Into the Ocean with Non-Fiction

One of the first non-fiction books we use at the beginning of the year is Down, Down, Down by Steve Jenkins.  I love this book.  It is a wonderful adventure through the various zones of the ocean from the surface all the way to the Marianas Trench, 35,000 feet below sea level.

I was impressed the first time I read this book with the details in the writing and the illustrations.  I learned a lot about those amazing creatures living deep in the lower levels of the ocean.  The children of course are fascinated with all the wild animals and their unique adaptations.

Steven Jenkins uses an abundance of adjectives and descriptions in his travels through the ocean, allowing for great discussions on how adjectives and descriptive phrases add to the understanding and enjoyment of a text. 

It is also a great text for having the children identify supporting details for the main ideas presented in the book.  Each page focuses on a specific level and type of animal or adaptation.  

I've created a packet to accompany this book, which includes various reading and writing activities, aligned to the common core.

 

Since Steve Jenkins uses such great adjectives, I've also created some cards for a matching game using the comparative and superlative adjectives from the book.  I hope you enjoy it.

This book fits in nicely with any unit on non-fiction texts and also with a back-to-school or end of the year unit on the ocean or beach.  

Hugs,

Heather

I Love Books!

I'm linking up with Deanna Jump's Let's Talk About Books linky.   Ever since I could read I have LOVED to read.  My mom even says I taught my brother to read.  I think that is one reason I became a teacher.  And now, I can't begin to explain how thrilled I am that my daughter LOVES to read too!

We used a lot of books this year in my second grade class, (duh, right?) but one of my favorites was Once Upon a Royal Superbaby byKevin O'Malley.  It is the story of two students who must work together to write a fairy tale.  Of course the boy and girl have different outlooks about what a "good" fairy tale is.  However by the end, they have come together to create an engaging story about a royal superbaby.

My students love this book, boys and girls alike!   The story is full of laugh out loud humor and the illustrations are wonderful.  The kids can easily relate to the student authors struggling with their assignment.  

We use this book to reinforce the idea of different characters' point of view .  The girl in the story wants a fairy tale full of romance and loveliness with a kind, caring queen.  The boy on the other hand, wants a super cool king who rides motorcycles.  How these two points of view come together to solve the problem will leave all  impressed and amused.

On to my own favorite book.  For the last ten years I have been reading and rereading the Outlander series by Diana Gabaladon.  I am in love with these books.  I think I've read the first in the series seven times at least, and the others numerous times as well.  Each time she publishes a new one, (which unfortunately is every three or four years) I need to go back and revisit the books.  Since each one is between 800 and 1100 pages, a refresher on characters and events is mandatory before diving into a new one.

I have been patiently waiting for book number eight to come out since last summer.  The publication date has been pushed back at least three times, so my rereading schedule has been thrown off.  But I should be ready by June 10th.  I will be one happy girl once I get Written in My Hearts Own Blood downloaded to my Nook.

These books are based on the love story between Claire Randall Fraser and Jamie Fraser.  The kicker is Claire was born in the 20th century and Jamie in the 18th century.  Claire travels back two hundred years after walking through standing stones in Scotland and finds herself in the middle of a skirmish between the British redcoats and Scottish raiders and the action just keeps on going.  These two characters have a love that quite literally spans time.   And to top it off, Starz channel is making the books into a TV series.  I now have to convince my husband that we "need" to subscribe to Starz!

One of my biggest hopes as a teacher is that my students grow to become life long readers.  That they always have a book (or two or three) going. And they can't wait to start the next. My hopes were realized by at least one student early in my teaching career.  He started the year knowing fewer than five sight words.  We worked and worked on his reading.  In March, near Dr. Seuss' birthday, he was reading Green Eggs and Ham with a classmate.  Half way through he looked up at me with a look of amazement on his face and exclaimed "I can read!"  That was the trigger he needed.  His reading took off and he ended the year close to being on grade level.  I want all my students to have that excitement, joy, and love of reading.

Dont forget to check out Deanna's blog at Mrs. Jump's Class to find more book recommendations.

Hugs,

Heather