My Best Friend Moved Away- Nancy Carlson

First off- How cute, yet sad is the cover of this book? Although it seemed like a sad little book, I thought it was important to read. Children can really struggle with moving from one place to another. We see this more frequently now because of military families and with today's economy, parents have to move for job opportunities or to follow their current job. It is yet another difficult time in a child's life that Nancy Carlson makes a bit easier. Nancy Carlson's illustrations, as always, are so wonderful. She shows the two girls playing in the sand in the summer, making snowmen in the winter and then really expresses the sadness when one of the girls moves away. Some of Carlson's books are short but that's what makes children really read them on their own and not always have to be read aloud. I like that she gets the message across without using too many words that would deter a new reader from her stories. I know as a child I would flip through a book and look at how long it was, and how pretty the pictures were. I have no doubt that I would have loved these books as a kid. Carlson lets the reader know that it is okay if a friend moves away, it doesn't mean your friendship is over. The girls can still stay in touch and their are plenty of opportunities to make new friends.

  One question I would like to address for this text is:
Whose voices are typically portrayed in this author’s work? Whose voices are missing or less central?
Typically, the voices portrayed in the authors's work are young students. She doesn't always include adults in the book. In some of her books, there are family members and teachers but majority of the stories are written from the child's point of view. This is one of the many reasons I enjoy Nancy Carlson's work. They are not "preachy" Children seem to understand messages better when they find them on their own in the book, not when it is told to them. Like the first book I discovered from this author on my partners blog, How to Clean Your Room, she makes the book very funny to readers of any age, but still gets the book's message across. Instead of saying things like "you should clean your room like this.." or "clean your room the first time your mother tells you", she lets the reader know that is what they should do, but doesn't order them to do it- What fun would that be?? 

I don't Like to Read! - Nancy Carlson

      

     I loved this book!! Not only are the illustrations so simple yet cute and fun, but the text is so useful and child-friendly. Nancy Carlson really writes from a child's point of view. She relates to children and writes about issues they could be struggling with. This character, Henry, is in many of Carlson's books. In this book Henry is struggling to read. He keeps saying he doesn't like reading, but his teacher soon discovers it is not that he dislikes reading, it's that he is struggling with reading. Henry is in first grade, this is a common issue with first graders that may be a difficult one to admit. Henry talks about how other kids in his class read so easily. His teacher starts to get him extra help, he works on reading at home and at school. I love that Carlson adds in that home-school connection. I would read this book as a read aloud but the home-school connection in the story makes it a fun book to read at home too. 

     

   One question I would like to address for this text is:

      How would I share this author’s work with an elementary school class?

      A better question would be, how wouldn't I share this author's work?! Nancy Carlson has so many books and they are all books young students can relate to. I would use her work all year round. She has books about different holidays. She also has books about diverse students, there is one about a new student that is in a wheel chair. She really tries to cover a lot of difficult things to discuss with children. These days there are tons of texts about every topic, but Nancy Carlson's books really connect with her young readers and her illustrations are just adorable! 

Nancy Carlson

Nancy Carlson was born and raised in Edina, Minnesota. She has written and illustrated more than 60 books which are based on her childhood experiences. She majored in printmaking at Minneapolis College of Art and Design. Before her children's books were published, Nancy Carlson created many works of art that were featured in art exhibitions and are still held in private and public collections. This woman was made to be a children's author. Her passion for children's literature have benefited many students and teachers. She visits over 150 schools each year as a guest author. She is still living in Minnesota today with her husband, their three children and their dog. Her latest book is "This Morning Sam Went to Mars- A Book About Paying Attention." I love that she writes her books in a way that will teach young students valuable lessons without preaching to them! I also love how involved she is with so many schools and still visits today! I would love for her to come to the class I will finally have one day! 

I found all of this information on her blog. Her blog is great! It has a lot of information and this adorable "doodles" section where you can find cute little drawings she does just because! 

http://nancycarlson.com/ 

Ben 10 Alien Force Triple Threat- Tracey West

Two teams of Alien fighting forces battle against various Alien creatures. Their mission is to deactivate the spy transmitter. The two teams race to see who can complete the mission first. It doesn’t take long for both teams to realize they can complete the task faster and more efficiently if they work together.

This book is categorized as science fiction because the characters fight aliens and use futuristic technology such as a spy transmitter. This series is also a television show, this book may attract young students who have watched the show. Although there is a good message in the book (the benefits of teamwork), I was not crazy about this book. It is a good example of science fiction but might lean more towards fantasy or maybe a comic book. I personally would not use it as a read aloud but if it would get students reading, it could be read for fun. 

Ghoul Trip- Peter Bently

Lee, Billy and Bella are students at St. Orlok’s Elementary School but they are not your average students, they are vampires. There has been a series of robberies at all the schools in the neighborhood. The students are going on a trip to the county fair but are worried their school will be robbed while they are away. The three students team up with the students at other schools to try to catch the robbers.

The features of this book that make it science fiction are the schools. Each group of fictional characters has their own school. For example, Lee is friends with werewolves that go to their own school down the street. The book shows some realistic features such as humans that have their own schools and towns. They are referred to as Fangless people. The book creates a world that all different kinds of people live in. This could be the start of a lesson about diversity that is presented in a new way by using characters that are very different but still a bit believable. 

Space Dogs- Adapted by Jamie White

Space Dog Martha must save the planet of dogs from the Space Cats but is mistaken for an alien invader. She must save the Planet of Dogs without getting locked away for being an invader and make it back to earth to help her human friends, T.D. and Helen their class projects on the solar system.

The features of this book that make it science fiction are the aspects that involve space travel and animals in space. The author creates new planets, one for dogs and one for cats. The book has other science fiction aspects such as aliens. While the main characters, T.D. and Helen, help their dog save the Planet of Dogs, they learn about the solar system. Although there are some planets and aliens that make the book science fiction, there is also parts of the book that teach children about the real solar system.