress: 116/65 complete!

Monday October 13th, 2014

Posted on October 12, 2014 by carriegelson

It’s Monday! What are you reading?

Join Jen from Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee and Ricki from Unleashing Readers and share all of the reading you have done over the week from picture books to young adult novels. Follow the links to read about all of the amazing books the #IMWAYR community has read. It’s the best way to discover what to read next 🙂

I read some beautiful picture books this week, including many nonfiction titles:

Silence by Lemniscates (an illustration studio of artists and designers)

The perfect title to encourage us to embrace quiet and be mindful of what we hear and sense. I think this is an ideal book to inspire a walk outside to find a quiet spot to just be still and notice. A gorgeous title gifted to my classroom by the magical Kim Balke who does Expressive Art Therapy with many of my students.

Quest by Aaron Becker

I was so excited to open this book and just experience the imaginative journey that Becker captures on the page. The reader is pulled through each illustration, all the while attempting to absorb every tiny detail. So wonderful that this is a picture book (wonderfully wordless) so that it can be experienced again and again.

Creature Features: 25 Animals Explain Why They Look the Way They Do by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page

Jenkins and Page always introduce us to the most unique creatures and impart the most interesting of facts. The perfect book to read a page or two at a time. The format is engaging – each animal is introduced with a mini letter/question and answer.

“Dear Pufferfish: You’ve got me worried – are you going to explode?”

“No, I won’t burst. I’ve inflated my body . . . “

The Rat by Elise Gravel

I think I might have heard this title shared between children about twenty times this week. There are many giggles about the yucky eating habits and its tail which serves a multitude of purposes.

The Slug by Elise Gravel

More silly and more gross but lots to learn and ponder. My students adore this series. We are in the middle of some “fan art” to send to Elise Gravel 🙂

I have continued reading a number of early/young chapter books as I am interested in introducing a number of new series to some of my readers just getting comfortable with chapter books.

Humphrey’s Tiny Tales: Really Wheely Racing Day by Betty G. Birney

I have some students reading the Humphrey series but for those not quite ready for a longer chapter book, this “Tiny Tales” series is perfect! Cute illustrations and larger text make it non-intimidating and attractive for readers growing their confidence.

Mortimer Keene: Ghosts on the Loose by Tim Healey and Chris Mould

Okay, some really really gross ghosts are featured in another Mortimer Keene title. Rhymes, fantastically odd and creepy illustrations and an English school setting.

Lulu Bell and the Moon Dragon by Belinda Murrell; illustrated by Serena Geddes

An Australian title featuring Lulu Bell and her best friend Molly who are preparing for the Moon festival that Molly’s Mom wants to share. I liked this young chapter book a lot – in a tiny story, many things of interest were happening: learning about the Moon festival, supporting a younger sibling finding a way to connect with friends and humpback whale sightings. Lots of illustrations and an interesting story line make this a series I would like to share in my room. I will be purchasing more titles in this series.

I also read Sisters by Raina Telgemeier

Family and sibling dynamics so fresh and honest. Humorous, amusing and believable. Everyone in my family read and enjoyed this title – my son, daughter and husband. Now we have Raina’s books being passed from person to person – all of us are big fans!

Up next? I am reading (and loving) After Iris by Natalie Farrant. After this? The Mark of the Dragonfly by Jaleigh Johnson

Reading Goal Updates:

2014 Chapter Book Challenge: 65/100 novels complete

Goodreads Challenge: 461/650 books read (currently 46 books behind – slowly trying to get this down to 0 from that scary 54 number that is haunting me)

#MustReadin2014: 20/30 complete

Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge: 111/65 complete

For anyone who shared a #MustReadin2014 list, the plan is to share an update (in whatever form and no matter what your progress) on Tuesday (October 14th). I will host here on this blog. Would love to hear what you have all been reading. I admit in advance, I have made little progress on my list since the last update. I have been reading, just other titles!

Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday: So, I think I might read . . .

Posted on September 24, 2014 by carriegelson

So . . . I am back to teaching again! Finally! If you are a regular reader of this blog, you might notice that I have announced this frequently but considering we had job action disruption since May and more than 5 weeks of full scale strike action, I am celebrating in every moment that I am back to doing what I love.

My energy is “leapy” – which I am not sure is a word exactly but I’m translating it as: a feeling of great excitement; can result in jumping up and bouncing about in happiness. Often and without warning.

Sitting to write a blog post will be a little challenging. I decided to use this opportunity to celebrate nonfiction titles to share some books I am thinking of reading aloud to my students in the next few months and why. . .

The Rat by Elise Gravel (published 2014)

Our first read aloud of the year was The Fly by Gravel and it was a huge hit. Students are completely intrigued with this series and I can’t wait to share more titles with them. One child offered this description:

“great because it’s a graphic novel and it fills your head with knowledge and funny facts!”

Salmon Creek written by Annette LeBox and illustrated by Karen Reczuch (published 2002)

We are off on our first field trip of the year on Monday, heading up to Grouse Mountain to explore. Salmon Creek will give us an opportunity to read about B.C. wildlife and forest habitats.

Can We Save the Tiger? written by Martin Jenkins and illustrated by Vicky White (published in 2011)

I want to study endangered and extinct animals as we learn more about habitats, animal interactions and adaptations. This is one of the best nonfiction titles to introduce some of these concepts.

Parrots Over Puerto Rico by Cindy Trumbore and Susan L. Roth (published in 2013) Winner of the 2014 Sibert Medal

The perfect story about how human actions can begin to help rather than only interfere with an endangered species.

The Tree Lady by H. Joseph Hopkins and illustrated by Jill McElmurry (published 2013)

I love sharing picture book biographies and this is a title I didn’t get to read aloud last year. I also have some incredible art projects in mind that I think this book will inspire.

Jasper’s Story: Saving Moon Bears written by Jill Robinson and Marc Bekoff; illustrated by Gijisbert van Frankenhuyzen (published 2013)

Another title that illustrates how a species can become endangered because of human treatment and behaviour. I found this book this summer and knew it would be a book I had to share with my class.

Feathers Not Just for Flying written by Melissa Stewart and illustrated by Sarah S. Brannen (published 2014)

I have a very interesting project in mind that this book will be a part of. There are a few other titles that will also be part of the inspiration. I don’t want to spoil anything but stay tuned . . .

Eye to Eye: How Animals See The World by Steve Jenkins (published April 2014)

Every year I share bits of a Steve Jenkins book over the course of weeks or even months. A page or so a day. This is the Jenkins title I plan to begin with.

My goal is to read 65 nonfiction picture books for 2014. Progress: 107/65 complete!

Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday: Some favourite nonfiction titles for older readers (List 3)

Posted on September 3, 2014 by carriegelson

It’s Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday!

This is the final list (3 of 3) where I share thirty titles (ten at a time) of my favourite nonfiction books for older readers. The first ten are here and second ten are here.

Even though I teach primary students, I often come across fantastic nonfiction titles that older students (Grades 4-8) might enjoy. Hope some of these titles are ideal for a reader you know.

The final ten:

Tracking Trash Flotsam, Jetsam and the Science of Ocean Motion by Loree Griffin Burns (published 2007)

Island: A Story of the Galapagos by Jason Chin (published 2012)

Electrical Wizard: How Nikola Tesla Lit up the World written by Elizabeth Rusch and illustrated by Oliver Dominguez (published 2013)

Birds of a Feather written by Francesco Pittau and illustrated by Bernadette Gervais (published 2012)

Just a Second by Steve Jenkins (published 2011)

Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave written by Laban Carrick Hill and illustrated by Bryan Collier (published 2010)

A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams written by Jen Bryant and illustrated by Melissa Sweet (published 2008)

The Journey: Stories of Migration written by Cynthia Rylant and illustrated by Lambert Davis (published 2006)

The Tree Lady by H. Joseph Hopkins and illustrated by Jill McElmurry (published 2013)

Eruption: Volcanoes and the Science of Saving Lives written by Elizabeth Rusch with photographs by Tom Uhlman (published 2013)

My goal is to read 65 nonfiction picture books for 2014. Progress: 104/65 complete!

Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday: Some favourite nonfiction titles for older readers (List 2)

Posted on August 27, 2014 by carriegelson

It’s Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday!

This is Week 2 of 3 where I will be sharing thirty titles (ten at a time) of my favourite nonfiction books for older readers. The first ten are here.

My post last week goes into more detail of why I wanted to put together these three lists. Basically, I had just written a number of blog posts featuring titles for younger readers (like this one) and had received a comment about older students losing their passion for nonfiction titles. I wanted to share some of my favourite titles that I have read with my own children or on my own that I think will appeal to these intermediate/middle school readers. I hope something catches your eye!

The second ten:

The Top of the World: Climbing Mount Everest by Steve Jenkins (published 1999)

Poop – A Natural History of the Unmentionable written by Nicola Davies and illustrated by Neal Layton (published 2004)

Predator Showdown (30 Unbelievably Awesome Predator vs. Predator Face-offs!) by Lee Martin (published 2011)

Let’s Talk About Race written by Julius Lester and illustrated by Karen Barbour (published 2005)

Helen’s Big World The Life of Helen Keller written by Doreen Rappaport and illustrated by Matt Tavares (published 2012)

Meadowlands – A Wetlands Survival Story by Thomas F Yezerski (published 2011)

Bugged: How Insects Changed History written by Sarah Albee and illustrated by Robert Leighton (published 2014)

Every Human has Rights – A Photographic Declaration for Kids A National Geographic book with a forward by Mary Robinson. (published 2008)

Look Up! Bird Watching in Your Own Backyard by Annette LeBlanc Cate (published 2013)

One Well: The Story of Water on Earth written by Rochelle Strauss and illustrated by Rosemary Woods (published 2007)

My goal is to read 65 nonfiction picture books for 2014. Progress: 102/65 complete!

Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday: Some favourite nonfiction titles for older readers (List 1)

Posted on August 20, 2014 by carriegelson

It’s Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday!

In July, I published a series of posts about using more nonfiction titles in the classroom. I included numerous recommendations of book titles geared to the primary/early intermediate classroom. In case you missed them, here are the links:

Part 1: Everywhere you look . . . let there be nonfiction!

Part 2: The importance of the nonfiction read aloud

3A: Generating excitement, making choices and having time to read

3 B: Reading and working with the texts

Through twitter and from a few comments, I heard from some teachers that their middle school students (Grades 5-8) have lost their passion for nonfiction reading. Linda Baie from Teacher Dance addressed this here with some great book suggestions. At first, I thought that this was not something that I could talk about since my students are younger and I don’t have first hand experience working with these older readers. But the more I thought about it, I realized that my own children (boy/girl twins) are eleven and we share a lot of nonfiction together. And I started another list . . .

For the next few weeks, I will share thirty of my favourite nonfiction books for older readers – ten at a time. If you are an intermediate teacher, I hope you have students eager to read nonfiction! If not, maybe some of these titles can persuade them to spend some time with this genre.

The first ten:

The Animal Book: A Collection of the Fiercest, Toughest, Cleverest, Shyest – and Most Surprising – Animals on Earth by Steve Jenkins (published 2013)

The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins written by Barbara Kerley and illustrated by Brian Selznick (published 2001)

The Tree of Life: Charles Darwin by Peter Sis (published 2003)

Chasing Cheetahs: The Race to Save Africa’s Fastest Cats written by Sy Montgomery with photographs by Nic Bishop (published 2014)

Saving the Ghost of the Mountain: An Expedition Among Snow Leopards in Mongolia written by Sy Montgomery with photographs by Nic Bishop (published 2009)

If the World Were a Village: A Book about the World’s People by David J. Smith and illustrated by Shelagh Armstrong (first published in 2002, second edition 2011)