The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

written by John Boyne 

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is a riveting story about two boys who meet in the worst way imaginable. The main character, Bruno is a 9 year old boy who is being raised in Berlin Germany during World War II. He and his family moves to a new house near the Auschwitz Concentration Camp because Bruno's father is promoted to Commandant by Adolf Hitler. The relationship between Shumel, a Jewish boy who is a detainee in the concentration camp and Bruno develop into a best friendship that ultimately leads to both boy's death.  

This book encompasses the historical fiction genre because it refers to historical events with a mixture of actual characters of history and additional characters set in the time of a historical era, World War II.

When reading this book one will be able to think twice about discrimination and why it is such a cruel characteristic to have and learn to respect other people and their differences. Respect is as contagious as Hate. Each person should pass respect on to the next person in order to continue a loving cycle that will become evident in future generations to come. 

Motivational Activities:

• Write a letter to Bruno from Shumel's point of view
• Include who you are and why you are there
• Compare and Contrast Bruno and Shumel's characters in the form of a venn diagram

Reader Response Questions:

• Why do you think Bruno would play with a boy who never could come outside of a fence? 
• Who was Shumel before he became a detainee? 
• Why did Hitler hate the Jewish People?

Readers may also be interested in John Boyne's other works for young readers including: Noah Barleywater Runs Away, Stay Where You Are Then Leave and The Terrible Thing That Happened To Barnaby Brocket.

References

 Boyne, J. (2006). The boy in the striped pajamas: A fable. Oxford: David Fickling Books. 

 Galda, L., & Cullinan, B. (2010). Literature and the child (7th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Cengage Learning. 

Where The Sidewalk Ends

written and illustrated by Shel Silverstein

Where The Sidewalk Ends is a

 wonderful book of poems and

 pictures that set the tone for a 

funny, unusual, heartfelt and 

sincere experience for all. 

This book of poems speaks to

 the great imagination of 

Shel Silverstein. Originally

 published in 1974, this classic

 poem book continues to wow

 its readers with witty poems 

and entertaining illustrations.

Where the Sidewalk Ends fits into the poetry and verse genre because it contains figurative language that expresses imaginative thoughts and uses devices of sound such as rhythm and assonance. 

The illustrations are completed in black and white and help the reader interpret the poems beyond the literal meaning. Shel Silverstein uses thin sketched lines to achieve his awesome illustrations.

 Motivational Activities &

 Reader Response Questions

Create a Reader Response Journal

• Allow students to create a journal for all of the poems that they read. Have students answer questions such as : What was the poem about? What literary elements can you point out? What did you like or dislike about the poem? If there are illustrations, do they help convey the poems meaning?
• Students will be encouraged to share their journals for classmates.  

Illustrate a Poem

• Each student will pick a poem that he/she likes
• Draw a picture or series of pictures that compliment the poem
• Provide the written or typed poem on or around the illustration
• Answer questions: What types of drawing do you think are appropriate for your poem? What visual art techniques will you try to accomplish? What media will you use?

If you enjoy this book you may also enjoy other works by Shel Silverstein such as: The Giving Tree, A Light in the Attic, Falling Up, Every Thing On It, The Missing Piece, The Missing Piece Meets the Big O, Runny Babbit, Lafcadio, and the Lion Who Shot Back 

References

 Hoffman, A. (n.d.). Reader's Response -- Activities and strategies to  engage students in reading. Retrieved September 24, 2014. 

 Silverstein, S. (2014). Where the sidewalk ends: The poems & drawings of Shel Silverstein. New York: Harper and Row. 

Sleeping Beauty

retold by

 Mahlon F. Craft

Illustrations created

 by Kinuko Y. Craft

Sleeping Beauty is the classic fairy tale of a beautiful princess Aurora who is summoned to one hundred years of slumber after pricking her finger on a spindle. As she rests, she awaits a brave prince to awaken her and reverse the spell of an evil fairy.

Sleeping Beauty fits into the Folklore genre because it includes rich language and has a fast-paced plot that allows the reader to jump right into the story. 

The illustrations in the book absolutely magnificent! Ms K. Y. Craft fills the pages of this book with lavish paintings that help the reader visually through the book. These illustrations also allows one to become a fan of such artwork.

Motivational Activities

Character Mask

• Use paper plates as the mask base and allow children to color and glue items related to their character onto the mask. Provide the children with printed accessories and facial body parts to choose from. For instance, a king usually has a crown and possibly a beard. 

Puppet Show

• Students will make puppets using paper bags to depict characters from the story. Using stickers to decorate the faces and construction paper cut into strands to design each character's hair. After creating the puppets, students will put on a puppet show with lines from the story.

Response Questions

• Who is you favorite character in this fairy tale? Why?
• What would you do differently if you were the King?

About the Illustrator: 

Kinuko Craft  is a Japanese-born American contemporary painter, illustrator and fantasy artist. Her art has included paintings for the book covers of many well-known fantasy authors such as Patricia A. McKillip, Juliet Marillier, Tanith Lee, and many others. She has also designed opera posters, fairy tale books and painted cover art for many national magazines such as Time, Newsweek, and National Geographic.

References

 Craft, M., & Craft, K. (2002). Sleeping Beauty. New York: SeaStar Books.

 Kinuko Y. Craft. (2014, August 9). Retrieved September 20, 2014. 

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Son of Promise, Child of Hope

The New York Times Bestseller

Written by Nikki Grimes * Illustrated by Bryan Collier

Barack Obama Son of Promise, Child of Hope is a biography of the 44th president of the United States of America, Barack Obama. The story recounts the early life of Barack (Barry) Hussein Obama from his birth in Honolulu, Hawaii to eventually earning the office of President. This book is suitable for children in kindergarten through 5th grade.

This book fits into the biography/memoir genre because the author tells the story of Barack Obama's life. Nikki Grimes gives details of a little boy, Barry growing up in Honolulu, Hawaii with his mother and his grandparents. She also sheds light on Barry's father leaving the home. The story goes on to illustrate Barry's loneliness associated with his father's departure from the home. Nikki Grimes does an awesome job of story telling through a mother sitting in her living room with her son David as they watch the television and as David's curiosity leads to an abundance of questions. David's questions find themselves blurting out as his mother tries to explain who the man on the television is and why the man, Barack Obama is important. 

About the Author : Nikki Grimes is an American author, poet and journalist who was born in Harlem, New  York. She has written a number of books and is also the recipient of the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work for youth and children.

The illustrator, Bryan Collier created very vivid pictures with an authentic depiction that truly enhance the storyline. He uses a unique technique to create his artwork. He uses sketching, watercolors and collages to make his illustrations come to life.  

About the Illustrator : Bryan Collier is an American illustrator known for his collage work. He uses photos of people acting out scenes of the stories that he illustrates to examine the emotion and structure of faces during certain emotions and movements. He then sketches the scenes and adds water color. The final touch is his well know collage effect.

Motivational Activities : 

• After completing the book, students will create an election for class president

1. Students will brainstorm about the qualities that they want in a class president
2. Students will work together to choose 4 students for whom they will vote
3. Students will break up into four groups: group 1 (create voting booths) group 2 ( create a flyer for each candidate) group 3 (create slogans for each candidate) group 4 (count the votes to determine the class president)
4. Start the election and provide the results

• Create a gift for little Barry to make him happy and write an essay describing your creation

1. Each student will create a gift of their choice to present to Barry
2. Students will then write an essay that tells their classmates what they created and why that gift will help Barry's mood improve

Reader Response Questions:

What kinds of qualities do you think a president should have? How can we create a fair election? Who can vote? 

Why is Barry sad? What can you do to make Barry happy? 

References

 Grimes, N., & Collier, B. (2012). Barack Obama: Son of promise, child of hope. New York: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. 
 Galda, L., & Cullinan, B. (2010). Literature and the child (7th ed.). Belmont, CA:
            Wadsworth/Cengage Learning. 

I Love My Hair!

I Love My Hair is a wonderful, realistic fiction picture book written by Natasha Anastasia Tarpley and illustrated by E.B. Lewis about a little African American girl, Keyana and her learning self-acceptance. The story displays the challenges, triumphs and styles that Keyana's hair journey takes her on as her mother creates a positive platform for her daughter to feel comfortable with her hair!

The beautiful illustrations in this book display the creative hair styles that a lot of African American girls wear. It also sheds light on the process that most girls endure to keep their hair maintained. E.B. Lewis does an incredible job with painting the pictures accurately and to scale! Keyana is really a beautiful little girl.

I Love My Hair is appropriate for readers kindergarten through 2nd grade. Although, I believe this book is great for any age! As the reader scrolls through the pages, the beautiful colors, heartfelt emotions and the relationship between a mother and daughter grasp attention and demand respect of cultural differences in an elegant fashion.  

Motivational Activities

There is a wonderful song that gives little African American girls the chance to celebrate their hair! This song is an original Sesame Street production.

 

• Students will learn the song after hearing the story read aloud and will answer questions.

• What do you like best about the book? Are there any similarities between the characters in the book vs. the video? What makes your hair unique? 

• Students will also choose a classmate's name out of a hat and create their classmate's hairstyle (Boys will get to create haircuts with the male classmates after hearing a book by the same author Bippity Bop Barbershop). Students will draw faces on paper and use scissors to cut out hairstyles/haircuts made of construction paper and glue the strands of hair to the heads. They will then present their finished product. 

If you enjoyed this book, you may want to read others written by Natasha Anastasia Tarpley including: Bippity Bop Barbershop, Destiny's Gift and The Princess and the Frog: Princess Tiana and the Royal Ball

References

Tarpley, N., & Lewis, E. (2001). I love my hair! Boston: Little, Brown.

Tarpley, N., & Lewis, E. (2009). Bippity bop barbershop. New York: Little, Brown &.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=enpFde5rgmw