The Art of Miss Chew

The Art of Miss Chew

Patricia Polacco is a powerful story teller, and my class has always loved getting swept up in her books.  Like many of her other books, The Art of Miss Chew is a personal story from Mrs. Polacco's life. (My students always love hearing a "true story.") Polacco formed a special relationship with Miss Chew when she took her special art class. 

Polacco had reading challenges, and when her classroom teacher was called away for a few weeks, Mrs. Chew came to her aid when the substitute made things difficult. Miss Chew inspired Polacco to be the artist she is today! It's a powerful story about tackling obstacles and finding your strengths through the help of good teachers. This story is particularly inspiring for any child who has struggled academically, especially with standardized testing!

This would be a great story for parents or teachers to read with their students. It is long, 40 pages...So, it might be better to break apart for a classroom read-aloud.

Other observations/ideas:

*ART! This book talks about perspective, negative space and other art concepts. This could be integrated into an art lesson, or this book could simply be a great recommendation for a budding artist in your class. If you have elementary age kids, this would be a fun book for a summer read-aloud, and then you could practice some of the art concepts with your kids! 

*Letter in the Book Jacket- There is a letter addressed to readers from Patricia Polacco in the back flap of the book jacket. Students love hearing this...The letter does describe the sad fact that arts programs are often not funded in schools. I hate to dwell on the negative with my students, but I think it's fair enough for older kids to know that the establishments aren't perfect. I readily admit to my students that I wish there was more time and money for the arts. 

*Theme- I say this with many books, but Patricia Polacco's books always come with a strong theme to discuss. 

*Negative Space Vase/Face Picture- On the page where Miss Chew teaches about negative space they discuss the picture that could look like an illustration or two faces looking at each other depending on how you look at it. If your students haven't seen that they will love looking at it! 

*Summary- The plot of this story lends itself well to practice summary writing.

*Open-Ended Response Questions- 

What is the theme of this story? What text evidence proves it?

(If your students have been taught and trained on theme)

How do you connect with "Theresa" (Patricia) in this story?

Using the final page: Describe the emotions  you think Patricia, Mr. Donovan, and Miss Chew felt as they looked at the pictures of Mr. Donovan's father? Explain. 

What We're Reading Wednesday- Highlights for Toddlers

This post originated on my other blog before the consolidation...At the time, Caroline was reading Hello Highlights non-stop. Now, Molly Kate is the one loving these! :-) 

Highlights magazines always makes me think of a pediatrician's office. I loved highlights as a kid, but I had no idea they have a toddler version until my aunt ordered them for Caroline's first birthday last year.

Hello Highlights have become one of our favorite things. Caroline has had at least one of these read to her every single day for the last 9 months. She does not tire of them. And they are ALL OVER our house.

So here are some of the details:

*Geared toward ages 0-2
*16 pages
*It's smaller, has durable, wipeable pages, rounded corners
* Includes short stories, simple to-the-tune-of songs, poems, and the ole highlights "Find It" section
*Pictures tend to have lots of colorful objects for words you would be working on with your 1 year old.
*Filled with little parent tips for other ideas for using the magazine to further their language and literacy.

***Bonus, these are small and fit great in a diaper bag or purse, unlike bulky board books you normally use for toddlers. Great for traveling when you're short on space.

*****Bonus bonus, we have traveled with these, slept with them, spilled milk on them, etc. They have survived a lot, which I'm thankful for, because as Caroline outgrows them later, Molly Kate will still be able to enjoy them!

She has to sleep with one every night.

Caroline LOVES the find it page. We got the latest one in the mail last week.

She is currently 22 months. When we first got these, I would have her "point to the slide, point to the dog," etc.... Now, I just ask her what she sees on the page and she will tell me every word she knows. Now we are trying to add in shapes, size words, position words, etc. 

I think these are great for language development in toddlers. For about $40 you get 12 of these. I feel like I'm going to say this a lot on this blog, but I really think these would be an amazing Christmas or Birthday gift.

I'll leave you with a little video of my Billy Ray Cyrus Baby in mismatched pajamas. In this video she was 16 months. It is hard to tell, but she starts out "reading" a page that had a story, then she breaks into singing when she turns to the page with a song. 

I hope you all check out these awesome little magazines!

Our Favorite Potty Training Books

I originally posted this on my other blog before deciding to consolidate....When I wrote this originally, we had not potty trained. I'm pleased to say that we've now survived potty training our oldest, and these books still remain some of our favorites. ;-)  The rest of the post is still written from our pre-training perspective! 

P is for Potty

Elmo's little potty book provides lots and lots of flaps to lift, which is fun. Caroline has read this book more than any of the others, and I'm glad because it has been my favorite, too. A few reasons why...

-The detailed pictures can allow you to practice identifying TONS of other day to day objects. Lots of things to practice describing under the pictures.

- Albie has an accident in the book, and he isn't shamed. I want her to be aware that accidents happen.

-Elmo appears to be fully potty trained and is successful.

-Baby Jo Jo still wears diapers, and changing her diaper is part of the book. Shows contrast between babies who need diapers, kids who are learning, and kids like Elmo who have pretty much mastered it all.

A Potty for Me (Karen Katz)

Like many Karen Katz books, this book has flaps. It also rhymes, which kids always love. Like the Elmo book, this one also describes having an accident and trying again.

Big Girl Panties

Oh y'all. I hesitate to even post this one, because it says "panties" so.many.times. And, I know what a strong aversion many people have to that word. I get it. It's not my favorite either. However, this book has probably made her more excited about potty training than any of the others. She asks to where the said article of clothing at least 6 times per day. So, if you're looking to pump them up, then this book is great. It could also be a great white elephant gift, so do with it what you choose.

*For reference, I wanted to add that all of these books are board books.