Island of the Blue Dophins

Author: Scott O’Dell

Title: Island of the Blue Dolphins

Illustrator: none

Genre: Chapter Book

Subgenre: Adventure

Theme: Survival

Primary Character: Karana

Secondary Characters: Chowig, Ramo, foreigners (the Aleuts), Rontu

Award(s):Newbery Award Winner

Date of Publication: 1987

Publication Company:Yearling

Summary: In the novel "Island of the Blue Dolphins", the main character is Karana. She is the daughter of the chief of the tribe that lives on the island, "Island of the Blue Dolphins". She also has an older sister, a mom, and a little brother. Her and the others from the tribe hunt and gather their own food, make their clothing, and build their shelter. They are very independent and are the only people who inhabit the island. During this novel, the tribe is visited by foreigners who wish to hunt the otter who live on the island in trade for weapons and gold. The foreigners hunt for a long time and kill nearly all of the otter on the island. When the foreigners are about to leave, instead of trading with the tribe for all of the otter they have killed, they attack the tribe and make a quick get-a-way. During the attack many of the tribe members die, including Karana's father.  After the hunters left, food on the island was very scarce and the tribe was forced to move to a neighboring island. While the tribe was leaving, Karana and her brother were left behind. They had to live on the island by themselves while they waited for a boat to come back for them. Karana builds herself a home, fights and tames wild dogs, hunts and makes weapons, and even more.

Use with students:  I like this story because it teaches students to hold onto faith, even in the worst of times. This story also depicts women as strong and very capable of self-sufficiency, which is not a common theme among many books. This book would be a great pick for fifth graders.

Flipped

Author: Wendelin Van Draanen

Title: Flipped

Illustrator: none

Genre: Chapter Book

Subgenre: Fiction

Theme: Love, Friendship

Primary Character: Juli Baker

Secondary Characters: Bryce Loski

Award(s): none

Date of Publication: 2001

Publication Company: Knopf Books for Young Readers

Summary: Flipped is a romance told in two voices. The first time Juli Baker saw Bryce Loski, she flipped. The first time Bryce saw Juli, he ran. That’s pretty much the pattern for these two neighbors until the eighth grade, when, just as Juli is realizing Bryce isn’t as wonderful as she thought, Bryce is starting to see that Juli is pretty amazing. How these two teens manage to see beyond the surface of things and come together makes for a comic and poignant romance.

Use with students:  This book would be a great addition to the classroom library for the girls in the class that are always in for the romantic comedy.

Holes

Author: Louis Sachar

Title: Holes

Illustrator: none

Genre: Chapter Book

Subgenre: Fiction

Theme: Overcoming obstacles

Primary Character: Louis

Secondary Characters: Zero, The Warden, Mr. Sir, X-Ray, etc.

Award(s): Newberry Medal

Date of Publication: 1998

Publication Company: Bloomsbury Children

Summary: Cursed with his family's bad luck, Stanley Yelantis is convicted of a crime he didn't commit and sent to Green Lake Camp boy's detention center. Every day the boys are sent to dig holes to build character. However, Stanley begins to discover that there's more than character development going on at Camp Green Lake.

Use with students:  This book would be a great tool for building vocabulary with 5^th graders

Stink: The Incredible Shrinking Kid

Author: Megan McDonald

Title:  Stink: The Incredible Shrinking Kid

Illustrator: Peter H. Reynolds

Genre: Chapter Book    

Subgenre:  Realistic Fiction

Theme: Adventure

Primary Character: Stink

Secondary Characters: Judy

Award(s): none

Date of Publication: 2005

Publication Company: Candlewick Press

Summary:  Stink is the shortest kid in class. Every morning get his sister Judy to measure him to see how much he's grown, until one night she measures him and he's shrunk a quarter of an inch! Stink tries to think of ways to make him taller. In his first solo adventure, along with his worries about shrinking, Stink takes home the class pet but accidentally flushes it down the garbage disposal and also discovers that Presidents’ Day means a lot more than time off from school.

Use with students:  This book could be used to reel in students that are not very interested in reading.  Also, this could be used cross-curriculum in a math lesson empathizing measurement. 

The Lightening Thief

Author: Rick Riordan

Title: The Lightening Thief

Illustrator: John Rocco

Genre: Chapter Book

Subgenre: Fantasy

Theme: Adventure

Primary Character: Percy Jackson

Secondary Characters: Annabeth, Sally, Gabe, Grover, many gods…

Award(s): ALA Notable Book (2005)

Date of Publication: 2006

Publication Company: Miramax

Summary: After getting expelled from yet another school for yet another clash with mythological monsters only he can see, twelve-year-old Percy Jackson is taken to Camp Half-Blood, where he finally learns the truth about his unique abilities: He is a demigod, half human, half immortal. Even more stunning: His father is the Greek god Poseidon, ruler of the sea, making Percy one of the most powerful demigods alive. There's little time to process this news. All too soon, a cryptic prophecy from the Oracle sends Percy on his first quest, a mission to the Underworld to prevent a war among the gods of Olympus.

Use with students:  The Lightening Thief could be used to allow students to develop their vocabulary and summarizing abilities.

Keeping the Night Watch

Author: Hope Anita Smith

Title: Keeping the Night Watch

Illustrator: E.B. Lewis

Genre: Poetry

Subgenre: Fiction

Theme: Peace, Love, Family

Primary Character: C.J.

Secondary Characters: His father, brothers and sisters

Award(s): none

Date of Publication: 2008

Publication Company: Henry Holt

Summary: A thirteen-year-old African American boy, C.J., records what happens to his family when his father, who temporarily left, returns home and they all must deal with their feelings of anger, hope, abandonment, and fear. 

Use with students:  I would use this with 5^th grade students to teach poetry as well as creating a writing activity to go along with this book.

Mr. Gumpy's Outing

Author: John Buringham

Title: Mr. Gumpy’s Outing

Illustrator: John Buringham

Genre: Picture Book

Subgenre: Humor

Theme: Family, happiness

Primary character: Mr. Gumpy

Secondary character: Two children

Awards: none

Date of Publication: 1990

Publication Company: Henry Holt and Co.

Summary: Mr. Gumpy, who lives by a river, takes his boat for a pleasure trip. Seeing him departing, two children ask to come along, and he responds mild-manneredly, "Yes, if you don't squabble." Then a rabbit requests a ride, which is granted on the condition that he not hop about; and a cat, dog, pig, sheep, chickens, calf and goat join the party, all agreeing to good behavior. But when they all forget themselves, the boat overturns, and everyone drips back to Mr. Gumpy's house for tea.

Use with students:  This book can be used to introduce setting, plot and/or characterization.

Abuela

Author: Arthur Dorros

Title: Abuela

Illustrator: Elisa Kleven

Genre: Picture Book

Subgenre: Bilingual fiction

Theme: Family, immigration, love

Primary character: A little girl

Secondary character: Her grandmother

Awards: ALA Notable Children's Book, Parent's Choice Gold Award

Date of Publication: 1991

Publication Company: Puffin

Summary: While riding on a bus through Manhattan with her grandmother, a little girl imagines that they are carried up into the sky and fly over the sights of New York City, in an evocative study of the loving bond between child and grandparent.

Use with students:  Students could draw their own family trees and list family names in both English and Spanish (ex. brother -hermano, sister -hermana). They could used an online translator to look up words.  Have students imagine they are flying over their city or neighborhood and draw what they would see. They could write a paragraph to go along with it.

The Mitten

Author: Jan Brett

Title: The Mitten

Illustrator: Jan Brett

Genre: Picture Book

Subgenre: Holidays

Theme: Lost gloves

Primary character: Nicki

Secondary character: Baba

Awards: none

Date of Publication: 1989

Publication Company: Putnam Juvenile

Summary: The main character of the story, Nicki, looses one of his white mittens in the snow. His grandmother, Baba, warned him this would happen before she made them for him. After he lost the mitten, all kinds of animals moved into the mitten to keep warm.

Use with students:  The book can be used with lessons involving winter and winter-related clothing.

No, David!

Author: David Shannon

Title: No, David!

Illustrator: David Shannon

Genre: Picture book

Subgenre: Humor

Theme: right and wrong

Primary Characters: David

Secondary characters: His mother

Awards: Caldcott Honor

Date of publication: 1998

Publishing company: Scholastic

Summary: No, David! is about a mischievous little boy named David, who is constantly getting in trouble. HIs mother tells him "no" many many times until the very end of the book. At the end, David's mother finally tells him, "Yes, David... I Love You!" 

Use with Students: Have them now make up their own story using their own name as the title. For example it may be title, "No, Jose!" or "No, Marissa!" Then have them write their own things they've been told not to do and illustrate this new book.